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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:09 pm 
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It was the best PJ album between 2000-2001. Beyond that :shake:

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:15 pm 
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Gods' Dice is a great song.

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:32 pm 
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Well, first off, Binaural was the first Pearl Jam album I ever bought (actually the first album I ever went out and bought), so it definetely has a sentimental value to me. I remember on the long bus rides into school listening to it over and over again. It's packed with so much information, both musically and lyrically, that it was incredible to just digest it over and over. It is probably one of the most diverse offerings of songs that Pearl Jam has ever had. Is it their best album? I don't think so, although I'd probably put it in my top 3. As others have said, there were some absolutely killer songs that were left out, and the fact that I can still say it's one of their best is a testament to the strength of most of the material on the album, despite a few missteps.

It's funny that Eddie apparently had writer's block on this album, because I think this album has his best lyrics. Evacuation, Light Years, Insignificance, Grievance, Sleight Of Hand, Parting Ways...despite personal thoughts on how good these songs are, I think the lyrics are all absolutely remarkable. He's political yet subtle, hopeful yet despairing, and he manages to be simple while still incorporating this brilliant imagery. You cannot get better than the words Eddie penned for Insignificance and Sleight Of Hand, I feel.

The songs that the others write are more mixed, but I think this is the album, along with Yield, that group songwriting worked and really worked well. Nothing As It Seems, Of The Girl, Rival; entirely penned by songwriters other than Eddie and the album would suffer if they were absent. Rival in particular I think is an incredible song, and it's too bad that they don't play it more often. So the band is on and Eddie is incredibly on. Insignificance is still his finest political song by a rather large margin. Light Years is gorgeous, Breakerfall starts the album with a walloping rush. It's just alot of quality. I agree that there are some tracks that are just okay, but even those have some interesting qualities and personalities to them. It's reminisicent of Vitalogy in the sense that it's a more demanding listen than most of their albums but ultimately extremely rewarding.


Last edited by digster on Sat Jun 13, 2009 4:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:37 pm 
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OT a little but just finished listening to it on headphones sitting in the sun, I'm left wondering is the guy in Given to fly the same guy we see in Sleight of hand? and which is before and which is after?

I know Springsteen has characters that come down through the years in his songs, I wonder is Ed doing this here..

sorry for the thread drift..

Binaural has some of my favourite artwork after No Code.

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:38 pm 
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How can you have two "first off"s?

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:39 pm 
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He's getting into it, leave him be :)

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:44 pm 
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Binaural means a lot of the same things to me. It was the first PJ album I bought new, and anticipated it's release. I got into the band right before Yield came out so when Yield rolled around I was still digesting the first 4 albums and didn't even buy it until a few months after it was released.

For a really funny story involving my first headphone listen of Binaural see this post:

viewtopic.php?p=2733313#p2733313

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:47 pm 
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Chud! I was lyin in the sun listening to Binaural today and got exactly the same fright!! I laughed and thought of your story :) Always forget that bits about to happen :)

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:51 pm 
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hahaha

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:56 pm 
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On the Binaural tour, i did Dublin, Glasgow, Manchester and Cardiff
got right center front for Glasgow (yeeeeewho!!)breakerfall..
Image

but my favourtie piece of merch was this..never used it, all blank pages, but it's still cool :))
Image

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:58 pm 
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My first show ever was 8/29/00 (boston (mansfield) 1) and my second was 8/30/00.

8/29/00 is still to this day probably my favorite Pearl Jam show that I attended.

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 4:01 pm 
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dimejinky99 wrote:
Well thought out, well written and well put...but wrong!!

:haha:

dimejinky99 wrote:
I reckon Gods Dice is the biggest retread they've ever done..it's hail hail's poor inept cousin, but other people love it.

Like I said before, I'm one of those fans that's supports the band no matter what. I love all their stuff. Pretty blindly. But if there is one song out there that made it to an album that deserves to be critziced and thrown out of the cannon... it's probably Gods' Dice. It's the only PJ song (save for Stupid Mop) that I really just don't listen to very often. Not my taste at all. But, as you say, to each their own.

dimejinky99 wrote:
It kind of is a ropey album as it stands but it could've been huge.

It certainly could have been better. And maybe someday it'll hit me in a new way. I will say that Binaural shines on vinyl. It's one of my least favorite overall, but it's one of my favorites to listen to on vinyl. :D something about the sound. The mood. Works better in that format. Still a chunky album, but I'll forgive it more easily on vinyl.

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 4:04 pm 
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and your thoughts on this?
OT a little but just finished listening to it on headphones sitting in the sun, I'm left wondering is the guy in Given to fly the same guy we see in Sleight of hand? and which is before and which is after?

I know Springsteen has characters that come down through the years in his songs, I wonder is Ed doing this here..

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 4:09 pm 
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dimejinky99 wrote:
and your thoughts on this?
OT a little but just finished listening to it on headphones sitting in the sun, I'm left wondering is the guy in Given to fly the same guy we see in Sleight of hand? and which is before and which is after?

I know Springsteen has characters that come down through the years in his songs, I wonder is Ed doing this here..

I don't really see Ed doing that. I mean, yeah we have mammason but I don't see recurring characters as fitting his style past the vitalogy album.

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 4:11 pm 
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cutuphalfdead wrote:
How can you have two "first off"s?


You can't. I have no idea what you're talking about. :D

My writing skills on message boards aren't always up to par.


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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 4:11 pm 
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digster wrote:
cutuphalfdead wrote:
How can you have two "first off"s?


You can't. I have no idea what you're talking about. :D

My writing skills on message boards aren't always up to par.

8)

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 5:05 pm 
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I'm not going to get in the debate on which was the best, but Binaural is the album where everything seemed to click.

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 6:00 pm 
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Breakerfall - One of my least favorite PJ songs. Terrible.
Gods' Dice - Better than Breakerfall, but still not that good.
Evacuation - I actually really like this one, but recognize that it isn't a great PJ tune.
Light Years - Yes. Great, great song.
NAIS - Great studio track. I don't think it works in concert.
Thin Air - I know this one isn't well liked, but I love it. Again though, like Evacuation, I realize this isn't a great PJ tune.
Insignificance - Not my favorite on the album, but probably the best song on it. It is great.
Of the Girl - Awesome concert opener, awesome tune!
Grievance - Great. Not overrated at all.
Rival - Pretty good.
SOH - Nice effort, great lyrics. I hate it, but not cuz it's bad, just not my thing.
Soon Forget - Most PJ albums have a track that should've been a B-side. This is Binaural's. I like it, but come on. All the other b-sides are better than this.
Parting Ways - My fav on the album. Great, great song.


Binaural, imo, is nowhere near best. The first 3 songs are very sub-par. That alone takes it out of contention. NAIS, Thin Air, and SOH are nice ideas, nice tries, but ultimately (to me) not songs PJ does particularly well. I think No Code was a more successful "experiment".

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 6:20 pm 
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Hafta disagree about NAIS live, it comes into its own live, really does..got it as an opener in 2000 in Cardiff..really works..i'll skip it on the album sometimes but i'm never disappointed to hear it live..Mike&Matt own it and it really takes flight.

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 Post subject: Re: Is Binaural the best PJ album?
PostPosted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 7:57 pm 
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cutuphalfdead wrote:
My first show ever was 8/29/00 (boston (mansfield) 1) and my second was 8/30/00.

8/29/00 is still to this day probably my favorite Pearl Jam show that I attended.


my first show is still my favourite as well. I think it's normal. I'm pretty sure nothing will ever come close to the feeling of that night.


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