The Worst Pearl Jam Fans You Know

[Kevin Davis]

But when the band in question had built their career on songs of discontent, and on their singer's having empathy with the disenfranchised, then that song's inclusion on the album is pretty shitty

Egad! How dull the narrative of music history would be if artists were as bound to so single an avenue of expression as you suggest here -- or worse, beholden to some rigid obligation to "respect their fans" by only producing music dependent on connecting with listeners in a certain, previously accepted way. Bob Dylan would still be performing Woody Guthrie songs; Miles and Coltrane never would have gone any further out than "My Funny Valentine" or "My Favorite Things"; Pearl Jam certainly never would have made "No Code" or "Binaural" or any of the other albums we hold dear here. I'm not meaning to elevate "Amongst the Waves" to an artistic gesture on par with "Bitches Brew," but to me releasing a song on an album that fans are free to not purchase or even listen to does not constitute an act of disrespect. It seems somewhat contradictory to me that you blast "Amongst the Waves" for being "self-derivative" but then proceed to skewer the band for not adhering to the principles on which they "built their career." Which is it?

[tragabigzanda]

pearl jam sucks now

[Kevin Davis]

Fair, but you didn't say that they'd built their career on experimentation; you said they'd built it on songs of discontent, which seems like a ridiculous thing to doom a band to repeating for all eternity. I mean, I'm no fan of flip-flop philosopher Eddie either, but I think there's enough evidence to support this being a fairly genuine reflection of who Eddie is (or at least, one legitimate side of his personality), and I don't think he's under any obligation to feign some kind of "discontent" for the purpose of appeasing his fans if it isn't genuine.

[bodysnatcher]

Either way, Amongst The Waves still sucks

[tragabigzanda]

pearl jam sucks now

[tragabigzanda]

pearl jam sucks now

[Monkey_Driven]

Either way, Amongst The Waves still sucks

Yeah, it's terrible.

[Jorge]

A really boring song. Not for any of the bizarre/typically Trag reasons that Trag listed. It's just a very unexciting performance of a very vanilla composition. Like a lot of latter-day Pearl Jam songs I dislike, I can pick out a few elements that work for me, but the sum total of them fall flat.

[Strat]

Ah shit. Now im singing the goddamn song

[Rangi Guy]

I actually really like Amongst The Waves....

On a side note Mrs Rangi and I inadvertently named our company MFC

[tragabigzanda]

pearl jam sucks now

[Rangi Guy]

I actually really like Amongst The Waves....

On a side note Mrs Rangi and I inadvertently named our company MFC

What's the company?

Just software development and testing - accountant told us to set it up

[stip]

how did that inadvertently happen?

[stip]

A really boring song. Not for any of the bizarre/typically Trag reasons that Trag listed. It's just a very unexciting performance of a very vanilla composition. Like a lot of latter-day Pearl Jam songs I dislike, I can pick out a few elements that work for me, but the sum total of them fall flat.

The hazy daydream feel of the verses is pretty cool, and it's a strong vocal verse melody (and performance) from Eddie. It just didn't need the Anthem 101 chorus

[Rangi Guy]

how did that inadvertently happen?

It got called M---- Family Creations

[stip]

that's weird that your name has all those dashes in it.

[Rangi Guy]

that's weird that your name has all those dashes in it.

You have no idea how hard it is to pronounce

[Norah]

I know how to pronounce it.

[epilogue]

Either way, Amongst The Waves still sucks

Yeah, it's terrible.

Man, I love Amongst the Waves.

[Rangi Guy]

Either way, Amongst The Waves still sucks

Yeah, it's terrible.

Man, I love Amongst the Waves.

I actually really like Amongst The Waves....

We might not agree on the new Ghostbusters, but I could never quit you man!