Lightning Bolt: the official album thread

[Dr. Van Nostrand]

Not me, I've found myself re-listening to all the previous albums in their entirety.

I did that during the song tourneys

[Noaheb]

MYM/LB/LIR
played while in my car and they all sounded great while driving
Need to hear Sirens in the car now to see if it holds up
CC is pretty boring and LTRP still pisses me off

[LetMeSleep]

LiR CC Sirens
Swallowed Whole. Getaway


MYM


LB

FD






LTRP

[Dugg]

CC still my favorite, but I really enjoy all the new songs save for MYM. With a couple of darker type songs I think the album will easily be my favorite of the last 3. And I know everyone here seems to hate LTRP but it is consistently the favorite for all the non-PJ I've played these for. Make of that what you will.

[mastaflatch]

what kind of (golden?) trap is this, in which PJ fell into? putting variety in your style, adding palette, finding different ways to make music within the same old 5-man circle...it's like PJ fans won't ever be able again to like a full album, back to back. not because there won't be any good album anymore but because the consensus is becoming impossible to make.
i'm really glad there wasn't any sort of message board when Vitalogy was released - that was a great moment in my life, just trying to figure it out, and getting it, and being floored. i can't imagine this happening today with PJ. some other bands still pay respect to that almost sacred experience of discovering an album. the hype is taking over the apprehensions and the eagerness.
going back to Vitalogy; how would it be received today? although everyone can agree that it's a fucking high point of PJ, or the 90s or rock music, i don't know that, if dissected piece by piece before we even get the real album would have turned out. i think it doesn't serves an œuvre. we're just like that now.

[Noaheb]

what kind of (golden?) trap is this, in which PJ fell into? putting variety in your style, adding palette, finding different ways to make music within the same old 5-man circle...it's like PJ fans won't ever be able again to like a full album, back to back. not because there won't be any good album anymore but because the consensus is becoming impossible to make.
i'm really glad there wasn't any sort of message board when Vitalogy was released - that was a great moment in my life, just trying to figure it out, and getting it, and being floored. i can't imagine this happening today with PJ. some other bands still pay respect to that almost sacred experience of discovering an album. the hype is taking over the apprehensions and the eagerness.
going back to Vitalogy; how would it be received today? although everyone can agree that it's a fucking high point of PJ, or the 90s or rock music, i don't know that, if dissected piece by piece before we even get the real album would have turned out. i think it doesn't serves an œuvre. we're just like that now.

We would have ruined every part of that and every other great PJ album no doubt...I miss those days if not purely for the excitement of not knowing what to expect and having to "figure it out" by yourself. good times they were

[mastaflatch]

what kind of (golden?) trap is this, in which PJ fell into? putting variety in your style, adding palette, finding different ways to make music within the same old 5-man circle...it's like PJ fans won't ever be able again to like a full album, back to back. not because there won't be any good album anymore but because the consensus is becoming impossible to make.
i'm really glad there wasn't any sort of message board when Vitalogy was released - that was a great moment in my life, just trying to figure it out, and getting it, and being floored. i can't imagine this happening today with PJ. some other bands still pay respect to that almost sacred experience of discovering an album. the hype is taking over the apprehensions and the eagerness.
going back to Vitalogy; how would it be received today? although everyone can agree that it's a fucking high point of PJ, or the 90s or rock music, i don't know that, if dissected piece by piece before we even get the real album would have turned out. i think it doesn't serves an œuvre. we're just like that now.

We would have ruined every part of that and every other great PJ album no doubt...I miss those days if not purely for the excitement of not knowing what to expect and having to "figure it out" by yourself. good times they were

it's easy to picture RM shitting all over Nothingman or STBC. or the "filler". but the so-called shortcomings of this album are what make it great in the end. it's pretty funny to do a "retrack an album" thread but some albums are just ingrained in our selves that it's just pointless to even think about retracking them. it's not even a question of fun, they're like that and that's what they should be.

[Birds in Hell]

We would have ruined every part of that and every other great PJ album no doubt...

I think that's nonsense.

[mastaflatch]

We would have ruined every part of that and every other great PJ album no doubt...

I think that's nonsense.

go on...

[Dugg]

We would have ruined every part of that and every other great PJ album no doubt...

I think that's nonsense.

Maybe, but the backlash to No Code was real and intense. In hindsight it's silly but the overwhelming reaction was wtf? As an aside I just listened to an acoustic demo from the PJ20 album and remembered why I fell I love with this band. There's just a magic quality to the song even though EV barely sings any words.

[stip]

We would have ruined every part of that and every other great PJ album no doubt...

I think that's nonsense.

i don't. Well, ruined may be too strong a word but I think a lot of people consistently underestimate the way the mass psychology of groups can impact the individual preferences and perceptions within them. Corduroy suddenly doesn't suck, but any little part of a song that someone might have had a problem with that was glossed over or relegated to an afterthought is suddenly hammered home ad infinitum and impacts in subtle (or in some cases not so subtle) ways your perceptions of the song--especially during that early period where you're first trying to decide for yourself what you think about them.


And yes yes, I know that somehow every poster here is immune to these effects and that the normal ways human beings process information and develop opinions about things somehow doesn't apply to the people of RM.

[digster]

I'm with spenno. I just don't think a message board could have enough impact on the general person's opinion that such a celebrated album like Vitalogy would be trashed today.

I think the one-on-one conversations between individuals have a way more seismic impact on them than words on a screen can.

[stip]

that's true. people are never influenced by the things that they read.

[stip]

I'm not denying that questions of degree exist either. Would vitalogy have been treated like Backspacer? Probably not. Would it have been treated like Vitalogy. Probably not.

[Birds in Hell]

Guys, I can't jab my fingers at my iPhone screen fast enough to keep up with this conversation...

[Dugg]

that's true. people are never influenced by the things that they read.

I get your point, it certainly happens, but I am generally only swayed if the writer presents an angle I haven't considered or puts into words things I've thought but couldn't adequately express. Luckily for me, both happen more than I'd like to admit, and even on this site.

[Dugg]

Guys, I can't jab my fingers at my iPhone screen fast enough to keep up with this conversation...

I'm typing on an iPad which is the equivalent of using oven mitts in a typing competition.

[stip]

I'm with spenno. I just don't think a message board could have enough impact on the general person's opinion that such a celebrated album like Vitalogy would be trashed today.

I think the one-on-one conversations between individuals have a way more seismic impact on them than words on a screen can.

also, the greater impact of the former does not negate the impact of the later.

[E.H. Ruddock]

I'm with spenno. I just don't think a message board could have enough impact on the general person's opinion that such a celebrated album like Vitalogy would be trashed today.

I think the one-on-one conversations between individuals have a way more seismic impact on them than words on a screen can.[/quote]


also, the greater impact of the former does not negate the impact of the later.

Nevermind

[digster]

that's true. people are never influenced by the things that they read.

I have to day, don’t really know if anyone was saying this. I certainly wasn't meaning to.

But you’re right. People are influenced by what they read, what they hear, what they feel themselves, the manner in which they receive new music, etc. I do think we’re talking about different things here. I wouldn't say that people can’t be influenced by smart commentary they read on a message board (the SOTM threads have changed my mind on quite a few songs). However, I think a straight up majority opinion on a Pearl Jam message board alone is unlikely to change many minds on a particular song.

If message boards meant there was no possibility of an album’s massive acclaim, there’d be no such thing as a masterpiece album, accepted as a great work of art, in at least the last 10-15 years. Arcade Fire alone have had at least two in that time. It still happens; maybe not often, but it absolutely does.

So, in short (I know, too late) would I say that the existence of boards like this one have had absolutely no impact on how albums are received? No, I wouldn’t say that . Do I think it really changes how the albums are perceived in the broader perspective of a band’s discography? No, not really. To put it another way, if Vitalogy and Backspacer switched places in the band’s chronology, would their stature in the fan community (or lack thereof) really be any different? I’d say not.