Much more than "Grunge"

Classic rock radio continues to change as it should. However for years, all I can remember on "classic rock" stations, are bands like Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, Heart and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Recently you can tune into stations like KQRS 92.5 FM (Twin Cities) and hear bands like Motley Crue, Guns N' Roses and Def Leppard. Being 2010, this seems like the natural progression, regardless if you think "hair metal" should be considered "classic rock". This is only going to continue to expand. Bands that will most definitely be among the new playlists will include The Black Crowes, Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Now being a casual Pearl Jam fan, I was given a copy of their most recent release "Backspacer" and was pleasantly surprised. Pearl Jam continues to put out music that remains relevant. The band has been around since 1990 and was initially penned a "grunge" band with their monumental album "Ten" in 1991. They have gone on to release 9 studio albums throughout their 20+ years of existence. "Backspacer" has Pearl Jam continuing with their trademark sound, however is much more than "grunge" and cannot be categorized in that all but dead genre. The album kicks off with "Gonna See My Friend" which is has a classic 90s groove with some punk tendencies. Eventhough Eddie Vedder remains the staple and a casual fans figurehead of the band, each member was involved in writings songs for the album and none of them were responsible for every track. This is a testament to the bands cohesiveness, which is a lot to say in this day and age of bands with ever changing lineups (see one of my favorite bands Megadeth for reference). The next track "Got Some" is one of my personal favorites. With its upbeat tempo and lyrics including "Every time, you can try but can't turn on a rock song... I got some if you need it". Rock song is right, these boys haven't lost any steam. Deeper into the mix is "Just Breathe" which is classic Vedder. He seems to have a penchant for great melody and depth in all of the songs he writes whether it be on a Pearl Jam album or a in moody soundtrack ("Into The Wild sdtrk" which is brilliant). As the album continues, the mood remains the same, heartfelt, rollicking and fun. All of which seems to be missing in much of today's music scene. "Unthought Known" starts slow and builds on a great guitar and piano riff that crescendo's throughout the song. "Supersonic" has a great punk vibe and one could imagine is a great song to hear live and has me smiling every time I hear it. As a metalhead at heart, this song has some great lyrics like "I catch a break, then a punch to the head, I smile big with a toothless grin". Amongst the meat of the song, a killer guitar solo belts out followed by more raucous fun. The album closes with yet another stellar track, "The End". This is an acoustic piece which rounds out the album perfectly. As Pearl Jam has been able to do throughout their career, the sound remains refreshingly similar, as this track could fit nicely among any album in their catalog. Would it be awkward to hear music from 2009 on "classic rock" radio? I would argue that songs from this record, if played on the likes of KQRS, would work seamlessly among our classic iconic tracks.



Rating: Ten