I hate to break it to you, but Pearl Jam’s 10th album is both a beautiful – and disjointed – mess. Let’s face it – any band that makes it to 10 studio albums deserves the title of ‘legacy act.’ As such, the pressure to make the album that befits the pedigree of such a widely accepted rock band is gargantuan in nature. Another pitfall of a legacy album is that you’re generally only a good as the last two […]
Posts tagged "Eddie Vedder"
Pass the Popcorn: Pearl Jam Twenty
Rock documentaries can be a bit of a tightrope act for filmmakers. On one side of the line are the diehard fans, the ones who have followed the band for years and obsessively researched every last detail about their favorite musicians. On the other are the casual fans and general audiences that may barely know the subject at all. It can be hard to cater to both sides, and often directors have to choose who they want to favor: do […]
Spin Cycle: Pearl Jam’s “Pearl Jam Twenty”
Comprehensive and wildly varied, it is nevertheless important to note that the Cameron Crowe-helmed soundtrack to his Pearl Jam documentary is not a catch-all for the casual fan, or even a career-spanning bid to win new converts. Indeed, Cameron Crowe has been an avowed Pearl Jam fan since jump street, and his soundtrack (and, presumably, his film) reflects this – the two-disc Pearl Jam Twenty has far less in common with their proper hits compilation Rearviewmirror than with their stellar b-sides record […]
Today in “For Real?”: The West Memphis 3 Are Free
One of popular culture’s most celebrated causes finally achieved some (sorta, kinda) closure yesterday when it was announced that Jason Baldwin, Jesse Misskelley, and Damien Echols – otherwise known as the West Memphis 3 – would be freed after 18 years of incarceration. The trio, convicted of a grisly triple murder in 1993, were set free after entering an Alford plea, an obscure plea that essentially admits guilt on paper, but allows the convicted to maintain innocence publicly. The “guilty” […]
The New Blerd Radio Episode 5: Happy Blerdthday!
Memorial Day wasn’t the only holiday celebrated this week! There was also a Blerd birthday to acknowledge, so Mike & Jesse too to the airwaves on an off-week to give you yet another episode of caffeinated, alcohol-fueled commentary on the latest in pop culture. Discussed this week: -How do kids survive the rapture? (well, more specifically, Jesse’s kid) -How did a friend of ours find something gross in his Wendy’s meal? -Marv Albert is NOT Herb Alpert. Or Merv Griffin. […]
Spin Cycle: Eddie Vedder’s “Ukulele Songs”
Every once in awhile artists need a change and go off and do something completely different. Bruce Springsteen put out a record of Scotch-Irish sounding Pete Seeger songs. The Black Keys teamed up with a bunch of hip hop artists to produce the oddly cool Blakroc . Some of these are more successful than others and some are just weird (anyone remember when Tom Waits and Kool Keith were on a record together?). Luckily, Eddie Vedder’s latest obsession is the ukulele. Vedder’s new solo album titled, appropriately enough, Ukulele Songs is his […]
“PJ20”: Or, Why This is Gonna Be an Awesome Year for Music Docs
I’m not much of a theater-goer, but I feel as though I’m gonna have to make quite a bit of time this year to check out music documentaries. As I’ve mentioned several times (most recently last week ), the Tribe Called Quest film, “Beats, Rhymes & Life”, is #1 on my must-watch list. However, another documentary that I recently got wind of is the Cameron Crowe-directed “PJ20”, the subject of which is one of my all-time favorite rock bands, Pearl Jam. A […]
Award Show Sundays: Next Time Stay Home, Eddie
I love Pearl Jam. Really, I do. There was a brief period in junior or senior year of high school when I used to rag on my best friend for worshipping the ground they walked on, but then he lent me his tape of Ten and my teenage mind was blown. Although they’ve had their moments that have left me befuddled (hello, No Code), I am a fan to this day, not least because I feel like Eddie Vedder has […]