Honest question

smile6680 · August 2022

Do you like it when Ed goes on political rants even if you agree with his position during concerts you attend? I asked this question in another thread before it got locked (rightfully so) and the responses were pretty good.

Please follow rules, be respectful and stay on topic.

rustneversleeps · August 2022

ed, or halifaxtothemax?

F Me In The Brain · August 2022

I like it when people have snarky comments about other board members even more than I like my concerts turned into infomercials.

Weston1283 · August 2022

I don't like or dislike the rants, and they end up being a moment in time I quickly forget after the show has finished, as I am usually thinking more about the setlist/show I just saw. They are free to have whatever beliefs they have and go on whatever political rants they like during their shows.

Pearl Jam is a band that makes music I enjoy and plays shows that I enjoy even more. That's about as deep as it gets for me. Keeping it at that has led to a very enjoyable journey while following this band for about 14 years now.

smile6680 · August 2022

rustneversleeps said:

ed, or halifaxtothemax?

I don't know what this means? Hopefully not an insult directed towards another person

F Me In The Brain · August 2022

They bother me pretty much not at all now. In the 90s I didn't want to hear it but my mind evolved and I also welcome the break in jumping around, generally.

ComeToTX · August 2022

Doesn’t bother me at all.

smile6680 · August 2022

F Me In The Brain said:

They bother me pretty much not at all now. In the 90s I didn't want to hear it but my mind evolved and I also welcome the break in jumping around, generally.

I can see that. Gives a little time to talk to the person you're attending the concert with or what not.

JojoRice · August 2022

I don't mind it but I'd rather hear more music instead of a 5 or 6 minute rant. Especially with these shorter setlists!

droptheleash9 · August 2022

If I'm being honest, I don't even notice it anymore, but perhaps that is because I'm generally aligned with Ed's politics. Hearing some political banter comes with the territory if you have been following the band as closely as a lot of us have. That said, it's much more noticeable to friends of mine that are more causal fans (those who see them when they come to down but don't travel) that I am.

JeBurkhardt · August 2022

JojoRice said:

I don't mind it but I'd rather hear more music instead of a 5 or 6 minute rant. Especially with these shorter setlists!

I tend to agree with this. Ed talking about guns in London one night seemed to go on for a while, but with the scary situation that his wife and daughter had recently went through, I can understand him feeling even more passionate about it and wanting to articulate and process the frustration of how he was feeling.

Merkin Baller · August 2022

When I'm at a show, I'm of the mindset: "less talk, more rock" - I'm there to hear the music, not their opinions.

With that being said, it's his stage & his platform. He can say & do what he wants. If I don't like it, I don't have to be there, and there are plenty of other bands I can go see.

This band has always been outspoken about their politics... IMO it seems like a pretty silly thing to complain about in 2022. (not that OP is necessarily complaining, I understand they're just having the conversation)

PJALK · August 2022

I would prefer he would speak through the music.

That’s why I love and see pearl jam live dozens and dozens of time. I want to hear the great music they have created in the last 30 years. It should be a celebration.

When he goes on a rant I see it as time lost from getting another song in.

I agree with some and disagree with other things he says. But that’s normal. I have liberal and conservative sides on issues. Ed takes all liberal side of issues so it is what it is.

I just rather hear the music. 🤘

mcgruff10 · August 2022

Imho sometimes ed goes on these long tangents to give everyone in the band a much needed break.

Spiritual_Chaos · August 2022

As long as it doesn't turn Dad-jokey.

ry75guy · August 2022

mcgruff10 said:

Imho sometimes ed goes on these long tangents to give everyone in the band a much needed break.

I agree. I don't think we miss out on any extra music. Ed and the band catch their breath and instead of silence, he uses their platform to talk about things that are important to them. I'm cool with it. But admittedly, I like when artists talk a little during a show. Jeff Tweedy is awesome to listen to during Wilco shows. And if you hate talking, never see Buddy Guy. 40% of the show is him chatting (which I love as well).

smile6680 · August 2022

Merkin Baller said:

When I'm at a show, I'm of the mindset: "less talk, more rock" - I'm there to hear the music, not their opinions.

With that being said, it's his stage & his platform. He can say & do what he wants. If I don't like it, I don't have to be there, and there are plenty of other bands I can go see.

This band has always been outspoken about their politics... IMO it seems like a pretty silly thing to complain about in 2022. (not that OP is necessarily complaining, I understand they're just having the conversation)

Good post.

What Ed says doesn't really bother me whether I agree or not. It does seem to occasionally change the mood of the crowd around me. Everything seems to go back to normal once the music resumes though.

mfc2006 · August 2022

Merkin Baller said:

When I'm at a show, I'm of the mindset: "less talk, more rock" - I'm there to hear the music, not their opinions.

With that being said, it's his stage & his platform. He can say & do what he wants. If I don't like it, I don't have to be there, and there are plenty of other bands I can go see.

This band has always been outspoken about their politics... IMO it seems like a pretty silly thing to complain about in 2022. (not that OP is necessarily complaining, I understand they're just having the conversation)

I agree with this for the most part. It doesn't really bother me at all, to be honest.

mcgruff10 said:

Imho sometimes ed goes on these long tangents to give everyone in the band a much needed break.

I agree with this as well.

PJINFLA · August 2022

Whatever the political opinions of Ed, Pearl Jam, or any other band for that matter have they are not going to influence my views at all. So I could definitely do without it at live shows. If they want to go on a spoken word tour and share all of their political and social opinions then go for it.

2-feign-reluctance · August 2022

Not bothered by any of it. Life is too fucking short to be zeroing in on what you don’t like.

droptheleash9 · August 2022

PJINFLA said:

Whatever the political opinions of Ed, Pearl Jam, or any other band for that matter have they are not going to influence my views at all. So I could definitely do without it at live shows. If they want to go on a spoken word tour and share all of their political and social opinions then go for it.

Also a fair point. That's why it was always funny to me when people seemed convinced Pearl Jam will play swing/battleground states in election years. Most folks' minds are already made up going into a show...Ed talking about issues probably isn't going to sway concertgoers one way or the other. Couple that with the limited scope of a concert, which has about 10-20 thousand attendees, and that line of thinking always seemed a tad off base to me.

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