Lets Actually Listen to the Album: Lightning Bolt

[stip]

Sleeping By Myself is a fucking delight. Just about everything about it is a delight. That we got this does undo some of the harm BoB caused elsewhere.

[stip]

i just posted a bunch about yellow moon in the ultimate album thread. nothing changed over the last 4 days. I will add that this, in many ways, feels like pearl jam’s most precise song - like could you clearly and cleanly identify every note everyone plays - which adds to the fact that this song feels like a painting

As good as the bridge is, it would have been nice to see more range between it and the rest of the song. that tension is absent among most of the backspacer and l-bolt songs, and it is one of the really important elements evans managed to recapture

[stip]

I am always happy to hear future days. It’s so nice to have a pearl jam song just linger in a happy, gentle space. The strings and general coloring throughout the song are actually quite good.

its just that piano intro/outro

But still, this does more for me than another all or none/thumbing my way/the end.

[stip]

I am always pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoy actually listening to Lightning Bolt. I think I can comfortably place it in my 6th spot. not an all timer, but a thoughtful pearl jam album that grapples with themes of aging and legacy pretty gracefully, marred by arguably the worst production on a pj album. ST comes close, but there are places ST works super well, which cant be said anywhere here

[liebzz]

LTRP is a fun minor song. I quite like the swampy, roadhouse bluesy pop vibe of the whole song. Of the recent songs that really leaned into a pop aesthetic for the chorus (infallible and unemployable come to mind) it works best here, even if I prefer infallible overall.

nice to let mike cut loose at the end here since they take it away everywhere else

ha - i totally forgot that this faded out too. god damn it

I thought I was alone in the room. This is the unheralded gem of a little song. There’s an intertwined mix of 60s pop and guitar that feels like it’s kneading dough or something powering against each other but somehow it works. Granted, Credence Clearwater Revival did this a bit better by infusing southern soul into the mix, but I have always really liked the effort here.

[liebzz]

I am always happy to hear future days. It’s so nice to have a pearl jam song just linger in a happy, gentle space. The strings and general coloring throughout the song are actually quite good.

its just that piano intro/outro

But still, this does more for me than another all or none/thumbing my way/the end.

Future Days is one of the rare songs in the Pearl Jam catalogue I actively hate. Maybe they were going for a Thumbing My Way vibe but for me it sounds like Bon Jovi actively trying to create couples’ wedding song.

I do love Yellow Moon and think it would have been A+ if only they held it for Josh Evans and Gigaton, so great observation there.

[Hypnos]

Today I served as the office Dj and I was happy putting my favorite music right? Some post punk, some alternative, a little Neil, some indie, etc. Then for some reason I started playing PJ: some Corduroy, WWS, DTE, and then I venture into some of their pop side: The Fixer, You Are, Comeback and then....fuckin Infallible, a tune that I truly like, but for some reason, in the context of the other songs, it just depressed me how bad it sounds. LB is really the only album that bring that kind of feeling to me. I really can believe that this is the same producer of some of the best sounding albums of the 90s, and here, giving such a poor job at producing an album, that (to me) have the songs, but not the sound. Really sad.

I think Ive already made this question, Idk, but is there a way to remastered this album ala Avocado?

[RockPusher]

Today I served as the office Dj and I was happy putting my favorite music right? Some post punk, some alternative, a little Neil, some indie, etc. Then for some reason I started playing PJ: some Corduroy, WWS, DTE, and then I venture into some of their pop side: The Fixer, You Are, Comeback and then....fuckin Infallible, a tune that I truly like, but for some reason, in the context of the other songs, it just depressed me how bad it sounds. LB is really the only album that bring that kind of feeling to me. I really can believe that this is the same producer of some of the best sounding albums of the 90s, and here, giving such a poor job at producing an album, that (to me) have the songs, but not the sound. Really sad.

I think Ive already made this question, Idk, but is there a way to remastered this album ala Avocado?

It needs more than remastering.

[Kevin Davis]

Today I served as the office Dj and I was happy putting my favorite music right? Some post punk, some alternative, a little Neil, some indie, etc. Then for some reason I started playing PJ: some Corduroy, WWS, DTE, and then I venture into some of their pop side: The Fixer, You Are, Comeback and then....fuckin Infallible, a tune that I truly like, but for some reason, in the context of the other songs, it just depressed me how bad it sounds. LB is really the only album that bring that kind of feeling to me. I really can believe that this is the same producer of some of the best sounding albums of the 90s, and here, giving such a poor job at producing an album, that (to me) have the songs, but not the sound. Really sad.

I think Ive already made this question, Idk, but is there a way to remastered this album ala Avocado?

It needs more than remastering.

Looking forward to "Lightning Bolt: Rewritten!"

[LooseGroove927]

Looking forward to "Lightning Bolt: Rewritten!"

Rid, WTC...Please?

[Anders]

I am always happy to hear future days. It’s so nice to have a pearl jam song just linger in a happy, gentle space. The strings and general coloring throughout the song are actually quite good.

its just that piano intro/outro

But still, this does more for me than another all or none/thumbing my way/the end.

Future Days is one of the rare songs in the Pearl Jam catalogue I actively hate. Maybe they were going for a Thumbing My Way vibe but for me it sounds like Bon Jovi actively trying to create couples’ wedding song.

I do love Yellow Moon and think it would have been A+ if only they held it for Josh Evans and Gigaton, so great observation there.

I too think Yellow Moon would have been even better on Gigaton.

[stip]

Swallowed whole too, but never destination is already holding that slot

[Hypnos]

Today I served as the office Dj and I was happy putting my favorite music right? Some post punk, some alternative, a little Neil, some indie, etc. Then for some reason I started playing PJ: some Corduroy, WWS, DTE, and then I venture into some of their pop side: The Fixer, You Are, Comeback and then....fuckin Infallible, a tune that I truly like, but for some reason, in the context of the other songs, it just depressed me how bad it sounds. LB is really the only album that bring that kind of feeling to me. I really can believe that this is the same producer of some of the best sounding albums of the 90s, and here, giving such a poor job at producing an album, that (to me) have the songs, but not the sound. Really sad.

I think Ive already made this question, Idk, but is there a way to remastered this album ala Avocado?

Forgot that I wrote that. Thanks to AI I kinda did the edit that I wanted and now I´m in peace with the album.

https://mega.nz/file/GIdw3ISK#6nuckVMZ8 ... z2xb81-LE0

[stip]

that was a fun listen. this is a really good album. folks just need to get out of their own way

[liebzz]

We could listen to one of the very good 2013 shows that were put on Spotify, or we could something else!!!

Lightning Bolt: Getaway, Mind Your Manners, My Father’s Son, Sirens, Lightning Bolt, Infallible, Pendulum, Swallowed Whole, Let the Records Play, Sleeping By Myself, Yellow Moon, Future Days

B-sides: none

Live: Deep - Lightning Bolt Live

[stip]

We could listen to one of the very good 2013 shows that were put on Spotify, or we could something else!!!

Lightning Bolt: Getaway, Mind Your Manners, My Father’s Son, Sirens, Lightning Bolt, Infallible, Pendulum, Swallowed Whole, Let the Records Play, Sleeping By Myself, Yellow Moon, Future Days

B-sides: none

Live: Deep - Lightning Bolt Live

Are can't deny me and again today going with Gigaton?

[liebzz]

Can’t Deny Me is with Gigaton. Is Again Today on Spotify? If so I will add it there as well I guess though it probably belongs here.

[stip]

it is on spotify. its so good

[liebzz]

Okay, so it’s been a long while since I listened through, and skipping Future Days is a sort of standard thing for me, so the whole thing in one document has been a big separation. I felt much better about this album than in spins past, but some of the major problems persist for me. I have figured out what I hate in Future Days is the piano and embellishments. I could see even enjoying this song for real had it just been Ed and an acoustic guitar. The sentiment wouldn’t be overly sweet. My problem with Sirens (good music and good vocals/lyrics, but they don’t match each other) and Infallible (great music and verses but the chorus is too over the top and ruins a great thing) persist. After that, the remainder has a lot of nice little earworms and moments, even if they pale in comparison to pretty much the remainder of the catalogue. What I said about Backspacer also holds true here that there’s one message about mortality and aging, and yet there’s also a stubborn refusal to commit to it, blending in a political and outward message when the heart of the albums deals with much weightier stuff. See the Backspacer thread for my recommended solution.

[liebzz]

I am going to note this again: I think Let the Records Play is one of the most underrated Pearl Jam songs and derided by RMers unfairly. The riff has got a nice little crunch juxtaposed against the feel of a 50s pop song almost, which is moderately daring for them. And yet, it’s got a good bounce to it and I find the tethering between a rock song and pop song to be quite enjoyable.