Pearl Jam proves it has what it takes to thrill

Review

ALBANY -- When Pearl Jam made their Capital Region debut a dozen years ago, the Seattle-based band was the opening act on a three-band bill at RPI's Houston Field House. Of course, shortly thereafter, the band's musical career skyrocketed, and Eddie Vedder and company soon found themselves not only headliners, but also the torchbearers of grunge.

Things have calmed down for Pearl Jam in recent years, and while most bands would be in a panic that their spotlight may be dimming, Vedder and his bandmates actually seem to be thriving.

And although their albums may not top the charts any longer, Pearl Jam does still sell tickets. There were a few empty seats at the Pepsi Arena on Tuesday night, but they were located on the upper level -- behind the band.

Pearl Jam certainly didn't disappoint their faithful fans, delivering a rock-solid show that featured plenty of older favorites, selections from their latest album, "Riot Act," and naturally enough, a few curve balls, too.

Vedder was in great voice, his baritone bellowing atop the band's rock thunder. He possesses a natural charm, and although he may not be as frantic or intense as he once was in the spotlight, he still commands attention.

The best songs of the night were "Even Flow" and "Wishlist," two tunes given sprawling, epic treatments. Guitarist Mike McCready stretched out on both tunes. Matt Cameron's drum work cracked like cannons, but he knew when to pull back to allow the song to build to a climax, too.

"Even Flow" was clearly the crowd favorite of the night, but "Wishlist" may have been even better, the lyrics swirling through the melody just as the reflections of the overhead mirror-ball danced around the arena. There were many other bright spots, including the crash 'n' burn "Do the Evolution" and the rousing sing-along versions of "Better Man" and "Alive."

Kicking off the set of encores, Vedder brought a young girl named Rachel out of the crowd as he dug into his notebook. She stood next to him holding the lyric sheet as he tore into Patti Smith's classic anthem, "People Have the Power."

And if that wasn't enough, they capped off the night with a blast of the Who's "Baba O'Riley."

Pearl Jam may not have been quite transcendent on Tuesday, but they sure were thrilling.

Adventurous Texas alt-rock quintet Sparta spun a captivating opening set, alternately weaving together a dreamy swirl of spiraling guitars with a power-slam so intense that drummer Tony Hajjar was forced to press his back-up snare drum into service. Although vocalist-guitarist Jim Ward lacks Vedder's charisma, Sparta's Capital Region debut proved the band could easily rise to headlining status, following in Pearl Jam's footsteps.

PEARL JAM, with Sparta
When: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Pepsi Arena, South Pearl Street, Albany
Highlights: "Even Flow" and "Wishlist"
Length: Pearl Jam, 2 hours; Sparta, 45 minutes
The crowd: Not quite sold out, but at least 15,000