NEVER AGAIN?

lowbudgetlush · September 2021

I think if they were gearing up for a dozen headline shows peoples opinion would be different. Festival shows have never done anything for me. With the exception of the new songs we all pretty much know what songs are going to be played at these 4 upcoming shows.

I think Pearl Jam's live reputation precedes them at this point. The set lists are nowhere near as varied as the late '90's early 2000's. Anyways I still feel they are one of the best live bands out there. Not that anyone asked but I think Ween is the best live band currently.

PJNB · September 2021

Merkin Baller said:

kotton_crown said:

PJNB said:

kotton_crown said:

SVRDhand13 said:

PJNB said:

kotton_crown said:

I remember Fenway ‘16 being the same with the hard 10:30 curfew and going on late with people still filling into their seats.

Night 1 that was the case. Night 2 they blew past the curfew and played until 10:47

# of songs per shows:

8/5/16: 32
8/7/16: 35
9/2/18: 30
9/4/18: 30

Seven more songs in 2016

Just checked the site to look at the set lists and strangely enough, besides being completely out of order for me, they count each tag as a separate song for the 2016 shows which they don’t do for the 2018 shows. So really only two extra songs.

Lets go a little deeper here. Time on and off the stage. Look at those start times in 2018. Also 2hrs 40 mins both nights. 2016 we got 2hrs 50 mins and 3hrs 13 mins. Fenway 2 2016 was 33 minutes longer than the 2018 shows.

Pearl Jam
Fenway
Boston, MA
Aug 05, 2016
Show One

Walk On Music: Baba O’Riley
Band Onstage: 7:40
Band Offstage: 10:30

Pearl Jam
Fenway
Boston, MA
Aug 07, 2016
Show Two

Walk On Music: Pendulumorphosis 7:33
Band Onstage:07:34
Band Offstage:10:47

Pearl Jam
Fenway Park
Boston, MA
Show One
September 02, 2018
Set List

Walk On Music: Aye Davanita (from Vitalogy album)

Band Onstage: 7:56
Band Offstage: 10:36

Pearl Jam
Fenway Park
Boston, MA
Show Two
September 04, 2018

Walk On Music: Aye Davanita (from Vitalogy album)

Band Onstage: 7:50
Band Offstage: 10:31

Fair point. I just remember feeling that same frustration in 2016, mostly towards the fans that were still filling in. But I do remember the hype around Fenway ‘18 going into it because, if I remember correctly, the showtime was listed as 6:30 instead of the 7:00 showtime that was listed on all the other ball park shows and people were speculating a monster show.

It's no longer on their twitter timeline (that I can find at least), but I'm pretty certain they sent out something the afternoon of Fenway 1 in '18 about getting into your seat on time for the show, which only added to the hype.

I remember that for 16 for sure. People were hyping an acoustic set to open up too. Can't remember if it was for 18 too or not.

Since we are all over the place with this topic I would like to add curfews blow. Berlin 18 I was told had a hard curfew and they would not go over it. I do not remember the times on and off or what the curfew was but I do remember everyone getting bummed in the pit knowing the curfew was going to come in play and shorten the set. Of course PJ went past the curfew and all was good but still before the show the anxiety was real.

Zod · September 2021

I remember the curfew thing at Wrigley in '16. They played past the curfew on night 1. They must have gotten a talking too, because on night 2 they were were very tight. At the end of the show it seemed like they were in a bit of rush to finish the set. This created a rarity (at least in shows I go to) where Night 1 was longer than Night 2.

They had also sent out that email to be in your seats early so everyone lined up a bit earlier for night 2. We all figured that was to give themselves more breathing room with the setlist, but they still ended up starting at the same time as night 1.

I will say Vancouver 2013 was amazing. Most of that tour didn't have an opening band, which meant they could do 3 hour sets every night. The last handful of shows had Mudhoney opening. I assumed we'd get a shorter set to make up for the opening ban, but PJ proceeded to melt faces and blow through the curfew. I think the show ended at 12:30am which I believe is the latest I've seen an arena show go in Vancouver (the curfew is 11am). I guess they paid the fine

Weston1283 · September 2021

I have to give them credit for Telluride 2016

That was a very special and not talked about enough show and anyone there will attest to that

Perfect venue and the acoustic set to open was unique and different

mfc2006 · September 2021

lowbudgetlush said:

I think if they were gearing up for a dozen headline shows peoples opinion would be different. Festival shows have never done anything for me. With the exception of the new songs we all pretty much know what songs are going to be played at these 4 upcoming shows.

To each, their own. I saw them a ton between 98-03 and my wife had never seen them until ACL 2009 (we went every year between 07-11). She was blown away and I truly didn't care what they played....just had a blast.

And here we are again---we haven't seen them since 2013 & our first show back will be Ohana. To say we're excited is an understatement!

SVRDhand13 · September 2021

JimmyV said:

Fenway 2 2016 and Wrigley 2013 were the two best ballpark shows I was at. Seattle 2 2018 is probably third.

This is actually shocking to me. I was only at Fenway 2 out of the 3. Just thought on paper that Seattle would be higher up.

Noload · September 2021

Weston1283 said:

I have to give them credit for Telluride 2016

That was a very special and not talked about enough show and anyone there will attest to that

Perfect venue and the acoustic set to open was unique and different

Yes! What a beauty that one was.

PJNB · September 2021

SVRDhand13 said:

JimmyV said:

Fenway 2 2016 and Wrigley 2013 were the two best ballpark shows I was at. Seattle 2 2018 is probably third.

This is actually shocking to me. I was only at Fenway 2 out of the 3. Just thought on paper that Seattle would be higher up.

Seattle was amazing. Bit too many covers in the end just like Fenway N1 16 for me but still amazing. Fenway N2 16 was another level.

CantKeepmedown · September 2021

Near 50 shows for me and Fenway 2 2016 is easily top 3 for me. I've never seen my wife have and people around me have more fun at a PJ show in my life. Just an unbelievably great time and show. Perfect weather. Perfect setlist. Perfect crowd.

D-Rod · September 2021

PJNB said:

D-Rod said:

mcgruff10 said:

PJNB said:

Merkin Baller said:

mcgruff10 said:

SVRDhand13 said:

PJNB said:

kotton_crown said:

I remember Fenway ‘16 being the same with the hard 10:30 curfew and going on late with people still filling into their seats.

Night 1 that was the case. Night 2 they blew past the curfew and played until 10:47

# of songs per shows:

8/5/16: 32
8/7/16: 35
9/2/18: 30
9/4/18: 30

Seven more songs in 2016

Night two fenway 2016 was one of my favorite shows.

Likewise.

They really did take it to another level that night.

It was another level for me. Crowd and the band just came together for a perfect night.

Totally agree!

I also agree with your two agreements

Do you have Seattle Night Two at the top Drod or do you have Fenway night 2 ahead of it? Fenway for me.

Seattle N2 was the G.O.A.T , Fenway was 2nd

darwinstheory · September 2021

Weston1283 said:

I have to give them credit for Telluride 2016

That was a very special and not talked about enough show and anyone there will attest to that

Perfect venue and the acoustic set to open was unique and different

I wasn't there and only heard part of it on Sirius 22 a couple years ago. Now, I haven't bought a bootleg from a show I've not attended, but if I ever did, this would be the one. What I heard of it was absolutely fantastic! And I thought the same thing then: why isn't everyone talking about this show? In that regard, it reminded me of how nobody talks about Champaign 03 either.

Unrelated: Fast forward to next Saturday and we're flying out to spend a few days in Telluride/Ouray.

goldrush · September 2021

I would love to be able to see PJ live again. Going to see any live music is something to get excited for (otherwise why buy the ticket in the first place?) but there's always something special about PJ.
They haven't toured AUS since the beginning of 2014 so it's already been 7 and a half years. Before that I'd flown around the world 4 times to see them (UK to AUS was a happy coincidence, AUS to US, UK to US and AUS to UK were all on purpose).

Having said that... Covid has seriously fucked everything up. I'm in no rush to get on a plane anytime soon, and I definitely wouldn't want to be in a large crowd for any event. I'm fully jabbed up, but that Delta strain is scary shit. Neil Young has already said he won't plan any shows until it is safe for everyone to be there.

2-feign-reluctance · September 2021

darwinstheory said:

Weston1283 said:

I have to give them credit for Telluride 2016

That was a very special and not talked about enough show and anyone there will attest to that

Perfect venue and the acoustic set to open was unique and different

I wasn't there and only heard part of it on Sirius 22 a couple years ago. Now, I haven't bought a bootleg from a show I've not attended, but if I ever did, this would be the one. What I heard of it was absolutely fantastic! And I thought the same thing then: why isn't everyone talking about this show? In that regard, it reminded me of how nobody talks about Champaign 03 either.

Unrelated: Fast forward to next Saturday and we're flying out to spend a few days in Telluride/Ouray.

Check out my Deep show review of Champaign 2003! One of the top three of that entire US tour! Also, Telluride 16’ all day long! So fucking good!

OceansJenny · September 2021

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5021252/uploads/editor/xb/u71a0qck8998.png

Looks like Fenway’s Twitter is more to blame for the stage time promise in 2018. 10c did add that asterisk after all.

JH6056 · September 2021

SVRDhand13 said:

JimmyV said:

Fenway 2 2016 and Wrigley 2013 were the two best ballpark shows I was at. Seattle 2 2018 is probably third.

This is actually shocking to me. I was only at Fenway 2 out of the 3. Just thought on paper that Seattle would be higher up.

Like most things, it's a matter of taste. I was at both Fenways in '16, both Fenways in '18, and both Seattles in '18. To me, Seattle 2 is so far ahead of any others it's not even a question. So different people value different things about shows or just have different experiences of the same shows.

mace1229 · September 2021

Foriginal Sin said:

JimmyV said:

igotid88 said:

Tickets are not $130+

$120+ and that was for shows that went onsale before the pandemic. The next time they tour who knows?

Inflation anyone. My dads house cost $30,000 in 1979. Seriously a Taco Bell taco was $0.49 30 years ago. People that complain about concert prices aren’t paying attention to anything else. $4.25 min wage in 1996 wage is now $12.50. That’s about on pace with $30-$40 concert tickets

Still, concert prices have gone up faster than inflation. My PJ ticket in 1998 was $28, 20 years later was 4 times that. That’s way faster than typical inflation. Pretty sure the next few tours were in the $40-$60 range.

I thought it was pretty accepted that concert prices rose a ton in the early 2000s because of lack of album sales?

Spunkie · September 2021

Zod said:

I remember the curfew thing at Wrigley in '16. They played past the curfew on night 1. They must have gotten a talking too, because on night 2 they were were very tight. At the end of the show it seemed like they were in a bit of rush to finish the set. This created a rarity (at least in shows I go to) where Night 1 was longer than Night 2.

They had also sent out that email to be in your seats early so everyone lined up a bit earlier for night 2. We all figured that was to give themselves more breathing room with the setlist, but they still ended up starting at the same time as night 1.

I will say Vancouver 2013 was amazing. Most of that tour didn't have an opening band, which meant they could do 3 hour sets every night. The last handful of shows had Mudhoney opening. I assumed we'd get a shorter set to make up for the opening ban, but PJ proceeded to melt faces and blow through the curfew. I think the show ended at 12:30am which I believe is the latest I've seen an arena show go in Vancouver (the curfew is 11am). I guess they paid the fine

I went to that one, left the baby behind and damn were my nursing boobies sore! Long night!

darwinstheory · September 2021

2-feign-reluctance said:

darwinstheory said:

Weston1283 said:

I have to give them credit for Telluride 2016

That was a very special and not talked about enough show and anyone there will attest to that

Perfect venue and the acoustic set to open was unique and different

I wasn't there and only heard part of it on Sirius 22 a couple years ago. Now, I haven't bought a bootleg from a show I've not attended, but if I ever did, this would be the one. What I heard of it was absolutely fantastic! And I thought the same thing then: why isn't everyone talking about this show? In that regard, it reminded me of how nobody talks about Champaign 03 either.

Unrelated: Fast forward to next Saturday and we're flying out to spend a few days in Telluride/Ouray.

Check out my Deep show review of Champaign 2003! One of the top three of that entire US tour! Also, Telluride 16’ all day long! So fucking good!

Great review, Chris! It is really nice to relive some of those moments all these years later. Blood had me losing my mind and Fortunate Son was delivered with precision. Really a great show with so much energy.

NewJPage · September 2021

mace1229 said:

Foriginal Sin said:

JimmyV said:

igotid88 said:

Tickets are not $130+

$120+ and that was for shows that went onsale before the pandemic. The next time they tour who knows?

Inflation anyone. My dads house cost $30,000 in 1979. Seriously a Taco Bell taco was $0.49 30 years ago. People that complain about concert prices aren’t paying attention to anything else. $4.25 min wage in 1996 wage is now $12.50. That’s about on pace with $30-$40 concert tickets

Still, concert prices have gone up faster than inflation. My PJ ticket in 1998 was $28, 20 years later was 4 times that. That’s way faster than typical inflation. Pretty sure the next few tours were in the $40-$60 range.
I thought it was pretty accepted that concert prices rose a ton in the early 2000s because of lack of album sales?

Ed did say that

Hoagie Breath · September 2021

Interesting thread and a good read. This band for me has always been about the live shows. From my very first show in Philly at The Troc in '92 I was hooked. Friend called me up at the last second to go and I thought I was going to see Stone Temple Pilots lol. When Pearl Jam took the stage I was like, wait a minute........

In those early days I would always confuse the two bands when hearing them on the radio for whatever reason, don't ask me why, but i did. But after seeing STP I mean PJ that night lol, I never confused the two again. Was blown away by their raw energy and how good they sounded live. And what really got me was how they seemed to feed off of the crowd. They seemed genuinely happy to be playing in Philly I remember and it turns out that was true. Joined the fan club that night for 5 bucks.

I consider myself extremely lucky that one of my favorite bands is still touring 29 years after seeing them live for the first time and for whatever reason really like the city I was born and raised in and still live in to this day giving me the opportunity to catch them as many times as I have. 50+ shows and counting and I can't wait to see them at HSN this weekend.

I don't really travel outside my 100 mile bubble from South Philly except for Boston (future wife went to college up there) a couple times and Chicago once (same friend that took me to my first show took me to that one in Chicago'05, one g a ticket I think it was for Katrina benefit, pretty good friend huh?) so I don't have to deal with all those extra costs which I'm sure would have cut back on the number of times seeing them. And that Chicago show was right around the time my future wife was now my wife and we made a turn onto that road which lead to her being my ex wife lol. I vividly remember her saying dont you even think about purchasing that plane ticket to Chicago when my friend who just happened to be at some conference out there scored those tickets the morning of the show and called me at 10am and woke me up (was working nights back then) and said to get to Chicao. This just after seeing them like three times in four days or something that week. Lets just say the wife wasn't as big a PJ fan that I was lol.

Don't really care about the political stuff but to be a fan of this band you know thats just part of the package going in and have learned to just tune it out as i do with anything political.

I for one enjoy most of the cover songs, I really do (if anyone from the band is reads this...SUPERNAUGHT from Sabbath ;-) lol )

As far as ticket prices, they are still a bargain compared to some of my other favorites that still tour ***cough STONES cough*** for example and have always tried to do right by the fans in my opinion. Always put us first.

And with the GA seating now the last few years (God I miss the old lottery when we had seating up front lol...nothing more exiting going to the window to pick up your tickets and BAM! scoring those lottery seats) not a big fan of this but hasn't lowered my excitement about upcoming shows/tours.

I don't even try to nor will I ever understand the people that stand in those merch lines lol. But hey, it doesn't effect my experience at all so if thats what they want to do well yeah......

Pretty sure this will only be my second festival show and not a big fan of festivals probably because I just turned 50, not that i still cant dance and jump around either, im still in shape lol, but just like GA seating, i dont want to have to enter the arena or venue hours early to to claim some spot up front and then have to sit there and wait, and i have to pee a bit more often then when I was 25, cant hold it in that long, i would lose my spot. Fuck all that. plus the fact that I love a good tailgate, thats too much fun to miss out on sitting inside holding on to my spot lol.

But to each his own and like i said this was an interesting thread to read and even better while high AF. So interesting I even even posted in it. Not sure but probably because again Im high AF and like hardly ever smoking pot, I hardly ever post. Lol. Enjoy the show this weekend whether you're there or following it online. You know you will lol

NEVER AGAIN?

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