Gigaton and Dark Matter - Then and Now

[Jaeti]

What b sides and extras other than Get it Back?

is there a resequenced version with only the formal releases that works better for you?

it cannot be spoken about

And that's the last word on that.

[spike]

Kevin, could you summarize it for us?

Of course I can. I am a master of brevity. I will summarize it in two ways: First, a general summary of themes and overall concepts:

Spoiler: show

Gigaton and DM = happy birthday! The world today = bad. Pearl Jam says: don't give up! The way forward is together.

Second, a direct excising of several select phrases that I feel encapsulate the piece's most vital message:

Spoiler: show

I've been thinking a lot about...Riot Act...You would be hard pressed to find a better...album...Every song on that record is....like a series of guideposts...a halcyon memory...a gift...a revelation

Hope that helps! I do recommend reading the full piece though, it really is good.

Kevin "@grok" Davis

[spike]

you know it's stip when grok needs three paragraphs to summarize.

The author reflects deeply on Pearl Jam’s albums Gigaton (released March 2020) and Dark Matter (released April 2024), assessing their lasting impact on their fifth and first anniversaries, respectively. Initially, both albums struck the author as masterpieces due to their emotional resonance and timeliness, capturing the zeitgeist of their respective moments. Gigaton emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic, offering hope and a call to collective responsibility amid global crisis, with songs like “Quick Escape,” “Retrograde,” and “River Cross” serving as anthems of survival and optimism. Dark Matter, written collaboratively, focuses on rebuilding human connections and the necessity of love in a fractured world, with tracks like “Waiting for Stevie” and “Got to Give” emphasizing solidarity and resilience.

The author compares these albums to Pearl Jam’s earlier works Riot Act (2002) and Pearl Jam (2006), which responded to the post-9/11 Bush era’s division and disillusionment. Like those records, Gigaton and Dark Matter are seen as companion pieces addressing contemporary societal failures—division, polarization, and the erosion of unity. Gigaton’s hopefulness contrasts with the sobering reality of a post-COVID world marked by political extremism and societal collapse, while Dark Matter’s urgency feels prophetic in 2025, a darker time where societal “rot” threatens the soul of America.

The author grapples with fear and despair, questioning whether humanity’s worst instincts define it. Yet, both albums remain vital, serving as emotional anchors and calls to action. Gigaton urges grace and collective effort to cross a metaphorical “river” to a better future, while Dark Matter confronts the cost of disconnection and the need to rebuild. Despite a bleak outlook, the author finds purpose in Pearl Jam’s music, which rejects surrender and insists on fighting for a better world, even if only for future generations. The albums, once gifts and revelations, are now necessities, soundtracking the author’s resolve to keep searching for a path forward together.

[stip]

[epilogue]

After my re-listening exercise, I found that River Cross is actually a 5-star song (I'd had it closer to 3) and Got To Give is a top 3 song on Dark Matter.

[VinylGuy]

I agree with both statements, RC is a song that i feel very connected to, specially when it came out and nowadays helps to remember a lot of friends or family whom i lost over the years.

Got To Give started as one of my favs from DM and now its a very good song that i can skip with no problem.

[Ms Harmless]

I listened to both Gigaton and Dark Matter back to back yesterday because of this thread. It was such a rewarding listen and Gigaton really just continues to improve in my estimation. That record feels... sort of singular given the late-stage-ness of it. What a phenomenal record.

Dark Matter rang differently with some of Stip's ideas in mind. I still think the record is stilted and a little aimless, but it allows room for greatness or at least big interpretations. And that means it'll probably improve over time, as well.

Mainly, what I found myself thinking was how much of a dead zone S/T - Lightning Bolt really is. Those records, while interesting to diehard fans, offer very little. If Pearl Jam had released Gigaton after Riot Act I think the band would still be "perfect" in my mind. Flawless. S/T - LB is a weird, aimless, missed opportunity. I'm glad we have many of those songs, but as albums, they really feel lacking.

good post!

[stip]

After my re-listening exercise, I found that River Cross is actually a 5-star song (I'd had it closer to 3) and Got To Give is a top 3 song on Dark Matter.

I've said this elsewhere, but River Cross is in the 'Everybody Hurts' categories of songs - ones that can elicit very strong emotional responses, but only if I keep them out of heavy rotation. It's a destination listening experience

[epilogue]

After my re-listening exercise, I found that River Cross is actually a 5-star song (I'd had it closer to 3) and Got To Give is a top 3 song on Dark Matter.

I've said this elsewhere, but River Cross is in the 'Everybody Hurts' categories of songs - ones that can elicit very strong emotional responses, but only if I keep them out of heavy rotation. It's a destination listening experience

I like that description

[oasisfan35]

After my re-listening exercise, I found that River Cross is actually a 5-star song (I'd had it closer to 3) and Got To Give is a top 3 song on Dark Matter.

I've said this elsewhere, but River Cross is in the 'Everybody Hurts' categories of songs - ones that can elicit very strong emotional responses, but only if I keep them out of heavy rotation. It's a destination listening experience

Assuming you get to your destination:

Spoiler: show

[GreenMosquito1996]

I don't think I've ever listened to River cross as a standalone song. But it always moves me at the end of Gigaton.

[Jaeti]

Sometimes it's just fine, sometimes I like it quite a lot. But I've never had one of these "moments" with it.

[dimejinky99]

I don’t rank things. It’s a pointless juvenile exercise and could change the next day

But Gigaton is easily up there with my favourite Pj records. It has a refreshed and exciting energy the second half of the discography severely lacks, and it has a focus and flows much better than any in this end of their output does too.

The rehearsals and roughs on the other thing are fascinating too, for me. I’ll never get to hear those songs live and I’ll be forever sad about that. So Ill treasure that small insight into their creation.

Thought I’d made friends with dark matter but just don’t find myself going back to it ever at all. In time, maybe.

[liebzz]

Doing things that are juvenile keeps you young.

And this guy probably disagrees with you:

[stip]

I don’t rank things. It’s a pointless juvenile exercise and could change the next day

But Gigaton is easily up there with my favourite Pj records. It has a refreshed and exciting energy the second half of the discography severely lacks, and it has a focus and flows much better than any in this end of their output does too.

The rehearsals and roughs on the other thing are fascinating too, for me. I’ll never get to hear those songs live and I’ll be forever sad about that. So Ill treasure that small insight into their creation.

Thought I’d made friends with dark matter but just don’t find myself going back to it ever at all. In time, maybe.

I respect your thoughts about ranking, Dime. But when you say its ‘up there’ how up there is it. For context, which albums do you have above it and below it. And if you could share it in the form of a numerical list that would be helpful.

[epilogue]

I don’t rank things. It’s a pointless juvenile exercise and could change the next day

But Gigaton is easily up there with my favourite Pj records. It has a refreshed and exciting energy the second half of the discography severely lacks, and it has a focus and flows much better than any in this end of their output does too.

The rehearsals and roughs on the other thing are fascinating too, for me. I’ll never get to hear those songs live and I’ll be forever sad about that. So Ill treasure that small insight into their creation.

Thought I’d made friends with dark matter but just don’t find myself going back to it ever at all. In time, maybe.

I respect your thoughts about ranking, Dime. But when you say its ‘up there’ how up there is it. For context, which albums do you have above it and below it. And if you could share it in the form of a numerical list that would be helpful.

[dimejinky99]

I don’t rank things. It’s a pointless juvenile exercise and could change the next day

But Gigaton is easily up there with my favourite Pj records. It has a refreshed and exciting energy the second half of the discography severely lacks, and it has a focus and flows much better than any in this end of their output does too.

The rehearsals and roughs on the other thing are fascinating too, for me. I’ll never get to hear those songs live and I’ll be forever sad about that. So Ill treasure that small insight into their creation.

Thought I’d made friends with dark matter but just don’t find myself going back to it ever at all. In time, maybe.

I respect your thoughts about ranking, Dime. But when you say its ‘up there’ how up there is it. For context, which albums do you have above it and below it. And if you could share it in the form of a numerical list that would be helpful.

You nearly got me too

Put another way if I’m not in the mood for a podcast and I have to go somewhere I’ll stick on Gigaton for the headphones before anything else from Pj. That’s been true since it came out.
I’ve been dipping into the other thing a fair bit too for the rehearsals etc but that’s a recency bias and basic human nosiness to get a look behind the curtain and see how the sausage is made.


I was on a beach on a tiny island in Cambodia when dance of the clairvoyants was released and must have listened to it hundreds of times just walking around. I’d have given anything for the full album at that point but it’s probably tied to that in my mind. While it was a complete standout and had no relation to the rest of the album (or anything in their entire catalogue) it’s the star of the show on that record and this end of their career for me. And this elevates the record. Still not crazy about those two fast punk numbers back to back on the track list but I’ve grown to get used to them.

[stip]

dance is pretty great

[dimejinky99]

On the one hand ‘do more of that! Loads more!’ And on the other, probably nothing would come close to it if they did.

[liebzz]

On the one hand ‘do more of that! Loads more!’ And on the other, probably nothing would come close to it if they did.

Tremor Christ —> Infallible