How to destroy your sweater for under $20 in 2026

Written By Ian Cornelius

Left to Right: Todd, Ian, Rich, Mike

Photos by Helen Merz Photography

Come to a Thousand Pound Keg show.

Destroying your sweater in 2026 does not have to come at great cost. Thousand Pound Keg—colloquially called TPK by their fans—will do it for a small fee. Just a $10 cover charge (plus beers) is enough for your sweater to be ripped to shreds, revealing your Superman skivvies to the world.

In early January, TPK debuted a one-hour set of their favorite Weezer songs, entertaining the masses with radio staples like “Buddy Holly” and “Hash Pipe,” while tickling the ride-or-die Weezer nerds with B-sides and deep cuts like “Holiday” and “Pink Triangle.”

So why now? Weezer is still a touring band—why bother (wink)? Weezer was formed in 1992, when frontman Rivers Cuomo was just 22 years old. The Blue Album dropped in 1994, delivering era-defining hits like “Undone - The Sweater Song” and “Say It Ain’t So.” While Weezer is still releasing new music, the vibe is just…different. There are really only two choices for your favorite Weezer album: Blue or Pinkerton. Some people disagree—famously, as seen in this SNL sketch.

That’s also why we keep getting requests to play Toto’s “Africa.” Will it make the setlist? You’ll have to come out to a show and see. Either way, Thousand Pound Keg exists to keep 90s and early-2000s nostalgia alive, and there are few bands more deserving of that treatment than Weezer.

Todd with the Gibson Flying V

Sweeney’s—a long-established Irish pub and nightclub in Northeast Philadelphia—hosted TPK alongside up-and-coming North Jersey bands Start From Something and Letters To Amelia for an afternoon rock fest. Special thanks to Elena Brokus for setting up and promoting the show.

Start From Something delivered a mix of hard-hitting originals and punk-grunge staples like Nirvana’s “Drain You” and The Runaways’ “Cherry Bomb.” Their lead vocalist left absolutely everything on the stage with Paramore’s “All I Wanted”—you can see exactly what I mean in this video.

 
 

Start From Something playing All I Wanted

Letters To Amelia brought an alt-metal edge to the room, pairing flowing melodic vocals with equally impressive death growls. Deftones’ “7 Words” cranked the energy level up to 11. Their set even included some improvised metal—the sheer honesty of the jam was clearly well received by the crowd. I’m hoping they end up recording that one in the studio.

Letter To Amelia’s death growl

With a crowd of over 100, the live music room at Sweeney’s was packed with patrons hungry for 90s flannel nerd grunge.

This is the official Weezer genre.

TPK hit the stage and kicked things off with a simple instruction: “Grab a beer, grab a friend, and grab your fuckin’ hash pipe!” With little to no technical issues, the show went off without a hitch.

Rich on drums

The funny thing about a Weezer show is that sometimes all people really want to hear is Metallica. They yearn for the metal. The Black Album made a surprise appearance as TPK played “Enter Sandman,” earning rave reviews after the show.

Will we one day evolve into a Metallica tribute band? And if (when) we do—should we add just one Weezer song to the set?

If you missed the sweater destruction the first time around, we’ll be doing it again. Thousand Pound Keg returns to Sweeney’s on Thursday, March 5th. Same room, same beers, same irresponsible devotion to Weezer. Come early, stay loud, and dress accordingly.

Technicolor photos from the show

Ian Cornelius