Lightning Bolt: the official album thread

[WtOB?]

wait.. what clique? there is no such thing as a clique.

[WtOB?]

it's a made up word.

[WtOB?]

wb chud you've got me super worked up

[verb_to_trust]

http://instagram.com/p/etTQP0JnFN/

That was quite an evil collective laugh.

Maybe they were discussing how stupid the title lightning bolt is and how the fans are sooo peeved over it

I'm a fan and I'm not peeved.

its stupid, its just not worth being peeved about

Ok.

We'll have them consult you for album #11's title.

The band could do worse than to consult me.

[enimmi]

http://instagram.com/p/etTQP0JnFN/

That was quite an evil collective laugh.

Maybe they were discussing how stupid the title lightning bolt is and how the fans are sooo peeved over it

It's this:

Steve Gleason started with saying it's been 5 years since the last record, what the fuck? Which made the band just sit there and laugh.

[harmless]

What time's the EPK today?

[WtOB?]

morning harmless

[harmless]

How's life?

[WtOB?]

not too bad mate, yourself?

i'm hoping this epk is released in the next 5 hours or so before i go to bed.

[BootsToAsses]

I'm gonna guess the EPK will be unveiled at around midday in the States, so 5pm here for me in gloomy old England.

The little Instagram clip with the evil laughing scared me a bit.

[LetMeSleep]

not too bad mate, yourself?

i'm hoping this epk is released in the next 5 hours or so before i go to bed.

2am if the above guys are correct. Damn that.

[harmless]

not too bad mate, yourself?

i'm hoping this epk is released in the next 5 hours or so before i go to bed.

Yeah not bad! Autumn has definitely set in though.

Looks like it'll be early evening for me...

[WtOB?]

not too bad mate, yourself?

i'm hoping this epk is released in the next 5 hours or so before i go to bed.

2am if the above guys are correct. Damn that.

oh fuck it.

[enimmi]

New interview with Ed in Rolling Stone.

(not my photos)

https://scontent-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos ... 5514_n.jpg

https://scontent-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos ... 3756_n.jpg

Eddie Vedder Q&A

On Pearl Jam's new LP and hate-watching the VMAs
By Brian Hiatt

Eddie Vedder is really trying to take better care of himself. “I quit drinking and smoking all the time,” he says with a laugh. “I’m currently not drinking – because it’s 11:00 in the morning.” Sober or not, Vedder sounds pretty riled for a 48-year-old father of two on Pearl Jam’s 10th album, Lightning Bolt, which ranges from Vitalogy-style punkiness to unabashed balladry. “We’ve got a situation in the band,” says Vedder, “where, hopefully, we can explore the possibilities of the whole spectrum.”

Given all the time between records, and all the band members’ side projects, is Pearl Jam itself now a side project for you guys?

I could see, perhaps, where that assumption is made. But we’re more of a group than ever, and the space in between is healthy. It’s a big part of everybody’s life, to be playing music, at all times. And at the same time, it’s important to us to be part of our families, to not be absent fathers.
Also, actually putting out the record is a little bit of a shock to the system. That’s what we remember as being traumatic. Probably, when you take longer between records, there’s more importance placed on the records. Maybe the next thing you do is put out another one in the next year – just put it out, and not have a buildup.

Are you still trying to make the greatest Pearl Jam record ever?

I say this in the least-competitive way possible, but we’re trying to make not just the best Pearl Jam record, but just the best record. It’s about getting to the next level of communication, or just trying to crack a code into some higher phase of playing music. Because when we’re making a record, I’m more of a listener than a player. That whole time, you’re staying in this weird, objective place, like you’re writing from a hot-air balloon, looking at the landscape and trying to zero in. You’re trying to create a giant crop circle, and that’s the mystery behind it. Like, how would you make that if you were on the ground?

The new record has a lot of lyrics about mortality.

They say to write what you know, I think that’s maybe one thing that we all know [laughs]. It’s living while you’re alive, and living to the day you die, and being cognizant of the end, and you might lead a more appreciative life, if that’s part of your approach.

I thought maybe you were just getting old.

Yeah. Well, no! I’m probably in better shape than in many, many years. But, you know, they say that your kids make you young – I say they’ll make you tired, trying to keep up with them. I used to think getting through adolescence was going to be the hard part. It’s watching other people get old, dealing with other people’s mortality. A lot of us live in denial, given how we treat our bodies. So to extend it, you start treating yourself a little better.

You hurt some nerves in your back that affected your hand last year, and you had to cancel some dates. Is that related to this revelation?

That was a major inconvenience that, when I look back, was really minor. But, you know, in the middle of it, I didn’t know if I would play guitar again. I could picture sitting there with [guitarists] Mike [McCready] or Stone [Gossard] calling out chords. “No, go to a B-minor! Go to a B-minor-7!”

The new song “Infallible” seems to be about American decline, questioning whether we’re really progressing as a culture.

Well, I wouldn’t want to limit it to just our country [laughs]. But if you’re a casting director, you’d say, “Well, wow, this country certainly fits the part.” You know, we legalized gay marriage in the state of Washington at the same time we legalized pot, and it was a great reason to celebrate! But then, the Supreme Court made it more difficult for minorities and less fortunate people on the economic scale to vote. That was a huge step backward. We could’ve made two big strides forward. Instead, we’re just, you know, prone, doing the splits.

With the solo ukulele record you put out in 2011, and Pearl Jam's hit "Just Breathe," it seems like you've opened the door for a bit of, not softness, but...

Sentimentality. For years, it was playing word games and expressing those emotions, but doing it in such a way that was cryptic and where Mark Arm from Mudhoney would still have some modicum of respect for me. But nowadays, it's more like sitting down and writing a song, and whatever comes out, comes out.

The new album also has the power ballad "Sirens," which sounds big - dare I say "commercial"?

You've already said it! You want to say something else? You want me to double-dare you? [Laughs] You know, a lot of these songs were written in the middle of the night, and you're the only one awake, it seems, for miles. There’s no one criticizing what you’re writing.

On another note, there's no doubt that rock isn't the cultural force it once was.

Oh, so you saw the MTV awards.

Wait, you saw the MTV awards?

I was able to fast-forward through them, yes.

I take it you're not into much new pop music, then.

These pop songs almost feel like tabloid journalism, in a way. It's crap that people seem to like. And I don't know if it has meaning. I don't know if one of the pop songs of the summer has any fiber in it. People are consuming it, and is it healthy? I don't know. Maybe it's some kind of way of taking themselves away from their problems. Maybe there's some healthy property or some restorative property that I'm not receiving. It seems like it has a really high fructose content.

As unpleasant as it often was for Pearl Jam back in the Nineties, shouldn't more good young rock bands be shooting for the pop charts?

Bono talked a lot about, you know, “We can't let rock & roll become a niche.” I thought, “Well, that's kind of crazy. I have more faith in it than that.” But I can definitely see his point. When there’s a pop song that seems a little bit better than others, it's usually one that has some real guitar, real drums in it. I still feel like the best stuff has natural elements.

You're about the same age now that Neil Young was when he made Harvest Moon In 1992. Does that feel right?

No, I’ll always be younger than that. Just on achievement levels alone.

Can you imagine pushing into your seventies, like the Stones and Paul McCartney?

It’s actually really rare. The more you look at it, you realize how rare it is, and how difficult it is. I first saw the Stones in 1981, and at that point they were elder statesmen. But we’re lucky to see these old poets being able to read their work in their own voice, you know? I mean, they came from the same generation that said, “Don’t trust anyone over 30.” It reminds you to be open to the possibilities.

[wilkins]

What time EST?

[harmless]

New interview with Ed in Rolling Stone.

(not my photos)

https://scontent-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos ... 5514_n.jpg

https://scontent-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos ... 3756_n.jpg

Eddie Vedder Q&A

On Pearl Jam's new LP and hate-watching the VMAs
By Brian Hiatt

Eddie Vedder is really trying to take better care of himself. “I quit drinking and smoking all the time,” he says with a laugh. “I’m currently not drinking – because it’s 11:00 in the morning.” Sober or not, Vedder sounds pretty riled for a 48-year-old father of two on Pearl Jam’s 10th album, Lightning Bolt, which ranges from Vitalogy-style punkiness to unabashed balladry. “We’ve got a situation in the band,” says Vedder, “where, hopefully, we can explore the possibilities of the whole spectrum.”

Given all the time between records, and all the band members’ side projects, is Pearl Jam itself now a side project for you guys?

I could see, perhaps, where that assumption is made. But we’re more of a group than ever, and the space in between is healthy. It’s a big part of everybody’s life, to be playing music, at all times. And at the same time, it’s important to us to be part of our families, to not be absent fathers.
Also, actually putting out the record is a little bit of a shock to the system. That’s what we remember as being traumatic. Probably, when you take longer between records, there’s more importance placed on the records. Maybe the next thing you do is put out another one in the next year – just put it out, and not have a buildup.

Are you still trying to make the greatest Pearl Jam record ever?

I say this in the least-competitive way possible, but we’re trying to make not just the best Pearl Jam record, but just the best record. It’s about getting to the next level of communication, or just trying to crack a code into some higher phase of playing music. Because when we’re making a record, I’m more of a listener than a player. That whole time, you’re staying in this weird, objective place, like you’re writing from a hot-air balloon, looking at the landscape and trying to zero in. You’re trying to create a giant crop circle, and that’s the mystery behind it. Like, how would you make that if you were on the ground?

The new record has a lot of lyrics about mortality.

They say to write what you know, I think that’s maybe one thing that we all know [laughs]. It’s living while you’re alive, and living to the day you die, and being cognizant of the end, and you might lead a more appreciative life, if that’s part of your approach.

I thought maybe you were just getting old.

Yeah. Well, no! I’m probably in better shape than in many, many years. But, you know, they say that your kids make you young – I say they’ll make you tired, trying to keep up with them. I used to think getting through adolescence was going to be the hard part. It’s watching other people get old, dealing with other people’s mortality. A lot of us live in denial, given how we treat our bodies. So to extend it, you start treating yourself a little better.

You hurt some nerves in your back that affected your hand last year, and you had to cancel some dates. Is that related to this revelation?

That was a major inconvenience that, when I look back, was really minor. But, you know, in the middle of it, I didn’t know if I would play guitar again. I could picture sitting there with [guitarists] Mike [McCready] or Stone [Gossard] calling out chords. “No, go to a B-minor! Go to a B-minor-7!”

The new song “Infallible” seems to be about American decline, questioning whether we’re really progressing as a culture.

Well, I wouldn’t want to limit it to just our country [laughs]. But if you’re a casting director, you’d say, “Well, wow, this country certainly fits the part.” You know, we legalized gay marriage in the state of Washington at the same time we legalized pot, and it was a great reason to celebrate! But then, the Supreme Court made it more difficult for minorities and less fortunate people on the economic scale to vote. That was a huge step backward. We could’ve made two big strides forward. Instead, we’re just, you know, prone, doing the splits.

With the solo ukulele record you put out in 2011, and Pearl Jam's hit "Just Breathe," it seems like you've opened the door for a bit of, not softness, but...

Sentimentality. For years, it was playing word games and expressing those emotions, but doing it in such a way that was cryptic and where Mark Arm from Mudhoney would still have some modicum of respect for me. But nowadays, it's more like sitting down and writing a song, and whatever comes out, comes out.

The new album also has the power ballad "Sirens," which sounds big - dare I say "commercial"?

You've already said it! You want to say something else? You want me to double-dare you? [Laughs] You know, a lot of these songs were written in the middle of the night, and you're the only one awake, it seems, for miles. There’s no criticizing what you’re writing.

On another note, there's no doubt that rock isn't the cultural force it once was.

Oh, so you saw the MTV awards.

Wait, you saw the MTV awards?

I was able to fast-forward through them, yes.

I take it you're not into much new pop music, then.

These pop songs almost feel like tabloid journalism, in a way. It's crap that people seem to like. And I don't know if it has meaning. I don't know if one of the pop songs of the summer has any fiber in it. People are consuming it, and is it healthy? I don't know. Maybe it's some kind of way of taking themselves away from their problems. Maybe there's some healthy property or some restorative property that I'm not receiving. It seems like it has a really high fructose content.

As unpleasant as it often was for Pearl Jam back in the Nineties, shouldn't more good young rock bands be shooting for the pop charts?

Bono talked a lot about, you know, “We can't let rock & roll become a niche.” I thought, “Well, that's kind of crazy. I have more faith in it than that.” But I can definitely see his point. When there’s a pop song that seems a little bit better than others, it's usually one that has some real guitar, real drums in it. I still feel like the best stuff has natural elements.

You're about the same age now that Neil Young was when he made Harvest Moon In 1992. Does that feel right?

No, I’ll always be younger than that. Just on achievement levels alone.

Can you imagine pushing into your seventies, like the Stones and Paul McCartney?

It’s actually really rare. The more you look at it, you realize how rare it is, and how difficult it is. I first saw the Stones in 1981, and at that point they were elder statesmen. But we’re lucky to see these old poets being able to read their work in their own voice, you know? I mean, they came from the same generation that said, “Don’t trust anyone over 30.” It reminds you to be open to the possibilities.

I enjoyed this, thanks for it. Sounds like Infallible is another political song

[WtOB?]

hah, sounds like eddie's on a health-nut craze right now with his fibre and lack of high fructose.

[WtOB?]

and no drinking at 11am !!

[harmless]

Well, he can't afford to drop the mic again on the next performance of Mind Your Manners.

[WtOB?]

i just listened to that australian radio interview mike did about a week ago. mike said he isn't even on pendulum. interesting...