Pearl Jam – Live on Two Legs
Posted by Sam on August 9th, 2010
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After spending most of the ’90s charting an independent course, Pearl Jam makes LIVE ON TWO LEGS its live debut after recording five studio albums. Recorded during a 1998 tour, TWO LEGS is an excellent representation of PJ’s mid-’90s material. The urgent “Corduroy” opens this record and from here, the band is firing on all cylinders. Eddie Vedder shreds his voice on the primal “Do The Evolution” but sounds almost bored as he introduces “Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town” before giving it as heartfelt reading as he did on the previous song “Daughter.”
Former Soundgarden drummer and longtime friend-of-the-band Matt Cameron fills in behind the excellent interplay of guitarists Mike McCready and Stone Gossard, particularly on “Even Flow,” a song that still sounds fresh despite being the oldest one in the set. NO CODE’s “Off He Goes” has an easy-going tempo and guitar phrasing reflecting the prior year spent recording and touring behind Neil Young. Young is given further props with a slightly turgid reading of his “F*ckin’ Up.” LIVE ON TWO LEGS doesn’t break any new ground, but does reverberate with a passion for music that burns deep within the soul of Pearl Jam.
Tracklisting
1. Corduroy (Live)
2. Given to Fly (Live)
3. Hail, Hail (Live)
4. Daughter (Live)
5. Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town (Live)
6. Untitled (Live)
7. Mfc (Live)
8. Go (Live)
9. Red Mosquito (Live)
10. Even Flow (Live)
11. Off He Goes (Live)
12. Nothingman (Live)
13. Do the Evolution (Live)
14. Better Man (Live)
15. Black (Live)
16. Fuckin’ Up (Live)
Professional Reviews
Entertainment Weekly (11/27/98, p.81) – “…Despite the band’s continuing self-importance and fuzzy-around-the-arrangments, this set of uptight anthems (`Corduroy,’ `Better Man,’ `Go’) packs a post-grunge wallop…” – Rating: A-
CMJ (12/21/98, p.24) – “…Lest these live versions come across as too faithful to the studio version, though, two Neil Young tributes….add an element of surprise and improvisation to an otherwise already impressive, rock-solid effort.”
Pearl Jam – Pearl Jam
Posted by Sam on August 9th, 2010
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PEARL JAM finds the ensemble sticking to a no-frills, riff-centered sound that’s bolstered by some of the quintet’s most engaging melodies since TEN and VS. Though much of the record is comprised of propulsive rock tunes (”World Wide Suicide,” “Comatose”) that feature impassioned performances from frontman Eddie Vedder and blistering lead lines from guitarist Mike McCready, tracks such as the chiming, Beatlesque “Parachutes” and the melancholy “Gone” showcase Pearl Jam’s range without resorting to unnecessary bells and whistles. Much in the way that U2 reignited its career with ALL THAT YOU CAN’T LEAVE BEHIND, this album finds Pearl Jam successfully going back to basics while still moving forward.
Tracklisting
1. Life Wasted
2. World Wide Suicide
3. Comatose
4. Severed Hand
5. Marker in the Sand
6. Parachutes
7. Unemployable
8. Big Wave
9. Gone
10. Wasted Reprise
11. Army Reserve
12. Come Back
13. Inside Job
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (p.55) – 4 stars out of 5 — “[A]s big and brash in fuzz and backbone as Led Zeppelin’s PRESENCE….The politics on PEARL JAM are not those or left but of engagement and responsibility.”
Rolling Stone (p.103) – Ranked #13 in Rolling Stone’s “The Top 50 Albums Of 2006″ — “These are songs about universal accountability and the still-revolutionary power of individual dissent.”
Entertainment Weekly (p.136) – “[T]hey stand and deliver on this belatedly eponymous barnstormer, the seriously hopped-up effort fans have been pining for since VITALOGY.” — Grade: B+
Kerrang (Magazine) (pp.46-47) – “Gossard and McCready’s molten guitars mesh electrifyingly for an opening brace of rockers shot-through with air-punch hooks and Eddie Vedder’s valiant howling-into-a-hurricane croon…”
Mojo (Publisher) (p.112) – 3 stars out of 5 — “[S]elf-titled with good reason: Pearl Jam sound reborn, vital. The first three tracks are full-tilt rockers…”
Pearl Jam – Ten
Posted by Sam on August 9th, 2010
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TEN, Pearl Jam’s debut album, was released less than a month before Nirvana’s NEVERMIND, and although it took longer to climb the pop charts it also hung around longer, eventually outselling its Seattle rival. Together, the two albums reinvigorated rock and roll, whose share of the pop marketplace had been slipping through the late 1980s. But while Nirvana’s bruising punk rock was an all-out assault on the classic-rock dinosaur, Pearl Jam’s accomplished hard rock was an attack from within the system. The drawn-out, bluesy guitar riffing and anthemic choruses that dominated TEN instantly gave away roots in the same popular hard rock and heavy metal that Nirvana was intent on crushing. Indeed, before forming Pearl Jam, guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament (who between them wrote most of the music on TEN) were the core of two ’70s-influenced metal bands, Green River and Mother Love Bone. But in place of the self-aggrandizing, larger-than-life singers that led most such bands, Gossard and Ament found Eddie Vedder, a ravage-voiced vocalist more apt to identify with the abused and misunderstood children he was singing about than with any other rock stars. When he exploded into one of TEN’s many memorable choruses, Vedder offered transcendence for the people who needed it most. The storyline of the album’s breakthrough single, “Jeremy,” was typically vague and elusive (despite a highly suggestive video), but the message was not. The meek and the misunderstood, Pearl Jam seemed to be saying, would rise and inherit the world, even if it was only a world of their own invention.
Tracklisting
1. Once
2. Even Flow
3. Alive
4. Why Go
5. Black
6. Jeremy
7. Oceans
8. Porch
9. Garden
10. Deep
11. Release
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (p.66) – 4 stars out of 5 — “‘Alive’ hits harder; ‘Black’ feels broader in scope; and Eddie Vedder’s soaring vocals on ‘Oceans’ shine brighter.”
Spin (9/99, p.136) – Ranked #32 in Spin Magazine’s “90 Greatest Albums of the ’90s.”
Spin (1/93) – Ranked #15 in Spin’s list of the 20 Best Albums Of 1991.
Q (12/99, p.74) – Included in Q Magazine’s “90 Best Albums Of The 1990s.”
Q (1/93, p.73) – Included in Q’s list of the 50 Best Albums Of 1992.
Q (3/92, p.79) – 4 Stars – Excellent – “…a raucous modern rock, spiked with infectious guitar motifs and powered with driving bass and drums…may well be the face of the 90’s metal…”
Village Voice (3/2/93, p.5) – Ranked #34 in the Village Voice’s list of the 40 Best Albums Of 1992.
Stereo Review (1/92, p.80) – Performance “Challenging” / Recording “Good” – “…the band sounds larger than life, producing a towering inferno of roaring guitars, monumental bass and drums, and from-the-gut vocals…the tunes here surge, ebb, and surge again…”
Kerrang (Magazine) (p.51) – “[T]hese songs are as touching today as the day they came out…”
Kerrang (Magazine) (p.52) – “With its nod to classic ’70s rock in the shotgun guitars and engaging Vedder’s ragged, back-to-the-wall fury dissecting a fractured family life anthem like ‘Alive’ and ‘Jeremy’ sound as relevant and impassioned today as they did on the original release.”
Q (Magazine) (p.123) – “The hit singles ‘Jeremy’ and ‘Alive’ wove serious lyrical subject matter to flurrying guitar solos and singer Eddie Vedder’s hectoring vocals…”
Q (Magazine) (p.114) – 4 stars out of 5 — “[With] classic songwriting that wasn’t afraid to wear its influences on its sleeve….The freewheeling guitars of ‘Even Flow’ and ‘Jeremy’ sounded vintage even then, so it’s no surprise that they’ve held up so well after all these years.”
Mojo (Publisher) (p.116) – 4 stars out of 5 — “TEN is a classic of the grunge era, its super-sized anthems and introspective mood pieces powerfully voiced by Eddie Vedder…”
Blender (Magazine) (p.64) – 5 stars out of 5 — “It’s an exhilarating punk howl….It’s a batch of outsider’s tales coursing with beefy swagger…”
Uncut (magazine) – 5 stars out of 5 — “It sounds great…from the inflammatory guitar intro to the momentous ‘Once’ to the final handsome drift of ‘Release,’ it’s a resplendent thing.”
Pearl Jam – Vs
Posted by Sam on July 24th, 2010
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There was a suffocating bleakness to much of VS. (in “Rats,” humans are compared most unfavorably to those animals) that would have dragged down a lesser rock band. But singer Eddie Vedder had the support of one of the most transcendent of all classic-rock bands, with a supple rhythm section and two creatively complicated guitarists equally at home with the thrashy pulse of “Go,” the delicate prettiness of “Elderly Woman…” (check out the layered, stereo guitar work there) and the new wave angularity of a song like “Glorified G.” It was serious, but also serious rock and roll.
Tracklisting
1. Go
2. Animal
3. Daughter
4. Glorified G
5. Dissident
6. W.M.A.
7. Blood
8. Rearviewmirror
9. Rats
10. Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town
11. Leash
12. Indifference
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (5/13/99, p.53) – Included in Rolling Stone’s “Essential Recordings of the 90’s.”
Rolling Stone (11/11/93, p.72) – 4.5 Stars (out of 5) – “…the g-word in Pearl Jam’s sound [on VS.] isn’t `grunge’ but `groove’….VS. isn’t a one-man show–it’s a group effort…”
Entertainment Weekly (10/29/93, p.72) – “…Eddie keeps getting Vedder….I’m particularly impressed by that 12-second scream he emits in `Blood’…” – Rating: B-
Q (1/94, p.82) – Included in Q’s list of `The 50 Best Albums Of 1993′ – “…a mature, progressive, marvelous new record…”
Melody Maker (1/1/94, p.76) – Ranked #4 in Melody Maker’s list of the “Albums Of The Year” for 1993 – “…about as great as classic American rock gets…”
Melody Maker (10/16/93, p.40) – “… a raw, festering wound of an album, a brilliant, relentless passion play…”
Village Voice (3/94, p.5) – Ranked #2 in the Village Voice’s 1993 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.
Village Voice (3/1/94, p.5) – Ranked #14 in the Village Voice’s 1993 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.
Pearl Jam – Vitalogy
Posted by Sam on July 20th, 2010
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Wider in scope than any 70mm film, VITALOGY is the album on which Pearl Jam demands that the pigeonholing cease and desist once and for all. Whether by throwing meatless bones at some blindly zealous fans, or by moving their sound out of the grunge-land that they once called home, Vedder & Co. present this 55-minute tour de force as a treatise to win over the alternative non-believers and drop the excess baggage of fame.
There’s nothing fancy to VITALOGY: no ACHTUNG BABY or OUT OF TIME-like transformations, no post-modern gimmickry, no Steve Albini sound. Nevertheless, VITALOGY is revolutionary by Pearl Jam standards because it presents a collection of actually crafted songs, and succeeds in spotlighting the band’s growing diversity.
The proof is all over the place: “Corduroy” is an honest-to-goodness pop song, disguised in Seattle garb; “Not For You” brings the band’s Crazy Horse fetish to the forefront, combining a folky melody with a ripping, electric arrangement; while “Bugs,” “Aye Davanita,” and “Hey Foxymophandlemama” are, respectively, an accordion-driven stomp, a raga-like instrumental, and a feedback-laden sound collage. All are delivered with such taste and assurance, that rather than sounding unnatural and forced, they only further illuminate Pearl Jam’s artistic strides. Each helps make VITALOGY a proud notch on the band’s growing musical belt.
Tracklisting
1. Last Exit
2. Spin the Black Circle
3. Not for You
4. Tremor Christ
5. Nothingman
6. Whipping
7. Pry, To
8. Corduroy
9. Bugs
10. Satan’s Bed
11. Better Man
12. Aye Davanita
13. Immortality
14. Hey Foxymophandlemama, That’s Me
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (5/13/99, p.55) – Included in Rolling Stone’s “Essential Recordings of the 90’s.”
Rolling Stone (12/15/94, pp.91-93) – 4 Stars – Excellent – “…it’s a wildly uneven and difficult record, sometimes maddening, sometimes ridiculous, often powerful…”
Spin (12/95, p.62) – Ranked #5 on Spin’s list of the `20 Best Albums Of ‘95.’
Entertainment Weekly (12/9/94, pp.72-74) – “…one seriously demented record…VITALOGY leaves an odd, unsettling aftertaste. You walk away from it energized, but wondering what price Eddie Vedder, and Pearl Jam, will ultimately pay for it…” – Rating: B+
Q (1/95, pp.248-249) – 4 Stars – Excellent – “…anything but the sound of a band stuck in a rut….It speaks volumes for Pearl Jam’s continuing creative acumen that they can respond so confidently to a new punk scene that has sprung up…as a reaction [to] the lumbering heaviosity …of the old grunge pioneers…”
Musician (1-2/95, p.71) – “…In 1994 rawness, unpredictability and artistic depth are rare….America’s most popular rock’n'roll band boasts all three attributes–and sounds damn fine to boot…”
Village Voice (2/28/95) – Ranked #25 in the Village Voice’s 1994 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.
Mojo (Publisher) (1/95, p.104) – “…VITALOGY is a deeply thought-out representation of what fame means, and the vision it describes is not pretty….[includes] themes of diverted passions, frustration and amorphous discontent…”
NME (Magazine) (12/24/94, p.23) – Ranked #40 on NME’s list of the `Top 50 Albums Of 1994.’
Pearl Jam – Backspacer
Posted by Aaron on October 25th, 2009
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Of all the bands to emerge from the early `90s grunge scene, Pearl Jam was easily the most consistently interesting and longest-lived. After several albums that found the group taking an increasingly experimental direction, the Seattle quintet returned to it’s straight ahead hard rock roots with 2006’s self-titled effort, but then, in 2009, surprised fans again with an album that was its catchiest-sounding effort up to that point. According to vocalist Eddie Vedder, the most of the new material was written prior to recording, which was a significant departure form the group’s usual in-studio jamming method of composition. The result is some of Peal Jam’s most focused and accessible work since the debut album TEN. The debut single “The Fixer” (written my drummer Matt Cameron) is a KISS-like bit of straight-up pop masquerading as hard rock, while “Just Breathe” is melancholy acoustic singer-songwriter music so sharply crafted it would fit well on an Jack Johnson album. Throughout, Pearl Jam performs with its trademark directness, with an earthy, cohesive sound that only veteran bands can deliver.
Tracklisting
1. Gonna See My Friend
2. Got Some
3. The Fixer
4. Johnny Guitar
5. Just Breathe
6. Amongst The Waves
7. Unthought Known
8. Supersonic
9. Speed Of Sound
10. Force Of Nature
11. The End
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (pp.73-74) – 4 stars out of 5 — “[W]ith the shortest, tightest, punkiest tunes they’ve ever banged out….Eddie Vedder’s heart-on-fire vocals are the main attraction, as always.”
Spin (p.76) – “The band hasn’t put together a trifecta this energized and from-the-gut in a decade…”
Billboard (p.52) – “The whole album has a pleasurable mix of lean, mean rock’n'roll and pensive ballads that reflect both the state of the world and the band’s place in it.”
Q (Magazine) (p.119) – 4 stars out of 5 — “[I]t’s largely characterised by joyous new wave-influenced rock’n'roll, and for the first time in their 19-year career, Pearl Jam actually sound — whisper it — fun.”
Paste (magazine) (p.50) – “Most of their new album’s first half alternates between gritty guitar-led jams and able pop-rock…”
Pearl Jam – Yield
Posted by Aaron on September 22nd, 2009
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Nay-sayers and trends be damned. Pearl Jam’s follow-up to 1996’s NO CODE continues down the path of aggressive rock and roll, existential musings and musical experimentation. This isn’t your older brother’s grunge. Opening with the hard-driving “Brain Of J,” YIELD goes from a punky swagger representing man’s arrogance in asserting his lofty place on the food chain (”Do The Evolution”) to a free jazz approach and a disembodied Vedder vocal questioning the meaning of life (”Push Me, Pull Me”).
Most of YIELD continues to ply the standard Pearl Jam sound: Vedder’s pained emoting, the interesting use of dynamics between McCready and Gossard’s guitars and solid rhythm-work from the Ament/Irons rhythm section. Rather than falling into the creative rut many huge bands succumb to, Pearl Jam’s music has instead developed its own identity while still walking the fringes of the unorthodox. Hence the inclusion of a weird, untitled percussive instrumental cut in Jack Irons’ home studio and an Eastern-flavored hidden track pointing towards the influence of the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.
“Do The Evolution” was nominated for the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance and Best Short Form Music Video. YIELD was nominated for the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Recording Package.
Tracklisting
1. Brain Of J
2. Faithfull
3. No Way
4. Given To Fly
5. Wishlist
6. Pilate
7. Do The Evolution
8. Red Bar
9. Mfc
10. Low Light
11. In Hiding
12. Push Me, Pull Me
13. All Those Yesterdays
14. Hummus
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (2/19/98, pp.55-56) – 4 Stars (out of 5) – “…even the rockers have an uncommonly easy touch that’s new to Pearl Jam….Vedder is singing more frankly about his life as an adult….shows that Pearl Jam have made the most out of growing up in public…”
Spin (3/98, p.129) – 8 (out of 10) – “…Part touchstone, part pariah, Pearl Jam have tried arty gestures; they’ve ostentatiously declined to rock; and now they’ve come back with an album full of gracefully ambivalent anthems. All commodities should be this unstable, and have this much blood pumping through them.”
Entertainment Weekly (2/6/98, pp.58-59) – “…an intermittently affecting album that veers between fiery garage rock and rootsy, acoustic-based ruminations. Perhaps mindful of their position as the last alt-rock ambassadors with any degree of clout, they’ve come up with their most cohesive album since their 1991 debut, TEN…” – Rating: B
NME (Magazine) (1/31/98, p.44) – 7 (out of 10) – “…Here’s where Pearl Jam put on their diverse boots and stomp across their bluesy roots, careering through various styles and pop-mongous strops…”
