Songs from the Black Hole is an unfinished album by American rock band Weezer recorded between 1994 and 1996. Intended to follow Weezer's 1994 self-titled debut album, it was to be a rock opera that expressed songwriter Rivers Cuomo's mixed feelings about rock-and-roll success. Its characters were to be voiced by members of Weezer, plus guest vocalists Rachel Haden (of That Dog and the Rentals) and Joan Wasser (of the Dambuilders). Cuomo recorded demos for Songs from the Black Hole over Christmas 1994, and Weezer held recording sessions over the following year. In late 1995, Cuomo enrolled at Harvard University, where his songwriting became darker and more confessional. The Black Hole concept was abandoned, and Weezer's second album became Pinkerton (1996), including some songs once intended for Songs from the Black Hole. Two tracks, "I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams" and "Devotion", were released as Pinkerton B-sides. Demos, lyrics and sheet music were released on Cuomo's compilations Alone (2007), Alone II (2008), and Alone III (2011), and on the 2010 Pinkerton reissue. The songs received positive reviews, and Rolling Stone described Songs from the Black Hole as a "lost mythical masterpiece". Background Weezer's self-titled debut album was released in May 1994. It was certified platinum in January 1995 for sales of over one million. Songwriter Rivers Cuomo said the success "stirred up a lot of mixed feelings in me – 'Yay, I'm happy' as well as 'I'm not sure this is the life I want to lead'." He developed an inferiority complex about rock music, feeling his songs were "simplistic and silly", and wanted to write "complex, intense, beautiful" music instead. Touring with Weezer, Cuomo listened to the operas Aida (1871) and Madama Butterfly (1904), the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar (1970), and the musical Les Misérables (1980). Inspired by how these works married music and narrative, he decided to write a rock opera to explore his feelings about relationships, fame, and life as a touring musician. Concept Songs From the Black Hole was to be a science-fiction rock opera with tracks that segued seamlessly, ending with a coda that revisited the album's major musical themes. The characters were to be voiced by Cuomo, guitarist Brian Bell, bassist Matt Sharp, and Weezer collaborator Karl Koch, along with guest vocalists Rachel Haden of That Dog and the Rentals, and Joan Wasser of the Dambuilders. In 2126, the spaceship