|
Eddie Vedder stood at the edge of the huge Walnut Creek stage, imploring the audience. “Educate yourself,” he said twice, then a third time. Of course he was referring to George Dubya, the Congress, maybe the state of the world in general, and trying not to draw the ire of the crowd. But he could just have easily been talking about the music of his band.
Pearl Jam has been neglected in an interesting way. They have two albums worth of radio-tested crowd-pleasing singalongs, but they also have a massive catalog that goes mostly ignored. The majority of these songs are just as good if not better than the widely accepted songs like “Alive” and “Betterman.” I saw two shows when the band stopped in North Carolina this April, and I left both feeling sorry for the attendees that chatted their way through a nonstop stream of gems from, dare I say, one of the best bands in history.
While Pearl Jam’s albums Ten, Vs., and Vitalogy ruled the charts and set the standard for rock in the early 1990s, only the truly devoted fans held on after the band released the relatively unpopular No Code in 1996. As the public lost interest in the fabricated trend dubbed “grunge,” Pearl Jam managed to outlast the bands that were considered its contemporaries. This band, for all its struggles, has unflinchingly held on to its musical integrity, public be damned. When Riot Act (the band’s first album in three years) was released in late 2002, it was blasted by critics and met with neutral reaction from the public. If people paid attention and treated the music like they did in 1992, the realization should have come: Pearl Jam is just as good, and they treat their fans better than most major touring acts. Sure, Riot Act cost an “epic” amount in stores. But on the other hand, I’m reviewing two shows that happened three weeks ago, and I’m listening to fully mastered CDs of the shows, complete with artwork, that were shipped to my door for $14.98 each. Pearl Jam is not a “grunge” band or a holdout from a bygone era. Pearl Jam is important.
The North Carolina shows were proof that the exhaustive rapid-fire live show shopping mall (http://www.pearljambootlegs.com) is justified. This was only the band’s third U.S. tour since 1998, which helped bring anticipation of the shows to a fever pitch for the hardcore fans. Though there are few experiments, song placement and setlist have a huge effect on the band’s shows. You can judge a show by what you didn’t hear just as easily as what you heard.
The Raleigh show at ALLTEL Pavilion at Walnut Creek (4.15.03) could not have started any sweeter than with the triumphant “Release,” and collective chills were felt among my crew at the sound of Eddie’s effortlessly emotive voice, just as resonant and overpowering as ever. It was just great to see those guys back on stage and doing it with gusto. Drummer Matt Cameron is just a monster and a joy to watch. Powering through “Even Flow,” the band delighted the crowd with the pair of old-school openers. Vedder spit random curses and proclamations between the churning verses of “Even Flow.” Having elevated the energy level with a ferocious solo, guitarist Mike McCready blasted the opening chords to “Save You,” possibly the best track on Riot Act. With a slightly faster pace, this already vicious tune was transformed into near punk rock. Bassist Jeff Ament always blows my mind, and his fluid grace with “Save You” was perfect. The band paused for Eddie to introduce another Riot Act tune, “Help Help.” The chorus has a rising, steely guitar riff that reminds me of Nine Inch Nails, but it is in stark contrast to the pleading strains of the verses. “War is hell,” Vedder intoned. “The man they call my enemy, I’ve seen him he looks just like me, a mirror.” This song was written with eerie intuition. Light and dark songs juxtaposed as they moved through the joyous “Given To Fly” and the tuneful, surfy rock of “Cropduster” with a giant full moon presiding over the lawn. They continued to highlight the best moments of the new album, wailing through the defiant “I Am Mine.” This song’s rousing chorus has the feel of an Irish drinking song, and newly crowned keyboard contributor “Boom” Gaspar added a nice church organ effect to it.
Shifting gears, Vedder led the band through the minute-long hyperspeed bounce of “Lukin,” which dropped like a bomb into the fantastic strums of “Not For You.” Vedder always does a great job of ad-libbing lyrics, and “Not For You” included some great lines. “All that’s sacred,” he snarled, “It CAME from youth.” Riding the Vitalogy wave, they continued with the bombastic “Corduroy.” A palpable surge of excitement rushed through the crowd as people sensed a turning point of the show. “I Got Shit,” a beloved song from the band’s album with Neil Young, echoed juicily through the amphitheater. To my delight, they moved into another new song, “You Are,” which was written by Matt Cameron. It absolutely shows the dark, psychedelic influence and tricky rhythms of his former band, Soundgarden. The lights descended from their perch to shoot undulating streaks from behind the band, and the whole place trembled under the percolating ooze of sound and light. All the people who hadn’t been paying attention came to life during the first notes of “Elderly Woman Behind A Counter,” and it was amazing to hear Vedder sing “I change by not changing at all,” even though that lyric supposedly has nothing to do with him.
The last four songs of the set formed an unforgettable alliance. The fearful “Insignificance” preceded a power trio of tunes from the first two PJ albums, “Alive,” “Porch” and “Blood.” “Porch” featured several “War Pigs” teases from the start, as well as a lengthy jam on the Black Sabbath classic. The band let the music (and Eddie’s George Bush t-shirt) do the talking this night! The set concluded with a wine-swilling Vedder screaming loud and proud over the insane stomp of “Blood.” The guy smokes constantly and drinks wine straight from the bottle, but still manages to howl, moan, scream, and wail like no one else. Jim Morrison came to mind more than once during these two shows.
“Sorry about the tobacco, but this is the place, yes?” he quipped before the first encore, which was a true rarity: John Lennon’s rebellious, venomous anthem “Gimme Some Truth.” “We can handle the truth!” Vedder exulted as the crowd raged in approval. The emotional “Love Boat Captain” was next, and the showcase of new material was complete. “Love Boat Captain” was written for nine Pearl Jam fans that were killed by an out-of-control crowd at a show overseas. That was the band’s previous tour, in 2000, and the song is naturally hard-hitting in its lyrics. “Love boat captain, take the reins, steer us towards the clear,” Vedder pleads. “Betterman” was well placed after over 30 minutes of extremely hard rocking, but the break was short as they busted into “Glorified G,” a well-known early tune that had not been played since 1996 until it was dusted off two shows before Raleigh. Somehow the ferocity of the show rose even more as they ended the lengthy first encore with a demented version of “Do The Evolution” (that started with an inexplicably creepy image of Vedder on the video screen, his head covered with a t-shirt) and the driving “Rearviewmirror” with extra Eddie hijinks. During the song’s extended midsection, Vedder used a rearview mirror to project light onto all sections of the crowd before the band whipped through the frenzied climax. Yet another encore featured guest appearances from opening band Sleater-Kinney for spirited versions of CCR’s anti-war anthem “Fortunate Son” and Neil Young’s “Rockin’ In The Free World.” Driving back to my house that night, I made the decision to haul ass to Charlotte for the next show.
After scoring a nice Section 3 Row V ticket from TicketBastard, I put the pedal to the floor and lit out for Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Charlotte (4.16.03). Between Walnut Creek (Alltel) and Charlotte (Verizon), I felt like I was in a cell phone commercial. Verizon is a better cell service, but this amphitheater leaves everything to be desired. Until you are in your seat and the music is on, there’s nothing remarkable about the place. At least Walnut Creek has some personality.
Choosing to start slowly again, the band took the stage with the creepy “Sometimes” before launching into the quaking “Last Exit.” “Save You” made a return appearance in the third slot, and I didn’t mind hearing this great song again. In fact I loved it! Then the songs that everyone wanted to hear that didn’t appear in Raleigh began to surface. A razor-toothed “Animal” was followed by the ultimate PJ crowd pleaser, “Jeremy.” I wasn’t thrilled to hear this, but the end struck me by how good it sounded. The band took liberties with the ending, stretching it into a swirling chorus of wiry guitar and relentless drums.
After a brief “how ya doin’” from Eddie, the band eased into “one of our favorite songs,” the gloomy “Nothing As It Seems.” Already this show had taken on a different feel than the rip-snorting rock of Raleigh. The seldom-played “In Hiding” was next. This song gained a bit of recognition when it was released, but it still shares a room with tunes like “MFC” and “Insignificance” as one of the most under appreciated PJ songs. The delightfully simple, upbeat structure of “In Hiding” gave way to a careening version of “Even Flow,” a song the band rips through almost every night. Whereas the Raleigh version served nicely as a show-jumpstarter, this one simply fell in line mid-set.
Often while listening to Pearl Jam shows, I get the feeling that the band breaks the show up into segments. This is probably just my out-of-control mind, but when they passed from a thrasher like “Even Flow” into the guitar-and-vocals setup of “Don’t Drive Me,” it seemed obvious. This is a protest song if there ever was one, as Eddie sings “Don’t drive me, I’m an SUV.” After the brief respite, they went back to work with the frenetic “Green Disease.” Eddie forgot the last two lines of the first verse, and the 25 people in the crowd that actually read the liner notes of Riot Act grinned knowingly as Eddie offered “la la la la” in place of the lyrics. The always-welcome “Corduroy” came next, trailed by a chilling version of “Immortality.” Rarely performed live, “Immortality” is the kind of eyes-closed, heavy-duty ballad that Pearl Jam has perfected. Capitalizing upon the poignancy of the moment, the band glided through the melancholy “Nothingman,” following it up with the other two “man” songs in the PJ catalog: “Betterman” and “Leatherman.” “Betterman” was stupendous as always, and the rare “Leatherman” confused the crowd but delighted yours truly and several others in my section.
Pearl Jam has always been one of the best when it comes to the start and finish of its sets. The last four songs of Charlotte even outshined the ending of the Raleigh show. The powerful “Grievance” proved to be the highlight of the set, as the crowd raised its hands to its foreheads and “pledged their grievance to the flag” with Eddie. Many audience members clutched and waved American flags throughout the songs violent progression. Then we were treated to the first true Eddie rant of the two shows I saw. After spending just a bit too long talking about military funding and congressional mishaps, Eddie said, “We gotta participate. You know why? Because it’s evolution, baby,” and the band shredded through “Do The Evolution” with vigor equal to the previous night.
What followed was something I thought they didn’t even play anymore: “Breath,” one of their two contributions to the Singles movie soundtrack. For the first 30 seconds of the song, I was so stunned that I just stood still, transfixed on the stage, eyes darting from band member to band member. Finally I snapped out of it and used my cell phone (thanks Verizon) to share the moment with a friend while I grooved away in amazement. These songs were the soundtrack to my morning drive to school and the catalyst for countless weekends when I was 16, and these shows tripled my appreciation for them. The whole thing just got ridiculous when they lunged into the sonic maelstrom that is “Go” to end the set. Christ, I thought. Should I drive to Atlanta for the show this weekend? I brushed the thought away.
“It’s not everyday you get to be here in Raleigh,” Eddie joked as the band came back out for more lengthy encores. “Is there a message to any of this? It’s really just rock and roll. But if there is, it’s in this next song,” he admitted, and introduced the band before dishing out another great “Love Boat Captain.” Expanding on the emotional vibe, they continued with a stirring performance of “Black” that was incredibly satisfying and benefited from the addition of piano. The band continued to showcase lesser-known songs with “Down,” a tune that did not make it on to Riot Act and became a B-side on the “Love Boat Captain” single. Focused on breaking through depression, the lyrics fit perfectly with the good-natured rock sound of the song. The band finished this encore with “Alive,” which was excellent. For the final encore, Sleater-Kinney joined the band again for chaotic runs through “Sonic Reducer,” “Leaving Here,” and “Rockin’ In The Free World.”
These shows were an incredible way to kick off the summer concert season. I heard more than 40 songs those two nights, and had my outlook on rock profoundly changed. In their simplistic approach, Pearl Jam had accomplished far more than any high-concept band could ever dream. The Raleigh show was a relentless, swirling affair full of new material. Charlotte had more of an epic feel with lesser-known songs and plenty of older stuff. Even the songs I've heard a thousand times were given new life. Pearl Jam is still one of the best live bands in the world!
Bryan Rodgers
JamBase | North Carolina
Go See Live Music!
|
