Backspacer: Official Album Thread

[Thurman Murman]

I'm listening to "Force of Nature" right now and enjoying it, you bitches

I'm with you on this...for me its my second favorite song on the album after The End.

[Got Some]

I'm a huge fan of the acoustic demo, hate the album version but appreciate their effort

X2

[VinylGuy]

i love Speed Of Sounds, dont really care for the demo, but the studio version is so fucking good. I wish they played that one more often.

[Leatherhead]

i love Speed Of Sounds, dont really care for the demo, but the studio version is so fucking good. I wish they played that one more often.

I like both.

[Clem Halibut]

Frickin' laser beams

[VinylGuy]

I fucking love this part


A whisper in the dark
Is that you or just my thoughts
I'm wide awake and reaching out
It's gone so quiet now
Could it be I'm farther out?
Movin' faster than the speed of sound

[Hatfield]

I fucking love this part


A whisper in the dark
Is that you or just my thoughts
I'm wide awake and reaching out
It's gone so quiet now
Could it be I'm farther out?
Movin' faster than the speed of sound

[stip]

time for backspacer. i love this album. i am always happy to put it on. It is light and breezy and manages to deliver a lot while asking little. it isnt ambitious enough to be in the top tier but it is criminally underrated

[tragabigzanda]

pearl jam sucks now

[stip]

gsmf is everything i wanted breakerfall to me. its not close to my favorite opener because there are so many great ones, but it is definitely a solid 4 star song. i like stone’s backing vocals in the chorus, matt’s energy throughout, and the main guitar line is a lot of fun. I like how bright it feels despite its grunge affectations. the intro/outro parts are great. everyone plays this one hard.

eddie’s vocals have a bit too much s/t stylings to them on the first 4 songs. it is fine because the songs move you through themselves so quickly, but it is a slightly awkward fit

[stip]

First four tracks slay, then I skip straight to Force Of Nature and call it a wrap.

that isn’t entirely wrong

[digster]

First four tracks slay, then I skip straight to Force Of Nature and call it a wrap.

Yeah, this record has the exaggerated version of the problem I had with S/T. The first few tracks are fine; I'm not crazy about them, but I see what they were going for. Then it just goes off the tracks at around Waves and never gets back until The End.

[stip]

got some is so great musically, but eddie lets this one down a bit. both the lyrics (among his few efforts I just think generally fail) and a vocal performance that sounds reedy and thin next to the music.

but its still a very fun song, one I alway like more than I remembered. I consistently underrate this one

[Ms Harmless]

I know it's a small criticism but "come on let's go yeah" is kind of inexcusable as a lyric

[stip]

god I love so much about the fixer. the lyrics, the melody, the optimism in the playing (a breath of fresh air after the three prior albums), the slightly off kilter pop sensibilities in the music.

it isnt perfect. again, too much S/T in the vocals, and moments are slightly more processed than they should be. but wonderful all the same

[stip]

again, the S/T range in eddie’s vocals arent the right choice for this song, but I love everything else about it. I think this was one of eddie’s most accomplished vocal melodies to date (always reminded me of a dire straits song), the writing is clever and out of eddie’s usually wheelhouse, and the music is filthy in all the right ways.


could have been maybe 50 seconds longer

[stip]

I have cooled on just breathe a little bit. Eddie’s playing is lovely, and ‘I’m a lucky man to count on both hands the one I love’ is my favorite lyric of this type since ‘i wish i was the verb to trust and never let you down’. the problem is how over the top the chorus is - both in how busy it is and weirdly, how loud it is. The song needs it to be a bit more gentle

still pretty good, though

[stip]

I know it's a small criticism but "come on let's go yeah" is kind of inexcusable as a lyric

and sadly its not alone

[stip]

I love the rainy may showers feel of the music in the verses of amongst the waves, and eddie’s lyrics and melody are really good. the writing (and stone) dont get the credit they deserve

problem is the chorus is a bit flat and doesnt give the song the lift it needs - neither musically, vocally, or lyrically. And Mike’s solo belongs in a different song.

i think it is partly a victim of past success. When they aim in this direction expectations are super high

[stip]

unthought known is also a mixed bag. I love the build of the first half of the song as the instruments gradually join in and the tension rises. the way it culminates with the ‘gems and rhinestones/feel the path...’ is great. but then it stops. we have two thirds of the song left to go and there isnt anything new or better (and mike’s solo is a little lame).

there is also a bit too much of new agey ed in the first part of the song, but there are a bunch of nice lyrical moments. gems and rhinestones, the moon lyrics, dream the dreams...

just not quite enough. it aimed to be a classic, and the bones are there. but the flesh isnt