PJ's drummer

mogwai · January 2004

Hi there fellow musicians...After seeing a thread in teh porch i decided to post this one.Am I the only one who thinks that matt's playing doesn't fit the old pearl jam songs in which dave and jack played?I also think that his rhythm playing is much too strict for pj music...I think that he is a great drummer but for bands like soundgarden or maybe like queens of the stone age....My favorite pj drummer is Jack Irons by far...After him there's mr Abruzeese and then matt...And i really think that matt's reverse rhythms don't fit pj's songs...I prefer jack's style and it's influence on pj music in songs like Who You Are and In My Tree...Compare You Are to Who You Are and I think u will understand what I mean!!!!

alowishis · January 2004

i don't know if he doesn't fit but i like dave and jack better. i have a boot called aussie dynamos and dave just tears it up. i thought he was great.

62strat · January 2004

well to clear up...aussie dynamos is from 95...and thats jack on drums....dave grohl plays on rockin in the free world though...

i dont liek jack, he codlnt go a ful lconcert..he was weak, hardly rocked...

he did sound good on animal and a couple songs...

other than that, matt cameron is fucking amazing..and fits pearl jam perfectly...

alowishis · January 2004

my mistake i thought it was dave on there. the songs sound a little faster paced so i guess i just assumed it was dave. he always seemed to be up beat.

mccreadyisgod · January 2004

Jack was my favorite drummer, but he did have problems... when he was on top of his game, he was a fucking amazing drummer, with a very intuitive touch that just fleshed out a lot of things in the song structure. But he also had problems going the distance, lasting through a show... it got worse over the tours...

I still think that Yield is the best overall album of theirs, and that the drumming on Yield is the best PJ drumming ever. Jack's drumming made that album what it was...

Matt's drumming is a little too technical, I think. Pearl Jam used to have that looseness, a connected sort of chaos, where the songs were always together but just on the verge of falling apart. Matt is too consistent, too driving sometimes. He's gotten a TON better in the last two or three years... Riot Act and the subsequent tour showed him a lot more comfortable with the material. He sat back a lot more, let the songs flow a little better. On a lot of stuff before, it seemed like he was choking the songs with his tempos. Especially the trademark Jack Irons beats... Given to Fly, In My Tree, etc. Now he's started using the "less is more" approach that Jack pulled off so well.

One big footnote: I'm glad Matt is on board... he's consistent, dedicated, and has some serious stamina. He's filled in with enthusiasm and grace, and he's very involved in the writing and composition of songs. He's a great member, and while I pine for Jack sometimes, Matt is always on top of his game. Yea Matt!

MissYouAllDay · January 2004

I don't notice the drums much in the songs except where they are right in ur face like in those no code songs.

I wish dave grohl would have ended up with PJ. I'm sure it almost happened a few times over the years. He has so much energy and punch. I notice the quality of the drums on vitalogy but that is more the songs themselves. Like last exit. That is quite the drum drivin song.

I wonder if Dave Grohl and Eddie get along.
What i would pay to be a fly on the wall and witness a conversation between the 2. I wonder if Dave gets serious around ed.
Like ed has that thing where you can see everyone getting all sincere when talking to him. I imagine there are alot of honest conversations in EV's life.

But anyway whatever they would talk about...wouldn't I like to know.

mogwai · January 2004

Matt's drumming is a little too technical, I think. Pearl Jam used to have that looseness, a connected sort of chaos, where the songs were always together but just on the verge of falling apart. Matt is too consistent, too driving sometimes. He's gotten a TON better in the last two or three years... Riot Act and the subsequent tour showed him a lot more comfortable with the material. He sat back a lot more, let the songs flow a little better. On a lot of stuff before, it seemed like he was choking the songs with his tempos. Especially the trademark Jack Irons beats... Given to Fly, In My Tree, etc. Now he's started using the "less is more" approach that Jack pulled off so well.

I totally agree with you MIG...My only disagreement is that I think that the best PJ drumming ever is the one lying in no code!!!But what i think about pj's looseness is that matt has taken it all away...He is too technical and strict rhythm player...His playing is the best for bands like soundgarden,tool etc where you can find many reverse rhythm parts etc...Don't forget that his playing evolved while playing in Soundgarden.I admire him for beeing a professional but i can't forget Jack's or even Abruzeezes' playing!!!I believe that the one that enjoys Matt's playing less is Jeff who is the main responsible for the loosenes they used to have

anOmis · January 2004

Originally posted by MissYouAllDay
I don't notice the drums much in the songs except where they are right in ur face like in those no code songs.

I wish dave grohl would have ended up with PJ. I'm sure it almost happened a few times over the years. He has so much energy and punch. I notice the quality of the drums on vitalogy but that is more the songs themselves. Like last exit. That is quite the drum drivin song.

I wonder if Dave Grohl and Eddie get along.
What i would pay to be a fly on the wall and witness a conversation between the 2. I wonder if Dave gets serious around ed.
Like ed has that thing where you can see everyone getting all sincere when talking to him. I imagine there are alot of honest conversations in EV's life.

But anyway whatever they would talk about...wouldn't I like to know.

perfect said!!

Pacomc79 · January 2004

I like Matt a lot personally I love technical drumming. At the same time I love power.

It'd be cool if they got Zac Starkey and maybe Dave Grohl to guest on a new album just to get some really hard hitting stuff too along with matt or maybe even have multiple drum parts ala WMA

Matt brings more to the band than just clean crisp drumming as well the guy writes great music. The band itself has mellowed in their age and Matt suits the new style as well as any. Jack Irons can't really stand to tour anymore but he's a great drummer too.

I'm happy with Matt.

Sometimes · January 2004

Don't suppose our opinions will change anything but watch RVM and Not For You on SNL and it shows that Dave was by far the best drummer they've had. Just raw and aggressive. I miss that style when i see Matt drum on RVM, not the same.

mccreadyisgod · January 2004

Nope... Jammer preference for drummers is sorta predetermined at birth.

62strat · January 2004

i think pearl jam are one of the least tight bands out there...in ym opinion, they are perfectly tight...

and i disagree about jeff thinking hes the onyl one who doesnt like matt...bullshit!

i have an interview.backstage at pinkpop 2000....jeff talks about how amazing it is having him in the band, and what an amazing drummer matt is... and he finishes by saing

"sometimes you just have to get on the matt cameron train and ride it"

ya baby...

dave was a great drummer, but he sounded like shit on any slow song...horrible, nothing man is disgusting, and so was ledbetter i thought...
ya he kicked ass on ten and vs...

on vitalogy dave didnt do anything...listen to NOT FOR YOu on SNL then listen to it on vitology..what the hell was he thinking???? where were ou at dave?? why did he change it?

anyways. jack irons just wasnt strong, he had a great groove but coudltn keep up, alot of power was lost in pearl jams show...he sounds fine ont he albums, and i think y ield is my favorite next to riot act...

and ill agree that cameron sometimes takes away fromt he songs as well...animal doesnt sound that great...

but shit, corduroy is better than it ever has, even flow the same...and eveyr other song...matt cameron is fucking an amazing drummer, great song writer..and a sweet ass singer to if you ask me...

all opinion but....i hate it when people rather have jack irons then matt cameron...
after listening to jack ont he santa barbara show in between matt cameron...im so fuckign thankful for cameron and not jack irons...

mccreadyisgod · January 2004

Originally posted by 62strat
i hate it when people rather have jack irons then matt cameron...
after listening to jack ont he santa barbara show in between matt cameron...im so fuckign thankful for cameron and not jack irons...

I agree with you 100% on the live show, but I wish Jack could drum the albums (or even just half the albums) and Matt could take over on tour.

62strat · January 2004

ha, that would be pretty funny...

i have a feeling if cameron drummed on yield...it owould sound even better...

the production the last two albums havent been as good as yield..theyve been awesome, just different..alot thicker and i dont know how to explain it....but yields production os fucking perfect..and that makes jack irons sound alot better...if you ask me.

mccreadyisgod · January 2004

I don't think that's the full explaination... although I agree with you totally on comparing production values.

Jack just had a touch, a feel... it was signature, impossible to replicate, and it let the songs on that album breathe, for lack of a better term.

62strat · January 2004

perhaps yorue right....

but lets be honest about do the evolution......

matt cameron takes that song to awhole nother level...

and he does a damn good job on the rest of them...except fiathfull, thats the only one that really doesnt groove the same...but it rocks harder now...

mccreadyisgod · January 2004

No, the trump card is Given to Fly. Jack OWNED that song.

But for the rest of it... we'll just have to agree to disagree.

62strat · January 2004

ah i see...scotting around the real issue here which is do the evolution??

mccreadyisgod · January 2004

Originally posted by 62strat
ah i see...scotting around the real issue here which is do the evolution??

I would say, it's like they're two different songs...

Or like a self-cover song, where it's essentially the same song, but a different vibe.

I like the new version, but my love for Jack's studio drumming is unadulterated.

August storm · January 2004

anything that touches pearl jam turns to gold, so even so if different its great i enjoyed both or all the drummers! but please no more change except having boom join, i fall in love with the members then a new one joins whom i will welcome with loving arms but its always sad to see one go away:( but i love ya matt:)

gatefold · January 2004

im so glad that dave grohl didnt join pj. matts songwriting and drumming have taken the band on to a completely new level of musical ability and creativity. dave grohls style wouldn't fit pj at all, and his songwriting is , although good, nowhere near pearl jam standard. at the end of the day matt is the original pj drummer, he was drumming for them before dave krusen, and i agree with eddie vedder in the lost dogs sleeve, matt cameron is the best drummer in the world. ill admit, he did overplay a bit at first but i think he was trying to establish himself in the band and win over the hearts of fans by showing his abilities.

im in a band myself (http://www.gatefoldonline.co.uk), and know quite a few drummers, none of which liked pearl jam at all untill matt cameron joined. i think that stuff pearl jam did with jack is good but probably the worst stuff they've recorded drum wise. if jack hadnt been such good friends with eddie i dont think he would have been in pearl jam, because i dont think he's a good enough drummer, and i know a lot of drummers that feel the same.

matt rocks!

PJ's drummer

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