Many people are calling this the return of Pearl Jam. They say Pearl Jam went back to their roots on this album, and have this new found intensity. The only problem is that Pearl Jam never left. Pearl Jam have been doing what they do best for over a decade, and have never left. The new album "Pearl Jam" is just that, rock and roll the way Pearl Jam does it, and that being whatever way they see fit
Pearl Jam bring rock and roll back to its simplest form. "Pearl Jam" is a raw record, not over produced, and it kicks you in the gut. The album opens with Life Wasted. A frantic up tempo song about changing your life, and not dwelling on the past otherwise it is just a waste.
"Comatose", is what Pearl Jam fans have been waiting for probably since Do the Evolution. The fast hard rocking song builds and builds like a wave and crashes with guitarist Mike McCready's scorching solo. "Marker in the Sand" questions life, god, and freedom. Behind mesmerizing guitar riffs Vedder sings, "God, What do you say?/What do you say?/...like watching freedom , being sucked straight out to sea."
What is most evident on "Pearl Jam" is where the band came from. Their influences shine through on most of the songs. "Parachutes" is a heavily Beatles influenced song that is soft, sweet, and flows peacefully as if drifting out to sea. "Unemployable" is reminiscent of one of the band's major influences the Who. Vedder harmonizes, and drummer Matt Cameron keeps you under a trance. "Gone" is Pearl Jam's version of Behind Blue Eyes, but with Vedder's socially conscience ramblings. Vedder softly sings, "This American Dream/I am disbelieving."
Guitarist Mike McCready makes his song writing debut on the album with Inside Job. A moody atmospheric song about personal freedom and feeling alive. Pearl Jam make a bold straightforward statement on World Wide Suicide. It is an obvious indictment on the current administration and what war does to the entire world. The album's highlight Come Back is a song about that lost love that you hope will show up at your door one day. Vedder spills his guts behind the motown like ringing guitars, pleading with his love to just come back because he is waiting.
In the end Pearl Jam made a solid record. It may not be their best, but it is not their worst either. It is a classic Pearl Jam album, simply put old school rock and roll. |