Standing In Line With the Selfish

"And fuck me if I say something you don't wanna hear. Fuck me."

Pearl Jam's a bit of a funny thing with me.

Like many my age, demographic, and such (I am not a taget market.), I picked up Pearl Jam's Ten, and I fell instantly in love with it. It encapsulated a lot of what was "me" at the time, as well as some of what I wanted to be. Anger without self-pity, anger with purpose. I think that's part of the reason why grunge and alternative music spoke to me, for the most part it was more than just whining and complaining, here there was meaning. That's one of the reasons why a lot of today's rap/rock offerings do very little for me, it's empty rage. Sure, you're angry, but what are you angry with? Why are you angry? Most of today's heavier material doesn't focus it, and it just winds up with a lot of negative energy spent busting stuff. Maybe I'm just getting old. Anyway, with Pearl Jam I followed them along with Vs., which I quite liked still, and Vitalogy, which I didn't. Part of the problem was something as ridiculous as the case itself, which didn't fit in any of my CD racks at the time, but it also represented a change from the music I did like at the time, to music that just wasn't for me. I'd say the same thing about No Code, which I would categorise as Pearl Jam's worst album.

In the years following Vs., mind you, I didn't track Pearl Jam's course so closely, and understood why they were boycotting TicketMaster and their essential media blackout, but in all honesty, I didn't really care too much. Knowing me, I probably should have, but for the large part, Pearl Jam was off my radar. I didn't even buy Yield when it came out, No Code had burned me so. It's a good thing I did eventually, though, because I would have missed out on at least one great album, in addition to the two that followed it. Still, if you asked me, I would never consider Pearl Jam one of my favourite bands. I realise that is somewhat odd because I own all of their studio albums, a few of their singles, the label released live album, in addition to three of the bootlegs (the Toronto show being one of them), and bought the No Boundaries disc specifically for the Last Kiss song. If you asked me, I'd say that Pearl Jam was a solid rock band, producing for the most part, solid rock songs, carrying on in the tradition of folk-rockers like Neil Young. It's good music, it will endure, but it will always just be there. What's also strange is that I consider Pearl Jam to be the one American band that maps the closest to what is one of my favourite bands in the Tragically Hip; they both have a core integrity to producing good rock music, great lyrics, and an experimenting spirit that allows them to adapt and grow.

...and that brings us to why you're here, Pearl Jam's new album, Riot Act. What can I say but that it's a solid rock album, and little more. You probably won't be instantly hooked by it, it's not "Eleven" (none of Pearl Jam's following albums have been, and it's ridiculous to expect that at this point), but the songs do grow on you quickly, and there are a few assorted gems that will probably prove positively wonderful when performed live. In all honestly, this is a bit of an ecclectic album, swinging quickly from slow ballads to psychadelic rock to folk rock to what could almost be considered punk, so I would say that like many of Pearl Jam's previous albums (only really Binaural escapes this) the songs stand alone and don't necessarily form a cohesive whole, but still work as a collection of different voices. It also builds on their previous two albums Yield and Binaural in its overall quality and rededication to its rock roots. This isn't a grunge album, it's not an alternative album, it's just a rock album. Most fans will probably have already seen this curve.

Track by Track review:

Can't Keep -- "you can't keep me here"
-- You know what's scary about the lyrics to this song, is that if you read them with a particular cynical and pessimistic bent, they read almost like a suicide note. I'm sure it's not meant as such, more a testament about freedom and wanting to do what you yourself want to do, but still..."I want a last breath", "I wanna rise/ and say goodnight/ wanna take/ a look on the other side", and "you can't keep me here", how would you interpret that? As to the music itself, it's a subtle tune similar to some of the ballads from Yield and Binaural, with a particular pulsating rhythm throughout provided by Matt Cameron and Jeff Ament, along with some interesting echo effects (it's kind of hard to describe, but it "feels" like a ripple on a pond). The guitars themselves remind me of the short, quick strummings of the Eastern-inspired offerings of the Tea Party and Led Zepellin.

Save You -- "don't go on me now"
-- In the tradition of "Go", which "Save You" aptly quotes, this is a full-ahead rock song and an interesting counterpoint to the previous track. Whereas "Can't Keep" was a little depressing, "Save You" brings you back. It also features one of my favourite chorus lyrics ever, that I quote above at the beginning of this review. People who love Pearl Jam's more upbeat songs are definitely going to love this one.

Love Boat Captain -- "it's already been sung, but it can't be said enough, all you need is love"
-- So, of course, after something strong that "rocks", we have a wild mood swing back to an introspective and "slow" song, which makes you wonder if Eddie or the band is manic depressive. Similarities will point towards "Insignificance" both in terms of structure and content, but it never really rocks out. It's quieter. It doesn't build itself up to a fervor. It seems like the "insignificance" has been accepted here and Vedder's just trying to deal with it. This is also one of the tracks that remind me of the Tragically Hip and bring about the comparison. There's some nice use of keyboards, but what brings it out is the guitars themselves, which sound similar to the Hip's "Poets".

Cropduster -- "every life is falling down"
-- Another quasi-depressing song wrapped in a fairly impressive rock background. It's an interesting song about every life becoming part of the earth, regardless of plans and whatnot, and that the world itself is an accident. You've got me, I thought we already covered this back in "Push Me, Pull Me"

Ghost -- "the mind is grey"
-- Another nice, tight rock song, the content of which rings familiar to "Given to Fly". There's definitely an underlying current of wanting to get away, wanting to be free to do new things, and "Ghost" presents this in a little more positive light than "Can't Keep". You have to wonder a bit about what Vedder is talking about (or Jeff Ament as it were, given that the lyrics were co-written by he and Vedder), but it's a nice ditty on its own.

I am Mine -- "the selfish, they're all standing in line"
-- I don't know why, but this sounds like an REM song to me for some reason. It just has the same dirge-like quality of early to mid-90's REM songs, along with strings of odd notes from a guitar thrown in at strange places. It's certainly not a bad song, and easy to see why it would be put out as the first single. It has that easily accepted alt-rock feel about it and is very listener friendly.

Thumbing my Way -- "thinking that's what held me back"
-- This one I'd almost categorise as being folk rock. It's an understated, quiet ballad that reminds me of a bizarre blend of Bruce Cockburn and Neil Young, with all of their energy drained from them, and a bit of country twang added for good measure. Tom Petty on 'ludes, maybe. It's a good song, nonetheless.

You Are -- "sometimes i burn like a dot on the sun"
-- Easily, "You Are" is one of my favourites on the album. Overdriven guitar and bass propel this simple hard altrock love song at a rather measured pace. Whenever it plays in my head, it seems to be faster than it really is, as it actually is a fairly mid-tempo song.

Get Right -- "swear if you must"
-- This is a more typical early Pearl Jam song, which is somewhat strange, considering that it's written by their newest member, and former member of Soundgarden, Matt Cameron. There are some really nice guitar solos peppered throughout the song.

Green Disease -- "No white or black just grey"
-- "Green Disease" is another song that has the same construction that older Pearl Jam listeners will recognise from all over Vs. and Vitalogy, in Pearl Jam's almost "punk" style.

Help Help -- "tell me lies"
-- Uh, yeah. You've got me. There's some nice instrumentation, but the lyrics and vocals will probably start grating on you after a while. The chant at the end, coupled with some nice guitar work, is well worth listening to, though.

Bushleaguer -- "born on third, thinks he got a triple"
-- This is a good song in and of its own right, a nice chorus, some great music, and a great spoken vocal reminiscent of Bob Dylan from Eddie Vedder, as a political song, however, it leaves a lot to be desired. Vedder's jabs at Bush seem half-hearted, or the level of contempt just isn't quite up to where it should be. I'd certainly say that Bush is a pathetic doofus, and perhaps that's where some of the apathy comes from, but even pathetic doofuses can be dangerous from time to time. Especially when they're being controlled by right-wing fanatical special interest groups and trying to fight daddy's war.

1/2 Full -- "don't see some men as half empty, see them half full of shit"
-- Straight up roadhouse blues rock. Great bloody song, with the wit and bite of some classic Pearl Jam.

Arc -- "aaa aaa aaa ohm"
-- Hey, look at that, Pearl Jam covered the THX start-up noise. It's kind of surprising that they put it second to last, mind you, considering that it really doesn't seem to fit there.

All or None -- "it's a hopeless situation"
-- Here's another one that I'd definitely consider one of the best of the album, a simple loungish, down-tempo ballad. It shares some of the droning, haunting qualities with "Nothing as it Seems", but none of the psychadelic pretension. The chorus itself features some really nice piano in the background, that leads into one of the better guitar solos on the album.