Lightning Bolt: the official album thread

[LikeLukin]

S/T is in my top 5 PJ albums easily. I fuckin' love that one. A couple of misfires for me (Paachutes, Unemployable, Gone) but the rest is wonderful.

Agree with gone, but I think the other two are great. Its a strange album for me... Gone is the only song I dont really like but there is something in the album that grates... Its got good individual songs... is it the drums or the production?...

Looking forward to LB more and more, took a few listens to like the partial leaks but they are good so far.

It's the production. It ruined this album for me. So crunchy, abrasive and loud.

Yup, this. I would probably have let the second half grow on me more if it wasn't so hard on the ears.

Its a pity that the remaster is probably 15 years off at the rate its going. I wonder do they hear Avocado now and think about remixing like they did with Ten? Although I agree with the production but there is something off with the drumming, songs like WWS and Comeback... its like its slighty off, or his snare is flat... I dont know much about drumming and think Cameron is awesome but there is something up on that album. Himself and Ament are way more locked in on Backspacer

The snare is tuned too low, the hi-hats are always closed when he's rocking out, and he should be using less ride cymbal. These are ticks that frequently annoy me about Matt, but they're less of a problem on Backspacer. Matt is sounding more impressive on Lightning Bolt than he has since Riot Act, imo -- except on MYM, where his playing is pretty bland.

I always thought of Matt's drumming on S/T as very boring. For example on WWS you could set a computer generated drum track to the song and it would almost be as interesting as what Matt plays. That guitar riff opens up so much potential for interesting and/or intense drumming but it's like Matt didn't even show up.

[hlniv]

http://www.clashmusic.com/features/albu ... tning-bolt

I know this review has already been posted. But any reviewer who says "Swallowed Whole is similar to Sirens" immediately loses credibility. Oh, and apparently Mind Your Manners has "a real heavy metal feel".

Ugggh

[harmless]

S/T is in my top 5 PJ albums easily. I fuckin' love that one. A couple of misfires for me (Paachutes, Unemployable, Gone) but the rest is wonderful.

Agree with gone, but I think the other two are great. Its a strange album for me... Gone is the only song I dont really like but there is something in the album that grates... Its got good individual songs... is it the drums or the production?...

Looking forward to LB more and more, took a few listens to like the partial leaks but they are good so far.

It's the production. It ruined this album for me. So crunchy, abrasive and loud.

Yup, this. I would probably have let the second half grow on me more if it wasn't so hard on the ears.

Its a pity that the remaster is probably 15 years off at the rate its going. I wonder do they hear Avocado now and think about remixing like they did with Ten? Although I agree with the production but there is something off with the drumming, songs like WWS and Comeback... its like its slighty off, or his snare is flat... I dont know much about drumming and think Cameron is awesome but there is something up on that album. Himself and Ament are way more locked in on Backspacer

The snare is tuned too low, the hi-hats are always closed when he's rocking out, and he should be using less ride cymbal. These are ticks that frequently annoy me about Matt, but they're less of a problem on Backspacer. Matt is sounding more impressive on Lightning Bolt than he has since Riot Act, imo -- except on MYM, where his playing is pretty bland.

I always thought of Matt's drumming on S/T as very boring. For example on WWS you could set a computer generated drum track to the song and it would almost be as interesting as what Matt plays. That guitar riff opens up so much potential for interesting and/or intense drumming but it's like Matt didn't even show up.

Yup.

[harmless]

http://www.clashmusic.com/features/album-preview-pearl-jams-lightning-bolt

I know this review has already been posted. But any reviewer who says "Swallowed Whole is similar to Sirens" immediately loses credibility. Oh, and apparently Mind Your Manners has "a real heavy metal feel".

Ugggh

Well yeah, the review is bad. MYM does have an 80s heavy metal feel though along with its punk, but the punk is the more obvious reference point.

[Dr. Van Nostrand]

http://www.clashmusic.com/features/album-preview-pearl-jams-lightning-bolt

I know this review has already been posted. But any reviewer who says "Swallowed Whole is similar to Sirens" immediately loses credibility. Oh, and apparently Mind Your Manners has "a real heavy metal feel".

Ugggh

i get the metal feel on MYM, ive thought from the beginning like it was PJ paying Metallica back for ripping off why go on death magnetic by ripping off motorbreath

[Jaeti]

I'm still into the music in the Infallible vignette and well aware that we have essentially no idea under what conditions the soundcheck recording was made. But, given what we can hear, they do sound quite different. Is it just me, or does the soundcheck recording sound noticeably slower than what we got yesterday?

[harmless]

They're a very similar tempo, I think, but the vignette one has an added funk groove to it that the echoey room took away from the live version (or it just isn't in the live version) so I guess it just appears faster.

[Django Butterworth]

This could also only be the backing track, with ballsier guitars over the top of it on the final recording.

At least that's my hope anyways.

[harmless]

I think it's most likely to be the final thing, but then, we haven't got clips from the actual songs on the other vignettes, so would they start now with this one?

[Tj]

I been thinking about a few places along the way on Bolt that bother me, and wonder if anyone else is hearing this. The two sections of MyM that start off "I am metaphysicaly diseased" all the way to "something else" So before the solo and after. Same vocal track, cut and paste action or is it just me. Then we have Sirens same issue for me. "It's a fragile thing" all the way to "seen your face" are those the same vocal preformances. Then again in Sirens Ed sings the fear goes away leading into the solo and it sounds like it should be a long sustained vocal ie Black. Then it just cuts out flat.

[Django Butterworth]

That's what I am saying.

[sward]

I listened to the soundcheck version again. Musically, it sounds pretty sparse but also, pretty fucking awesome (if you can glean that from a muffled recording). Anxious to hear the singing over top of it. Couldn't get any sense of what vocal melody existed, but that could change the song dramatically. Anyway, if its the keeper I think it might be..Holy crap....Lightning Bolt will have jump several spaces up my list and in competition for my top 5.

[harmless]

I been thinking about a few places along the way on Bolt that bother me, and wonder if anyone else is hearing this. The two sections of MyM that start off "I am metaphysicaly diseased" all the way to "something else" So before the solo and after. Same vocal track, cut and paste action or is it just me. Then we have Sirens same issue for me. "It's a fragile thing" all the way to "seen your face" are those the same vocal preformances. Then again in Sirens Ed sings the fear goes away leading into the solo and it sounds like it should be a long sustained vocal ie Black. Then it just cuts out flat.

I don't think it cuts out flat at the solo; that's a falsetto note and I'm pretty sure he just stops singing it. Any longer and that note would've sounded silly. There might be something in your cut-and-paste choruses; I hope not but I'll have a listen for that. The lyric on MYM is "Self-realised and metaphysically redeemed" by the way.

[Jaeti]

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing re: the echoey room effect. It feels slower, at least, and yeah, I guess I'm wondering what might have changed between the time the vignette music came into being and the time they played it in the soundcheck. I could be fooling myself, but I kind of feel like if they'd been playing the exact vignette version live, it would sound a bit more like the vignette version, even accounting for them not having studio effects at the ready and such. Guess we'll see. I still like what we got yesterday, but it feels different from what I was expecting, and I guess I was kind of imaging the Infallible/Pendulum pair to be the distinct "low" of the album in terms of tempo, sound, mood, etc. The vignette music complicates that for me.

[harmless]

I think it'll still be a low, even if it's not very heavy.

[Strat]

I dont want it to be heavy. PJ are always heavy. Lets try something new please.

[harmless]

I agree. A change in mood would be nice, I'm ready for some darker stuff now, but I don't need heavy.

[Tj]

I been thinking about a few places along the way on Bolt that bother me, and wonder if anyone else is hearing this. The two sections of MyM that start off "I am metaphysicaly diseased" all the way to "something else" So before the solo and after. Same vocal track, cut and paste action or is it just me. Then we have Sirens same issue for me. "It's a fragile thing" all the way to "seen your face" are those the same vocal preformances. Then again in Sirens Ed sings the fear goes away leading into the solo and it sounds like it should be a long sustained vocal ie Black. Then it just cuts out flat.

I don't think it cuts out flat at the solo; that's a falsetto note and I'm pretty sure he just stops singing it. Any longer and that note would've sounded silly. There might be something in your cut-and-paste choruses; I hope not but I'll have a listen for that. The lyric on MYM is "Self-realised and metaphysically redeemed" by the way.

Ya sorry anbout the lyric screw up I new that somehow I screwed it up, but the falsetto note is the word face. I am speaking abot the word away being cut.

[harmless]

I been thinking about a few places along the way on Bolt that bother me, and wonder if anyone else is hearing this. The two sections of MyM that start off "I am metaphysicaly diseased" all the way to "something else" So before the solo and after. Same vocal track, cut and paste action or is it just me. Then we have Sirens same issue for me. "It's a fragile thing" all the way to "seen your face" are those the same vocal preformances. Then again in Sirens Ed sings the fear goes away leading into the solo and it sounds like it should be a long sustained vocal ie Black. Then it just cuts out flat.

I don't think it cuts out flat at the solo; that's a falsetto note and I'm pretty sure he just stops singing it. Any longer and that note would've sounded silly. There might be something in your cut-and-paste choruses; I hope not but I'll have a listen for that. The lyric on MYM is "Self-realised and metaphysically redeemed" by the way.

Ya sorry anbout the lyric screw up I new that somehow I screwed it up, but the falsetto note is the word face. I am speaking abot the word away being cut.

Yeah, the word "away" isn't as high as the word "face" but it's still high. I know which bit you mean and I don't think it sounds cut, but I might be wrong. Your copy-and-pasted chorus theory is a bit more worrying.

[Tj]

I been thinking about a few places along the way on Bolt that bother me, and wonder if anyone else is hearing this. The two sections of MyM that start off "I am metaphysicaly diseased" all the way to "something else" So before the solo and after. Same vocal track, cut and paste action or is it just me. Then we have Sirens same issue for me. "It's a fragile thing" all the way to "seen your face" are those the same vocal preformances. Then again in Sirens Ed sings the fear goes away leading into the solo and it sounds like it should be a long sustained vocal ie Black. Then it just cuts out flat.

I don't think it cuts out flat at the solo; that's a falsetto note and I'm pretty sure he just stops singing it. Any longer and that note would've sounded silly. There might be something in your cut-and-paste choruses; I hope not but I'll have a listen for that. The lyric on MYM is "Self-realised and metaphysically redeemed" by the way.

Ya sorry anbout the lyric screw up I new that somehow I screwed it up, but the falsetto note is the word face. I am speaking abot the word away being cut.

If we decide this is the case, and I talking about the cutting and pasting of entire vocal preformances would kill this record.