Kevin Davis wrote:I got super excited about "Alive" the first time I heard it, mainly because I missed it at my first show (STL 2000), and really went into that show hoping they were going to play everything (it turned out to be a semi-rarities-heavy show for the time, with a lot of staples omitted from the set). So there was a redemptive element to hearing it live in 2003.
I don't think I've really been excited to hear it since, though. It was already a warhorse by the time I started going to shows, and to me it usually just means that the concert is nearing its end and moving into the please-the-masses segment. Totally fine that they do that, but it's not my favorite corner of the PJ canon by a stretch, and I really don't feel the whole "all these half-drunk people are cheering super loud for a song they finally recognize, now it's a special community bonding moment" thing.
This is interesting. My instinct was to say, "oh man, I totally relate" but upon reflection, if I'm honest, that hasn't been my experience at Pearl Jam shows. Maybe it's because I usually have 10 Club seats or maybe it's because most of the shows I've seen have been in NYC, but usually when I'm at a show people are nuts for every song they play. Even rarities. There's no perceptible depreciation between enthusiasm for something like, say Rats or WMA or Got Some, than for songs like Alive and Better Man.
Interesting. I've definitely been in crowds at PJ shows where the response was a lot more lukewarm for less familiar songs, though I'd agree that Pearl Jam are likely to get bigger reactions from rarer songs than some other artists might be.
I've also never had 10 Club seats and have only ever attended shows in the Midwest, so...maybe that's a difference too.
I don't doubt it. I certainly experienced that at other shows. Alanis at Radio City is maybe the biggest example. But I've been fairly lucky with that kind of thing at PJ shows. Usually, the most annoying people (are SUPER drunk, sure) are maybe too enthusiastic!
liebzz wrote:Yeah, nearly all NYC shows here. I find lukewarm is the new stuff, no matter the album, but anything recognizable or rare does get a bigger response.
That's probably fair. The latest stuff probably does get a slightly less enthusiastic reaction. My experience during the Dark Matter Tour may be tweaking my memory there, though, because the people I was around lost their goddamn minds for the Dark Matter songs.
In my experience, everything from Yield and earlier gets a pretty decent response. Except for a few songs, it's spottier beyond that, though sometimes people seem to have a heightened awareness of stuff on the most recent album. But the big radio hits still take the cake.
FWIW I haven't been to a show in almost 10 years and have seen them probably significantly less than most other folks on the board (9 times total since 2000).
Kevin Davis wrote:In my experience, everything from Yield and earlier gets a pretty decent response. Except for a few songs, it's spottier beyond that, though sometimes people seem to have a heightened awareness of stuff on the most recent album. But the big radio hits still take the cake.
FWIW I haven't been to a show in almost 10 years and have seen them probably significantly less than most other folks on the board (9 times total since 2000).
I've only been to 11 shows since 1998. So, I'm with you there. Two shows in KC, two shows in St. Louis, the rest in NYC.
