Lightning Bolt: the official album thread

[harmless]

What I miss in this discussion is how the fade-outs can be actually useful for this record. You will hear it when you have the whole album. Or not . I know the quality is different, but at least I really liked how Getaway got into Mind Your Manners, but even more, Lightning Bolt into Infallible. And people who dismiss Future Days in advance, should really wait to hear the studio version and how it is different. Same for Sleeping By Myself. I am *so* looking forward to seeing the reactions that that one!

groetjes,
Mirella

There is allegedly a missing track from this leak... Is that Infallible? A track begins as one ends.

[hlniv]

I'm gonna say it...I think I'm going to enjoy this album more out of the gate than any since.... Vitalogy....yep I said it, so what! I hated No Code (at first) Yield was another change from that which took some getting used to though I enjoyed it. Binaural was dark and a grower, Riot Act was a grower, ST and Backspacer....I enjoyed but never reached the point of the prior records with me. What I've heard so far from Lightning Bolt has me litterally dancing around drinking whiskey and clapping my fucking hands....CLAPPING MY HANDS!!! WTF?!..I'm not one to normally do that....ever. lol

This

At least the whiskey part. The rest is hard to digest because of that.

But really, this. I am finding myself thinking the same

This?*

2 PARTS Rye Whiskey
1 PART St-Germain
¾ PART Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice
TOP WITH Ginger Beer
2 DASHES Angostura Bitters

METHOD: Shake first three ingredients in an ice filled shaker and strain into an ice filled Collins glass. Top with Ginger beer & 2 dashes of Angostura bitters to garnish.

*also goes good with a "big sandwich"*

No. This.

1 glass
4 ice cubes
Fill glass with woodford reserve

Some people make shit so complicated

[McParadigm]

A few 5 star songs and no trash and this is in the top half of the catalog for me.

So it's already too late for that, then...

Plugging leaks?

I like all the songs we've heard so far. I don't know how many I'll be seeking out in 6 months time, but I won't be skipping them either. And I love MYM and Lightning Bolt. I don't know that either will be 5 stars in the long run, but then again I have no 5 star songs on No Code, Binaural, or Riot Act. A few come close.

Time really is the big influence. Well, aside from Shania. Obviously Shania is the unspoken link to the band's recent work, having heavily influenced both Let the Records Play and Unemployable.

Actually, it occurred to me this morning that I've been listening almost exclusively to Them and the first three Van Morrison solo records the last few weeks, with a bit of Sam Cooke sprinkled in, so maybe these leaked songs just suffer from that comparison. I hadn't thought about that.

[harmless]

The fact that anyone needs this album to be better than the first 7 albums is proof to me that expectations are too high, hence the far-flung disappointment.

[McParadigm]

I'm gonna say it...I think I'm going to enjoy this album more out of the gate than any since.... Vitalogy....yep I said it, so what! I hated No Code (at first) Yield was another change from that which took some getting used to though I enjoyed it. Binaural was dark and a grower, Riot Act was a grower, ST and Backspacer....I enjoyed but never reached the point of the prior records with me. What I've heard so far from Lightning Bolt has me litterally dancing around drinking whiskey and clapping my fucking hands....CLAPPING MY HANDS!!! WTF?!..I'm not one to normally do that....ever. lol

This

At least the whiskey part. The rest is hard to digest because of that.

But really, this. I am finding myself thinking the same

This?*

2 PARTS Rye Whiskey
1 PART St-Germain
¾ PART Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice
TOP WITH Ginger Beer
2 DASHES Angostura Bitters

METHOD: Shake first three ingredients in an ice filled shaker and strain into an ice filled Collins glass. Top with Ginger beer & 2 dashes of Angostura bitters to garnish.

*also goes good with a "big sandwich"*

No. This.

1 glass
4 ice cubes
Fill glass with woodford reserve

Some people make shit so complicated

Hard alcohols are for sipping, not mixing.

[Heathen]

The fact that anyone needs this album to be better than the first 7 albums is proof to me that expectations are too high, hence the far-flung disappointment.

I don't recall anyone saying this.

[stip]

the thing about songs with more prominent hooks and melodies is that even if they aren't my favorites they won't feel like work to listen to, and a lot of the other 3 star songs in the catalog just get skipped after a while because, unless I haven't heard it in a while and want to revisit it, it kinda feels like work to listen and that's time I could be listening to something else.

If Pearl Jam writes a great song I'd probably (usually) rather it be a bit darker and serious, or have the dramatic cathartic sweep that something like lightning bolt has (if you had told me after the first time I heard the wrigley version I would be in love with the studio track I never would have believed you), because the extra gravity elevates the song. So I am still expecting/hoping that something like Pendulum or Infallible will be my favorite song on the record. But if it's going to be one of the 'pretty good' songs that I put towards the bottom of an album I'd rather they sound like this.

I think Backspacer has a bunch of really strong songs (GSMF and Force of Nature are my favorites) but what is so appealing about that record is that really nothing is a chore to listen to. Other than the 4-5 songs that I love on each record Binaural and Riot Act feel like work.

[harmless]

The fact that anyone needs this album to be better than the first 7 albums is proof to me that expectations are too high, hence the far-flung disappointment.

I don't recall anyone saying this.

Not in as many words, this is me interpreting what I've heard: "This might be better than S/T and Backspacer, but that's not saying much" implies to me that whoever wrote it (sorry I can't remember and I'm not going to look) still expects absolutely classic Pearl Jam, or nothing. I see it differently; I judge 23-year-old PJ as exactly that, and on that basis.

[stip]

A few 5 star songs and no trash and this is in the top half of the catalog for me.

So it's already too late for that, then...

Plugging leaks?

I like all the songs we've heard so far. I don't know how many I'll be seeking out in 6 months time, but I won't be skipping them either. And I love MYM and Lightning Bolt. I don't know that either will be 5 stars in the long run, but then again I have no 5 star songs on No Code, Binaural, or Riot Act. A few come close.

Time really is the big influence. Well, aside from Shania. Obviously Shania is the unspoken link to the band's recent work, having heavily influenced both Let the Records Play and Unemployable.

Actually, it occurred to me this morning that I've been listening almost exclusively to Them and the first three Van Morrison solo records the last few weeks, with a bit of Sam Cooke sprinkled in, so maybe these leaked songs just suffer from that comparison. I hadn't thought about that.

no doubt some of these songs will lose their luster in 6 months times. But some will sustain it and other songs I may not feel right now will become favorites.

I loved WWS out the gate and still do. I loved Marker and that cooled. I didn't like parachutes much and love it now.

So who knows? I am probably not great at predicting what will last.

MYM is not gonna be a 5 star song (it would have gotten there by now, given how much I've listened) but it's definitely a 4

[Heathen]

The fact that anyone needs this album to be better than the first 7 albums is proof to me that expectations are too high, hence the far-flung disappointment.

I don't recall anyone saying this.

Not in as many words, this is me interpreting what I've heard: "This might be better than S/T and Backspacer, but that's not saying much" implies to me that whoever wrote it (sorry I can't remember and I'm not going to look) still expects absolutely classic Pearl Jam, or nothing. I see it differently; I judge 23-year-old PJ as exactly that, and on that basis.

Hmm that was me, and no it doesn't imply that, it just means that s/t and bs are crap to me so the album could be only semi-crap and still be better than those two.

[harmless]

The fact that anyone needs this album to be better than the first 7 albums is proof to me that expectations are too high, hence the far-flung disappointment.

I don't recall anyone saying this.

Not in as many words, this is me interpreting what I've heard: "This might be better than S/T and Backspacer, but that's not saying much" implies to me that whoever wrote it (sorry I can't remember and I'm not going to look) still expects absolutely classic Pearl Jam, or nothing. I see it differently; I judge 23-year-old PJ as exactly that, and on that basis.

Hmm that was me, and no it doesn't imply that, it just means that s/t and bs are crap to me so the album could be only semi-crap and still be better than those two.

Ah, OK, my bad. To me they're both OK with plenty of flaws, but different flaws. I've never hated a PJ album.

[harmless]

And my memory is shot, so please forgive that.

[stip]

The fact that anyone needs this album to be better than the first 7 albums is proof to me that expectations are too high, hence the far-flung disappointment.

I don't recall anyone saying this.

Not in as many words, this is me interpreting what I've heard: "This might be better than S/T and Backspacer, but that's not saying much" implies to me that whoever wrote it (sorry I can't remember and I'm not going to look) still expects absolutely classic Pearl Jam, or nothing. I see it differently; I judge 23-year-old PJ as exactly that, and on that basis.

I've said this before, but pearl jam has made 3 near perfect albums (the first 3). Two of my top 3 of all time and another great one with some titanic songs on it. Ever since then (from No Code on) every pearl jam release is a bunch of songs I love surrounded by a bunch of songs I think are fine and good when I'm in the mood for them, and a few I just could care less about. I'm still with them because:

1. Those first three records cast an impossibly long shadow.
2. The songs I do end up loving are always among my very favorite songs by anyone. They've never spoken to me as consistently as they did on those first three albums, but when something connects it just lodges deeper than any other music I listen to.
3. Because of that I am extremely excited for new music by them because I don't know which ones are going to be those songs, and I have a great time in those few months while I am finding out.
4. Even though there are other artists who would probably reward this exercise more than pearl jam (REM and Tom Waits come to mind), for whatever reason there are no bands whose music I like thinking about as much as pearl jam, and so even a song that might be average for someone else will be enhanced because of the attention to detail I'm likely to pay to it. So listening to pearl jam is usually an experience with a payoff that hat goes beyond the song itself.
5. There are only a handful of records by anyone (most of them REM) that I ever really feel like listening to from start to finish. I'm hard to please

[Mirella]

What I miss in this discussion is how the fade-outs can be actually useful for this record. You will hear it when you have the whole album. Or not . I know the quality is different, but at least I really liked how Getaway got into Mind Your Manners, but even more, Lightning Bolt into Infallible. And people who dismiss Future Days in advance, should really wait to hear the studio version and how it is different. Same for Sleeping By Myself. I am *so* looking forward to seeing the reactions that that one!

groetjes,
Mirella

There is allegedly a missing track from this leak... Is that Infallible? A track begins as one ends.

I saw someone write missing one was MYM on that 5 song promo, which would make sense if it is for the MLB.

groetjes,
Mirella

[hlniv]

the thing about songs with more prominent hooks and melodies is that even if they aren't my favorites they won't feel like work to listen to, and a lot of the other 3 star songs in the catalog just get skipped after a while because, unless I haven't heard it in a while and want to revisit it, it kinda feels like work to listen and that's time I could be listening to something else.

If Pearl Jam writes a great song I'd probably (usually) rather it be a bit darker and serious, or have the dramatic cathartic sweep that something like lightning bolt has (if you had told me after the first time I heard the wrigley version I would be in love with the studio track I never would have believed you), because the extra gravity elevates the song. So I am still expecting/hoping that something like Pendulum or Infallible will be my favorite song on the record. But if it's going to be one of the 'pretty good' songs that I put towards the bottom of an album I'd rather they sound like this.

I think Backspacer has a bunch of really strong songs (GSMF and Force of Nature are my favorites) but what is so appealing about that record is that really nothing is a chore to listen to. Other than the 4-5 songs that I love on each record Binaural and Riot Act feel like work.

That's just lazy. Your like of backspacer makes sense now. It's caused by laziness

I have a 2yo, so you cant just say its the new baby.

[harmless]

What I miss in this discussion is how the fade-outs can be actually useful for this record. You will hear it when you have the whole album. Or not . I know the quality is different, but at least I really liked how Getaway got into Mind Your Manners, but even more, Lightning Bolt into Infallible. And people who dismiss Future Days in advance, should really wait to hear the studio version and how it is different. Same for Sleeping By Myself. I am *so* looking forward to seeing the reactions that that one!

groetjes,
Mirella

There is allegedly a missing track from this leak... Is that Infallible? A track begins as one ends.

I saw someone write missing one was MYM on that 5 song promo, which would make sense if it is for the MLB.

groetjes,
Mirella

Hmm... it doesn't start with the same abruptness, sounds more like a rising atmospheric thing. But it's only on for two seconds. Were there any instrumental connectors between these songs?

[stip]

the thing about songs with more prominent hooks and melodies is that even if they aren't my favorites they won't feel like work to listen to, and a lot of the other 3 star songs in the catalog just get skipped after a while because, unless I haven't heard it in a while and want to revisit it, it kinda feels like work to listen and that's time I could be listening to something else.

If Pearl Jam writes a great song I'd probably (usually) rather it be a bit darker and serious, or have the dramatic cathartic sweep that something like lightning bolt has (if you had told me after the first time I heard the wrigley version I would be in love with the studio track I never would have believed you), because the extra gravity elevates the song. So I am still expecting/hoping that something like Pendulum or Infallible will be my favorite song on the record. But if it's going to be one of the 'pretty good' songs that I put towards the bottom of an album I'd rather they sound like this.

I think Backspacer has a bunch of really strong songs (GSMF and Force of Nature are my favorites) but what is so appealing about that record is that really nothing is a chore to listen to. Other than the 4-5 songs that I love on each record Binaural and Riot Act feel like work.

That's just lazy. Your like of backspacer makes sense now. It's caused by laziness

I have a 2yo, so you cant just say its the new baby.

I think my musical tastes can be accused of a lot of things, but probably not lazy.

[harmless]

the thing about songs with more prominent hooks and melodies is that even if they aren't my favorites they won't feel like work to listen to, and a lot of the other 3 star songs in the catalog just get skipped after a while because, unless I haven't heard it in a while and want to revisit it, it kinda feels like work to listen and that's time I could be listening to something else.

If Pearl Jam writes a great song I'd probably (usually) rather it be a bit darker and serious, or have the dramatic cathartic sweep that something like lightning bolt has (if you had told me after the first time I heard the wrigley version I would be in love with the studio track I never would have believed you), because the extra gravity elevates the song. So I am still expecting/hoping that something like Pendulum or Infallible will be my favorite song on the record. But if it's going to be one of the 'pretty good' songs that I put towards the bottom of an album I'd rather they sound like this.

I think Backspacer has a bunch of really strong songs (GSMF and Force of Nature are my favorites) but what is so appealing about that record is that really nothing is a chore to listen to. Other than the 4-5 songs that I love on each record Binaural and Riot Act feel like work.

That's just lazy. Your like of backspacer makes sense now. It's caused by laziness

I have a 2yo, so you cant just say its the new baby.

What a lazy argument. Sunbathing by the pool is "lazy" compared to climbing a rock face.

[McParadigm]

There's so much "most stip posts" fodder going on right now.

[harmless]

Quick, someone collate it!