Kevin Davis wrote:Have you ever listened to Common One? No joke, the lead track, "Haunts of Ancient Peace," might be my favorite audio recording ever. Just sublime, beautiful music.
Wow, I love this.
This makes me over-the-moon happy!
The section in the middle, with the swelling choir vocals under the saxophone solo (played by Van himself, I think) -- just pure beauty.
IMO the rest of the album isn't quite up to the same level, but I still really like it. The closing track is like this 15 minute long meander that, when the mood strikes, is just what the doctor ordered.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:17 pm
by Johnny Turner
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:18 pm
by lecherouslittlestump
I mentioned earlier in the thread that the spoken word intro to Invincible reminded me of Van Morrison - maybe from the Avalon Sunset/Enlightenment era.
Side note, I've always wanted to hear Pearl Jam cover Wavelength.
I don't recall Eddie ever talking about Van Morrison. Glen Hansard is clearly a huge fan.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:21 pm
by Hatfield
tragabigzanda wrote:Welp, I’ve finally listened with headphones, and here’s where I’m at:
1. Creatively speaking, I find this album even more encouraging than Gigaton for what the future holds for Pearl Jam. The range of ideas is pretty great, and even the lesser tracks have some fun ideas and ear candy. I’m fully on board with an Andrew Wottman-produced Pearl Jam album.
2. The reliance on digital processing is variously encouraging and concerning. It’s great to hear some new guitar and bass sounds behind Ed’s voice, and the synth pads that we first got in DOTC continue to be the most surprisingly great addition to the pallet…but the sloppy vocal edit in Try (“hitting like the WITNESS in your eyes,” at 1:54), and some of the more Frankensteined song arrangements, give me less hope that PJ will ever make another Riot Act.
3. Ed continues to get away from the condenser mic breathiness of BS and LB, which is so great.
4. The compression and EQ are abysmal. I have serious ear fatigue after one listen, and had to turn the volume way down on the heavier songs. I’m firmly convinced that Ed’s going deaf, and has no idea or awareness of the results that’s having on his finished product. It is what it is, I guess.
Compositionally much stronger than I ever thought this would be, and more importantly, it never sounds tired; there’s nothing that smacks of a retread like SBWM.
Trag, you nailed a lot of my reaction to this record. So much of Earthlings I enjoy, but the sound issues are killing it for me. I tried going for a wonderful snow covered trail run with Earthling and didn't make it through "Power of Right". My head hurt. I switched over to Gigaton and sonically it was so far superior.
Watt got a lot of great music out of Ed. I do question some of the guitar tones, like the beginning of "Power of Right", but overall I'm impressed with this record musically. Good and Evil is really growing on me. A little marriage between Comatose and Mind Your Manners.
You can keep the Haves. I'm a Long Way guy. There, I said it!
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:28 pm
by Kevin Davis
lecherouslittlestump wrote:I mentioned earlier in the thread that the spoken word intro to Invincible reminded me of Van Morrison - maybe from the Avalon Sunset/Enlightenment era.
Side note, I've always wanted to hear Pearl Jam cover Wavelength.
I don't recall Eddie ever talking about Van Morrison. Glen Hansard is clearly a huge fan.
Hearing Eddie trying to do the falsetto in "Wavelength" would be hilarious -- not sure if in a good or bad way.
Probably not much hope of that while Van is spouting all of his anti-vaccine babble.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:30 pm
by evenslow
Ed really has to retire that fucking hat.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:32 pm
by Ms Harmless
lecherouslittlestump wrote:
washing machine wrote:This feels like the page where we find out what happens when people stop being polite and start getting real.
It's a fucking dreadful record.
You know how everyone loved The Force Awakens when it came out, but 6 years on everyone agrees it sucks an unbelievable amount of ass?
Same situation here.
LMAO
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:40 pm
by washing machine
evenslow wrote:Ed really has to retire that fucking hat.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:40 pm
by Release_Me
Birds in Hell wrote:I didn't like Ukulele Songs - I thought it was a disappointing rehash of the original recordings - but I really liked Into the Wild a lot.
I could absolutely get behind an EV solo career that used songs like Long Nights or The Wolf as a starting point.
I liked ITW more than US too, the songs on ITW were better. Still, while I enjoy Long Nights, Hard Sun, Guaranteed, etc. I would not consider the album essential as an Ed fan. It was a nice detour from the stuff he does with PJ and a very apt soundtrack for the film. A bit one dimensional as a solo album for a musician as talented as Ed. Earthling is an album which makes me think I can really get behind Ed having a proper solo career outside of PJ.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:41 pm
by liebzz
guitar_davey wrote:
Strat wrote:
Pj would nail try and mike would do ripping rockabilly/blues shredding not unlike "Dont Believe in Christmas"
its a punk driven song. They'd do great on it.
Perfect example.
I imagine it as a redefinition of spritzy in real time.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:41 pm
by Ms Harmless
"I'm a goddamn marvel of modern fuckin science!" - Ed
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:42 pm
by Ms Harmless
liebzz wrote:
guitar_davey wrote:
Strat wrote:
Pj would nail try and mike would do ripping rockabilly/blues shredding not unlike "Dont Believe in Christmas"
its a punk driven song. They'd do great on it.
Perfect example.
I imagine it as a redefinition of spritzy in real time.
they've kind of shit the bed on many of their punkers though; Josh could have got it done
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:43 pm
by Release_Me
Release_Me wrote:
Birds in Hell wrote:I didn't like Ukulele Songs - I thought it was a disappointing rehash of the original recordings - but I really liked Into the Wild a lot.
I could absolutely get behind an EV solo career that used songs like Long Nights or The Wolf as a starting point.
I liked ITW more than US too, the songs on ITW were better. Still, while I enjoy Long Nights, Hard Sun, Guaranteed, etc. I would not consider the album essential as an Ed fan. It was a nice detour from the stuff he does with PJ and a very apt soundtrack for the film. A bit one dimensional as a solo album for a musician as talented as Ed. Earthling is an album which makes me think I can really get behind Ed having a proper solo career outside of PJ.
Not that I think that's his intention but if there are a couple more of such solo projects in between PJ albums, I will happily lap them up.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:52 pm
by Ms Harmless
me too, for once I'm open to hearing what he'll Try
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:54 pm
by Ms Harmless
I'd sell a kidney to hear Ed collab on this kind of pop rock stuff with The 1975's guy
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:57 pm
by scrub12
Ed’s already had covid I guess.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:58 pm
by Matters
guitar_davey wrote:
evenslow wrote:and in between we've got big surf.
I know everyone here gets on Eddie for his ocean/wave/surfing references, but this might be my favourite one he's ever made.
Yep. Good vocal delivery will always trump a bad lyric. This one sounds so good.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 10:59 pm
by Ms Harmless
scrub12 wrote:Ed’s already had covid I guess.
you're right, that did sound a bit forceful
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 11:01 pm
by Matters
Brother the Cloud sounds like another great song, Amongst the Waves. Of course it doesn’t reach those heights, but still very good. The fuck you’s at the end don’t make the song any better though.
Re: Eddie Vedder - Earthling
Posted: Tue February 15, 2022 11:02 pm
by Ms Harmless
Matters wrote:
guitar_davey wrote:
evenslow wrote:and in between we've got big surf.
I know everyone here gets on Eddie for his ocean/wave/surfing references, but this might be my favourite one he's ever made.
Yep. Good vocal delivery will always trump a bad lyric. This one sounds so good.
also he lands it with the soaring "who could ask for more?" where I think before this album, he would've just left the surfing line hanging as if it were profound enough by itself (it isn't; the rhetorical question lifts it)
