Pissed Off Pearl Jam

CrookedTom

Don't get me wrong, I am happy they are all happy with their lives,and the band
is now appreciated by the mainstream in general, but I don't half-miss the dark, intense, brooding
Pearl Jam of days gone by - Concerts where Vedder might not utter a single work until 12 songs in, but
had the crowd in his hand with the intensity and soul of his performance...

I miss the album/Tour cycle and knowing you'd get a brilliant album every couple of years from the band.

I miss the weird, innovative songs they would write - Sometimes, Of The Girl, I'm Open, Pilate, Nothing As It Seems, Tremor Christ, All Those Yesterdays etc etc

I miss Vedder the writer - insular, strange but uplifting lyrics. Now it's "All You Need Is Love", "Did I Say I want You, Did I say I need You"...., "I've seen it a life wasted, I'm never going back again" - Positive, upbeat yes undoubtedly, but corny? A little....

Rant Over

PJ_Soul

I don't miss anything, because everything they ever did is completely accessible and I can listen to it/watch it any time I want, and remember them in my head too. And at the same time, I can equally enjoy what they do now! So awesome! I get it all!! :thumbup: I personally don't like living in the past, or having my mind stuck in the past, wishing for what was, when there are plenty of things to love right now. Also, I love listening to Ed talk during his shows.

Also, I don't feel this deranged need for tours when they don't feel like touring. I only want to see them when they want to be there.

So thanks PJ - for me, your past and your present have worked perfectly for me.

YLed2

I'm with you. I think we can all agree to this to come certain extent.

Slap upside the head

CrookedTom wrote:

I miss Vedder the writer - insular, strange but uplifting lyrics. Now it's "All You Need Is Love", "Did I Say I want You, Did I say I need You"...., "I've seen it a life wasted, I'm never going back again" - Positive, upbeat yes undoubtedly, but corny? A little....

Rant Over

Yea, damn you Ed for growing up, seeing the world differently and writing about it.

dimitrispearljam

i think we all miss that mood...

shetellsherself

PJ_Soul wrote:

I don't miss anything, because everything they ever did is completely accessible and I can listen to it/watch it any time I want, and remember them in my head too. And at the same time, I can equally enjoy what they do now! So awesome! I get it all!! :thumbup: I personally don't like living in the past, or having my mind stuck in the past, wishing for what was, when there are plenty of things to love right now. Also, I love listening to Ed talk during his shows.

So thanks PJ - for me, your past and your present have worked perfectly for me.

Exactly what I have been thinking all morning! I love that I was 18, pissed off and heartbroken in 1991 and had pj to turn to to scream it out with why go and cry for hours with black on repeat. I love that now I have Just Breathe to reflect on how blessed I am to have so much love in my life. I love that there is everything in between to help me explore how I got here. I feel like PJ and EV will always be relevant to my life and I can't wait to see the direction they take next. Which ever way they turn I hope to be there to see it through. It's all a journey. We wouldn't want anybody to be stuck in one place right?


Peace

Jen

ledvedderman

Damn you Pearl Jam for not feeling things you did 20 years ago in an ever changing musical/family/global environment. You should still be singing about people jumping on the grunge bandwagon and labels/fans in your face wanting hit songs and videos. Curse you for not watching your friends struggle with drug addiction and suicide as opposed to losing friends to disease and by just growing older.

If you're looking for musical challenges, look at Of The Earth, Army Reserve, Marker in the Sand and Got Some. Each are unique in their own matter and show great evolution and maturity of a rock band.

SVRDhand13

Its hard to be pissed when you're rich

Pjzepp67

Mainstream...?...I think we are all a little older and wiser nowadays, but mainstream...?...wtf...

boyo79

I just enjoy them for what they are. My favourite rock band. Ever.

shetellsherself

Pjzepp67 wrote:

Mainstream...?...Ithink we are all a little older and wiser nowadays, but mainstream...?...wtf...

I agree....blasphemy! :shock:

PJ_Soul

BTW, was I the only person who wasn't all full of angst as a teenager during the first half of the 90s?? I LOVED Pearl Jam back then, but it sure wasn't because they were good for feeling angry and crying all night in my room punching pillows with Ten blaring. I was a happy teenager, I loved high school, and liked everyone... Sure, I hated my mom, but it was a mellow kind of hate, lol. I liked PJ because their music sounded awesome, and more because there was so much passion in it ... but I translated that passion into joy and introspection, not angst. I mean, I was there and I was a teenager. Sure I still understood the scene perfectly well (I was happy, but I was surrounded by enough people who could have been on the cover of Teen Angst Magazine to know the deal). I was socially conscious too, and reasonably into fighting the power I guess, so I appreciated that aspect too. But for the most part, I was happy go lucky compared to a lot of people during that time. Therefore, I totally don't miss the angry, brooding Eddie now. It was what it was then, and that's great, but come on. I'm 36. I'm not interested now in going and seeing a 47 year old man being all pissed off, or in stepping in a time machine to see a pissed off Eddie. I love the now Eddie (and loved the Eddie between then and now too). He makes complete sense to me in the present, and frankly, I probably would have related better to him 20 years ago as well. I guess that's why I'm a bigger fan now than I ever was in the 90s (even though I was a big fan then as well). I couldn't be more pleased about how the band has evolved!

PJ_Soul

SVRDhand13 wrote:

Its hard to be pissed when you're rich

He was rich by mid-1992.

djklambake

I was listening to Ten while I was working out yesterday and I was thinking about this same thing... but from a different perspective...

I remember how I was when I was first listening to Pearl Jam - young, angsty, and hyped up hormones. The music really spoke to me. It was a fury I completely appreciated...

Whereas my old man was brought up on The Who (and that was his band, man), I felt Pearl Jam was the band that resonated most with me. Not only did certain songs carry different meanings for me, but it was/is solid, awesome motherfucking rock 'n roll!

And then Vitalogy came out and I surprised myself to find my favorite song was (and still is) "Nothingman"

I truly appreciate the band's progression. They've changed with every record and they just get better every year that goes by.

Can you imagine playing the same angst-ridden type of songs over and over again in front of a crowd of meatheads knocking the shit out of each other? Save that for metal fans. (I'm not knocking metal... one of the best shows I saw last year was Mastodon in Vegas (wicked pit)...I appreciate that kind of music...I'm just not fully immersed in it)

Certain points in Pearl Jam's evolution really stand out to me, others sort of fade back - but I don't look at one album and think, "that's the best they've ever done."

No, I look at their entire body of work and appreciate that I now can listen to just about anything Pearl Jam to coincide with my mood or my taste for the day.

You can't be angry all the time.

Hugh Freaking Dillon

you can make an agressive/rocking album without being angry. I actually still listen to Backspacer. The more uptempo songs anyway.

I like how PJ's evolution has played out. Each album has been a different, but awesome, experience. But I get where the OP is coming from.

PJ_Soul

Hugh Freaking Dillon wrote:

you can make an agressive/rocking album without being angry. I actually still listen to Backspacer. The more uptempo songs anyway.

I like how PJ's evolution has played out. Each album has been a different, but awesome, experience. But I get where the OP is coming from.

Well I hope we're not operating under the assumption that Eddie/PJ doesn't rock out anymore, because they do!

vant0037

CrookedTom wrote:

Don't get me wrong, I am happy they are all happy with their lives,and the band
is now appreciated by the mainstream in general, but I don't half-miss the dark, intense, brooding
Pearl Jam of days gone by - Concerts where Vedder might not utter a single work until 12 songs in, but
had the crowd in his hand with the intensity and soul of his performance...

I miss the album/Tour cycle and knowing you'd get a brilliant album every couple of years from the band.

I miss the weird, innovative songs they would write - Sometimes, Of The Girl, I'm Open, Pilate, Nothing As It Seems, Tremor Christ, All Those Yesterdays etc etc

I miss Vedder the writer - insular, strange but uplifting lyrics. Now it's "All You Need Is Love", "Did I Say I want You, Did I say I need You"...., "I've seen it a life wasted, I'm never going back again" - Positive, upbeat yes undoubtedly, but corny? A little....

Rant Over

In the words of Seymour Skinner (paraphrasing Bob Dylan): "Children, the times, they are, uh, becoming quite different..."

Things change. The band changes. You might miss it, but that's like missing clothes you wore 20 years ago. Most likely, they're long gone and wouldn't fit anyway. That time has passed. Enjoy the fact that they're still playing, look up old bootlegs from that time, buy vinyl, listen to Neil Young, watch PJ20.

If that doesn't work, then I'll quote Mick and say "You can't always get what you want..." (or as I sing to one of my cats when he reaches for my dinner plate, "you can't always get what you paaawwwww...").

PJ_Soul

vant0037 wrote:

CrookedTom wrote:

Don't get me wrong, I am happy they are all happy with their lives,and the band
is now appreciated by the mainstream in general, but I don't half-miss the dark, intense, brooding
Pearl Jam of days gone by - Concerts where Vedder might not utter a single work until 12 songs in, but
had the crowd in his hand with the intensity and soul of his performance...

I miss the album/Tour cycle and knowing you'd get a brilliant album every couple of years from the band.

I miss the weird, innovative songs they would write - Sometimes, Of The Girl, I'm Open, Pilate, Nothing As It Seems, Tremor Christ, All Those Yesterdays etc etc

I miss Vedder the writer - insular, strange but uplifting lyrics. Now it's "All You Need Is Love", "Did I Say I want You, Did I say I need You"...., "I've seen it a life wasted, I'm never going back again" - Positive, upbeat yes undoubtedly, but corny? A little....

Rant Over

In the words of Seymour Skinner (paraphrasing Bob Dylan): "Children, the times, they are, uh, becoming quite different..."

Things change. The band changes. You might miss it, but that's like missing clothes you wore 20 years ago. Most likely, they're long gone and wouldn't fit anyway. That time has passed. Enjoy the fact that they're still playing, look up old bootlegs from that time, buy vinyl, listen to Neil Young, watch PJ20.

If that doesn't work, then I'll quote Mick and say "You can't always get what you want..." (or as I sing to one of my cats when he reaches for my dinner plate, "you can't always get what you paaawwwww...").

It helps that there are bootlegs of every show they ever played since 1992. We can revisit every bit of their music over the years whenever we feel like it! No need to miss anything! Unless you miss the mosh pits of the early 90s. I know I don't. I'd probably die if I tried that now.

whispering hands

Wow! Seems odd that even over the Internet,
People want what's gone..... Someone else on here
mentioned that those discs are somewhere in your
house, your car, iPod;accessible. I'm happy that PJ
is " a tree, growin up just like me"....my older sister
is just like ya! Always looking for drama!! Without the
drama, there is no draw, no attraction. I hate
stagnation! I truly appreciate their growth. The past is
the past, because it has passed. I prefer to " live
in the Present Tense". Besides if all the albums had the
same theme,anger, angst, whatnot.. Wouldn't they be
Nickelback????? Love ya'll!!

Hugh Freaking Dillon

whispering hands wrote:

Wow! Seems odd that even over the Internet,
People want what's gone..... Someone else on here
mentioned that those discs are somewhere in your
house, your car, iPod;accessible. I'm happy that PJ
is " a tree, growin up just like me"....my older sister
is just like ya! Always looking for drama!! Without the
drama, there is no draw, no attraction. I hate
stagnation! I truly appreciate their growth. The past is
the past, because it has passed. I prefer to " live
in the Present Tense". Besides if all the albums had the
same theme,anger, angst, whatnot.. Wouldn't they be
Nickelback????? Love ya'll!!

no one is saying they want the same album over and over again. this is the misconception when people say they want the PJ of old back. They merely want the band to be passionate, in an aggressive way, not in a I'll-write-a-song-for-my-daughter-called-"skipping"-kind-of-way. Although, I love Ed's stuff, but I see why some fans don't.

YLed2

whispering hands wrote:

Wow! Seems odd that even over the Internet,
People want what's gone..... Someone else on here
mentioned that those discs are somewhere in your
house, your car, iPod;accessible. I'm happy that PJ
is " a tree, growin up just like me"....my older sister
is just like ya! Always looking for drama!! Without the
drama, there is no draw, no attraction. I hate
stagnation! I truly appreciate their growth. The past is
the past, because it has passed. I prefer to " live
in the Present Tense". Besides if all the albums had the
same theme,anger, angst, whatnot.. Wouldn't they be
Nickelback????? Love ya'll!!

No, they would not be Nickelback.

I think at most, the OP wants some more experimentation that we saw in certain, more obscure songs from Yield thru Riot Act on the next album. I for one, am all for that in a BIG way.

pjradio

shetellsherself wrote:

Pjzepp67 wrote:

Mainstream...?...Ithink we are all a little older and wiser nowadays, but mainstream...?...wtf...

I agree....blasphemy! :shock:

who was talking about mainstream?...don't see it anywhere

Soulfire42

My opinion is that I too miss the driven Pearl Jam. It isn't just about them being pissed off or anything. It's about being driven to succeed, driven to put their absolute best effort into their music, driven to get their music out and heard.

I think they've lost a good deal of that drive and the creativity that usually comes with it. I think it is way too easy and incorrect to boil it down to a pissed off PJ versus a content PJ, but it is what I see getting argued here rather frequently.

I'm perfectly happy that Pearl Jam is happy with their lives, etc. What I'm concerned about is their apparent lack of drive for new music. They still deliver me tons of what I look for, but I feel like I completely understand what the original poster is alluding to. There are some other bands out there that seem to have kept a level of drive that amazes me, even if their music doesn't.

papa_pearls_jam.pj20

From then to now, coming in as a late-bloomer, I understand more each time I read a post like this, why on earth I never grew up listening to Pearl Jam. :fp:

Back in 1990, my wife and I just had our second daughter, supporting a family of four, trying to maintain a stable environment from my past of being a "Nowhere Man". As I listen to the songs now, there's a true connection to all of them, but back then growing up was what I needed to do most.

Pearl Jam is who they are, because of who they were and what has happened to them and around them since. Writing a song doesn't come from sitting with pen and hand, thinking, "I really need an angry song right now". The anger or the mood is either there or it's not...it's not fabricated and it's certainly not something honed to be there for another's satisfaction.

whispering hands

I totally agree with papa_pearls_jammin up there!
And the Nickelback reference was simply made
to drive home a point. Here is something else... I
know alot of musicians, both professional and rec-
Recreational, and their inspiration always seems to
come from their surroundings, seems alot like our
guys. Also side projects, they help to feed different
in music. You have to remember the five guys ordering
a pizza analogy, then add they've been "ordering musical
Pizza" together for over twenty years. They have to grow
up just like everyone else, so in the end, what we're
getting now, IS the new experental phase in their
musical lives. Just my point of view.

PJ_Soul

whispering hands wrote:

I totally agree with papa_pearls_jammin up there!
And the Nickelback reference was simply made
to drive home a point. Here is something else... I
know alot of musicians, both professional and rec-
Recreational, and their inspiration always seems to
come from their surroundings, seems alot like our
guys. Also side projects, they help to feed different
in music. You have to remember the five guys ordering
a pizza analogy, then add they've been "ordering musical
Pizza" together for over twenty years. They have to grow
up just like everyone else, so in the end, what we're
getting now, IS the new experental phase in their
musical lives. Just my point of view.

I totally agree. Some seem to think that for them to be showing their passion and their musical creativity they have to be doing it for Pearl Jam. They are ALL out there being super active and creative in music - just not for PJ right now. They are out there finding new sides to themselves and their music like they've never done before, so it's strange to see someone accuse them of the opposite of that. I guess it's just PJ-centrism. I'm am SO cool with that, especially since I know they are going to refocus back onto PJ soon and make a new album.

whispering hands

PJ_Soul wrote:

whispering hands wrote:

I totally agree with papa_pearls_jammin up there!
And the Nickelback reference was simply made
to drive home a point. Here is something else... I
know alot of musicians, both professional and rec-
Recreational, and their inspiration always seems to
come from their surroundings, seems alot like our
guys. Also side projects, they help to feed different
in music. You have to remember the five guys ordering
a pizza analogy, then add they've been "ordering musical
Pizza" together for over twenty years. They have to grow
up just like everyone else, so in the end, what we're
getting now, IS the new experental phase in their
musical lives. Just my point of view.

I totally agree. Some seem to think that for them to be showing their passion and their musical creativity they have to be doing it for Pearl Jam. They are ALL out there being super active and creative in music - just not for PJ right now. They are out there finding new sides to themselves and their music like they've never done before, so it's strange to see someone accuse them of the opposite of that. I guess it's just PJ-centrism. I'm am SO cool with that, especially since I know they are going to refocus back onto PJ soon and make a new album.

Here here! Of course if we keep this up we MAY end up getting just what
ya want! An album where they're angry; with their ungrateful,
greedy, and demanding fans!!! LMAO. I'm just kidding, but seriously,
while in all retrospect they work for us, we pay them to write and
create music, so let them. If you don't like what they produce, you
can always go to your local music store and it back, then buy some
music you do like! Just saying..

pjfan31

But we all grow up, we all evolve.

Our tastes change and mature. Experiences in our lives change our perception of the world.

The members of Pearl Jam are no different.

But it did provide some great music..