Cochlear Implant

Disc Of The Week


Pearl Jam


Backspacer


(Monkeywrench)


****





We’ve all kind of accepted that Pearl Jam will never do a Ten again; long gone are the days when everyone went nuts waiting for Vs. wondering if it would be as classic. These days we actually find ourselves trying to avoid Eddie Vedder, but there he is, everywhere we turn. Having one of the most distinctive growls in rock will do that, I suppose. (Yes, Creed also has a new album coming out this month.) Although not their strongest album, Backspacer should silence those who feel the Pearl Jam story ended along with the grunge era. After nine releases, they’ve evolved into something different every time. Backspacer dabbles in a bit of everything in its short half-hour. “Gonna See My Friend” reminds one of a raw-power Stooges; “Just Breathe” feels like... well, an outtake from Vedder’s Into the Wild sessions; and “The End” shows how much Pearl Jam have matured over the years. It’s more than a decade since their heyday, but Pearl Jam never really went away.