Binaural: Official Album Thread

General Pearl Jam discussion.
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Rate Binaural

5 Stars: A top tier album
98
50%
4 Stars: A very good album
73
37%
3 Stars: Average
20
10%
2: Stars: I expect more
5
3%
1 Star: Embarrassing
0
No votes
 
Total votes: 196

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VinylGuy
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by VinylGuy »

Stip wrote:Really Good
Rival
Parting Ways
Insignificance
Grievance

Pretty Good
Nothing as It Seems

Average
Light Years
Breakerfall

Below average
God's dice
Evacuation
Thin Air
Of a Girl
Soon Forget



As others have said, for me this is a pretty inconsistent album.

Sleight of Hand is tough for me to place. I don't like it, but i respect it
There is no below average in Binaural for me. Even the experiments like soon forget are nice and well put in the tracklist. And most of the leftovers are great too.
I could say Evacuation isnt my cup of tea, but its a good song...even if the studio version lacks heavyness like some other songs (grievance for example),they are great songs.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by digster »

VinylGuy wrote:
There is no below average in Binaural for me. Even the experiments like soon forget are nice and well put in the tracklist. And most of the leftovers are great too.
I could say Evacuation isnt my cup of tea, but its a good song...even if the studio version lacks heavyness like some other songs (grievance for example),they are great songs.
Agreed for me, other than Soon Forget, which is kind of on the cusp.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by EJ »

5 stars:
Insignificance
Grievance
Rival
Parting Ways

4 stars:
NAIS
Thin Air
Of The Girl

3 stars:
Breakerfall
God's Dice
Evacuation
Light Years
Sleight of Hand

2 stars:
Soon Forget

I can listen to the 5 & 4 star songs anyplace, anytime and rank up there with my all time favorite songs by any band. The 3 stars are all good songs, but depending on my mood can be hit and miss so they net out to 3 stars for me. Soon Forget is cute, but silly.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by stip »

NAIS is one of those songs where when I haven't heard it for a while I'm impressed with how good it is, but it's not a song I could listen to frequently.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by digster »

I think that's one of the few Binaural songs, along with Grievance, that's almost always better live. I think it's because Mike tends to play even less restrained at the shows; it makes that last chorus with the dichotomy between Ed's baritone and Mike's lead sound almost frightening.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by darth_vedder »

Thin Air should get more love...it's a great song, and I'll put it at 4 stars on this album.

re: In the Moonlight not fitting...I disagree. I think it would fit very well. Binaural has a spacey, slightly psychedelic vibe, and ITML fits the bill. It's like spacey grunge, and would totally fit with the rest of the album. I think Education works with it too. "Sad", I'm not so sure about, but I think folks that don't really like Binaural too much would rank it higher had any of these songs been included.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by epilogue »

Oddly enough, Education is the one I have the hardest time fitting into Binaural. I really like the song, but I can never seem to find the right spot for it.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by verb_to_trust »

darth_vedder wrote:Thin Air should get more love...it's a great song, and I'll put it at 4 stars on this album.

re: In the Moonlight not fitting...I disagree. I think it would fit very well. Binaural has a spacey, slightly psychedelic vibe, and ITML fits the bill. It's like spacey grunge, and would totally fit with the rest of the album. I think Education works with it too. "Sad", I'm not so sure about, but I think folks that don't really like Binaural too much would rank it higher had any of these songs been included.
I think Sad would be a great opener to the album, but then what do you do with Breakerfall?

And yeah, In the Moonlight in and Evacuation out please...
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by Wendy Carlos's Twin »

verb_to_trust wrote:And yeah, In the Moonlight in and Evacuation out please...
Don't be a retard.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by epilogue »

verb_to_trust wrote:I think Sad would be a great opener to the album, but then what do you do with Breakerfall?
If I had my druthers (and thanks to iTunes, I do!) I'd start the album slow with something like, oh, I don't know, Of The Girl. Then I'd drop Sad at #2.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by zeb »

I don't get the love for Sad.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by epilogue »

It's immediate yet full of atmosphere. Catchy and repetitive, but never redundant or boring. Some interesting imagery.

But mostly, it's the feel of the song - the passion, the immediacy - that I respond to. Can't speak for others. But I really love it.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by Wendy Carlos's Twin »

I don't think they recorded any bad songs for "Binaural". Somehow it all came together and they had this massive amount of good material and they didn't know what to do with it all. It was ballsy putting "Evacuation" on there and early in the album too. I think it's one of the most interesting songs they recorded and I get a kick out of the sheer amount of hatred it gets from the lamer part of the fanbase. "In The Moonlight" is arguably a better song and would have made a better choice for commercial reasons but that wasn't the point, was it? I would have put both of them on there, frankly. I think the b-sides should have been "Soon Forget", "Hitchhiker" & "Education". Everything else should have been on the album.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by epilogue »

Wendy Carlos's Twin wrote:I don't think they recorded any bad songs for "Binaural". Somehow it all came together and they had this massive amount of good material and they didn't know what to do with it all. It was ballsy putting "Evacuation" on there and early in the album too. I think it's one of the most interesting songs they recorded and I get a kick out of the sheer amount of hatred it gets from the lamer part of the fanbase. "In The Moonlight" is arguably a better song and would have made a better choice for commercial reasons but that wasn't the point, was it? I would have put both of them on there, frankly. I think the b-sides should have been "Soon Forget", "Hitchhiker" & "Education". Everything else should have been on the album.
While I don't agree with attacking any fan based on their preference, I do agree with your b-side choices. Though, I'd throw in Gods' Dice, which to my ears is much worse than Evacuation and drags down Binaural.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by Wendy Carlos's Twin »

I love "God's Dice". I love everything on "Binaural".
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by epilogue »

I think most of the people around here are your side more than mine. I wish I could hear what everyone else hears in that song.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by VinylGuy »

Wendy Carlos's Twin wrote:I love "God's Dice". I love everything on "Binaural".
i was madly in love when it came out..breakerfall/goddice was just awesome. Right now its great when it appears live..its funny they outplayed it so much in the 200 tour and now its a rarity.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by darth_vedder »

durdencommatyler wrote:I think most of the people around here are your side more than mine. I wish I could hear what everyone else hears in that song.
I certainly can't speak for everyone, but I like the flow of the song. For me, I think it's a better "punk" PJ than say something like "Save You", "Comatose" or "Supersonic".

Plus, MattfuckinCameron. He is so good on this song. Personally, I think it's some of his best work with Pearl Jam.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by VinylGuy »

Everything about Sleight of hand is beautiful in the studio version...from eddie´s vocals to Matt´s drumming...and those sounds...Great work.
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Re: Binaural: Official Album Thread

Post by EJ »

I much prefer SOH live. It just opens up and breathes more. I've always been a fan of the Prague 2000 version.
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