It's been almost a year since Backspacer...

EPOTTSIII

It's been almost a year since Backspacer came out. I still listen to it in my car all the way through most of the days in the week on my long commute to work. Being a fan since the begining, I have to say this is one of my favorite of their cds. I'm 33 and have been hooked since I was a sophmore in high school. this cd just shows how much they have grown as aband in the years and also how much ed has grown. The lyrics in Amognst the Waves, Unthought Known and Speed of Sound are just dead on to the feelings he is throwing out to you. After seeing the last 2 shows I went to, mann they really have nailed playing that whole album live. Amazing band! So glad to have this addiction that we all share on here. Anyone wanna add to this?

RW8297

I'm sorry to tell you this but Backspacer sucks ass. It's the worst PJ album. I'ts been a year since released but still can't listen to it. If I could have a request it would be something like this: please don't play backspacer songs live, at least in Berlin.
Folks! Compare this album to Vitalogy or Yield. These are masterpieces not mention Ten or vs. Nowadays PJ is getting worse and worse and it's very difficult for me (fan for 20 years) to say this. Fortunately they play excellent live shows and for this... big thanks.

DiRtyFranK38

RW8297 wrote:

I'm sorry to tell you this but Backspacer sucks ass. It's the worst PJ album. I'ts been a year since released but still can't listen to it. If I could have a request it would be something like this: please don't play backspacer songs live, at least in Berlin.
Folks! Compare this album to Vitalogy or Yield. These are masterpieces not mention Ten or vs. Nowadays PJ is getting worse and worse and it's very difficult for me (fan for 20 years) to say this. Fortunately they play excellent live shows and for this... big thanks.

i'm sorry to tell you but that's just your opinion. yield happens to be my favorite album of all time. yes, it is a masterpiece. that takes nothing away from backspacer. sure, backspacer is a step in a different direction. each and every pj album is a step in a different direction! each one is so different from the next. that's the beauty of this band. bspacer is great! unthought known, force of nature, speed of sound, and amongst the waves are some of the best songs the band has written and always sound incredible live. got some is the only song i think never really sounds perfect live.

fox_mulderX

RW8297 wrote:

I'm sorry to tell you this but Backspacer sucks ass. It's the worst PJ album. I'ts been a year since released but still can't listen to it. If I could have a request it would be something like this: please don't play backspacer songs live, at least in Berlin.
Folks! Compare this album to Vitalogy or Yield. These are masterpieces not mention Ten or vs. Nowadays PJ is getting worse and worse and it's very difficult for me (fan for 20 years) to say this. Fortunately they play excellent live shows and for this... big thanks.

i have compared it to vitalogy and yield many times... and it holds up. if you can give a logical argument (keyword: logic) as to why backspacer "sucks ass" then i'll appreciate your opinion. try not to use too many comparisons... comparing things in a critique is a cop-out.

jamingjamers

sorry to say it but backspacer is a pretty shitty album

theserialthrilla

you cant compare one album to another ..the bands changed over the years..so have we..

we demand a high level off of the boys to turn out stunning song after stunning song..ever album has a high and a low.As i guess you can say you have a high album and a low..(we will all list the albums in different ways)

My 5 year old loves backspacer..dances like a good'en.I would not list it in my top 5 but does not mean i dont play it or hate it.

If the next album/ep has the same feel to backspacer i would be shocked even if alot of the tracks were recorded at the same time.ever album since TEN has changed if they had not would we not still be listening to them ?.or more importantly the band would not be together..we all need some change

I do find it hard when people say they hate backspacer or another studio album.So you cant find at least one song you like off of that album. :shock: but if thats your opinion im not going to say your wrong

RW8297

I'm just trying to be more critical. Backspacer sounds like poor b-sides (although lots of them are great and for sure I don't want to offend them). Boys are such good musicians that they can record easily 100 songs like these. Guess it takes about 4 minutes to them. A few years ago it would not be possible to release them as an album. To this very day I considered Biaural as the worst PJ album but it has at least Nothing as it seems or Rival on it. I can't find a single Backspacer song to listen to with pleasure.
Besides I think most of the people on this forum would love it if PJ release some x-mas carols and make a video in Wham style. I just demand more,..

Paul Andrews

I think it is a terrific album. The strength of the songs is clear when they are played live next to the hits/classics or rarities and hold their own.

There are always songs on each album that don't grab me straight up, but after a few listens, a live show or even a few years down the track they do. Each album has it's own tone/feel and direction which keep us on our toes and expands their diversity. So long as they don't produce an album of doff doof, I'm in for the long haul.

theserialthrilla

I think most of the people on this forum would love it if PJ release some x-mas carols and make a video in Wham style. ..[/quote]


lol now thats funny but you have a point..

Paul Andrews

theserialthrilla wrote:

RW8297 wrote:

I think most of the people on this forum would love it if PJ release some x-mas carols and make a video in Wham style. ..

lol now thats funny but you have a point..

Nope, i'd draw the line at Xams carols... too many Xmases being forced to listen to Neil Diamond or Johnny Cash Xmas in my childhood.... arrrhhh!!!!!

Although an album of covers like Ramones Acid Eaters would be cool if they were careful in their selection and interpretation of the songs. But I doubt they'd do it.

Soulfire42

Still dislike the album as a whole here. There are some songs I like on it, but it is way too cheese-filled and has far too much of the producer's hand and playing on it to even feel like a proper PJ album to me.

DewieCox

BS is underdone and overdone at the same time. That's why I think it's weak.

Kiwi In Oz

EPOTTSIII wrote:

It's been almost a year since Backspacer came out. I still listen to it in my car all the way through most of the days in the week on my long commute to work. Being a fan since the begining, I have to say this is one of my favorite of their cds. I'm 33 and have been hooked since I was a sophmore in high school. this cd just shows how much they have grown as aband in the years and also how much ed has grown. The lyrics in Amognst the Waves, Unthought Known and Speed of Sound are just dead on to the feelings he is throwing out to you. After seeing the last 2 shows I went to, mann they really have nailed playing that whole album live. Amazing band! So glad to have this addiction that we all share on here. Anyone wanna add to this?

Amen brother!

I love this album. I'm 32 and been in since I first heard Ten.

But hey, if others don't like it - throw another piece of PJ gold on ya player and rock out to that.

meme

Loooooove Backspacer, can't wait to hear it played live on July 6

topaz

I can't say it's my favourite album, but I remember feeling much the same way about avocado until i procured it on vinyl (thanks to the kindness of the OP actually) and gave it more of a chance, now I have a lot of time for it. I wonder if the same will happen with Backspacer for me? Cause at the moment it's my least favourite album. There are parts of it i love, particularly the JG and other faster ones. The great thing is, we're all different, we all have our opinions, and we all have PJ, still touring and putting out bloody good music. Amen!

topaz

p.s. dude I'm still so grateful you sent me that LP all the way to NZ! PJ make bloody good fans too it seems. I had zero chance of finding it here.

cippociappo

EPOTTSIII wrote:

Being a fan since the begining, I have to say this is one of my favorite of their cds.

Well, my opinion is that the "Ten-->Vs-->Vitalogy-->No Code-->Yield" run is the best that Pearl Jam has put out in their long career.
Aside from those, my favourite album from the "Binaural-->Riot Act-->Pearl Jam-->Backspacer" run is... Backspacer!
It's the one I listen more to, I think from Binaural the records are becoming better and better...
So I see where you're coming from, and I agree with you (aside from Speed of Sound, I don't like that at all).
My favourite Backspacer tracks? Unthought Known, Johnny Guitar, The End.

elwayvedder

its still spinning in my car every time i start the engine up. what's funny is songs that i didnt get into last fall when the album came out are growing on me and now i listen to them first. i always say it takes me a good year to fully digest and process a PJ album. Nothing is farther from the truth with BS and I am enjoying it. Only wish the album had more songs and was longer. When The End is over (ironic, huh?), I always feel like the CD shouldnt be over yet

cincybearcat

DiRtyFranK38 wrote:

...speed of sound...some of the best songs the band has written

I was with you till this. Man, that song is just plain cheesy.

RW8297

cincybearcat wrote:

DiRtyFranK38 wrote:

...speed of sound...some of the best songs the band has written

I was with you till this. Man, that song is just plain cheesy.

speed of sound, amongs the waves, the fixer, force of nature, the end should have never be written and for sure performed live!!!

uninnocent-

It's been just over eight months since backspacer came out. In that time my opinion of it has evolved from "this is crap" to "this is a pretty decent album.". I'm sure that upon hearing some more of its songs live, my perspective will change more (like when I first saw MitS live).

My current faves on the album include Gonna See My Friend, Got Some, Unthought Known, Amongst the Waves and Supersonic.

pdalowsky

i still love it, its a great piece of work.....

i love the critical analysis here sometimes 'sucks ass'....brilliant, just brilliant....

SPEEDY MCCREADY

Unthought Known is the best song they have ever written.....

That said....

I havent listened to that album in months...

I am not saying it is a bad album, I just havent listened to it in months

I havent listened to Riot Act in years....
I havent listened to Avocado in years.....

Funny how things change...
What used to be important....
Isnt so important anymore.........

BMo-643

I have to say I still dig Backspacer...At first I wasn't much on it...I really liked "Got Some" but then they came with "The Fixer" out the gate and I was skeptical, but after listening to it more and more and hearing it live...I like it...

The album as a whole is pretty good..The only song that doesn't fit on the album and I wished they hadn't put on there is "Just Breathe" ....Don't get me wrong, I like the song, but its too much like "Into the Wild" and would have been perfect for that album...its just out of place...great song...

Only song on the album I don't really like is "Johnny Guitar"...I know it has a cult following on here...but I really don't care for it...Favorites on the album...Force of Nature, Amongst The Waves, Supersonic, Gonna See My Friend...

Great album but you can't say it sucks because its not "Ten" or "Vitalogy" or "V/S"....Those are three of the best albums in music history and those albums are also anywhere from 19 to 16 years old...How much have some of you on here changed in nearly two decades? How much has music changed in 20 years? Can't compare them to each other...Backspacer is a classic modern rock album and it stacks up to the best albums being released right now...bottom line.

Those of you looking for the next "V/S" are going to be constantly disappointed if you continue to hold your breath and continue to compare everything new to those albums....Be happy the band still cares enough about making great music, is still healthy enough to tour, still like each enough to make albums, and still care enough about their fans to do some of the things they do...

Citizen Zack

It's not 1991 anymore. Times change. People grow older, their priorities shift, their minds expand, their world changes. It's natural and it's also a good thing, believe it or not. And this is evident is Pearl Jam's music. Their early work is brilliant for it's bold, sometimes angry (rightfully so) messages. But that's how we are in our 20s, passionate and anti-establishment. The guys are in their 40s now. They've grown through this stuff, evolved as people just as the world has evolved. Each of their albums seems to coincide with the general feeling of the state of the world at the time of its release. Same with Backspacer. I guess my rambling point is this - I'm not sure why there's always comparisons to Backspacer and Vitalogy. Or "Binaural sucks, just listen to Vs. for proof." Do people really want angst-ridden rock from established, matured, grown-up, over-come-some-tough-times, 40 somethings? And honestly, there's still such amazing messages in their ever-evolving music. Unthought Known is absolutely brillant. Got Some is too, for that matter. And Gonna See My Friend is a really fun, really rocking song. Sure, there's a level of hope (some call it cheesy) that hasn't ever really been consistently present before, but is that such a bad thing? If we were still getting the same type of record over and over for 20 years, would we still be listening?

By the way - Binaural is one of my favorite albums ever, so don't be fooled by my example

AND - if you want to make comparisons - look at No Code. I hear a lot of fans claim that is their favorite record (I love it too) but that is a huge shift from Ten-Vs-Vitalogy. HUGE shift. And consciously done. And it was a brilliant move. I think it's basically an f-you record to everyone who wanted to type cast PJ as whatever they wanted to call them in the 90s. It showed versatility and a willingness to shun mass appeal and still put out music that was important to them. I just don't see the concept of Backspacer as much different. It doesn't compare to early work (as it shouldn't) and neither does No Code (as it shouldn't) but there seems to be a double standard there.

Now I've rambled on so long I'm late to work. Have a good one.

Ledbetterman10

RW8297 wrote:

I'm sorry to tell you this but Backspacer sucks ass. It's the worst PJ album. I'ts been a year since released but still can't listen to it.

Same here but it's no use being a hater. I just ignore Backspacer's existence.

rival.

hasn't held up well against the test of time for me. loved it when it first came out... honeymoon was over and it faded away. haven't listened to it in a few months.

cincybearcat

Well, overall I like Backspacer. I still have it in my car and listen to part of it most days.

I would group the cd into the following categories:

Listen to it most days:
Got Some
Just Breathe
Amongst the Waves
Unthought Known

Listen to it occasionally:
Gonna See my Friend
The Fixer
The End
Force of Nature

Hardly listen to it at all:
Supersonic
Johnny Guitar

Listen to it only to make sure it really is as cheesy and bad as I thought before:
Speed of Sound

RW8297

Ledbetterman10 wrote:

RW8297 wrote:

I'm sorry to tell you this but Backspacer sucks ass. It's the worst PJ album. I'ts been a year since released but still can't listen to it.

Same here but it's no use being a hater. I just ignore Backspacer's existence.

I didn't mean to be a hater. I don't listen to BS either. I just can't stand opinions like "it's the greatest album ever" or brilliant! I know it's just my opinion and it's not that I miss Ten or Vs times. It's just the fact that these songs are really weak. Look at Riot Act or Pearl Jam. The are tones of excellent tunes. I can't find anything like this on BS. Sad.

cincybearcat

RW8297 wrote:

[ Look at Riot Act. The are tones of excellent tunes.

Probably a different thread...but maybe you could pm me with the location of those excellent tunes on Riot Act....I've been searching for years.

Paul Andrews

I must really suck ass then - Supersonic is probably my favourite song on the record and I got to see it at Newark - it fucken rocks!!!