Pearl Jam Launches Dark Matter Tour With Many Debuts, Rarity, Favorites & Covers

Pearl Jam opened their Dark Matter World Tour on Saturday in Vancouver. The band delivered a 25-song performance at Rogers Arena that included live debuts of seven cuts from their recently released album, Dark Matter, as well as the first public performances of two tunes premiered on The Howard Stern Show. A deep cut was also trotted out at the tour opener.

The concert on Saturday, Pearl Jam’s first of two in Vancouver, saw the group roll on Dark Matter’s title track, “Scared Of Fear,” “React, Respond,” “Wreckage,” “Upper Hand,” “Won’t Tell” and “Running” during the main set. “Something Special” came within the eight-song encore while “Setting Sun” closed out the show. “Waiting For Stevie” and “Got To Give” were the only songs from Dark Matter that weren’t played at the tour opener.

Pearl Jam also fit in plenty of classics starting with the “Wash” that began the night. Favorites “Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town,” “Daughter,” “Corduroy,” “Porch,” “Black,” “Do The Evolution,” “Alive” and “Yellow Ledbetter” also made the setlist on Saturday in Vancouver. The evening’s biggest surprise was the first performance of Yield-era B-side “Leatherman” since May 2, 2016.

A scary moment came during the “Porch” that closed the main set, when guitarist Mike McCready fell off the stage. Thankfully, McCready was okay and went on the finish the show.

Pearl Jam fit a few covers into the mix in Vancouver. Frontman Eddie Vedder and his bandmates played a medley of Mother Love Bone’s “Chloe Dancer/Crown Of Thorns” before “Porch” and took on Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” and Neil Young’s “Rockin’ In The Free World” as part of the encore.

The Dark Matter Tour continues tonight back at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena. Pearl Jam will perform across North America through May 30 before heading to Europe and the UK. A second North American leg follows this summer with the tour currently set to end in Australia and New Zealand this fall.

Watch fan-shot video of Pearl Jam’s live premieres and “Leatherman” bust out from Vancouver below: