Josh Modell (critic) CRAZY!
WickedJeremy
Posts: 229
http://www.spin.com/node/53240
Josh Modell of Spin must have a nutjob perspective. He talks about PJ as if they have been belly up on some muddy floor wallowing for creatvity or something. I thought this review was very naive. Seems like he is judging them based on radio play as if that means anything in today music scene!
-Jeremy
Josh Modell of Spin must have a nutjob perspective. He talks about PJ as if they have been belly up on some muddy floor wallowing for creatvity or something. I thought this review was very naive. Seems like he is judging them based on radio play as if that means anything in today music scene!
-Jeremy
-Jeremy
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Full text below:
Pearl Jam, 'Backspacer' (Monkeywrench)
Ed Ved and the crew crank up the carpe diem to 11.
Conventional wisdom marks 2006’s Pearl Jam as the grunge outfit’s reignition point after years without a spark. If that’s true, then the first three songs on their ninth full-length are the explosion at the end of an extremely long fuse. The band hasn’t put together a trifecta this energized and from-the-gut in a decade, and though the rest of Backspacer doesn’t match that opening salvo, it has a terrific time trying.
“Gonna See My Friend,” “Got Some,” and “The Fixer” nearly upend each other rushing out the gate, exploiting Pearl Jam’s leanest, punkest tendencies. And those traits carry through the album’s 36 minutes. No time to waste and Obama in the White House mean no political bellyaching, so when Eddie Vedder pulls out that indignant yet inclusive snarl and proclaims, “When something’s gone, I wanna fight to get it back again,” you can probably assume “it” is his band’s mojo.
Even the requisite restrained ballads feel renewed: “The End” finds Vedder channeling Cat Stevens, backed by a string and brass ensemble. Then there’s the towering anthem “Amongst the Waves,” which could bring “Alive” fans back to the fold. It even expands on that song’s theme, moving from grudging survival to jubilant exuberance (“I’ve put away my early grave”). For the first time in years, Pearl Jam are seizing the moment rather than wallowing in it.
By Josh Modell
http://www.spin.com/node/53240
09/12/05 - London, ON
05/19/06 - Grand Rapids, MI
06/27/08 - Hartford, CT; 06/28/08 - Mansfield, MA
08/21/08 - Chicago, IL (EV); 08/22/08 - Chicago, IL (EV)
10/07/09 - Los Angeles, CA; 10/09/09 - San Diego, CA
05/06/10 - Columbus, OH; 05/07/10 - Noblesville, IN
06/26/11 - Detroit, MI (EV)
10/12/13 - Buffalo, NY
10/16/14 - Detroit, MI
08/20/16 - Chicago, IL; 08/22/16 - Chicago, IL
08/13/18 - Missoula, MT
09/02/23 - St. Paul, MN
08/26/24 - Noblesville, IN; 8/31/24 - Chicago, IL
what the hell are you talking about?
Pearl Jam bootlegs:
http://wegotshit.blogspot.com
Sounds like the reviewer is saying everything they did between Yield and S/T sucked.
I think some of the members on the board might be under the same impression. But everyone has their own opinion.
09/12/05 - London, ON
05/19/06 - Grand Rapids, MI
06/27/08 - Hartford, CT; 06/28/08 - Mansfield, MA
08/21/08 - Chicago, IL (EV); 08/22/08 - Chicago, IL (EV)
10/07/09 - Los Angeles, CA; 10/09/09 - San Diego, CA
05/06/10 - Columbus, OH; 05/07/10 - Noblesville, IN
06/26/11 - Detroit, MI (EV)
10/12/13 - Buffalo, NY
10/16/14 - Detroit, MI
08/20/16 - Chicago, IL; 08/22/16 - Chicago, IL
08/13/18 - Missoula, MT
09/02/23 - St. Paul, MN
08/26/24 - Noblesville, IN; 8/31/24 - Chicago, IL
Anyways, it is just a stupid talking point that reviewers use.
Riot Act may be "weak" in comparison to other PJ albums, but it still shines brightly. It reflected the mood of the era appropriately. There is so much more to this band that I think many people can realize. I.e. the way a trailing vocal melody will complement the approaching riffs and movements. It is a mathematical and tidal work of art that has not been found to be missing since the first track of Ten.
I respect the idea of it being the critics opinion. But I expect a critic to have a good, well-informed opinion.
"Conventional wisdom marks 2006’s Pearl Jam as the grunge outfit’s reignition point after years without a spark". After years without a spark?! This is not opinion, this is meant to be fact. If he is defining "spark" as radio recognition, then I'll give him that. But radio means next to nothing in today's musical world. It has become a formulated cash machine pumping out clone music. And, as stated above, you cannot call what PJ is doing sparkless.
He sums up with "For the first time in years, Pearl Jam are seizing the moment rather than wallowing in it." What in the heck does that mean? In what way has Pearl Jam wallowed in the moment and why do we need to resurrect Alive fans? This was music from PJ's infancy. These fans were the light when PJ were but stones and their light made them stars. I just don't understand how they could be taken away but days just disappear.
His review in general was fine, I'm not his every word is crazy. But it is obvious he hasn't been on the PJ wagon all this time to truely know what is going on, that's all.
Thanks,
Jeremy
Chicago, two nights just around the bend! YEAH!!!
-Jeremy
Much more interesting to hear what someone who is objective has to say over someone who tends to be just another passionate fanboy.
Riot Act and Binaural are my 2 favorite PJ albums to listen to from beginning to end. They don't necessarily have the memorable anthemic individual songs that their earlier works had, but, to me, there is something about the atmosphere/mood created by both albums that flows throughout them that none of the other studio albums have...
With that being said, Riot Act and Binaural are also probably the 2 hardest PJ albums to get into, so I can understand what the reviewer is saying. Most of their other albums hit you over the head and then kick your ass right from the get go. They demand your attention, and, in doing so, come across as user friendly. These 2 albums are different. They both took me many listens to really appreciate the quality of music. To expect everyone, especially occasional listeners, to appreciate 2 of the band's most anti-casual-fan albums as works of art is silly.
As for the people on this board, the casual fans, or the reviewers who think Riot Act and, to a lesser degree Binaural, suck, I say to each their own. They're both kind of hard to access albums with a different sound that seem to divide even the most rabid fans. The reviewer doesn't seem to think Binaural and Riot Act were very good. He's certainly not alone in that opinion. I think he's off base, but again, to each their own.