is pearl jam still relevant today?

they're relevent to me and thats all that matters.

I think the real question here is "Would any of us like Pearl Jam less if we could determine they are no longer relevant?".

If you answered 'yes' (which is probably NONE of us), then thanks and enjoy your short stay. For the rest (which is probably EVERYONE here), let's have a good time listening to albums and bootlegs and attending concerts, not worrying whether these guys matter to the mainstream. That's an endless debate that probably won't convert many new listeners.

They entertain us and occasionally challenge us, too. Isn't that enough?

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simpleman wrote:

I don't know about PJ, but I'm still relevent...

from dictionary .com

bearing upon or connected with the matter in hand;


So it depends on what you are talking about.

If you are talking about grunge music, yes,
if you are talking about songs depicting man on man sex.. with thumbs, yes,
if you are talking about recent smash hit albums, no.

simpleman wrote:

You clearly must have seen my " Thumbs 'R' Us " video. What did you think about it?

I have not... please show it to me. I just see the way Eddie and Boom both close their eyes during "Thumbing my way" and think back to those wonderful nights on the beach they had together under the stars.

Come Back in Black wrote:

I have not... please show it to me. I just see the way Eddie and Boom both close their eyes during "Thumbing my way" and think back to those wonderful nights on the beach they had together under the stars.

I never thought about that... maybe those lyrics were originally written in the sand, or better yet, on Boom's back!!

The only thing that I know for sure is that they are relevant to me. So yes, they are relevant. It just depends upon whom you ask. I could really give a fuck if most feel they aren't. In some ways, I prefer it this way.

Evolution6579 wrote:

I agree with a few points that people have made.

Yes, the band is still relevant. They try to do everything without ego, pushing environmental issues, charities and social injustice.

No, you shouldn't care what other people think or let what other people think influence your decisions.

Most bands out now do suck.

When all is said and done, when the PJ days are over....they will be recognized as our generations rebels and an inspiring force in rock. They will become part of the legendary pantheon of great bands, mentioned with the likes of Led Zeppelin, The Who, Bruce, the Beatles. The ones who decided that mainstream popularity would not determine their careers. The ones who decided to fight the big fight and learn from their mistakes. The ones who decided to try and make a difference in their profession by adamantly speaking the truth and always holding their ground.

If they weren't relevant anymore, would we be here discussing it?

EDIT: The possibility of Brendan O'Brien producing the next album makes me happy, too.

gotta agree wholeheartedly
esp about most band sucking these days. Most will evaperate into dust only reapearing on those tv shows ( 1 hit wonders or what ever happened to).
PJ is still drawing in young fans, these youngsters have the passion we have held for so long. That shows they are relevant to todays music.
The beauty of music recordings is that whatever music you like is relevant to you. B4 PJ I was right into old blues standards and 60's/70's bands and they were very relevant to me

I was either going to spend a ton of money to go see Pearl Jam/U2 in Hawaii, or not that much money and go to my best friend from high school's wedding in Santa Monica. I ended up going to my friend's wedding. I don't regret it, but it was funny because all of his L.A. friends know me from my visits out there to see Pearl Jam. They were all asking me if I was STILL a fan of Pearl Jam. Kind of funny, but kind of sad for them. They have missed out on SO much great music.

My other best friend from high school has a great cabin in north central Wisconsin that we used to go to all the time back in our high school/earl college days. It's defiantly low-tech up there, and that's one of it's charms. There is a CD player hooked up to a 70's era stereo though. And we all bring up music and play stuff all weekend long while we sit at the bonfire and drink and play cards, etc. I ALWAYS slip some Pearl Jam into the mix (obviously). But, I never tell them I’m going to do it. It’s always No Code through the most recent album (whatever it is at the time).

I let it play and every single time, after a couple of songs, someone will ask me “who is this”? And say that they REALLY like it. I just laugh and say it’s Pearl Jam. They are blown away by it. It’s cool because then I get to listen to “Nothing As it Seems” (or any non-first three album song) under the stars a few times during the weekend. And it’s always nice to share some great music with friends.

I don’t listen to broadcast radio anymore. I have Sirius and I listen to Lithium 24 and Alt Nation. I don’t look at American Idol or Hannah Montana or any of that stuff. Typically everything on the Top 40 is dead to me. To me, that is not “music”. It’s just marketing and promotion and repetition. That’s not to say that one of those types of songs doesn’t get stuck in my head from time-to-time. But, I just don’t put it into the same category.

All of the newer bands that I like always seem to list Pearl Jam as a major influence, or they have toured with Pearl Jam at some point. Are Incubus, My Morning Jacket, or Kings of Leon “relevant”? I saw the Foo Fighters a few nigts ago. It seemed like the fans that packed Target Center thought that they were relevant.

I don’t know. I guess sometimes I think that I’m the only “die-hard” left. Like I’m holding onto the past or something. Like I’m the only one who gets it, and no one else does. Like I should stop liking Pearl Jam because I have to let go of my past. But then I’ll go to Lollapalooza and be surrounded (for four days!) by a city of people that are crazy about Pearl Jam. Or I’ll watch from the top of a Winnebago while tens of thousands of people stream into Alpine Valley. Or I’ll go to Amsterdam and hang out with people from all over Europe that have come there to see Pearl Jam. And I could go on and on.

Pearl Jam are not relevant in terms of the machine that is out there in the world of music today. They aren’t part of celebrity gossip shows, they don’t do lame commercials (or ANY commercials), and they don’t try to be something they’re not. To me, Pearl Jam has always been an amazing collection of musicians that love to share what they are doing with like minded people. That doesn’t fit into the corporate, franchised, product based world of today’s music.

The music industry likes to point fingers at what ruined the business. But, I think it’s pretty obvious that they ruined it themselves. Maybe if they supported actual artists, instead of things that they can sell as fast as possible, the music industry wouldn’t be in the ruined state that it’s currently in. Maybe the better question would be, “Is the music industry still relevant today?”

While PJ aren't a commercial cash cow like they were at the beginning, they are certainly still relevant. I still see the name Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder mentioned in music magazines and media. I think that's because they still have a strong fanbase of people interested in what they are doing, as well as the fact that they are so well respected by other musicians and people in the industry. Commercial sales have nothing to do with that type of relevance.

They are kind of in charge of their own relevence now though...just keep making good records. They have enough people out there who are willing to listen.

suns rival wrote:

that's whats buggin' me now. WTF? all the people i know here think that vitalogy was their last album. some of them think that their albums from no code up sucked. some of them couldn't believe that they are still around. they always make joke that the band that i like is a passe nowadays and these all sucked.

are they still relevant today?

Quite frankly, who cares if they're relevant or not? I recently went to the concert of an old man in his 70s playing guitar like it's going out of fashion (Carlos Santana). Someone who doesn't sell a lot of albums either, however when he tours he draws a crowd and can put on a good concert. There will always be people around who are the latest and greatest thing, and those who may not have top selling records but who can always sell out concerts and will be around for years to come, long after the latest and greatest are dead and buried in their graves. Pearl Jam belong in the latter category.