Lightning Bolt: the official album thread

[McParadigm]

Oh, and while I looked at my notes, I saw there might be a problem for some people who do not like a certain way Ed sometimes sings. The way he sings 'here'. As two parts.

groetjes en weltrusten,
Mirella

Nobody hee-uhr expected otherwise.

[Mirella]

Oh, and while I looked at my notes, I saw there might be a problem for some people who do not like a certain way Ed sometimes sings. The way he sings 'here'. As two parts.

groetjes en weltrusten,
Mirella

Future Days has that same issue, by the sounds of it...

What I really liked about Future Days is that the cheesiness I feared as in the live version, was not there. It was just right.

groetjes,
Mirella

[gems and rhinestones]

What a bunch of slackers. You pussies don't even have this to 800 pages yet!

[harmless]

Oh, and while I looked at my notes, I saw there might be a problem for some people who do not like a certain way Ed sometimes sings. The way he sings 'here'. As two parts.

groetjes en weltrusten,
Mirella

Future Days has that same issue, by the sounds of it...

What I really liked about Future Days is that the cheesiness I feared as in the live version, was not there. It was just right.

groetjes,
Mirella

That's great to hear!

[Mirella]

What a bunch of slackers. You pussies don't even have this to 800 pages yet!

At this pace, it will be well over 800 when I get back here tomorrow during work .

groetjes,
Mirella

[harmless]

We should publish it as an experimental novel.

I could probably actually get this done as long as the thread was deleted before publication.

[Noaheb]

yellow man

[harmless]

Yellow Mayan

[scrub12]

I'm happy with a new single this week. MYM has held me over quite well, as well as still listening to LIR and CC. With hockey and football in full swing, I may be able to hold off on the leaks.

I just wonder how much of Sirens gets cut for the radio since its supposedly close to 6 minutes long.

[gems and rhinestones]

http://www.clashmusic.com/features/albu ... tning-bolt


Pearl Jam represent one of the most consistent and successful rock bands active today – and a first listen to ‘Lightning Bolt’, the Seattle quintet’s new album, further confirms this status. Still standing, never once bowing to the dreaded ‘hiatus’, the Eddie Vedder-fronted outfit is in as rude health today as it was back in the ‘90s.

The reasoning behind the band’s longevity is based in qualitative terms, surely. But it’s probable that Pearl Jam’s members have always sought to satisfy their own musical cravings, following instincts over any fleeting trends. Across the course of the band’s career, kick-started with 1991’s ‘Ten’ LP, they’ve regularly integrated new sounds into their grunge foundations, such as softer, folk-like styles akin to the work of Neil Young.

Each shade of the band’s varied palette has had its time in the spotlight. ‘Thumbing My Way’, from 2002’s ‘Riot Act’, telegraphs Vedder’s subsequent ‘Into The Wild’ soundtrack work. Likewise, 2000’s ‘Soon Forget’ finds the frontman previewing his ‘Ukulele Songs’ LP of 2011 by presenting said instrument to the fore.

Great songwriters rarely lose their touch, whatever the shifting of bandmates – and Pearl Jam has welcomed five different drummers over the years. ‘Lightning Bolt’, released on October 14th via Monkeywrench/Republic, vividly portrays the differing tangents this band can take its signature sound on.

Opener ‘Getaway’ is immediately striking, its fierce riff self-assured with arena-shaking confidence. Guitarist Mike McCready’s solos reflect this band’s classic rock roots, while the vigorous beats from ex-Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron are breathtaking.

The following ‘Mind Your Manners’ continues this all-guns-blazing approach. The guitar here is more barbed than the previous cut, with a real heavy metal feel. The adrenaline begins to surge. ‘My Father’s Son’ ensures it doesn’t dissipate, its primal punk-cum-garage momentum indicative of a band truly locked into their flow.


Track four, ‘Sirens’, is the first step into Pearl Jam’s refined acoustic territory. At its beginning there’s just Vedder with a single guitar, before McCready ups the track’s intensity and the vocals rise in unison. It’s an all-out affair.

The title-track finds those two words, “lightning bolt”, howled during its chorus. It’s remarkably similar, in a good way, to ‘Animal’, a number from 1993’s second LP, ‘Vs.’. So far, ‘Lightning Bolt’ feels like a live set taken into a studio, such is its pace.

‘Infallible’ – another rougher-edged song, the fifth of its kind so far – is a hard-grunge affair which finds Vedder hitting every note with real precision, like a spear fisherman not missing a single strike. It’s a wonder how this man’s voice has sustained across the years – he sounds every bit as strong here as he did on ‘Ten’ and ‘Vs.’, what feels like a lifetime ago (and, for some fans, probably is).

And then, something completely different, as ‘Pendulum’ sounds unlike anything these men have recorded previously. It’s a bleak piece, reverbed guitar bringing a real sense of desolation to proceedings. A tambourine comes in, and an adagio bassline furthers the song’s atmospheric, experimental sound.

‘Swallowed Whole’ is similar to ‘Sirens’ – it begins quietly but builds to a rocking climax. A swaggering bass dominates the mix on ‘Let The Records Play’, the track’s jam-like qualities crystallising a very ‘90s sound, albeit one mixed with the raw garage of Iggy And The Stooges.

‘Sleeping By Myself’ is taken from ‘Ukulele Songs’, but further developed here, as you’d expect from a full-band version. The emotion of the original remains, though, with a great connection between the lyrics and melodic backing. The penultimate ‘Yellow Man’, too, manages to convey this fluency between each member’s role, the despair-soaked vocals reflecting the lead guitar’s tone.

Closer ‘Future Days’ is the first time on ‘Lightning Bolt’ where the lyrics are completely positive, perhaps expressing the contentment these men have found in middle age, with families beside them. They’re happy, and this folk-like number comprises a fine bookend to this tenth studio album.

[liebzz]

I am not looking forward to a radio edit.

[harmless]

Have we had no PJ radio edits before?

[liebzz]

I think either even flow, alive, black or Jeremy had one. Can't remember which.

[Noaheb]

how do we know it will be a radio edit?
siriusxm being satellite radio should play the original no?

[Iowaska_Experience]

how do we know it will be a radio edit?
siriusxm being satellite radio should play the original no?

Right, but they could release an edit to terrestrial radio stations.

[Noaheb]

how do we know it will be a radio edit?
siriusxm being satellite radio should play the original no?

Right, but they could release an edit to terrestrial radio stations.

yeah i figured that...I thought there was a worry that come thursday we'd only be getting the edit...on another note LTRP feels like it could be a Shania Twain song

[harmless]

how do we know it will be a radio edit?
siriusxm being satellite radio should play the original no?

Right, but they could release an edit to terrestrial radio stations.

yeah i figured that...I thought there was a worry that come thursday we'd only be getting the edit...on another note LTRP feels like it could be a Shania Twain song

'Man, I feel like a woman.'

[Mine]

how do we know it will be a radio edit?
siriusxm being satellite radio should play the original no?

Right, but they could release an edit to terrestrial radio stations.

yeah i figured that...I thought there was a worry that come thursday we'd only be getting the edit...on another note LTRP feels like it could be a Shania Twain song

'Man, I feel like a woman.'

eh i bet Sirens will sound like Still The One.

[Noaheb]

how do we know it will be a radio edit?
siriusxm being satellite radio should play the original no?

Right, but they could release an edit to terrestrial radio stations.

yeah i figured that...I thought there was a worry that come thursday we'd only be getting the edit...on another note LTRP feels like it could be a Shania Twain song

'Man, I feel like a woman.'

eh i bet Sirens will sound like Still The One.

Oh, I hope so

[harmless]

how do we know it will be a radio edit?
siriusxm being satellite radio should play the original no?

Right, but they could release an edit to terrestrial radio stations.

yeah i figured that...I thought there was a worry that come thursday we'd only be getting the edit...on another note LTRP feels like it could be a Shania Twain song

'Man, I feel like a woman.'

eh i bet Sirens will sound like Still The One.

Oh, I hope so

Hero, Mariah Carey