Pearl Jam subsequently released No Code in 1996 and Yield in 1998. In 1994, the band released its third studio album, Vitalogy, which became the band's third straight album to reach multi-platinum status.įollowing Abbruzzese's exit in 1994, original Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Jack Irons joined the band. Burdened by the pressures of success, Pearl Jam decided to decrease the level of promotion for its albums, including refusing to release music videos. set the record for most copies of an album sold in a week, and spent five weeks at the top of the Billboard 200. Following an intense touring schedule, the band went into the studio to record what would become its second studio album, Vs. Ten broke Pearl Jam into the mainstream, and became one of the best-selling alternative albums of the 1990s. A few months after the completion of the band's debut studio album, Ten, drummer Dave Abbruzzese joined the band. Pearl Jam was formed in 1990 by bassist Jeff Ament, guitarist Stone Gossard, and guitarist Mike McCready, who then recruited vocalist Eddie Vedder and drummer Dave Krusen. After years of trying to live up to one of their early statements- "there ain't gonna be any middle anymore"- it's disappointing to find them steering the ship back toward the center.The discography of Pearl Jam, a Seattle-based alternative rock band, consists of 11 studio albums, 15 live albums, three compilation albums, 36 singles, and numerous official bootlegs. Unfortunately, this nuance is steamrolled by the group's need for fan-friendly riffage. Instead of trying to rage against the machine, they're appealing to its intellectual nature. Granted, Pearl Jam haven't lost the perspective they've gained through age- good luck trying to get their young selves to pen a Springsteenian working-class portrait like "Unemployable". But here, he even wails through the slower songs, killing "Parachutes" with his over-emoting and vamping unsuccessfully over the bluesy saunter of "Come Back". He often sounds best on the low-tempo songs, where the mood better complements his voice's strength- Eddie's a crooner, not a wailer. On this album, though, he's back to the multi-line mulching, growling for all he's worth through its more aggressive tracks. The "weird" Pearl Jam albums found Vedder's singing improving ever so slightly, to the point that he was actually singing without any odd affectations- the uh-huhs, the oooh-yeahs, the arghs. That his mushmouthed mewling and moaning became the template for a slew of copycat chest-thumpers is the stuff that keeps vocal coaches up at night. One thing that has returned, unfortunately: An emphasis on Eddie Vedder's voice, an acquired taste's acquired taste. While there's no shirt-rending Jesus Christ poses to be had here, this is as close to the righteous bombast of their heyday as they're likely to ever get again, for better or worse. On Pearl Jam, that's what you get from start to finish (barring one accordion cameo in the minute long reprise of "Life Wasted"). Of course, this choice is where they broke with the lion's share of their fan base- millions who bought into Pearl Jam's original MO weren't willing to put up with creative wanderlust. Despite having the wide eyes of Alternative Nation turned toward them- selling 17 million copies of their first two records- Pearl Jam decided to take the road less traveled, and that seemed to make all the difference in maintaining the band's creative viability.
Think what you will of the group, but there's no denying their growth.