Dark Matter (song)

[Ms Harmless]

This is the song with an extended intro:

https://vocaroo.com/13vr85fj2Fuj

it just needed two go-arounds, not 3

Yeah, you´re right.
https://vocaroo.com/13hUxvFubizd

[Farmer John]

That breakdown after the first chorus is the fucking tits.

That's probably the best part

The best part is the solo and everything after. Ed and Mike wailing away together.

I will listen to the song again in about 6 hours and report back whether this is correct or not.

[guitar_davey]

I've got to stop listening to this as much as I am.

[Ms Harmless]

I just think, you can't ask for authenticity and humanity *as well as* perfection from any ageing band; no matter which combination of pleasing musical traits and tropes they manage to pull together into a song, there is inevitably going to be something that is *off*, uncanny valley, just a little bit; I have always wanted Pearl Jam, in their playing and arranging and recording, to remain human; just as a comparison, I absolutely love Neil Young, but part of the reason is how warts-and-all he is; there's nobody arguing that his voice isn't an extremely acquired taste, but nobody worth listening to is saying "well, guess it's time to hang that hat up"

[tragabigzanda]

pearl jam sucks now

[Chris_H_2]

Despise the mix. Matt’s drums sound like a bad Napster rip of a radio rock song filtered through Winamp. Just garbage.

Andrew Wotman is simultaneously the best and worst thing to happen to modern day PJ.

There's a lot of truth to this for me. The production value of this is extremely unpleasant to my ears -- everything just pushed to the maximum, processed to the point of overload, which is exactly how both Earthling and Hackney Diamonds (and presumably Watt's other projects) sound as well. Honestly I think knowing what I was getting into allowed me to mentally correct for it going in and just enjoy the song, and I really did enjoy it (I listened again this morning and felt the same way, though I'm not finding myself craving the 20-30 listens in a row that some people are reporting). I don't expect PJ to learn many new tricks 34 years into their career, but I appreciate clever pastiches of stuff from the grab bag, and I hear a lot of familiar elements put together here in a pleasing way -- the simple riffing between verses feels very Stone-y and Ten outtake-y to me; the pulsing effect in the passage after the chorus is reminiscent of the one used in "You Are," still one of their most unique-sounding songs (though less so now!); Mike's solo is textbook, straight out of Watt's I'm-a-superfan-and-there's-no-way-I'm-letting-you-make-a-record-without-including-at-least-a-few-of-these playbook; and there are many hallmarks of modern PRAMG-era PJ throughout, which feels inevitable and earned at this point. But despite the heavy-handed mastering, the elements don't crowd each other out; the performance feels pretty uncluttered, and much as it did on Riot Act, Eddie's singing has a first-or-second-take feel to it that undercuts some of its physical imperfections.

Watt does seem to have an enthusiasm that artists find contagious, and I can appreciate the idea of someone who really knows and loves the band being the idea-bouncer, even if I don't like what he (or his team) does with those ideas in the mixing booth. Looking forward to the rest of the album.

I relate to this post.

This album could still very much undo what I’m about to write, but I think as a baseline…old Pearl Jam is my favorite iteration of the band in a long, long time.

I like the yelping, damaged voice much more than I did the swagger and confidence of some of the S/T era, as an example. I find the fight against inevitability that is inherent to any old rock singer’s situation to be sonically provocative, and underexplored as a musical tool in this world where bands are rewarded for trying to sound like they’re still 30, so their audience can use them as a way to feel young again.

I think the same elements that make an injured voice sound broken or sometimes awkward also have the ability to let it be much more emotionally impactful than a lot of rock singing…it just needs to be paired to the right message and context. I’d say the same for any playing. Gigaton pairs it all up well, and this song does too.

I like that the band is prepared to try things now that they previously felt they should be too cool for, and to listen to impulses they would have once dismissed as embarrassing or inorganic to their reductive expectations of themselves.

I like that there is less of a sense of trying to assert themselves as one of the rock and roll greats (a trite and meaningless thing), and more of a feeling that something urgently needs to be said. I like that it doesn’t feel so thought out or calculated.

Now, Lightning Bolt is one of the worst albums that a band I like has ever made, so it’s certainly possible that this one drops that ball as well. But if it fails, it fails in spite of their age…not because of it.

If it fails, it fails because of Andrew Wottman, Serban Ghanea, and presumably Ed because he decided who gets to produce and mix.

I cranked it in my car a few times this morning, and the good parts (the band dynamics and Ed’s passion) sounded better, while the bad parts (the mix) sounded worse.

It’s difficult for me to view their choice of Ghanea as being anything other than 100% commercially oriented: Let’s get the guy who makes songs sound louder than everything else on the radio, in hopes we can sell a few more $175 tickets.

[Ms Harmless]

Despise the mix. Matt’s drums sound like a bad Napster rip of a radio rock song filtered through Winamp. Just garbage.

Andrew Wotman is simultaneously the best and worst thing to happen to modern day PJ.

There's a lot of truth to this for me. The production value of this is extremely unpleasant to my ears -- everything just pushed to the maximum, processed to the point of overload, which is exactly how both Earthling and Hackney Diamonds (and presumably Watt's other projects) sound as well. Honestly I think knowing what I was getting into allowed me to mentally correct for it going in and just enjoy the song, and I really did enjoy it (I listened again this morning and felt the same way, though I'm not finding myself craving the 20-30 listens in a row that some people are reporting). I don't expect PJ to learn many new tricks 34 years into their career, but I appreciate clever pastiches of stuff from the grab bag, and I hear a lot of familiar elements put together here in a pleasing way -- the simple riffing between verses feels very Stone-y and Ten outtake-y to me; the pulsing effect in the passage after the chorus is reminiscent of the one used in "You Are," still one of their most unique-sounding songs (though less so now!); Mike's solo is textbook, straight out of Watt's I'm-a-superfan-and-there's-no-way-I'm-letting-you-make-a-record-without-including-at-least-a-few-of-these playbook; and there are many hallmarks of modern PRAMG-era PJ throughout, which feels inevitable and earned at this point. But despite the heavy-handed mastering, the elements don't crowd each other out; the performance feels pretty uncluttered, and much as it did on Riot Act, Eddie's singing has a first-or-second-take feel to it that undercuts some of its physical imperfections.

Watt does seem to have an enthusiasm that artists find contagious, and I can appreciate the idea of someone who really knows and loves the band being the idea-bouncer, even if I don't like what he (or his team) does with those ideas in the mixing booth. Looking forward to the rest of the album.

I relate to this post.

This album could still very much undo what I’m about to write, but I think as a baseline…old Pearl Jam is my favorite iteration of the band in a long, long time.

I like the yelping, damaged voice much more than I did the swagger and confidence of some of the S/T era, as an example. I find the fight against inevitability that is inherent to any old rock singer’s situation to be sonically provocative, and underexplored as a musical tool in this world where bands are rewarded for trying to sound like they’re still 30, so their audience can use them as a way to feel young again.

I think the same elements that make an injured voice sound broken or sometimes awkward also have the ability to let it be much more emotionally impactful than a lot of rock singing…it just needs to be paired to the right message and context. I’d say the same for any playing. Gigaton pairs it all up well, and this song does too.

I like that the band is prepared to try things now that they previously felt they should be too cool for, and to listen to impulses they would have once dismissed as embarrassing or inorganic to their reductive expectations of themselves.

I like that there is less of a sense of trying to assert themselves as one of the rock and roll greats (a trite and meaningless thing), and more of a feeling that something urgently needs to be said. I like that it doesn’t feel so thought out or calculated.

Now, Lightning Bolt is one of the worst albums that a band I like has ever made, so it’s certainly possible that this one drops that ball as well. But if it fails, it fails in spite of their age…not because of it.

If it fails, it fails because of Andrew Wottman, Serban Ghanea, and presumably Ed because he decided who gets to produce and mix.

I cranked it in my car a few times this morning, and the good parts (the band dynamics and Ed’s passion) sounded better, while the bad parts (the mix) sounded worse.

It’s difficult for me to view their choice of Ghanea as being anything other than 100% commercially oriented: Let’s get the guy who makes songs sound louder than everything else on the radio, in hopes we can sell a few more $175 tickets.

Trag, when was the last time you felt that Pearl Jam didn't fail for some reason or another? there's always something or someone else to blame with this band

[guitar_davey]

I just think, you can't ask for authenticity and humanity *as well as* perfection from any ageing band; no matter which combination of pleasing musical traits and tropes they manage to pull together into a song, there is inevitably going to be something that is *off*, uncanny valley, just a little bit; I have always wanted Pearl Jam, in their playing and arranging and recording, to remain human; just as a comparison, I absolutely love Neil Young, but part of the reason is how warts-and-all he is; there's nobody arguing that his voice isn't an extremely acquired taste, but nobody worth listening to is saying "well, guess it's time to hang that hat up"

I can not like and agree with this post enough.

The uncanny valley analogy is so on the money. I've never even thought about it this way, but it's so true.

It's so weird to hear these older men doing something they were doing as 30-year-olds when I was a teenager. It's them, but in a way it's also not. It's a hard thing to square in a mid-40s brain. But thank God they're still doing it, whatever it even is.

[stip]

Despise the mix. Matt’s drums sound like a bad Napster rip of a radio rock song filtered through Winamp. Just garbage.

Andrew Wotman is simultaneously the best and worst thing to happen to modern day PJ.

There's a lot of truth to this for me. The production value of this is extremely unpleasant to my ears -- everything just pushed to the maximum, processed to the point of overload, which is exactly how both Earthling and Hackney Diamonds (and presumably Watt's other projects) sound as well. Honestly I think knowing what I was getting into allowed me to mentally correct for it going in and just enjoy the song, and I really did enjoy it (I listened again this morning and felt the same way, though I'm not finding myself craving the 20-30 listens in a row that some people are reporting). I don't expect PJ to learn many new tricks 34 years into their career, but I appreciate clever pastiches of stuff from the grab bag, and I hear a lot of familiar elements put together here in a pleasing way -- the simple riffing between verses feels very Stone-y and Ten outtake-y to me; the pulsing effect in the passage after the chorus is reminiscent of the one used in "You Are," still one of their most unique-sounding songs (though less so now!); Mike's solo is textbook, straight out of Watt's I'm-a-superfan-and-there's-no-way-I'm-letting-you-make-a-record-without-including-at-least-a-few-of-these playbook; and there are many hallmarks of modern PRAMG-era PJ throughout, which feels inevitable and earned at this point. But despite the heavy-handed mastering, the elements don't crowd each other out; the performance feels pretty uncluttered, and much as it did on Riot Act, Eddie's singing has a first-or-second-take feel to it that undercuts some of its physical imperfections.

Watt does seem to have an enthusiasm that artists find contagious, and I can appreciate the idea of someone who really knows and loves the band being the idea-bouncer, even if I don't like what he (or his team) does with those ideas in the mixing booth. Looking forward to the rest of the album.

I relate to this post.

This album could still very much undo what I’m about to write, but I think as a baseline…old Pearl Jam is my favorite iteration of the band in a long, long time.

I like the yelping, damaged voice much more than I did the swagger and confidence of some of the S/T era, as an example. I find the fight against inevitability that is inherent to any old rock singer’s situation to be sonically provocative, and underexplored as a musical tool in this world where bands are rewarded for trying to sound like they’re still 30, so their audience can use them as a way to feel young again.

I think the same elements that make an injured voice sound broken or sometimes awkward also have the ability to let it be much more emotionally impactful than a lot of rock singing…it just needs to be paired to the right message and context. I’d say the same for any playing. Gigaton pairs it all up well, and this song does too.

I like that the band is prepared to try things now that they previously felt they should be too cool for, and to listen to impulses they would have once dismissed as embarrassing or inorganic to their reductive expectations of themselves.

I like that there is less of a sense of trying to assert themselves as one of the rock and roll greats (a trite and meaningless thing), and more of a feeling that something urgently needs to be said. I like that it doesn’t feel so thought out or calculated.

Now, Lightning Bolt is one of the worst albums that a band I like has ever made, so it’s certainly possible that this one drops that ball as well. But if it fails, it fails in spite of their age…not because of it.

Wonderfully said, except for that last bit

[Jorge]

Nobody else thinks this would fit right in with Lightning Bolt? Sounds so slick and plasticky

[tree_]

give it time.. they're just excited to have new stuff

[guitar_davey]

give it time.. they're just excited to have new stuff

Some people just enjoy liking what they like. Presumably for most of us on this board, Pearl Jam is one of those things.

[Kevin Davis]

If it fails, it fails because of Andrew Wottman, Serban Ghanea, and presumably Ed because he decided who gets to produce and mix.

I cranked it in my car a few times this morning, and the good parts (the band dynamics and Ed’s passion) sounded better, while the bad parts (the mix) sounded worse.

It’s difficult for me to view their choice of Ghanea as being anything other than 100% commercially oriented: Let’s get the guy who makes songs sound louder than everything else on the radio, in hopes we can sell a few more $175 tickets.

Genuine question: Is the Watt/Ghanea approach unique? I feel like this over-boosted, mega-compressed mastering style is characteristic of many modern, major-artist recordings. It's awful, but...do Watt/Ghanea push it to a new level of awful? My ears aren't sharp enough to pick up that level of difference.

I can't imagine PJ are depending on radio exposure to sell concert tickets. I'm guessing they just don't have very good instincts for this stuff.

[Ms Harmless]

I just think, you can't ask for authenticity and humanity *as well as* perfection from any ageing band; no matter which combination of pleasing musical traits and tropes they manage to pull together into a song, there is inevitably going to be something that is *off*, uncanny valley, just a little bit; I have always wanted Pearl Jam, in their playing and arranging and recording, to remain human; just as a comparison, I absolutely love Neil Young, but part of the reason is how warts-and-all he is; there's nobody arguing that his voice isn't an extremely acquired taste, but nobody worth listening to is saying "well, guess it's time to hang that hat up"

I can not like and agree with this post enough.

The uncanny valley analogy is so on the money. I've never even thought about it this way, but it's so true.

It's so weird to hear these older men doing something they were doing as 30-year-olds when I was a teenager. It's them, but in a way it's also not. It's a hard thing to square in a mid-40s brain. But thank God they're still doing it, whatever it even is.

"it's like... we're looking down on Wayne's Basement, only, that's not Wayne's Basement; isn't that weird?"

listen people I'm not saying EVERY musical or administrative decision they've made PRAMG is one I like, far from it; I'm just saying, it's really obvious that they tried hard here, it sounds in NO way phoned in, can we just... let it be?

[Chris_H_2]

give it time.. they're just excited to have new stuff

Some people just enjoy liking what they like. Presumably for most of us on this board, Pearl Jam is one of those things.

and the people that's aren't goo goo over it are perfectly fine with people liking it however they want. but it feels as if some of the people that do like it believe that other people aren't entitled to not like it, as if it's some personal affront or something. it's some weird, culty thing that comes up every release cycle.

[Ms Harmless]

Nobody else thinks this would fit right in with Lightning Bolt? Sounds so slick and plasticky

it sounds slick and polished but not terrible, and the passionate, articulate musical performance is overriding every problem Lightning Bolt had; and the lyrics aren't awful

[Ms Harmless]

give it time.. they're just excited to have new stuff

Some people just enjoy liking what they like. Presumably for most of us on this board, Pearl Jam is one of those things.

and the people that's aren't goo goo over it are perfectly fine with people liking it however they want. but it feels as if some of the people that do like it believe that other people aren't entitled to not like it, as if it's some personal affront or something. it's some weird, culty thing that comes up every release cycle.

let it go

[Chris_H_2]

give it time.. they're just excited to have new stuff

Some people just enjoy liking what they like. Presumably for most of us on this board, Pearl Jam is one of those things.

and the people that's aren't goo goo over it are perfectly fine with people liking it however they want. but it feels as if some of the people that do like it believe that other people aren't entitled to not like it, as if it's some personal affront or something. it's some weird, culty thing that comes up every release cycle.

let it go

exactly

[Ms Harmless]

as always, people who hate it are allowed to write huge diatribes here and it's "let them speak", but as soon as you defend it because you like it, it must be because you're fooling yourself and you just need to "give it time"

[stip]

It's the most wonderful time of the year