CD Odyssey Disc 1755: Pearl Jam

I’m tired and really want to just couch surf and watch the Olympics until I fall asleep. However, I am ready to move on and the rules say that’s not possible until I write the review. Rules are rules, monkey! Also, music is the best!

Disc 1755 is…. Dark Matter

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 2024

What’s up with the Cover? The Eye of Sauron, if the Dark Lord of Mordor was a math nerd.

Alternatively, this could be an early example of an incandescent light bulb if it were powered by…the dark forces of the One Ring of Power!

OK, OK. Maybe it is just a laser light show at a perfectly ordinary rock concert where the lead singer is…the Mouth of Sauron!

Hey, don’t blame me. Blame this cover. And maybe those cable movie channel guys who put the Lord of the Rings movies on constant rotation.

How I Came To Know It: I’m a longtime fan of the band, and tend to buy their records when they release them.

How It Stacks Up: I have 13 Pearl Jam albums. This likely means I should hire a hobbit burglar for good luck. Not counting the hobbit, I rank “Dark Matter” at #10, displacing 2020’s “Gigaton” in the process. Here’s the full list, since I have once again reviewed the full collection.

Also, an update – it was brought to my attention that I may have underrated their eponymous “Avocado” record. I have gone back, checked the tape and upon further review…I agree. I’ve moved it up one spot:

1. Yield: 5 stars (reviewed at Disc 464)
2. Ten: 5 stars (reviewed at Disc 153)
3. Vs.: 5 stars (reviewed at Disc 46)
4. Riot Act: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 1113)
5. Lost Dogs: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 109)
6. Vitalogy: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 457)
7. Self-Titled: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 327)
8. Lightning Bolt: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 972)
9. No Code: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 805)
10. Dark Matter: 3 stars (reviewed right here)
11. Gigaton: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 1435)
12. Backspacer: 2 stars (reviewed at Disc 45)
13. Binaural: 2 stars (reviewed at Disc 1478)

Ratings: 3 stars

I’ll be honest – I wasn’t in the mood for Pearl Jam when I rolled this album. I knew I liked “Dark Matter” on my first listen, and had high hopes for rounds two, three and beyond, but I just wasn’t feeling the grunge this week. For all that, the record was able to win me over and establish its place as worthy in the crowded field of excellence that is the career of Pearl Jam.

“Dark Matter” is very much a return to the old ways, and sounds more like Pearl Jam in their mid-career, minus some of the weirder experimentation they used to throw in. I was never a big fan of all the crazy left turns in their music, and preferred when they just hit a groove and rocked out. In that way, “Dark Matter” did not disappoint, finding the middle of the road in Pearl Jam’s classic grunge-groove, and riding it right down the centre line. You shouldn’t expect something new and creatively different on this record, but what they do they do very well, once again.

Eddie Vedder’s vocals have held up well against Father Time even as he closes in on sixty. That signature back of the throat rock croon – often imitated, never matched – remains the star of the show. He no longer blows the doors off, but he’s more of a veteran on how to use it now, relying a bit more on phrasing to land the emotional gravitas than just raw power.

“Dark Matter” is a great driving record, with lots of up-tempo groove, with a layered production that lets you surf the wave equally well no matter where in the mix your ear decides to latch on.

The songwriting is solid throughout. I admit I didn’t dive into the lyrics in that deep way that a Pearl Jam song requires. Sure Vedder’s emotional stream-of-consciousness can sometimes leave you confused, but that’s part of the journey. Instead, to my shame, I skated across the top a bit, but when I did dive in on some of the better tracks like “Wreckage” and “Scared of Fear,” I was not disappointed.

They also get their funk shoes on, with the title track having a steel spring like reverb that makes you want to take corners too fast on a motorcycle, or maybe go hang-gliding. Dangerously close to out of control, but holding one through sheer centrifugal force and a few well-placed melodic up-drafts.

Despite this album being squarely in the centre of their sound, they manage to put out feelers into other styles. “Running” is punk adjacent, screeching and clawing away with wild abandon and “Something Special” has a bit of alt-country in its bones that made me want to hear it re-recorded with some steel guitar. Sadly, the boys stick with the rock and the roll, but it is still good.

We’ve become a bit spoiled by Pearl Jam’s greatness over the years, and it makes it easy to affect a yawn when they deliver a great song, but I encourage listeners to take “Dark Matter” on its own merits as much as you can. Don’t be that dick who goes on about how you prefer their earlier records. We all like those records and liking them to the exclusion of anything that comes after doesn’t make you special in the least. Branch out and give this new experience a listen or two. It’s worth it.

Best tracks:  Scared of Fear, Wreckage, Dark Matter, Setting Sun

CD Odyssey Disc 1478: Pearl Jam

What’s this, a second review in as many days? That’s right, Gentle Reader, I sat out on the deck this late spring afternoon and just listened to the end of this next album. I did this in part so I could move on from it as soon as possible.

Disc 1478 is…. Binaural

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 2000

What’s up with the Cover? Some sort of eye reflection? Which is weird, because given the album title I was more expecting something to do with the ears.

How I Came To Know It: I’ve been a Pearl Jam fan for a long time. I missed this record when it first came out, but I eventually came back to it. Years ago I used to work with someone who absolutely loved both “No Code” and “Binaural” which also influenced me to round out the collection. She was a lovely person, but wrong in her affection for those two records. This is particularly true for “Binaural”. Keep reading to learn why.

How It Stacks Up: I have 12 Pearl Jam albums, which is pretty much all of them, I believe. Of those 12, “Binaural” comes in dead last.

1. Yield: 5 stars (reviewed at Disc 464)
2. Ten: 5 stars (reviewed at Disc 153)
3. Vs.: 5 stars (reviewed at Disc 46)
4. Riot Act: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 1113)
5. Lost Dogs: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 109)
6. Vitalogy: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 457)
7. Lightning Bolt: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 972)
8. Self-Titled: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 327)
9. No Code: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 805)
10. Gigaton: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 1435)
11. Backspacer: 2 stars (reviewed at Disc 45)
12. Binaural: 2 stars (reviewed right here)

Ratings: 2 stars

Imagine if Vitalogy (Disc 457) had all of its weird and pointless experimentation like “Hey Foxymophandlemama, That’s Me” but none of the awesome tunes like “Nothingman” and you’ll have a good idea of what to expect with “Binaural.” This record bangs, crashes and thrashes about, but there isn’t much to show for all that effort by the end.

Sure it has that signature Pearl Jam groove, and the boys can play, but there isn’t much to hang your hat on. The songs blend one into another in a way that left me having a hard time separating one from the other when it ended. Even Eddie Vedder, who is usually a high point of any Pearl Jam record, is set back in the mix in a way that does little to show off one of rock and roll’s great voices.

It isn’t all bad. “Light Years” has an atmospheric appeal where Vedder utilizes his head voice to good effect and “Thin Air” has a lovely romantic croon. However, they aren’t so compelling that they draw my attention back to the record very often. When I do put it on, I quickly get fidgety and want to move on to something else – which is exactly what led me to this early review.

Balanced off against these songs you get things like “Rival,” which starts with the growls of an overexcited dog that made me feel uncomfortable but without purpose, followed by a lurching guitar lick.

“Soon Forget” showcases the beginnings of Eddie Vedder’s obsession with the ukulele and it is OK, but if you want to hear his best work with that instrument you are better off listening to his 2011 solo album “Ukulele Songs” (Disc 1229) where that is all he does.

My experience is even more surprising given how the record is sandwiched between two of my favourite Pearl Jam records, 1998’s “Yield” (#1) and 2002’s “Riot Act” (#4). Those two records are both brilliant, but somehow the band lost the plot on “Binaural.” All the ingredients are there, but it doesn’t quite come together.

The album’s final song is “Parting Ways,” which rambles around for about four minutes but doesn’t end for another three. Most of that last bit is dead air, but the final thirty seconds features echoing typewriter keys that are clearly not typing anything important. It was a helpful experience though, because it strengthened my own resolve to part ways as well – with the record. I love Pearl Jam, and they’ve made some of my favourite rock records ever. Sadly, “Binaural” is not one of them.

Best tracks: Light Years, Thin Air

CD Odyssey Disc 1435: Pearl Jam

Greetings, gentle reader! I am officially on vacation. Like most people right now, my plans include doing nothing, going nowhere, and seeing no one. Good times.

Disc 1435 is…. Gigaton

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 2020

What’s up with the Cover?  A cliff face with water spilling off of it. Maybe a melting glacier? It is hard to tell with that reflective finish they’ve coated it with. There is also an EKG heartbeat line (ambitiously referred to in the liner notes as a “font”) across the top of the cover for no apparent reason. As covers go this one is a cover.

How I Came To Know It: I’m a longtime fan of Pearl Jam, so I was just trying out their new record and hoping for the best.

How It Stacks Up: I have twelve Pearl Jam albums. Of the twelve, “Gigaton” comes in at #10. Scoring 10 is often a good thing, but not this time.

Ratings: 3 stars

When you’ve been successful for as long as Pearl Jam has, you start taking on the qualities of super groups like Them Crooked Vultures or Queens of the Stone Age. That usually means a bit more bombast and a whole lot of production (there being no need to pinch pennies or monitor studio time). Such is the case with Pearl Jam’s, “Gigaton” which shows both promise and excess in equal measure.

“Gigaton” is Pearl Jam’s first album in seven years (their last was 2013’s “Lightning Bolt”). “Lightning Bolt” had more range and held my interest a lot more strongly than “Gigaton,” which is solid but not innovative. Pearl Jam rocks out and plays tight and with great energy that belies their age, but at few points to do they paint outside the lines.

Vedder’s vocals have held up well over the years and his powerful back of the throat singing style continues to put pleasant vibrations in your backbone. Many have tried to emulate Vedder’s style over the years, often with disastrous results (I’m looking at you Scott Stapp) but there’s only one Eddie Vedder. “Gigaton” doesn’t give Vedder any legendary moments, but even a regular Vedder performance is worth the price of admission.

The coolest tune on the record is easily “Dance of the Clairvoyants.” It features a very interesting shift between an almost techno bass lick and a more traditional rock croon B section. Also, how could any song called “Dance of the Clairvoyants” not be good? That’s a dance I want to attend – so long as everyone promises not to tell me my future. Then again, if they said nothing but just regarded me sadly, would that be worse? I dunno. I only came to this clairvoyant convention for the dancing. But I digress…

Lyrically, I had a hard time getting into this record. Part of that were all the layers of production. The band is good enough to make it all work, but the record felt more about the groove than the stories. “Superblood Wolfmoon” has lyrics that are every bit as ridiculous as the song’s title would imply, and not in a good way. Pearl Jam has also continued in their long tradition of printing the lyrics in the most indecipherable font possible, providing further disincentive to learn more.

The one notable standout lyrically was “Seven O’clock” which is a beautiful and sparse tune that showcases Vedder at his mournful best. There are some meandering guitar bits in the background from Mike McCready and/or Stone Gossard (I’m never sure) but they suit the song well and give it a bit of that deep ocean feel that is a signature quality of many good Pearl Jam songs.

It is followed up by “Never Destination” which has the band returning to its frantic, “wouldn’t you rather be driving to this?” sound. Yes I would, but if I’m being honest, there are other songs I’d rather be driving to.

The album’s final third gets a bit quieter, and I enjoyed the slow soak it provided my ears. “Retrograde” is the standout here, but the sleepy and saccharine lullaby “Buckle Up” is to be avoided. I get that they are trying to juxtapose a tragic story with a gentle tune, but it failed to draw me in sufficiently to learn more.

If you already love Pearl Jam (and by love I mean you didn’t stop listening to them in 1994) then you should check “Gigaton” out. I think you’ll like it. If you don’t already love them, start with a classic like “Yield” or “Ten” and work your way in.

Best tracks: Dance of the Clairvoyants, Seven O’clock, Retrograde

CD Odyssey Disc 1113: Pearl Jam

I had an unexpected extra day with this album, but fortunately all it did was make me appreciate it more.

Disc 1113 is… Riot Act

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 2002

What’s up with the Cover? The King and Queen of the Ash Heap hold court. The King really ought to give up smoking – he’s looking awful thin.

How I Came To Know It: I saw the video for “I Am Mine” and I thought it was a good song. Since this was in the days before Youtube I then took a leap of faith the rest of the album would also be good.

How It Stacks Up:  I have 11 Pearl Jam albums and Riot Act is one of my favourites. I’ll put it in at…fourth.

Ratings: 4 stars

I’ll always remember “Riot Act” as the album that reinvigorated my interest in Pearl Jam after having forgotten them for many years. Whether it was having enough separation from their early career, just being ready to return to this style of music or some excellence intrinsic in the record itself, “Riot Act” brought me back to Pearl Jam and I’ve never left since.

This personal connection to the album could make it difficult to see it objectively, but I think enough time has passed (15 years) that I can once again appreciate the record on its own merits.

There is a lot to appreciate. “Riot Act” is a sonic soup, layering instruments and production on top of each other like the musical equivalent of plaid, sometimes appearing stark, sometimes saturated with multiple influences and sometimes being something between the two.

In short, the album is a sonic smorgasbord, with songs that are quiet and introspective, songs that are walls of sound and mid-range traditional rock songs, all grounded in Pearl Jam’s frantic style and Eddie Vedder’s powerful rock vibrato.

I overplayed this album when I first bought it and on my first listen it felt a bit overly eager and unfocused, but midway through I found my feet, inspired by the album doing the same. It is an album that you have to surrender yourself to in order to fully appreciate it. Or as Vedder sings on “Cropduster”:

“Everyone is practicing,
But this world's an accident.
I was the fool because I thought

I thought the world
Turns out the world thought me.”

Or in other words, if you think you’re the center of the universe, you’re not – and that’s OK.

The song that grabbed me most – and brought me back into the Pearl Jam fold to stay – is “I Am Mine.” This is a song that is an existential anthem, with Vedder half-singing, half-preaching as he drops a lyrical sermon on top of the heavy reverb of Stone Gossard’s atmospheric guitar. The lyrics speak to my existential soul, the lines:

“I know I was born and I know that I'll die

The in between is mine

I am mine”

Are the most self-affirming stuff since Vedder belted out “I’m still alive” on the band’s debut record over ten years earlier.

Immediately following “I Am Mine” we are gifted the other side of Vedder. On “Thumbing My Way” he is the doubting soul who seems lost and yet imbued with a supernal instinct to find just the right ride to catch to get himself right. “Thumbing My Way” still has a fair bit of resonance and production, but the band keeps the arrangement stark and simple, letting the combination of frailty and self-assurance soak in. This is a song that tells you it is OK to not feel certain, but still feel comfortable in that uncertainty.

Even tracks with less direction, like the one minute tribal chant that is “Arc” work because Vedder fully commits himself to the moment. It isn’t the greatest moment on the album, but it is delivered with enough honesty that it adds nuance to the experience as a whole.

There are moments I wanted to be better. “Love Boat Captain” had a beautiful rising song construction that should be better, but falls short on some of Vedder’s lyrics. He is a raw poet by nature, but sometimes can be too clever by half. Fortunately the tune is so powerful, that it is easy to overlook and besides, who doesn’t love a song that appeals to our better natures and calls for a better understanding of love.

At 15 songs and 54 minutes the album is a smidge too long but there is nothing so terrible that it ruins it and plenty of good stuff along the way to buoy the experience.

“Riot Act” is an album from a band that is comfortable in their own skin, willing to explore a bit in finding themselves all the while knowing that as Buckaroo Bonsai once said, “Wherever you go……there you are.”

Best tracks: Cropduster, I Am Mine, Thumbing My Way, You Are, Green Disease, All or None

CD Odyssey Disc 972: Pearl Jam

After thinking this season’s round of the plague missed me, last night I came down with something hard. It ain’t good, so let’s get this review out of my system while I can still (sort of) function.

For the second straight review, the Odyssey has landed on an album from 2013. For those who like statistics, this is my fourteenth review of an album released in 2013. So far they have averaged 3.3 stars.

Apologies – I’ve been working with numbers a lot at work lately.

Disc 972 is…Lightning Bolt

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 2013

What’s up with the Cover? Some sort of infographic? Maybe a riddle embedded in pictograms? I’m going to interpret this one as “Playing music at night is like a lightning bolt to the eye!” I love music at night, but I don’t think I would enjoy a lightning bolt to the eye. This leaves me in quite a quandary.

How I Came To Know It: I have been a Pearl Jam fan for a long time, and this was just me buying their latest album when it came out.

How It Stacks Up:  I have 11 Pearl Jam albums. “Lightning Bolt” is pretty solid, but I like those other records a lot as well. I’ll put it 7^th, displacing their 2006 self-titled album from that spot in the process. Still bottom half, but respectable. In many ways it is consistently better than “Vitalogy” but because that album has a few absolute classics, I’m going to give it the slight edge for 6^th.

Ratings: 3 stars but almost 4

After 2009’s “Back Spacer” (reviewed back at Disc 45) was such a big disappointment, I was pretty nervous about buying their next release. I’d only heard two singles off of it, and only liked one of them. Still, Pearl Jam had given me so much happiness over the years that I decided to give them a chance. They did not disappoint.

“Lightning Bolt” is a return to form in a big way and a reminder on why Pearl Jam is one of rock and roll’s great enduring bands.

The production is layered, but never interferes with the song nor sounds busy. Both McCready and Gossard sound powerful and rejuvenated on guitar and if Eddie Vedder’s signature voice has lost anything over the years, it hasn’t been much. The album consistently rocks out and has an energy that is – dare I say it? – electric.

The record opens guns-blazing, with “Getaway” a song that feels like a throwback to nineties Pearl Jam: full of restless energy, soaring melodies and more than a little groove around the edges. This should have been the single for the album but band went with “Mind Your Manners” instead, maybe because it is a bit more punk?

“My Father’s Son” is a song about blaming your less-than-ideal father whenever you screw up. The song walks the fine line of recognizing you gotta own your decisions in this world, and claim your own shadow even as you try to step out of someone else's. The frustration and self-loathing of the song is real and powerful, and while daddy issues have been so done, Vedder manages to add a fine entry to the canon.

“Sirens” is a slow love song with an ambient energy that slowly builds as it progresses. The song is half apology and half plea to stick with it one more time and work to make it better. Vedder’s vocal here is the rock equivalent of soulful crooner, and his deep sense of romanticism shines through even in a song where he is essentially admitting to being an over-analyzing jerk.

The record ends with “Future Days,” another love song, this one the perfect book end to the unsteady ground of “Sirens.” If “Sirens” is power and majesty wrapped around frailty, then “Future Days” is stark production wrapped around strength and certainty. First piano, then guitar take their turn playing solemnly under Vedder’s trademark croon. Listening to Vedder sing:

“I believe

And I believe ‘cause I can see

Our future days

Days of you and me.”

You will be convinced there is no hurricane, cyclone or demon - and the song references all three - that is powerful enough to cleave a man from the girl he’s meant to be with. The sirens can’t call you to the rocks if you hold each other back.

Listening to this song I found myself thinking fondly of all those lovers out there for whom this is “their’ song. It won’t be many people – that kind of romantic song commitment made when you're young, and “Lightning Bolt” is an album that is likely getting listened to by a lot of folks who selected “their” song long ago. It’s a nice thought though, and as romantic a song as you’ll hear, young or old.

Back at Disc 651 I marveled that Soundgarden was able to come back so strong so late in their career with the amazing “King Animal.” To see grunge’s other surviving elder statesman match that effort with “Lightning Bolt” is a reminder of just how lucky we’ve been to have these bands in our lives for the past quarter century.

Best tracks: Getaway, My Father’s Son, Sirens, Swallowed Whole Future Days

CD Odyssey Disc 805: Pearl Jam

Crazily, it has been almost three years to the day since I last reviewed an album by this next band. This is a bummer, because I love these guys.

Disc 805 is….No Code

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 1996

What’s up with the Cover? A whole lot of nothing. As in, a ton of images evoking mouths and eyes and noses (or that are actually mouths and eyes and noses) thrown into a jumble. I know the album is called “No Code” so maybe that’s the point. If this cover actually has a code I wouldn’t know, because it is so artistically uninspiring I could care less to decipher it.

How I Came To Know It: I had taken a break from Pearl Jam but when “Riot Act” came out in 2002 I had a resurgence of interest. I then realized I had missed three albums between it and 1994’s “Vitalogy.” “No Code” was one of those albums.

How It Stacks Up:  I have 11 Pearl Jam albums, which is all of them. Of the 11 I like “No Code” plenty but it is not my favourite. I’ll put it 8^th.

Ratings: 3 stars

Years ago I worked with a woman who was a figure skater and a Pearl Jam fan. She was a great coworker and a lot of other cool things besides but for the sake of brevity, let’s stick with the skating and the music.

When I found these facts out I remarked (in my opinionated manner) that figure skating was OK by me, but I didn’t think much of ice dancing, and as far as Pearl Jam went I liked pretty much everything they’d ever done with the exception of “No Code” and “Binaural.” Turns out she was an ice dancer, and those albums happened to be her two favourites. Oops.

Today I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed “No Code.” I’ll take back most of the unkind things I said about it fifteen years ago. My vote’s still out on “Binaural.” As for ice dancing, the less said the better.

Back to “No Code,” which is Pearl Jam’s follow up to “Vitalogy” and suffers from some of the same lack of direction on that record.

It’s clear the band is trying to expand their sound, and for the most part I enjoyed the effort. In particular, the use of harmonica on “Smile” was a nice folksy touch to a grunge rock song. It is clear the boys had taken some notes while hanging out with Neil Young, and “Smile” is the kind of song he would have released at his heavier moments. This song is a wall of rock n’ roll, but it never loses its soaring melody. This is a lesson for heavier bands the world over: you don’t have to bury all the elements that make your song pretty just because you also want to make it loud.

My favourite song on the record is “Off He Goes” which is a soft song featuring Vedder crooning gently and a guitar strum that could have been a folk song in another life. I’m not sure what “Off He Goes” is about. Sometimes I think it is mental illness or anxiety, sometimes I think it’s about addiction and sometimes it just feels like someone who takes on more than they should and doesn’t know how to take a breath and relax. The decision to sing the song from the perspective of a close friend who comes off chill and relaxed helps underscore the anxiousness of the song’s subject. It is a smart and not immediately obvious musical choice.

Also great is “Present Tense” which is a slow builder of a song which is the sign of some of their later work on 2002’s “Riot Act.” It is a moody track that perfectly matches Eddie Vedder’s vibrato with a reverbing guitar, and puts both sounds in a very empty echo-filled production that makes the song’s message thrum with importance. That message is pretty simple:

"You can spend your time alone, re-digesting past regrets

Or you can come to terms and realize

You're the only one who can't forgive yourself

Makes much more sense

To live in the present tense"

As the Bourbon Tabernacle Choir would say, “make amends with yourself.” I also enjoy that the song’s final two minutes or so, which is a Who-like instrumental jam. This artful musical exit lets the earlier message soak in the juice of your lizard brain for a while before moving you along to the album’s next track.

“Mankind” feels like Pearl Jam feel like they’re channeling the Ramones and “Around the Bend” feels like a precursor to Vedder’s recent interest in Hawaiian music. They even do a spoken word poetry song about how the world loses its magic as we grow to adulthood (“I’m Open”). This stuff mostly works, although didn’t blow me away like I wanted it to.

One last negative note on the art direction, which in addition to having a stupid and pretentious cover has the song lyrics printed on a bunch of individual polaroid prints. These prints are stuffed where a perfectly useful CD booklet should be. I assume this is supposed to be an interesting way to package the album, but I found it annoying. Moreover the lyrics follow a time-honoured Pearl Jam tradition of being hand-written and hard to read. If you’re going to make it that hard to read, why include it at all?

Anyway, “No Code” is a good album by one of my favourite bands. It is way better than ice dancing, and the only reason it didn’t rate any higher is because I like all their work so much there was no room to move it any higher in the ranking.

Best tracks:  Who You Are, Smile, Off He Goes, Present Tense

CD Odyssey Disc 464: Pearl Jam

My weekend is off to a fine start: dinner out with our friend Sherrill, followed by mingling with yet more friends (and quite a few strangers) at the Victoria Art Gallery’s Urbanite event.  Urbanite used to be about 50-100 people dressing up in their best clothes and then going to check out a little bit of art, and do some people watching as well.

Now it has grown to an event about five times the size, but the premise is the same; get dressed up and check each other out.  There is still art, of course, and when you take the time to actually talk to some of the people there you find they’re a pretty interesting crowd with some great stories and insight.  It makes me wonder how I survived the vacuousness of nightclubs all those years in my twenties.

But on to music!

Disc 464 is…Yield

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 1998

What’s up with the Cover?  A yield sign on a highway with no merge lane.  This cover reminds us that sometimes we just have to yield to the road ahead.  If you look carefully, you can also see that the actual yield sign area is cut out, and if you open up the disc cover, you find the same sign, this time standing in an expanse of water.  Again, I like this reminder that sometimes you just gotta yield.  You can’t wrestle with the vastness of the ocean; the tide’s gonna come in regardless, and one day it’s gonna go out.  Try to enjoy the swim while you can.

How I Came To Know It:  This was just me drilling through Pearl Jam’s collection.  I think I had just bought Pearl Jam’s 2002 album “Riot Act” and was loving it so I started drilling backwards into some albums that I’d missed the first time around.

How It Stacks Up:  I have ten Pearl Jam albums.  I like them all in different ways, but I think Yield is the best of them all. Yes, even better than “Ten.”

Rating:  5 stars

Like Blue Oyster Cult, there is a snobbery around Pearl Jam’s discography that relates to their first three albums.  These people must never have taken the time to listen to the brilliance that is the band’s fifth studio album, “Yield.”  “Ten and “Vs." (reviewed way back at Disc 46) are great albums, but “Yield” is every bit their equal and a good deal happier to boot.

Like any band that has any longevity, Pearl Jam’s sound has evolved over the years.  Pearl Jam started their move toward a more polished sound on the much weaker fourth album, “Binaural,” but perfected their new direction on “Yield.” 

“Yield” is still reliant on strong melodies locked into a wall of sound and (of course) the masterful resonance of Eddie Vedder’s voice.  However, the album has the anger and moroseness in the earlier records stripped out, and replaced with some introspection and contemplation of how insignificant we are in the great scheme of things.  I love this new direction, and found the lyrics spoke a lot more strongly to me as a result.

“Wishlist” is the highlight on the lyrics front, as Vedder lays out a list of things and ideas he would like to be if he could transform.  The song begins with the line:

“I wish I were a neutron bomb

For once I could go off.”

Whether we like to admit it or not, a big part of a successful civilization is our ability to hold ourselves together in a world full of a lot of stresses we haven’t really evolved to handle.  In two lines Pearl Jam sums up the tension that is sometimes generated every day, in an appropriately apocalyptic metaphor.  Among my other favourite wishes later in the song are “I wish I was the full moon shining off a Camaro’s hood” and “I wish I was the souvenir you kept your house key on.”  Good things to be.

Like a lot of songs on “Yield” “Wishlist” is ultimately a positive song about the desire for connectivity, and the ability for all of us to rise above our condition.  “Faithfull” speaks to how we need to have each other’s backs in this world, and “Given to Fly” brings us through a transformation of a wandering martyr, stabbed but rising above to give his love away to all humanity.  (Lest you think this is entirely about Christ, a later song called “Do the Evolution” makes it very clear where Pearl Jam’s sympathies lie on this front). 

While not denominational, “Yield” consistently explores the same themes as many religions.  How we connect, and how (as a very wise man once advised me in a dream) we rise and fall as one.  This album makes me feel good about the human race, and that’s not always an easy sell amidst the many troubling headlines and petty conflicts that flood our psyche every day.

Musically, “Yield” is by far my favourite Pearl Jam album.  All the muddy parts of grunge that annoy me are stripped out and you can hear the beauty of these songs, anthemic, slowly building with just the right amount of guitar reverb to fill a room with energy, but never resorting to distortion or pointless tech-effects.  Sound effects are sprinkled in (like the plane or crashing wave in “Wishlist”) but they are always perfectly timed, and not overused.

Each layer of sound on this album just helps build the emotional tone.  The music fills you up, and gives you that wistful side to side sway to your head, like Stevie Wonder does when he’s really rocking out, only slower and more transcendent.

There are a couple of weaker tracks on ‘side two’ of “Yield” like “Push Me, Pull You” which is too clever by half, and while I love “All Those Yesterdays” the song is too long, and ends with a strange Indian music sound that is out of place stylistically with the rest of both the song and the record as a whole.  However, these moments are too short to detract from the overall impact.

After many of their earlier albums explored the more base elements of the human condition, I found it refreshing that on “Yield” Pearl Jam turn their attention to what we can aspire to as a species, and how that simple aspiration can have a very real effect at making us better individuals.  It certainly makes for some pretty inspirational music.  If you liked this band in the past, but stopped listening to them after “Vitalogy” here’s where you should re-start the conversation.

Best tracks:  Almost all of them, but in particular Faithfull, No Way, Given To Fly, Wishlist, Pilate, In Hiding, All Those Yesterdays

CD Odyssey Disc 457: Pearl Jam

In twenty-four hours I will either be elated or depressed.  That’s because tomorrow night is the first half of the regular season version of the Superbowl for me; the regular season meeting between the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills.

My hatred for the Buffalo Bills is deep and abiding; founding in the countless gridiron wars of division rivals, and cemented with two painful playoff losses (1990/91 and 1992/93) which denied Dan Marino two trips to the Superbowl.

On the plus side, the Bills lost both Superbowls, and two more besides.  Whatever happens tomorrow I have two words for Bills fans, “Wide right.”  Har har har.

Disc 457 is… Vitalogy 

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 1994

What’s up with the Cover?  It’s designed to look like a leather bound book of the same name, that was a sort of health and medicine journal from the turn of the century.

The original Vitalogy was full of all kinds of (now) hilariously dated advice, some of which is reprinted in the CD booklet.  Highlights include a warning against ‘self-pollution’ or ‘the unnatural and degrading vice of producing venereal excitement by the hand or other means’ and a suggestion that “if you desire children, fix your thoughts on beautiful things.’  Definitely mutually exclusive with the self-pollution, I’m guessing.

How I Came To Know It:  For the second week in a row, my friend and former roommate Greg gets the credit.  He introduced me to both Pearl Jam and this album.

How It Stacks Up:  I have ten Pearl Jam albums, which I think is all of them.  I currently have my eye on Eddie Vedder’s “Ukelele Songs” but haven’t bought it yet.  In terms of where “Vitalogy” fits in I’ll say 6^th, right after “Lost Dogs.” If you click that link, you’ll see I actually rated “Lost Dogs” as 6^th but having heard “Vitalogy” again I was less impressed than expected, and so there was room for “Lost Dogs” to move up.

Rating:  3 stars

“Vitalogy” is a story that could be called My Three Songs – like the Fred MacMurray TV show “My Three Sons” but without all the drawings of men’s loafers.  I call it that because this is an album that has three really great songs, but like the show, overall it doesn’t stand the test of time like you expect it will when experienced years later.

My Three Songs are so good that I often put them on my MP3 player, party mixes or homemade ‘best ofs’ (yeah – I sometimes make those for my personal amusement).   Over time, those three songs have come to overshadow the rest of the albm, which is still fondly remembered because of the amazing short list it has generated.  Sadly, when I went back to revisit the full recording I found the full length play didn’t hold up to the excitement of the highlight package.

Before I get into what I didn’t like, let’s give My Three Songs their due.  “Nothingman” is a beautiful five star rock ballad about a love lost.  Pearl Jam is always melodic but have that grunge propensity to bury those melodies sometimes too deep in a muddy sound.  “Nothingman” is stripped down, allowing Stone Gossard to show the softer side of his guitar and the band’s greatest asset – the voice of Eddie Vedder – soar over top of the arrangements.  Hearing Vedder croon “caught a bolt of lightning/cursed the day he let it go” is a welcome warning to appreciate how lucky I am to have someone in my life who lights up a room and makes my heart skip a beat (the lovely and talented Sheila) – and not to lose that.  That Pearl Jam can write a song that can sink you into the depression of such a loss (without actually having to lose it) is a fine piece of art indeed.

Its companion piece comes six tracks later with “Better Man,” a song about the other kind of marriage – the loveless kind.  Heartbreaking lyrics like “She lies and says she’s in love with him/Can’t find a better man” and “She practices her speech as she opens the door/she pretends to sleep as he looks her over.”  The tempo of “Better Man” speeds up in a way that “Nothingman” doesn’t, but it is the speed of desperation, not resolution. 

The third great song on the album is the poorly titled (but otherwise excellent) “Corduroy,” a song that captures the visceral energy of the band’s previous two albums.  I’m not sure what this song is about – maybe an encounter with a beggar aware of the painful ramifications of his own freedom, maybe just an attempt for Vedder to understand his audience.  Maybe it is even more personal than either of those things.  You can’t always tell what Pearl Jam is singing about, but the stream of consciousness in “Corduroy” still fills me with a deep rejection of all things false and artificial, even if I’m not sure what direction it is leading me.

Unfortunately, “Vitalogy” is just as likely to have self-indulgent tripe as it is to demonstrate greatness.  The song “Bugs,” which immediately follows “Corduroy” sounds like something composed on a broken harmonium by Adam Sandler’ character in “Punch Drunk Love” and fill me with the same impotent rage his character felt.

“Hey Foxymophandlemama, That’s Me” is almost eight minutes worth of pointless sampling and semi-musical groaning that is about as silly as the title of the song would suggest.  Nearer the end the song becomes almost listenable (Pearl Jam’s considerable talents as a band seemingly shining through their active efforts to wreck stuff) but it is too little too late.

The bulk of the record is neither amazing like “Nothingman” nor frustrating like “Hey Foxymop – whatever” and is solid straight ahead rock and roll very much in the style of their first album, “Ten” although with the exception of My Three Songs, not as good.  There is a good energy to songs like “Spin the Black Circle” “Satan’s Bed” and “Not For You” that hold up well, but not enough to fully pull this record into four star territory.

I appreciate that Pearl Jam is trying new things on this record.  In fact, one of my favourite things about this band is that they are willing to try new sounds and not be afraid to lose their audience.  I own ten of their albums, and play most of them quite often, so they’ve never lost me going in new directions – if anything I’ve enjoyed the journey through sound.  My Three Songs on their own are almost a five star record, but the misses are significant as well, and they have a deliberate pointlessness about them that is hard to forgive.  Take it all together and we have a record that on balance I must reluctantly give three stars, but bordering on four.

Best tracks:  Nothingman, Corduroy, Better Man

CD Odyssey Disc 327: Pearl Jam

This next album made me think about burger toppings, kitchen counters and surfing, among other things.

Disc 327 is...Pearl Jam (Self-Titled)

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 2006

What’s Up With The Cover?: Although this album is Pearl Jam's self-titled album it is often called "The Avocado Album". I like this cover, principally because the shade of blue I find very calming. I'm not such a fan of the avocado. I can't stand avocado, nor do I rock the guac. Sadly, like mushrooms, chefs seem to love avocado in various dishes (burgers, salads, pasta - you name it). On the plus side, it helps cut down my menu choices, which is just as well. But I digress...

How I Came To Know It: I am an avowed Pearl Jam fan, so I bought this album immediately upon its release. Sometimes there is no story beyond my compulsive need to complete the collection.

How It Stacks Up: I have ten Pearl Jam albums, which I believe is all of them. "The Avocado Album" is good, but far from my favourite. I'll say it is about 7th out of 10.

Rating: 3 stars.

I recently reviewed Rush's album "Vapor Trails", a later release which felt like a dividing line between the great Rush albums and the lesser ones. Pearl Jam's self-titled effort fills the same spot in my mind. The record is very good, bordering on excellent, and as I listen to it for a third time while I write this review, I still find myself wavering between three and four stars.

When this record came out, I recall it getting quite a bit of hype and (presumably) radio play. After albums like "Yield" and "Riot Act" which had a softer, more introspective edge, I think people enjoyed the band returning to a sound more akin to their early records. Like most great bands, Pearl Jam will always be frustrated by fans only interested in their first few great records, missing out on all of their musical growth that followed.

As for me, Pearl Jam has yet to take me somewhere musically that I didn't enjoy. I want my favourite musicians to try new things and not be afraid to lose some commercial appeal in the process.

So I was a little disappointed to see an effort to return to the old sound, but that could just be me being overly proprietary as a fan who 'never left them'. Besides, this record does still push boundaries in places, even if those places are not the songs that would eventually chart. And the songs that do chart ("Life Wasted", "World Wide Suicide" and "Gone") are all pretty good.

"Gone" is one of those songs that is quintessentially Pearl Jam. Eddie Vedder's deep-throated vocals soaring over the groove, telling a story of deep yearning (in this case the yearning to get out of town). It makes me want to get in my car and just drive until I forget all my cares. Of course, since I live on an island that would eventually be dangerous.

Speaking of diving into the sea, "Big Wave" is a groovy, fast moving song that captures all of the joy that Eddie Vedder feels toward surfing. Many years ago when we had our kitchen countertops replaced the guy who did the work was a massive Pearl Jam fan, and he told me that Vedder credits the inner peace he achieved through surfing as key in helping him kick his heroine habit. Hearing him sing about the experience of catching a big wave makes me believe it. It also makes me want to try surfing.

Pearl Jam also show their love for early fifties doo-wop with the gorgeous deep cut, "Come Back." I often note doo-wop influences on acts that are slightly older (Blue Oyster Cult, ELO, Neil Young) but it is great for a comparatively younger act like Pearl Jam to demonstrate a strong sense of musical history. Their remake of "Last Kiss" is the most famous example of this, but for my money the experience is never better than "Come Back." As a sparse production keeps slow tempo to Vedder he sings to his lost love, ensuring her that although they are parting there will always be "an open door for you...to come back."

The song is less about the lyrics and more about Vedder's uncompromising delivery. Much as I like "Gone", if I had been the soulless record exec in charge of this album, "Come Back" would've been the third release.

Lyrically, these songs don't hold up without Vedder's voice, although I do like the existential sentiments in "Inside Job", in which Vedder sings "How I choose to feel...is how I am." So true, but so hard to convince people of.

This album has a good mix of tempo, and the songs are memorable. All in all, it comes within a hair of achieving four stars, but since I was tough on "Vapor Trails", I'm going to be equally tough here, and stick with three. Maybe I'm being a hard marker, or maybe it's just the avocado leaving a bad taste in my mouth.

Best tracks: Life Wasted, Marker In The Sand, Big Wave, Gone, Come Back

CD Odyssey Disc 260: Eddie Vedder

I am super busy these days, and the blog is experiencing some fits and starts - I promise that this is a temporary condition.

As a result I finished this album yesterday, but only got to reviewing it today. I even slipped a little new music purchase in between - I've got a lot of new music to listen to these days and I'm feeling the need to hear it (it was Stan Rogers' "Northwest Passage" by the way. An excellent record - but I'll review it when I roll it).

Disc 260 is...Into the Wild (Soundtrack) Artist: Eddie Vedder

Year of Release: 2007

What’s Up With The Cover?: This is a soundtrack to the movie of the same name, so I think this is a picture from the movie. Three things come to mind with this picture. First, the Fairbanks City Transit System is not well represented. Second, that I see this particular ride provides an in-transit meal (it looks like baked beans). Third, the gentleman on the roof is likely going to be asked to take his seat, since I'm pretty sure "I'll just ride on the roof with my sleeping bag n' stuff" is not an option.

How I Came To Know It: I've done seventeen soundtrack reviews already, but this one is an anomaly; I did not discover this soundtrack through the movie. In fact, unlike every other soundtrack I own - I've never even seen the movie. I got this because it is by one of my favourite artists, and it was well reviewed by others that had it (I think my friend Chris might've put me on to this one, but apologies if it was someone else - desperately lurking on my blog for a shout out).

How It Stacks Up: This is the only Eddie Vedder album I have - although I'm told he's about to release a second solo album - featuring the ukelele. I am oddly excited at this news. As for soundtracks, this is one of my better ones. I'd say somewhere between 6th and 10th out of about 23, depending on my mood.

Rating: 3 stars, but when I first bought it I probably thought it was a 4, but I was temporarily blinded by a couple of incredible tracks.

As you know if you have not been living under a rock, or in a world without power, Eddie Vedder is the front man to the band Pearl Jam - one of my favourite bands. This is both his solo effort, and also the soundtrack to some movie called "Into The Wild", which was a big deal four years ago, but which I remember very little about now.

To my recollection it is a movie based on a journal found of a young man who left his life behind and lived in the wild, freeing himself from society's trappings.

The film never really appealed to me, but since I haven't seen it (or read the book) I am the wrong person to ask. Go ask five people who've seen it and average their answers out, then rent it if it hits three stars. Or just go to one friend you trust.

Since I can't help you with the movie, let's focus on the record, which is very good. Other than Vedder's unmistakeable vibratto it is very unlike Pearl Jam, so don't expect to rock out. It is a quiet record that borders on folk music.

There are a couple of songs on here that are brilliant - "Rise" and "Society." Both are songs that vocalize severe isolation (I expect a common theme in a movie about someone leaving civilization behind).

They handle this theme very differently, however. "Rise" is a song about setting forth into the unknown, and how unburdening this can feel. It is just Vedder's voice and a ukulele (the shape of things to come, it would seem). The ukulele's high range makes you feel lifted and when Vedder sings:

"Gonna rise up

Find my direction magnetically."

He makes you feel like this is possible without a compass - as though if you just set forth unfettered with society's cares, you'll get there. (Disclaimer: When going 'into the wild' bring a compass - the 'wandering unfettered with society's cares' system is exceedingly unreliable).

While "Rise" makes everything about isolation feel freeing, "Society" is much darker. Equally sparse, but with the ukulele replaced with an acoustic guitar, strummed low. It is a song about estrangement with society. It is the view of civilization as something to reject.

It is a song that sees none of the advantages of modern life, but only the excess consumerism. This is a common theme for Vedder's life, and there are many stories of his anti-establishment sentiments. While I think he takes living the simple life a little too far, there is no denying the power of this song. The chorus sums it up for him:

"Society

You're a crazy breed

Hope you're not lonely

Without me."

It is a bitter sweet song that is ultimately a fairly traditional break up song, where the singer is breaking up with modern life itself. Just like you can miss your ex-girl, and wish her well, but there's also all that hurt and old argument that creates a big mess of conflicting emotion. If those tormented feelings about your ex-girl, was instead about 'everything' you'd have this song.

That said, "Into The Wild" is not five star stuff throughout. Mostly, it suffers from being a score as much as a soundtrack, with many short tracks likely used for similarly short scenes in the film. There are ideas here that sound promising, but don't take the time to develop. The album clocks in at only thirty three minutes - usually a positive, but here it left me wanting more.

I find myself hoping that Vedder will explore some of the musical themes from "Into the Wild" on his next solo venture. This record felt a little incomplete. In places, this sparseness makes it better, but in places it feels like it needs to be put back in the oven for 30 more minutes. Over all, a thoughful and enjoyable record, but because of the unevenness, I can't go about 3 - although I wanted to.

Best tracks: Rise Up, Society

CD Odyssey Disc 153: Pearl Jam

From a debut album that wasn't ultimately that strong to one that was one of the great records of all time.

Disc 153 is...Ten

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 1991

What’s Up With The Cover?: I've often asked this question with "Ten". Basically, the band reaches up to clasp hands, but all we see is their hands and the tops of their heads. I never really liked this album cover, although it does speak to the visceral energy of the music, so I guess it is fitting. Also, if you fold it out, you can see the whole picture, which is a bit better, and if I was a teenage boy, would've made a pretty good wall poster.

How I Came To Know It: Yet another album my friend Greg introduced me to when we lived together in the early nineties. This one was always a cease fire during the folk/grunge wars, because I really liked it, and was never unhappy to hear it.

How It Stacks Up: I have ten Pearl Jam albums. "Ten" has the biggest reputation of all of them, and that reputation is well deserved. I'd say it is tied for first, or maybe a close second, depending on my mood. If you've been following along, you know that back at Disc 46 I said "Vs" was second best, or tied for second" - which can only mean if "Ten" is tied for second, it is tied with "Vs." If "Ten" is best, with what album is it tied. Well...

Wait a minute - you're trying to trick me, like Sgt. Schultz on Hogan's Heroes! Well, the answer is "I know nothing" - you'll just have to wait until I roll it to know what album I put above or on par with "Ten".

Rating: 5 stars.

"Ten" is an interesting name for an album with eleven songs. Why not call it "Eleven" at that point? In terms of greatness it certainly goes to eleven. In terms of energy level it goes to eleven, and it unquestionably goes to eleven in terms of reputation.

"Ten" is often put in the backseat when discussing the great albums of this period behind Nirvana's "Nevermind". While I do love "Nevermind", I believe "Ten" is marginally the better album. Yes - that is saying a lot, but this record delivers a lot.

In terms of a side A, I'm not sure there is anything stronger. The opening track "Once" starts with a brief stint of mood music, but quickly launches into driving melodic guitar, and Vedder's soaring vibrato vocals. These are sounds we take for granted from Pearl Jam, but I'll put on my old guy hat and say that it was a revelation back in 1991 when you first heard it.

From here, we launch into the smash it "Even Flow" then the smash hit "Alive", then "Why Go", "Black" and ending up with a third massive hit "Jeremy".

Unlike a lot of albums that seize the public's attention, the hits on "Ten" are actually deserving of being hits. "Jeremy" is actually my least favourite of all of them, mostly because it has been so overplayed over the years. Despite this, it came up twice as I was driving around, and I couldn't skip it either time - even on the second listen when it would have been a legal CD Odyssey play.

As for "Alive" it is simply one of the most important songs in my life - an anthem, a defiant cry against anything bad that has ever happened, or that ever might in my life. An existential cry of freedom that energizes me today as much as it ever did when I was twenty one, and first heard it.

When I hear Eddie crying out "I'm still alive" I join in. When I haven't heard him cry it out in a while, the song will just come to mind when I need it, and I'll sing it to myself. Other than Rush's "Freewill", I can't think of a song that energizes or empowers me more.

On top of inspired lyrics and vocals, "Alive" has one of the great song ending guitar solos I've ever heard. In fact, all the guitar work on "Ten" is top notch, and when the guitar takes off, lead axe man Mike McCready never lets the solo get away from the tune - a common sin of many mediocre rock bands.

The lyrics on these songs, and the others perfectly match the energy of the music, and I always find "Black" particularly emotionally resonant, but I won't share any because they just don't have their same energy without the music.

This as much as anything is testament to Pearl Jam's power as a band - they are each great musicians in their own right, but they are something greater than their component parts when they come together.

"Ten" is an album of boundless energy, but it never lets that energy carry itself away or muddy its sound. It never seems screechy, or just loud for loud's sake. It is a controlled fury throughout, always on the edge of losing it, never doing so.

My friend Kelly remarked recently that it must be hard to have your first album be your greatest. Pearl Jam certainly set the bar high, but in the years to follow they wisely didn't let this record fossilize their sound. They consistently went in new directions with their music and at least once, they reached the same level of excellence. There is a reason they've gone from someone else's band, that I just happened to like, to one of my favourite bands of all time.

For now, I'll cease waxing poetic and just sign off by saying. "Ten"- still going to eleven two decades later.

Best tracks: Pretty much every song on here is awesome, except maybe "Release" which ends with some excessive stoner noodling that would put Greg Keilor of Blue Rodeo to shame.

Of the remaining kick ass ten tracks, I'll take Even Flow, Alive, Black, and Garden

CD Odyssey Disc 109: Pearl Jam

When is a compilation of songs not a "best of"? When is making a double album instead of a single one excusable? When does a record with 30 songs somehow avoid an automatic downgrade? Answer: when it is this album.

Disc 109 is...Lost Dogs

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 2003, but with music from 1991-2002.

How I Came To Know It: I am a big Pearl Jam fan, and when this came out I snapped it up.

How It Stacks Up: This is an odd album. It isn't a normal studio album, since it is a compilation of all the songs that didn't quite make Pearl Jam's albums over the years. At the same time, you can't call a bunch of previously unreleased songs a "best of", so I think this one is going to get a pass. And a grade. And a passing grade. Of my ten Pearl Jam albums, I'd say this one ranks about 6th - meaning a bunch of rejected songs piled together is superior to at least four of their other albums.

Rating: Lost Dogs is two discs. Disc one is a solid 4 stars. Disc Two is weaker, probably a solid 3 stars. However, Disc one is that much more solidly four, so I'm going to go with 4 stars overall.

I often speak in hyperbole when I am talking about Pearl Jam, which over the years has grown into one of my favourite bands.

"Lost Dogs" is a good example why. As I noted above, this is a record that is principally a bunch of tracks that for one reason or another did not make it onto their earlier albums. In addition there are a few "one offs" that the band did for benefit concerts or albums (like the "Music For Our Mother Ocean" series).

Given the quality of the material here, it is hard to understand how these songs ever got left of, until you remember the strength of the tracks that were initially included.

This two volume set has 30 songs, which is too many by far, admittedly. I am giving this excess a rare pass this time for two reasons.

Firstly, this album is about songs that got left off of previous albums. It seems equally excessive to do that to some of them twice. Who knows what self-destructive behaviour these songs would turn to if they were rejected again? Even the runts of this litter deserve a chance.

Secondly, despite the size of the litter, there aren't many runts in here. There is easily 15 tracks equal to anything the band has done elsewhere, maybe as many as 20.

I also appreciate how the liner notes for these tracks are laid out. A little background for each song. Nothing excessive, sometimes describing the sound or the inspiration, and sometimes discussing how they ended up getting cut. The notes also indicate which specific album each song was rejected from - allowing you to compare them with what did make it.

I was particularly interested to see what was left off some of Pearl Jam's weaker albums, like "No Code" or "Binaural". Songs like "All Night", "Education" and "Black, Red, Yellow" are flat out better than some of the content that made it on.

I recently made a double album of my own "best of" Pearl Jam (I am old-school "mixed CD" kind of guy). At the final cut, five "Lost Dogs" actually made the list, compared with two songs from "No Code" and only a single track from "Binaural" (Ironically, the single track was "Insignificance").

Other highlights include the remake of "Gremmie Out of Control" which is a surfer-guitar track. When I first heard it, I thought it was about a guy driving a Gremlin - then I learned that a Gremmie is a surf-term for a doofus surfer who is never welcome at the beach. As the song says,

"His board is always full of dings
'cause he's always doing stupid things."

I also dig the mournful, yearning tone of "Yellow Ledbetter." A song where I still have no idea what is going on, despite repeated listens. Looking in my handy liner notes I read the following from Mike McCready:

"Eddie started making up words on the spot and we kept them. I still don't know what it's about and I don't want to!"

Umm...unhelpful, Mike.

And although not musically one of my favourites, I love this line from "Whale Song"

"They won't fight back - I'm sure they know how."

To me, that's a pretty good sum up of whales. We're shocked when they kill someone - Pearl Jam points out that we should be shocked when they don't.

Anyway, I'm glad most of these lost dogs - and whales - found their way unharmed to my CD shelf. They'll get plenty of play time to make up for all those years unloved.

Best tracks: All Night, Down, Alone, Education, Black Red Yellow, Gremmie Out of Control, Hold On, Yellow Ledbetter, Dirty Frank

CD Odyssey Disc 46: Pearl Jam Again!

To those who say randomness doesn't have any artistic merit, I give you another example of great coincidence. On the heels of reviewing the worst...Pearl Jam...ever - I randomly roll a disc from the collection, and it ends up being one of the best Pearl Jam discs ever.

Disc 46 is...Vs.

Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 1993

How I Came To Know It: Vs. was just another Pearl Jam album my friend Greg bought. It was one of his albums I was always happy to hear in the house.

How It Stacks Up: As noted moments ago, I have ten Pearl Jam albums. I would say Vs. is the second best one - or maybe tied for second.

Rating: 5 stars.

Vs. is an album where every track means something a little different for me. Some, like "Go" and "Animal" are just what I need when I am feeling angry and rebellious.

Others make me chuckle because of the misheard lyrics phenomenon. In "Glorified G" I used to think that "Glorified version of a pellet gun" was actually "Glorified version of a pelican." Of course, that would be silly. In "Rats" I mistook "lick the dirt off a larger one's feet" for "lick the dirt off Olajuwon's feet." This second error is more forgiveable, since Hakeem Olajuwon was a pretty big basketball star in 1993.

Anyway, I find my favorite tracks are the more acoustic ones where Eddie's mournful voice tells us a story. "Daughter" and "Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town" are particular favourites. The latter deals with dementia, which I am encountering in my own family these days, and so is affecting me even more than usual. Because of the emotional resonance of these tracks and a couple others like "Dissident" and "Indifference" this album gets elevated to a 5 for me.

All the songs on Vs. are strong, and I like that they are very different from each other. Vs. even has a groovy funk guitar lick in "Blood" which I always groove on when it comes up. By contrast, I often find "Ten" (itself a great record) a little too much of one thing by comparison.

In short, Vs. was just what the doctor ordered to get the bad taste of "Back Spacer" out of my mouth, and a fine reminder as to why this band remains one of my favourites. If you have no Pearl Jam, this is a fine place to start.

Best tracks: Animal, Daughter, Glorified G, Dissident, Elderly Woman..., Indifference

CD Odyssey Disc 45: Pearl Jam

And now we return to the crapload of new discs I have recently purchased. I think I'm going to have to limit these and maybe file a few before I review them. Too late for this one, though.

Disc 45 is...Back Spacer


Artist: Pearl Jam

Year of Release: 2009

How I Came To Know It: My old friend and former room-mate Greg introduced me to Pearl Jam from the beginning. He was in a grunge phase and I was in a folk phase, which made for some interesting music listening. Years later, I came to love Pearl Jam, and this album is just me buying their new release.

How It Stacks Up: I have ten Pearl Jam studio albums, which I think is all of them. I would rate this one...10th. Sad but true.

Rating: 2 stars with a thumbs up.

I am a big fan of Pearl Jam. Even during the folk/grunge stereo wars of the early nineties, "Ten" was always one album I could handle more than most. Later, I really developed a taste for them.

And I'm not just a "Ten is their only good album" kind of guy. I like most of their later stuff as well (but more on those when I roll them). That's what makes Back Spacer such a disappointment; I know they can do better.

This album is frankly a little too much like the mass produced rock you'll hear every day on the radio. It is just ordinary.

It's not just the music either - it seems like Pearl Jam's got nothing to say, or at least nothing that jumps out at me after 3 listens.

Even the sort of slow, introspective song "Just Breathe" just reminds me of Eddie Vedder's excellent solo album for "Into the Wild", just not as good.

This album's cover art also has songs listed without track numbers - something I hate. Also, they didn't capitalize their song titles. I hate that in E.E. Cummings, so don't expect me to give pop culture a pass either.

Worse, it is one of those cardboard albums with all kinds of junk and folders you can pull out. Pearl Jam is notorious for this in later years. Just give me the cover, and a sleeve or booklet with songs or some photos. I don't need a bunch of different stuff to pull out.

So - apart from the formulaic songs, the lack of inspiration and the annoying cover art and album design, just what the hell did I like about this album?

Well, even at their worst, Pearl Jam is still a tight band, they can still play well. Eddie still has one of the great voices in rock and roll history, and there are a couple of tracks that are passable.

So for old times sake, I gave it a slight thumbs up - also, maybe it will grow on me one day, like the band has done over the years. We live in hope.

The verdict - there are a lot of great Pearl Jam albums out there. Please, please don't buy this one and judge them too harshly as a result. They are a great band, with a great catalogue of music.

Best tracks: Amongst the Waves, Unthought Known