Pumped for more Pearl Jam
One big question looms over the three regional shows Pearl Jam is poised to deliver – Monday in Missoula, Mont., Thursday at Grant County’s Gorge Amphitheatre and Sept. 2 in Vancouver, B.C.: Will the seminal grunge band cough up any more new tunes?
Pearl Jam has been toiling away these past few months on an as yet untitled follow-up to 2002’s “Riot Act.” And Thursday’s show is billed as “an evening with Pearl Jam,” as in there will be no opening act, and band members have declared their intention to stick around as long as the crowd wants them to (no small declaration considering how fanatically devoted many Pearl Jam fans are.)So it seems there is plenty of room left for unveiling tracks from the new album, which is expected to arrive from J Records early next year. But just how many, if any, new songs is a mystery since, according to the band’s publicist, Pearl Jam writes out its set lists on the day of each performance.
The popular Seattle band – known for hits “Jeremy,” “Even Flow” and others – already gave fans a taste of new material in March when it headlined a benefit for Seattle’s Northwest School at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle.
At one point the band’s mouthpiece, Eddie Vedder, made the nonchalant announcement that, “Here’s one I’m betting you haven’t heard before.” Then he and his band mates – bassist Jeff Ament, guitarists Mike McCready and Stone Gossard, drummer Matt Cameron and keyboard player Boom Gaspar – tore into “Crapshoot,” a punchy, rockin’ number that was more akin to “Save You” or the hard-edged one-two punch of “Gods’ Dice” and “Breakerfall” – which kicks off 2000’s excellent “Binaural” album – than the mellow fare that dominates “Riot Act.”
Several other song titles have been reported this year, including “Severed Hand,” “Worldwide Suicide,” “2 X 4,” “Marker,” “Cold Concession” and “Unemployable.” But during a March phone interview Gossard was evasive, to say the least, when asked how much of the album was finished and what kind of sound his band was exploring.
“Is that newsworthy?” he replied, with a sardonic chuckle. “I’m just curious.”
Uh, well, yeah. And the guitarist opened up just the teeniest bit.
“We have some songs for sure – a bunch of ’em,” he said. “But until you finish ’em all the way, you don’t know what they are. … So there’s just so many raw chunks and so many beginnings and middles, but not any ends yet. You never know when something is going to be mixed or not touched, you know.”
Drummer Cameron was less cryptic when discussing the new songs with Rolling Stone around the same time. “There’s a lot more up-tempo stuff,” he told the magazine, which reported that the album was largely finished in March, sans mixing and vocals. “It’s a lot more rockin’ than our last one.”
Meanwhile, diehard fans have had a new “Brad vs. Satchel” album, released on July 26, to whet their appetites for at least Pearl Jam-related tunes. Brad is the band Gossard plays in with singer Shawn Smith, drummer Regan Harger and others. Satchel is essentially the same lineup, sans Gossard.
Pearl Jam has grabbed headlines for at least two other reasons. One is the band’s opening slot for the Rolling Stones’ Sept. 28 performance in Pittsburgh. (The Stones, McCready’s favorite band, will visit KeyArena on Oct. 30. No opening act has been announced.)
Pearl Jam has also made news for its political activism. Monday’s show in Missoula will raise money for Democrat Jon Tester’s bid for the U.S. Senate.
The band has long been known for its outspoken political views, and Pearl Jam participated in last year’s Vote for Change concerts – aimed at persuading swing states to vote President George Bush out of office – along with Dave Matthews, Bruce Springsteen, the Dixie Chicks and Bonnie Raitt.
Ernest Jasmin: 253-274-7389
ernest.jasmin@thenewstribune.com
What: An evening with Pearl JamWhen: 7 p.m. Thursday
Where: Gorge Amphitheatre, George
Tickets: $49; check for availability
Information: Ticketmaster (253-627-8497 in Tacoma, 206-628-0888 in Seattle or www.ticketmaster.com)
On the Net: www.pearljam.com play these!
