Pearl Jam

Between ’91 and ’92, all anyone talks about is Seattle and grunge. And it’s into the grunge melting pot that Pearl Jam get thrown too, alongside other landmark names like Nirvana, Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, Screaming Trees and even Smashing Pumpkins.

What do these bands actually have in common? Very little, when you get down to it. Grunge means everything and nothing. Grunge is a trend, an attitude, a cultural movement more than a musical one, that took hold in Seattle at the start of the ’90s.

Pearl Jam rose from the ashes of Green River and Mother Love Bone: guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament had played in both bands.

Crucial to the story is the 1990 meeting with Eddie Vedder, a Californian surfer who would become the band’s charismatic frontman (by this point the lineup also included a second guitarist, Mike McReady; the drum stool, meanwhile, passed through several hands, though it was Dave Krusen who sat behind the kit during the recording of “Ten”).

Pearl Jam’s arrival on the music scene is hailed by rock fans as the coming of the messiah. Commercially speaking, “Ten” is a runaway success, going on to sell over twelve million copies in the States alone within two years, even outselling Nirvana’s “Nevermind”.

But what’s so special about Gossard and Ament’s band? Why is “Ten” considered a landmark in rock history?

The strength of the album lies in how incredibly anachronistic it still sounds today. No blending of punk and hard rock like Kurt Cobain’s band. No forays into metal like Alice In Chains.

Pearl Jam bring back to life — even in the way they carry themselves on stage — the hard rock of the ’70s. Listening to their songs, you’re reminded of The Who (it’s no coincidence Pete Townshend is Vedder’s idol), Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Neil Young, Lynyrd Skynyrd. No experimentation here: the songs on “Ten” are perfect in their simplicity. Often built around a single guitar riff, deeply melodic and mainstream, they seem tailor-made to fill arenas, standing alongside (or stepping in for) U2 in the hearts of audiences worldwide.

Pearl Jam are the long-awaited answer to the prayers of millions of rockers worldwide who were sick of bands that were all glamour and no substance, à la Bon Jovi.

With grunge, audiences rediscovered the need and the pleasure of identifying with their idols. Pearl Jam couldn't care less about their look, they care about their fans, they always deliver passionate and energetic shows, for years they will fight (though ultimately lose) against Ticketmaster to lower ticket prices for their concerts, and from "Ten" onward they will refuse (almost entirely) to release promotional music videos.

Pearl Jam seem to come from another era, and this is exactly what fascinates both fans and critics. Their unquestionable integrity and tenacity earn them respect even from those who initially criticized their music.

The sound of "Ten" is granite-solid and a million miles from any trend: over time the band will mature, courageously change direction (no longer selling millions of copies), but will never again reach the heights of passion and power of their debut.

What strikes younger generations is the sincerity of the record, which draws heavily on the past of the band members, and above all on that of singer Eddie Vedder, the main lyricist.

"Alive", perhaps the album's most famous track, is a long, epic rock ride built around an immortal guitar riff before launching into a seemingly endless closing jam, driven by a gorgeous solo from Mike McReady that recalls Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird".

The lyrics deal with Eddie Vedder's past, and the traumatic discovery of his biological father's death: for years the singer's mother had hidden his father's true identity from him.

Every track on the album is a cross-section, often tragic and bitter, of different characters' lives. Vedder's spleen, his pained delivery, his cavernous, powerful voice, somewhere between Jim Morrison and Rod Stewart, echoes the unease of a multitude of young people who saw themselves reflected in the characters described in "Ten", guaranteeing its success right from the start.

"Why Go", a scratchy blues number and among the band's finest moments, tells of a girl locked up in a clinic by her parents after being caught smoking a joint. "Once", the album's ferocious opener, is the stream of consciousness of a serial killer; "Even Flow" is a driving rocker that indulges in a psychedelic detour in its midsection, where Vedder becomes the chronicler of a homeless man's harsh living conditions.

"Jeremy", the other single that brought the band international fame, helped along by Mark Pellington's striking video, is a mournful ballad inspired by a true news story: an American teenager who, armed with a gun, massacred his classmates before taking his own life.

"Porch" and "Deep" (about a girl who suffered sexual assault) are the tracks that stray furthest from the band's typical sound: while the former edges toward punk, even if the chorus swings back to melodic, epic Pearl Jam territory, the latter attempts a foray into metal, perhaps more suited to Alice In Chains.

Finally, there's no shortage of more intimate moments. "Black" is a gorgeous ballad, the story of a love that ended, "faded to black", drifting into a long, psychedelic finale in which a piano also emerges. "Oceans", marked by thunderous acoustic guitars and a primal rhythm, strongly recalls Zeppelin's third album, though in the closing section Vedder allows himself a Bono-style falsetto.

Also highly psychedelic is "Garden", rich in religious imagery but still a notch below the album's peaks (and it must be said that, ultimately, the entire second half of "Ten" doesn't match the extraordinary level of the first six songs), while "Release", a slow, almost mystical mood piece that later blossoms into an epic, U2-style ride, closes the record in fine style, with an anguished prayer from Vedder to his departed father.

During the "Ten" sessions other equally interesting tracks were recorded but left off the album. "Yellow Ledbetter", with its enigmatic lyrics steeped in wartime imagery (1991 was the height of the Gulf War), is among the band's most moving performances, as is "Footsteps", just guitar and harmonica, in which the band's singer once again lays himself bare.

"State Of Love And Trust", perhaps the band's tightest and most fun track, and "Breathe" would instead end up on the soundtrack to Cameron Crowe's film "Singles", a romantic comedy set in Seattle during grunge's golden age.

Paradoxically, "Ten" is one of the albums the band claims to be least satisfied with: Rick Parashar's production does indeed give every track a perfect, polished sound, which in a way doesn't reflect the violent essentiality the band proves it possesses in a live setting.

Jeff Ament spoke of an "overindulgent use of echo", of a "metal sheen" slapped onto every song, and both he and Vedder repeatedly expressed a desire to remix the entire album at some point in the future (and indeed, on the band's double best-of, every track taken from "Ten" is remixed by their trusted producer, Brendan O'Brien).

The band's statements aside, it would be impossible to imagine "Ten" any other way. In its own way, it's a unique album within Pearl Jam's discography. None of their future work would sound as "commercial" and at the same time as heartfelt and majestic (though "Vitalogy" would come close).

"Ten" is one of the most beloved and important albums of the entire grunge scene, and it opened the doors of the mainstream circuit to dozens of other bands.

Unlike many of their peers, Pearl Jam are still going strong, and with a chivalry befitting another era, they continue to tell (much like Bruce Springsteen) their stories of shared American tragedies, perhaps without the urgency of their early days, but always with enviable passion.

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03/11/2006