Pearl Jam will always be associated with their debut album from 1992. A rock classic and one of the records that, via the grunge explosion, put rock back on the map. A success that Pearl Jam never equaled but with which it fills stadiums to this day while frontman Eddie Vedder remains one of the most imitated rock singers. The group itself mainly continued to make music with integrity and with a
… lot of sympathy for their fans. This ninth album also sounds sympathetic, which apart from an original cartoon-like cover has nothing new to offer. Pearl Jam keeps on rocking with two distorted lead guitars in the foreground. Vedder whines and sobs, especially in ballads like Just Breathe and Speed Of Sound, but leaves the vocal pathetics of hits from yesteryear like Alive and Jeremy to imitators. The bombast of their early work is also a thing of the past and was exchanged for an honest sound (somewhere in between and ) where the fun of these rockers in the meanwhile middle age still spills out. (MR)more
