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musicoccurred · 6 years

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Album Deep Dive: Binaural

Here at Music Occurred our goal is to give you a diverse selection of music-related content to keep you discovering new bands, revisiting bands (and records) you used to love and most of all, get you off your keister and go to a show. Today we're launching a new series: Album Deep Dives. We pick one of our favorite records (it does not have to be a new or megaselling album) and go through both the production of it and the record itself with a fine-toothed comb. Hopefully it will make you dig it out of the crate (or visit your local independent record store) and listen to it with fresh ears.

I've been on a Pearl Jam kick lately, yes that's funny to some of you... I don't actually listen to them all that much, mainly around concert time and new releases. I have a couple shows coming up and I've discovered a podcast dedicated to the band so I am particularly inspired. I consider myself a superfan but there are others that have more time and money to have seen the band literally hundreds of times. In a way I'm envious but truthfully I like witnessing a variety of music to help enhance my palate. Not that I feel you have to be a superfan to do an Album Deep Dive, but my Pearl Jam pedigree is pure. Two tattoos, tens of thousands of miles driven (soon to be more) hundreds of gallons of truck-stop coffee, dozens of shows and countless hours listening to each and every record they release. You can tell a true Pearl Jam fan by asking them what they think of a new track. Their answer will invariably contain "I need to hear it live first" before they render final judgement.

Aided by the passage of time I look back at Pearl Jam's studio discography and notice a distinct pattern: their albums seem to group up as the band evolves. For example, Ten, Vs. and Vitalogy all have a conquer-the-world, angsty sound with Vitalogy giving us a hint of what's to come. Withering from the bright lights and looking to shrink their footprint a bit, the next three albums, No Code, Yield and Binaural, show a band at war with itself, TicketMaster and fame in general. These three are my favorites, mature song-writing and a band with nothing left to prove only trying to figure out how to keep it all going. There seems to be a drastic change at this point. It's like they went from rock stars to graybearded sages. In other words, they grew up. Riot Act, Pearl Jam (aka Avocado,) Back Spacer, and lastly Lightning Bolt all seem to be straight forward rock records. I took artistic liberty with my groupings, I could totally see a Ten, Vs group with a Vitalogy, No Code and Yield group with Binaural and Riot Act together but hey, it's my site.

That brings us to the album I've chosen to examine, Binaural. It's my favorite Pearl Jam record and I dare say it's at or near the top of most Pearl Jam nerds list. To me it's the birth of the modern era of the band. What we know about Pearl Jam today, starts here. Personally, the album’s release coincided with a major life change for me and the first tour of the band where I saw multiple shows in a short time. Fittingly this was Pearl Jam's first album to not go platinum. It debuted at #2 on the chart and moved a quarter-million units the first week then nose-dived. In the following 18 years (that's right Binaural can now vote) I'm fairly certain it has gone platinum at the global level. Binaural also marks the first album since Ten to not be produced by Brendan O'Brien, although O'Brien did mix a few tracks - more on that later.

Pearl Jam staggered into the studio mentally, emotionally and physically exhausted. They toured relentlessly for Yield and felt they were at a creative crossroads and needed a change, exit Brendan O'Brien and enter Tchad Blake. Known for his binaural recording techniques (hence the name) he provided the band exactly what they were looking for. Recorded at Stone Gossard's Studio Litho in Seattle from September of 1999 to January of 2000 the stories from the sessions are legendary. Amps at full volume in a room with just the door cracked and the mics down the hall. Amps in trash cans and creative microphone placements are just a few. During final mixing the band found that the slower numbers were perfect for Blake's style but the faster tracks needed the touch of O'Brien. The resulting product is certainly different than any of their records before or after with a sound of its own. While it utilized the binaural recording technique it sounds fabulous on standard hifi gear. I frequently listen to it with my good headphones for the full effect.

Ask anyone their thoughts on Binaural and inevitably the word "dark" will be used. The band was facing inner turmoil as Eddie Vedder struggled with writer's block, Mike McCready dealt with addiction issues, Matt Cameron was new to the band and control of the band had permanently shifted from Stone to Ed. During the tour for Binaural there was a terrible accident at the band's performance at the Roskilde festival where 9 concert goers died. It nearly broke the band up. What's interesting to me is that Binaural sounds as if this incident occurred prior to the recording and the somber tones were a result of it. Earlier I mentioned that "what we know about Pearl Jam today, starts here," what I meant is Pearl Jam present themselves as a unified team, clearly Eddie's team, but a team of equals otherwise. At a Pearl Jam show Eddie will frequently tell a snippet of a story about the birth of a song or who wrote the music to this one. Often it will be someone else in the band. This didn't happen in the earlier albums. Ten, Vs, Vitalogy and No Code the lyrics were almost exclusively written by Ed. Beginning with Yield we started seeing more input, lyrically, from the other members. By the time they entered the studio for Binaural this new way of doing things was in full force. From this point forward their albums are very modular. With each member bringing in already constructed components and assembling them together. It may be a riff or a few lines, or it could be an entirely complete song just needing a solo from Mike or phrasing from Ed. Timing for this change was perfect. The band was nearing a decade together, they had added veteran musician/song writer Matt and Ed was mired in a horrific case of writer's block.

Track by track

Binaural opens with “Breakerfall” a punk inspired run through Eddie’s metaphorical lyrics in a tight 2:19. Side note: Pearl Jam are incredibly thoughtful about their records. They control every aspect of production, track sequencing and packaging. This album is no different, the tracks fit together perfectly. Next up is “God’s Dice” that begins with a rapid fire Matt Cameron drum roll and jams along with a rapid pace that belies the quieter songs later. “Evacuation” has an odd timing signature (hello Matt Cameron!) will strike you as a new sound from Pearl Jam but if you listen to later records you’ll find that some of their new sounds originated with this track. “Evacuation” also serves as a transition into the slower songs on the record. “Light Years” is where the album really begins to shine, music by Mike McCready, it has the classic Eddie story arc. You feel like you’re on a journey with the protagonist, anecdotally, it’s about a friend of the band, Diane Muus from Sony Music who had passed away a couple years prior. “Nothing As It Seems” showcases the binaural recording. Jeff Ament’s bass sounds like it’s behind and below you and Mike’s guitar is sitting on my right shoulder. This slow burn of a song really comes to life at concerts. “Thin Air” is a light acoustic style track reminiscent of college radio classics being played around a beach camp fire. Soulful lyrics, lush background harmonies make you reach for your own guitar. “Insignificance” is likely my favorite of the higher tempo songs. A meditation on war, it features a style of music that’s unique to Pearl Jam, they vary tempos like no other band I’ve seen, slow burn to full on rock all inside of a single song. Next up is “Of The Girl,” if you’ve never been to a Pearl Jam show, they typically open up with a quiet song with the lights down low, then launch into a rocker. Of all of them, my favorite is “Of The Girl” the clean riff with Mike’s lead lightly picking over the top. Eddie’s soft singing really settle you into a groove. I’ll post a video of it as an opener below.

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Shifting gears back into the noisier stuff, “Grievance” is inspired by the protests at the WTO summit in Seattle. It features that signature start-stop rhythm that showcases what Matt brings to the band. Beginning with Vitalogy Pearl Jam can get weird on you from time to time. “Rival” is probably the strangest song on this record. It begins with what sounds to be a pig eating an apple. The music is pretty standard Stone Gossard riffs but with the vocals layered on top.”Sleight of Hand” begins just with a single lead guitar and drums with Ed singing over the top. When the bridge hits the full band joins in only to abruptly go back to the single guitar and drums. It’s a very hard song to describe but sounds great. “Soon Forget” is a short ukulele song that doesn’t seem to fit the album (more on that later) fortunately for us it foreshadows a full album released by Ed a few years later. The album closes with “Parting Ways” an epic closer with a sitar sounding guitar and big tom tom rhythms.

Member by member

Ed had the music for what would become "Grievance" and "Insignificance" two songs that shine in concert by the way. But he had no lyrics and had even given up the guitar. Thankfully he discovered the ukulele and began plucking away at it. This would explain why "Soon Forget" is included on this record despite not really fitting and displacing several other great tracks. It marks his conquering the demon that is writer's block. This, coupled with releasing the somewhat strange "Nothing As It Seems" as the lead single dismisses any notion that this is anyone else's band. In typical enigmatic Ed fashion, the album ends with a hidden track called "writer's block" that is just the sound of Ed pounding away on a typewriter for a couple minutes.

Aside from the music on “Light Years, ”Mike McCready did not write any of the songs on Binaural but he "McCreadys it up" on most of them. Mike is quite possibly one of the most under-rated guitarists of his generation he can absolutely shred but more so he has an instantly identifiable tone. On "Nothing As It Seems" his feedback laced guitar solos are so brilliant that I've personally witnessed the crowd chanting "Mike" so forcefully that Ed had to stop the show so Mike could take a bow. His battle with Crohn's Disease and subsequently prescription medicines certainly took their toll on him. Thankfully he overcame it and is healthy.

Stone Gossard, so aloof in concert but seemingly an engaging person in conversation is really the mastermind behind Pearl Jam. In the beginning it was his band, he wrote most of the music and knew what he wanted it to look and sound like. As mentioned previously, that leadership role shifted over to Eddie Vedder. It's not certain exactly when that happened but my opinion is around the Vitalogy/No Code era. For Binaural, Stone wrote the lyrics and music for "Thin Air," "Of The Girl" and "Rival." He also co-wrote the music for "Light Years."

Jeff Ament is widely known as Ed's best friend in the band. His songs are usually some of the strangest with eclectic phrasing and timing. He wrote "God's Dice," "Nothing As It Seems," and the music for "Sleight of Hand." Jeff is also a very talented visual artist and plays a hand in the album cover/packaging of the records.

That leaves us with Matt Cameron. Now many people have strong opinions on who is the best Pearl Jam drummer but my vote goes to Matt. He has the pedigree of his time with Soundgarden but more importantly his steady hand gave the band a stability they didn't seem to have before, an energy even. Pearl Jam went through several drummers in their first 7 years but Matt has been behind the kit for them for 20 years now. That is no coincidence. He wrote the music for "Evacuation" on this record. One bone to pick, most casual fans will say Dave Abbruzzese is their favorite Pearl Jam drummer. While Dave is certainly a very talented drummer, he was simply the first drummer most people saw in the videos from Ten, they likely don't realize he wasn't the drummer they were hearing on the record. For what it’s worth, his work on Vs and Vitalogy were stellar, the dude can drum.

For all that's included in Binaural, what's left out is just as important. As I've alluded to before, Pearl Jam is a fan's band. Their shows are legendary and each setlist is mostly unique and contains tracks selected just for that venue, crowd and city etc. Ed is effectively Bruce Springsteen Jr so the shows started getting longer and longer, break out the B Sides! Pearl Jam deep cuts are mainstays of the concerts and Binaural has several. "Sad," "Education," and "Fatal" have all become fan favorites.

If you’ve never listened to this record all the way through or if it’s just been a while. Pick it up and drop the needle.

-JS

#album #Pearl Jam #musicoccurred #binaural

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musicoccurred · 6 years

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Pearl Jam -The Home Shows

Who: Pearl Jam Where: The Home Shows, Seattle, WA. When: August 8, 10 2018

I've said this before and it remains true. A Pearl Jam concert is much more than just a show. It's a celebration. A celebration of music, of a long relationship and of course, life. Very few places do I feel absolutely at home but a Pearl Jam show is one of them. Certainly we're all different people but for 3 hours we're one. These Seattle shows reminded me of a pilgrimage, I'm sure there were lots of Seattle folks there but most of the people I chatted with were from other places. For me it was a bucket-list item, to see Pearl Jam in their home city, a city that gave us so much music and so many iconic bands.

These concerts, "The Home Shows," given that name because the tour takes place mainly in MLB stadiums, had a similar feel to PJ20 the 20th anniversary shows in Alpine Valley, Wisconsin in 2011. No, there weren't multiple bands on the bill, but there were multiple activities and certainly a festive vibe. The Seattle Museum of Pop Culture, aka MoPop, had an exhibit dedicated to Pearl Jam opening on the Saturday after the shows but 10c (Ten Club, Pearl Jam's fanclub) members could gain access on Thursday during the day off between shows. London Bridge Studios where Ten was recorded also had Pearl Jam specific tours and legendary concert photographer Danny Clinch had a pop up shop with photos available for autograph and purchase. Did I mention it all took place in Seattle? Not only a great city but a city full of Pearl Jam history, we're talking The Off Ramp, Moore Theater, Benaroya Hall, Showbox, Easy Street Records, the list goes on!

Wednesday, Night 1

It has become popular again for bands to have artists make posters for concerts, particularly individual posters for each show. Pearl Jam is one of the few that's always done this. It is an expensive habit and the posters are treated as currency among 10c members. For these shows there were 5 unique posters all by artists Pearl Jam has used extensively in the past. A point of contention here, at their larger shows, the band has started setting up tents to sell merch throughout the day and even on days before and after the shows. Because they are open to the public, it's safe to say there are people there buying and going straight to eBay. The lines took many hours to navigate, there has to be a better way. How about when a 10c member buys a ticket through the band's website we get a code unique to us that allows us to purchase merch online and have it shipped to our homes? Place whatever quantity limits you want, something needs to change. A highlight of waiting around in the sun all day, I met a cool young man that had traveled from Tokyo to attend his first Pearl Jam show. There were people coming to Seattle from all over the world, this guy was in for a night he won't soon forget.

Several years ago Pearl Jam shows began lasting +- 3 hours. They always played a lot of songs but when this happened they finally shed the opening act. No complaints here. At 8:30 straight up the band took the stage to a loop of "Aye Davanita" from Vitalogy and ease into "Long Road." Now PJ's MO is that they play a quiet track or two then something noisy. Not on this night, Eddie wanted it to be an intimate gathering so "Long Road" led to "Release" followed by "Low Light" and crowd favorite, the singalong "Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town." Genius. How do you transition from slow and quiet into something noisy? "Corduroy" that's how. Even though it's a song that PJ play pretty much every show it remains a favorite for me. Its long intro whips the crowd into a frenzy that continued with "Go," "Do the Evolution" and the Ramones-esque "Mind Your Manners." Each setlist is crafted by Ed with input from the band to fit the venue, audience and history of the band/city. Probably the most notable moment of the show was when Eddie broke down the meaning of "Evenflow." "Evenflow" is a concert staple, performed pretty much every time they play. In the 90s it was the song people liked when they didn't like PJ. Fast drums and guitars, weird lyrics just a fun rock song. But on this night, after the band had worked hard with politicians and local businesses to raise money and awareness for Seattle's horrible homeless problems Ed opened up a bit. When the band had just formed they spent a lot of time in the Belltown/Pioneer Square areas of Seattle. They befriended another Eddie, this one a homeless African-American Vietnam Veteran with mental health problems. He was known for his wild hair and wearing a tarp like a poncho. When he was mentally present he would tell them about Vietnam and his struggles with returning to civilian life. Other times, he simply wasn't there mentally. His visits greatly affected the band and when they came back from a tour they couldn't find him. Searching all over Seattle they finally found him sleeping on concrete under a viaduct. Returning from a later tour they again couldn't find him and discovered he had passed away. Suddenly "Evenflow" makes perfect sense, Ed held on to that story for 28 years. Other highlights, Ed performed a solo rendition of Jack White's "We're Going to be Friends" in honor of teachers everywhere. During the performance, his daughters danced with their favorite teachers (clad in Mariners jerseys with Vedder on the back) behind him. During the encore Brandi Carlile joined the band for "Again Tonight" a song PJ had covered for a benefit album. I love when other musicians join Pearl Jam on stage and look out at the giant crowd with wide eyes, Brandi ever the badass, threw her head back and screamed into the Seattle sky. They closed the show with "Rockin' in the Free World" and my least favorite live song, "Yellow Ledbetter" the show clocked in at 33 songs over 3 hours.

Thursday, Day Off

I snoozed on the London Bridge Studios tickets so that was out. I was looking forward to roaming around the city and attending the Pearl Jam exhibit at MoPop. Situated near the Space Needle and the Experience Music Project, MoPop is covered in tourists. Lucky for us this was a 10c event only. Jeff Ament is the de facto historian of the band keeping massive amounts of memorabilia in a warehouse. This band kept everything. I mean EVERYTHING. They have the cassettes that Stone/Jeff and Ed mailed back and forth to begin their relationship. Seeing these in person was powerful. Pearl Jam have provided the soundtrack to my life and quite literally if those tapes didn't exist I wouldn't have been standing there all those years later. Favorite moments: seeing the typed and written lyrics and loads of Ed's notebooks, the incredible statue of Andy Wood that Jeff commissioned (more on that here) as well as posters from every show. If you're in Seattle I highly recommend seeing this exhibit.

Friday, Night 2

Again starting at 8:30 PJ opens with three slow burners, "Oceans," "Footsteps" and "Nothingman" before blasting off with "Why Go" and "Brain of J." This was going to be awesome. I love the 2nd PJ shows, all of my needs are met by the first night. Nervousness is gone, just relax and enjoy the show. This show really focused on older material, only two tracks were post 2000. The band were much looser as was the crowd. The singalongs were louder and sharper, I refrained, choosing instead to just absorb the love and energy flying around the stadium. During "I Won't Back Down," a solo tribute to the great Tom Petty, Eddie asked the crowd to turn on their cell phone flashlights so Tom could see. The result was mesmerizing. The band also honored Chris Cornell by performing "Missing," a very rare deep cut. Speaking of Cornell, Kim Thayil joined the band for "Kick Out the Jams" and later joined Steve Turner and Mark Arm of Mudhoney (and Green River!) for "Search and Destroy" and "Sonic Reducer." Favorite moments: the aforementioned songs plus Ed hosing up the intro to "Rearviewmirror" to the point the band had to stop. Ed broke into "Fernando" by Abba saying that's what he was hearing. What can I say, the guy is hilarious. Other notable moments, Mike's solo on "Evenflow" was one of the best I can remember. What a beautiful night. 36 amazing songs over 3.5 hours in the glorious Seattle night.

Setlist Night 1:

Long Road Release Low Light Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town Corduroy Go Do the Evolution Mind Your Manners Throw Your Hatred Down (Neil Young cover) Lightning Bolt Given to Fly All Those Yesterdays Even Flow Help! (The Beatles cover) (snippet) Help Help Black Setting Forth Play Video I Am a Patriot (Little Steven cover) Porch Encore: We're Going to Be Friends (The White Stripes cover) (live debut by PJ) Nothing as It Seems Let Me Sleep Breath Again Today (with Brandi Carlile) State of Love and Trust Rearviewmirror Encore 2: Wasted Reprise Better Man (with “Save It for Later” tag) Comfortably Numb (Pink Floyd cover) Alive I've Got a Feeling (The Beatles cover) Rockin' in the Free World (Neil Young cover) Yellow Ledbetter

Setlist Night 2:

Oceans Footsteps Nothingman Why Go Brain of J. Interstellar Overdrive (Pink Floyd cover) Corduroy Rats In Hiding Whipping Even Flow Missing (Chris Cornell cover) (live debut by PJ) Daughter (with "W.M.A" and "It's Ok" tags) Immortality I'm Open Unthought Known Can't Deny Me Do the Evolution Lukin Porch Encore: I Won't Back Down (Tom Petty cover) (EV solo) Thin Air Better Man (with "Save It for Later" by English Beat tag) All or None Crown of Thorns (Mother Love Bone cover) Kick Out the Jams (MC5 cover) (with Kim Thayil) Spin the Black Circle Play Video Rearviewmirror (with "Fernando" (ABBA)… more ) Crazy Mary (Victoria Williams cover) Jeremy Leash Search and Destroy (Iggy and The Stooges cover) (With Kim Thayil, Steve Turner, and Mark Arm) Sonic Reducer (Dead Boys cover) (With Kim Thayil, Steve Turner, and Mark Arm) Alive Baba O'Riley (The Who cover) Yellow Ledbetter

-JS

#concert #Pearl Jam #musicoccurred

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