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Washington Post Review #2 - DC 2008
obiwon76
Posts: 568
The Pearl Jam Scene, Growing More Grateful by the Gig
Pearl Jam abdicated the grunge throne and all but went on hiatus in the mid-1990s to fight Ticketmaster and the service charges concertgoers were billed by electronic ticket sellers. Fellow bands and music fans refused to join the righteous battle, however, so Pearl Jam caved.
On Sunday night, all these years later, the rebels of a lost cause were back at Verizon Center, a building owned by Abe Pollin, the very godfather of electronic ticketing back in the 1970s and the only Ticketmaster franchisee left.
And, good golly, did they rock Abe's house.
Adults can only get so enraptured, and the audience's euphoria level redlined again and again. The band-fan synthesis during "Given to Fly" left the whole building shaking -- like, actually shaking. Frontman Eddie Vedder occasionally slowed things down to throw lefty ("It's going to be great to get some color in the White House!" he yelled), but the scream-and-response session he led during "Daughter" would have given even John McCain goose bumps.
Even the folks in last rows of the upper deck were standing and shrieking every word of 1991's "Alive" as if they'd waited their whole lives for the opportunity. And the last minute of "Rearviewmirror" was about as frenzied as arena rock can get.
The band now sells downloads from all its shows and, probably not coincidentally, puts a Phish-like emphasis on set lists to make sure each show is somewhat unique. This gimmick has triggered the completist gene in Pearl Jam fans, who now mine set lists for rarities. Among this night's batch: "No More," an antiwar ballad that Vedder sang solo, and 1996's "I'm Open."
Whether spontaneous or the result of some manipulative plan, the feedback the band got from all those service charge-payers in the house was overwhelming. "I don't know what we did to get this kind of response from you," Vedder said.
You rocked, Eddie. That's what.
-- Dave McKenna
Much better than yesterday's.
Pearl Jam abdicated the grunge throne and all but went on hiatus in the mid-1990s to fight Ticketmaster and the service charges concertgoers were billed by electronic ticket sellers. Fellow bands and music fans refused to join the righteous battle, however, so Pearl Jam caved.
On Sunday night, all these years later, the rebels of a lost cause were back at Verizon Center, a building owned by Abe Pollin, the very godfather of electronic ticketing back in the 1970s and the only Ticketmaster franchisee left.
And, good golly, did they rock Abe's house.
Adults can only get so enraptured, and the audience's euphoria level redlined again and again. The band-fan synthesis during "Given to Fly" left the whole building shaking -- like, actually shaking. Frontman Eddie Vedder occasionally slowed things down to throw lefty ("It's going to be great to get some color in the White House!" he yelled), but the scream-and-response session he led during "Daughter" would have given even John McCain goose bumps.
Even the folks in last rows of the upper deck were standing and shrieking every word of 1991's "Alive" as if they'd waited their whole lives for the opportunity. And the last minute of "Rearviewmirror" was about as frenzied as arena rock can get.
The band now sells downloads from all its shows and, probably not coincidentally, puts a Phish-like emphasis on set lists to make sure each show is somewhat unique. This gimmick has triggered the completist gene in Pearl Jam fans, who now mine set lists for rarities. Among this night's batch: "No More," an antiwar ballad that Vedder sang solo, and 1996's "I'm Open."
Whether spontaneous or the result of some manipulative plan, the feedback the band got from all those service charge-payers in the house was overwhelming. "I don't know what we did to get this kind of response from you," Vedder said.
You rocked, Eddie. That's what.
-- Dave McKenna
Much better than yesterday's.
San Fran 92, San Fran 93, Berkeley 93, Indio 93, Fairfax 94, DC 95, San Fran 95, DC 95, Va Beach 98, Columbia 98, Dc 98, Va Beach 00, Columbia 00, Philly 03, Bristow 03, Chicago 06, Chicago 06, Dc 06, DC 08
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