PJ Bootleg Review Blog (Columbia 2016 Review Added!)

boyo79 · February 2014

TamaDrummer91 said:
Along with his ranking, don't forget to check out Brandon's recently completed 2012 in depth reviews. Almost all these were his. I gotta say, I think he hit the nail on the head with these.

http://pjbootlegreviews.blogspot.com/search/label/2012

I'm continuing 2013, San Diego will be posted in a couple hours. Ill plan on doing a review tomorrow for LA 1 if its released (which it should be). Furthermore, Ian will most likely continue his entire 2003 Leg 2 stint. Its been a busy week for him too. Life gets in the way of boot listening!

Yep I'll be back on the bootleg trail in the next couple of days, Phoenix '03 the next one on the list!

High Fidelity 2000 · February 2014

I like that you notice stuff like cracking/poor vocals. Sometimes I feel like fans just don't even hear stuff like that from what I read around here. Quality is a big thing when you're listening to the bootlegs, I'm sure that stuff is less noticed in person at a show with everything going on but on a bootleg it is so obvious to my ears. I actually think that sometimes Eddie LIKES the way his voice sounds when it's cracking, like unpolished, punk quality stuff. I don't get it. From what I've heard so far in 2013 though, Ed's voice is overall a nice improvement compared to the 2008-2012 years.

I have only read a couple of your reviews so far but it seems like you have good musician ears.

I finally downloaded Amsterdam 2 a couple months ago and though the set list is neat and everything, I thought the performance/quality was borderline awful on a lot of the songs. It wasn't a mistake here or there, it just sounded bad. Most overrated "classic" show I have listened to. Guess you had to be there.

I was at Phoenix and I get what your'e saying but to me that sort of random flow is what made the show so unique and unusual. The first encore was mostly Lost Dogs, it was amazing. I thought Yellow Moon in the middle of the main set was a surprise, not necessarily a negative. Anyway, I'm interested to read more of your reviews as I work backward. Thanks for the blog.

YLed2 · February 2014

High Fidelity 2000 said:

I have only read a couple of your reviews so far but it seems like you have good musician ears. I finally downloaded Amsterdam 2 a couple months ago and though the set list is neat and everything, I thought the performance/quality was borderline awful on a lot of the songs. It wasn't a mistake here or there, it just sounded bad. Most overrated "classic" show I have listened to. Guess you had to be there.

I also found, also judging by ranking as you can see, found Amsterdam 2 boot to be vastly overrated and disappointing, most for the reasons you mentioned. When most people think of the Euro 2012 tour, they almost always think of Amsterdam 2 because of the hype it received. When in reality, Amsterdam 1 I believe is the best boot of the tour. Of course, boots and the shows themselves are two separate entities, but Amsterdam 1 is the best boot of the European 2012 tour in my opinion.

High Fidelity 2000 · February 2014

YLed2 said:

High Fidelity 2000 said:

I have only read a couple of your reviews so far but it seems like you have good musician ears. I finally downloaded Amsterdam 2 a couple months ago and though the set list is neat and everything, I thought the performance/quality was borderline awful on a lot of the songs. It wasn't a mistake here or there, it just sounded bad. Most overrated "classic" show I have listened to. Guess you had to be there.
I also found, also judging by ranking as you can see, found Amsterdam 2 boot to be vastly overrated and disappointing, most for the reasons you mentioned. When most people think of the Euro 2012 tour, they almost always think of Amsterdam 2 because of the hype it received. When in reality, Amsterdam 1 I believe is the best boot of the tour. Of course, boots and the shows themselves are two separate entities, but Amsterdam 1 is the best boot of the European 2012 tour in my opinion.

Yep, I saw that, that's why I liked your reviews.

I have hardly heard anything from the Europe 2012 tour, but I know Amsterdam 2 was overrated just by listening to the boot.

TamaDrummer91 · February 2014

LA 2 2013 review. One of the worst bootlegs I've yet to hear (and I've heard a lot).

http://pjbootlegreviews.blogspot.com/2014/02/los-angeles-2-2013.html

JF110284 · February 2014

TamaDrummer91 said:
LA 2 2013 review. One of the worst bootlegs I've yet to hear (and I've heard a lot).

I was at this show, and agree that the set flow (or lack thereof) was unfortunate. Regarding Mike, though, his guitar went silent at the end of Alive because he dove into the crowd. This obviously does nothing for the bootleg, but it was a nice treat for those in the crowd.

TamaDrummer91 · February 2014

JF110284 said:

TamaDrummer91 said:
LA 2 2013 review. One of the worst bootlegs I've yet to hear (and I've heard a lot).

I was at this show, and agree that the set flow (or lack thereof) was unfortunate. Regarding Mike, though, his guitar went silent at the end of Alive because he dove into the crowd. This obviously does nothing for the bootleg, but it was a nice treat for those in the crowd.

That's super cool! I didn't know that. I would love to be at a gig where he did that. Some say Ed makes this band live, well I tend to think Mike adds to the live gig as much if not more. Not that they all aren't wonderful.

TamaDrummer91 · March 2014

Oakland '13 review is up. That makes 2 shows back to back that were really lackluster in terms of performance. I hope Portland is better.

http://pjbootlegreviews.blogspot.com/2014/03/oakland-2013.html

karmadefect · March 2014

TamaDrummer91 said:
Oakland '13 review is up. That makes 2 shows back to back that were really lackluster in terms of performance. I hope Portland is better.

http://pjbootlegreviews.blogspot.com/2014/03/oakland-2013.html

You basicly killed them off in the last two reviews. And the sad thing is you could even call the review mild is you listen to the shows. X_X
I am glade I haven't yet had the time to read LA I. I need something positive.
I can't believe the Portland show won't enable you to right a more positive review.
Three bad show that can't be true can it?

TamaDrummer91 · March 2014

karmadefect said:

TamaDrummer91 said:
Oakland '13 review is up. That makes 2 shows back to back that were really lackluster in terms of performance. I hope Portland is better.

http://pjbootlegreviews.blogspot.com/2014/03/oakland-2013.html
You basicly killed them off in the last two reviews. And the sad thing is you could even call the review mild is you listen to the shows. X_X
I am glade I haven't yet had the time to read LA I. I need something positive.
I can't believe the Portland show won't enable you to right a more positive review.
Three bad show that can't be true can it?

Well, LA 1 was a great show. A hard rocking one, that was really fun to listen to.

I'm listening to Portland 13 now, and I'll have the review posted later tonight. I'm happy to report that it is much much better than LA 2 and Oakland. A top 10 from 2013. Still not as good as LA 1, Dallas, or OKC from leg 2, but after the last two consecutive shows, Portland is glorious.

Red Lukin · March 2014

I have 2 bootleg coupons I'm going to use. I went to 5 of the last 6 shows of the 2nd leg and was torn between picking two of Oakland, Vancouver and Spokane.

Is Oakland really that bad? I had a blast at the show and live it seemed In Thin Air and Big Wave sounded amazing, but like you said bootlegs don't always sound as good as the show seems live.

Looks like I'll wait and purchase van and spk.

TamaDrummer91 · March 2014

Red Lukin said:
I have 2 bootleg coupons I'm going to use. I went to 5 of the last 6 shows of the 2nd leg and was torn between picking two of Oakland, Vancouver and Spokane.

Is Oakland really that bad? I had a blast at the show and live it seemed In Thin Air and Big Wave sounded amazing, but like you said bootlegs don't always sound as good as the show seems live.

Looks like I'll wait and purchase van and spk.

I am not taking a shot towards your live experience, being there at Oakland had to be fun. But as a boot, it didn't hold up well at all. If you're limited but can wait until Van. and Spk., I would wait. Thin Air and Big Wave were somewhat rough to be sure.

Red Lukin · March 2014

Hey it's cool. I like reading honest reviews. Plus I just saw another post/thread saying how bad the boot was. Too be honest I sometimes like sloppy shows. It just gives the show a different flavour. But Van and Spk were amazing shows so thanks for the review. I think I'll wait.

2-feign-reluctance · March 2014

High Fidelity 2000 said:
I like that you notice stuff like cracking/poor vocals. Sometimes I feel like fans just don't even hear stuff like that from what I read around here. Quality is a big thing when you're listening to the bootlegs, I'm sure that stuff is less noticed in person at a show with everything going on but on a bootleg it is so obvious to my ears. I actually think that sometimes Eddie LIKES the way his voice sounds when it's cracking, like unpolished, punk quality stuff. I don't get it. From what I've heard so far in 2013 though, Ed's voice is overall a nice improvement compared to the 2008-2012 years.

I have only read a couple of your reviews so far but it seems like you have good musician ears. I finally downloaded Amsterdam 2 a couple months ago and though the set list is neat and everything, I thought the performance/quality was borderline awful on a lot of the songs. It wasn't a mistake here or there, it just sounded bad. Most overrated "classic" show I have listened to. Guess you had to be there.

I was at Phoenix and I get what your'e saying but to me that sort of random flow is what made the show so unique and unusual. The first encore was mostly Lost Dogs, it was amazing. I thought Yellow Moon in the middle of the main set was a surprise, not necessarily a negative. Anyway, I'm interested to read more of your reviews as I work backward. Thanks for the blog.

Also matters what how you are listening to these. A quality pair of headphones makes a world of difference. I have to say even the MP3 versions sound great & I'm not a big MP3 supporter. Every one of these 13' shows is outstanding. Every one. They bring it every night & so good to hear the band clearly enjoying themselves. I grew up as a teen on angry, pure raw emotion Pearl Jam and while the 93-95 years are always gonna be my favourite, I just love the band and that they are still out there making records & touring. We are very lucky fans & while we all have our own opinions, I really think everyone on here owes it to themselves to listen to every 13' show if possible (with decent cans) & hear what I'm talking about!

Blood Red Mosquito · March 2014

I really enjoyed reading your reviews for the shows I attended (Phx-SD-LA1-LA2-OAK). I also bought these boots and gave them a good listen. After reliving these shows, I think the "flow" aspect is less important to me. For example, I really enjoyed Yellow Moon in the middle of the set in PHX. And the cracking voice doesn't bother me at all. If I wanted a super clean version, I'd listen to the studio version.

With all that said, I couldn't agree more about your LA2 review. Pretty much nailed it. It was just an odd show overall. And as you said, Oakland wasn't much better.

Personally, I think Phoenix is a great boot and the best of the 5. LA1 rocked but the Phoenix setlist had so much diversity. To each their own.

Again, thanks for taking the time to do your reviews. Great job.

TamaDrummer91 · March 2014

Blood Red Mosquito said:
I really enjoyed reading your reviews for the shows I attended (Phx-SD-LA1-LA2-OAK). I also bought these boots and gave them a good listen. After reliving these shows, I think the "flow" aspect is less important to me. For example, I really enjoyed Yellow Moon in the middle of the set in PHX. And the cracking voice doesn't bother me at all. If I wanted a super clean version, I'd listen to the studio version.

With all that said, I couldn't agree more about your LA2 review. Pretty much nailed it. It was just an odd show overall. And as you said, Oakland wasn't much better.

Personally, I think Phoenix is a great boot and the best of the 5. LA1 rocked but the Phoenix setlist had so much diversity. To each their own.

Again, thanks for taking the time to do your reviews. Great job.

I appreciate you taking the time to read them, and being sincerely respectful even while disagreeing a little. That means a lot to me and the guys writing these reviews. I know Ian and Brandon appreciate the peaceful differences we all have in boot listening. The differences are what makes it interesting. Other than flow, I agree though, Phoenix is a fine gig.

TamaDrummer91 · March 2014

Portland 2013 review is posted. A fine bootleg and superbly enjoyable.

http://pjbootlegreviews.blogspot.com/2014/03/portland-2013.html

karmadefect · March 2014

High Fidelity 2000 said:

I have only read a couple of your reviews so far but it seems like you have good musician ears. I finally downloaded Amsterdam 2 a couple months ago and though the set list is neat and everything, I thought the performance/quality was borderline awful on a lot of the songs. It wasn't a mistake here or there, it just sounded bad. Most overrated "classic" show I have listened to. Guess you had to be there.

I was there and I think you are right,You had to be there to get it.
The magic of the night isn't to be fully found on the bootleg.
I don't feel it is as bad as you say, but there are lots of moments that make me understand what you mean.
I came out of the room saying it was my best Pearl jam night. I kept that feeling until I heard the bootleg.
I feel alot of those party shows don't make a great bootleg. Philly 4 2009 has a great vibe but it's also full of mistakes

karmadefect · March 2014

2-feign-reluctance said:
I really think everyone on here owes it to themselves to listen to every 13' show if possible (with decent cans) & hear what I'm talking about!

If only that was possible.

boyo79 · March 2014

karmadefect said:

High Fidelity 2000 said:

I have only read a couple of your reviews so far but it seems like you have good musician ears. I finally downloaded Amsterdam 2 a couple months ago and though the set list is neat and everything, I thought the performance/quality was borderline awful on a lot of the songs. It wasn't a mistake here or there, it just sounded bad. Most overrated "classic" show I have listened to. Guess you had to be there.
I was there and I think you are right,You had to be there to get it.
The magic of the night isn't to be fully found on the bootleg.
I don't feel it is as bad as you say, but there are lots of moments that make me understand what you mean.
I came out of the room saying it was my best Pearl jam night. I kept that feeling until I heard the bootleg.
I feel alot of those party shows don't make a great bootleg. Philly 4 2009 has a great vibe but it's also full of mistakes

Always felt Amsterdam 2 was vastly over-rated in terms of the boot and really the set. I didn't find it that rare and there is certainly rarer setlists out there. But I'd also agree on the Philly boots, as an event they are great but the shows themselves are full of errors. 'Marquee' shows tend to be this way, like you say it's a party atmosphere. What the bootlegs tend to do is find those errors you don't hear whilst at the gig.

PJ Bootleg Review Blog (Columbia 2016 Review Added!)

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