Pearl Jam has the distinction of being the last band of its era that can still fill arenas, having survived the breakups (or worse) that sidelined peers such as Nirvana, the Smashing Pumpkins and Nine Inch Nails, and thriving despite long periods of inactivity, the lack of recent support from radio and MTV and the fact that after 15 years, the Seattle quintet has yet to top the commercial or artistic accomplishments of its multimillion-selling debut, "Ten." But Pearl Jam was always the most meat-and-potatoes group of the alternative movement -- with its classic-rock roots, it cites the Who as its model, though more generic arena-rockers like Grand Funk Railroad are closer to the mark -- and its last two albums, 2002's "Riot Act" and 2000's "Binaural," straddled the border between pedestrian and downright boring.
The group's first release in four years comes as a bit of a surprise, then: There are more signs of life in the best of these 13 tracks then on any release since 1998's "Yield." Eddie Vedder & Co. know it, too -- bands trying to trumpet a return to form on their eighth studio album always self-title such a disc -- though "Pearl Jam" is hardly the brave new rebirth being hyped by the musicians or their new major-label hosts at Clive Davis' J Records (so much for the mavericks who always dissed the corporate machine).
The album starts strong, with a number of high-octane rockers full of anger and energy. This is a band that has almost always been at its best when it's been moving the quickest, and Vedder's gruff-voiced howling, the rhythm section's insistent pulse and the two-guitar attack of Mike McCready and Stone Gossard prompt some enthusiastic head-banging on songs such as "Life Wasted," "World Wide Suicide," the ironically named "Comatose" and "Marker in the Sand." There isn't a single melody as memorably anthemic as those that powered "Evenflow," "Alive" or "Jeremy," but at least there are a couple of hummable bridges. And, as I said, things keep moving quickly.
Unfortunately, the album derails when it hits two obstacles the group easily could have removed. One is its enduring fondness for slow, soggy, cell-phones-in-the-air arena ballads, which dominate the second half courtesy of utterly forgettable numbers like "Gone," "Wasted Reprise," "Come Back" and "Inside Job." The other roadblock is and always will be the lyrics of Evanston native turned Southern California surfer dude Vedder, which range from obtusely impressionistic scrawling in the sophomore poetry notebook -- "Darkness comes in waves, tell me/Why invite it to stay?" he ponders in the midlife crisis ditty "Life Wasted" -- to annoyingly ultra-earnest, far-beyond-obvious political philosophizing.
"It's a shame to awake in a world of pain/What does it mean when a war has taken over," Vedder sings in "World Wide Suicide," while in "Marker in the Sand," he waxes even more anti-war-philosophical: "Now you got both sides/Claiming killing in God's name/But God is nowhere to be found, conveniently." Gotcha, and thanks for the geopolitical-sociological insights, Ed. But we just wish you'd rock more.
Last edited by Happy Tree Friend on Sun Apr 30, 2006 5:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 11:54 pm Posts: 454 Location: NY
Happy Tree Friend wrote:
Pearl Jam, "Pearl Jam" (J Records) **1/2
Pearl Jam has the distinction of being the last band of its era that can still fill arenas, having survived the breakups (or worse) that sidelined peers such as Nirvana, the Smashing Pumpkins and Nine Inch Nails, and thriving despite long periods of inactivity.
Right after this I thought, this guy is stupid. NIN is still one of the hardest tickets to come by, and they released an album last year. As far as I can rember, Trent Resnor never broke up with himself, and he never died either.
Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 5:24 am Posts: 37009 Location: In Missouri, they would (will) not let me be Gender: Female
kutfut wrote:
Happy Tree Friend wrote:
Pearl Jam, "Pearl Jam" (J Records) **1/2
Pearl Jam has the distinction of being the last band of its era that can still fill arenas, having survived the breakups (or worse) that sidelined peers such as Nirvana, the Smashing Pumpkins and Nine Inch Nails, and thriving despite long periods of inactivity.
Right after this I thought, this guy is stupid. NIN is still one of the hardest tickets to come by, and they released an album last year. As far as I can rember, Trent Resnor never broke up with himself, and he never died either.
This guy is a hack anyway you look at it. I remember some really stupid things he wrote about Bruce Springsteen as well. I would only read him for a laugh.
_________________ Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose Nothin' ain't worth nothin', but it's free
Unfortunately, the album derails when it hits two obstacles the group easily could have removed. One is its enduring fondness for slow, soggy, cell-phones-in-the-air arena ballads, which dominate the second half courtesy of utterly forgettable numbers like "Gone," "Wasted Reprise," "Come Back" and "Inside Job."
Good point, Jim. Black, Yellow Ledbetter, Indifference and Nothingman are terrible numbers that nobody likes. A poet and a scholar, sir.
But Pearl Jam was always the most meat-and-potatoes group of the alternative movement -- with its classic-rock roots, it cites the Who as its model, though more generic arena-rockers like Grand Funk Railroad are closer to the mark --
this is the most laughably inane thing I've ever seen anyone write about PJ
_________________ Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos
But Pearl Jam was always the most meat-and-potatoes group of the alternative movement -- with its classic-rock roots, it cites the Who as its model, though more generic arena-rockers like Grand Funk Railroad are closer to the mark --
this is the most laughably inane thing I've ever seen anyone write about PJ
I don't know. there's a lot of comeptition for that title.
_________________ "Better the occasional faults of a Government that lives in a spirit of charity than the consistent omissions of a Government frozen in the ice of its own indifference."--FDR
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 11:53 pm Posts: 2918 Location: Right next door to hell.
kutfut wrote:
Right after this I thought, this guy is stupid. NIN is still one of the hardest tickets to come by, and they released an album last year. As far as I can rember, Trent Resnor never broke up with himself, and he never died either.
Trent's been playing half-full arenas for the past year. Not sure what you're talking about.
_________________ There's just 2 hours left until you find me dead.
It is easy to hate this guy. "I wish you would rock more"? What do political- lyrics have to do with rocking? Has this guy ever heard the Clash? He was trying to hard to be negative and he made no sense. Knocking PJ for making some mellow songs and comparing everything to TEN is so fucking annoying.
I remember when Roskilde happened, he was the guy that said, "Well, it should give the band some fodder for the next album," which pissed a lot of people off. After the emails he received from Pearl Jam fans, I'm guessing he has an ax to grind now.
whatever.
_________________ i just want drive to the edge of the skies
or run until my lungs collapse
because this blank canvas stares at me
while ten thousand colors sit on my pallet
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