Red Mosquito

Hmmm.

I'm not complaining that I got two videos of the band playing songs I really like. I just worry about Ed and the way they are managing his voice.

LB left mean underwhelmed. But I don't like the song. The whole approach and performance was lifeless until the final 45 seconds where they was some air, some movement. My main gripe with the album and especially this song is that they are sucked of air. I thought it was that there needed to be a bit of musical space around Ed but the drum sound is too tight and controlled. The guitar lines and tones are confined, with no room to swing your arms. And LB is the worst culprit. Really choked guitar and vocals and damn 4 on the floor tight lifeless drums. Even the tom pattern comes off as choked when it shouldn't be restricted. I can't put it into words as well as McParadigm did but his post was a light bulb moment for me.

But this performance wasn't good. It wasn't bad either. All they really did was show up.

LOL @ everyone who was saying "they're saving Getaway for Fallon".

LetMeSleep wrote:LB left mean underwhelmed. But I don't like the song. The whole approach and performance was lifeless until the final 45 seconds where they was some air, some movement. My main gripe with the album and especially this song is that they are sucked of air. I thought it was that there needed to be a bit of musical space around Ed but the drum sound is too tight and controlled. The guitar lines and tones are confined, with no room to swing your arms. And LB is the worst culprit. Really choked guitar and vocals and damn 4 on the floor tight lifeless drums. Even the tom pattern comes off as choked when it shouldn't be restricted. I can't put it into words as well as McParadigm did but his post was a light bulb moment for me.

But this performance wasn't good. It wasn't bad either. All they really did was show up.

I really like Matt's drum tones on this performance. I like a tight snare drum. But I agree with you that the rhythm is pretty uninteresting (albeit groovy where it needs to be, like WWS). I saw a performance of this somewhere that was really excellent, except for if you watched Cameron during that toms part. He plays it so simply it's embarrassing. He's a much better drummer than he repeatedly refuses to show for Pearl Jam, and I don't know why that is. The best I can say is that it's not only Lightning Bolt that suffers from this.

I've also got a feeling that the things I like least about this song are whatever makes it The Who-like.

It feels contrived. Like Ed wanted to write an edgier UKnown and then it got the life sucked out of it by either Bo'B or all of them. It feels rushed, it doesn't settle. That may be the point but I don't enjoy any of this song when there are vocals, which leaves the guitar break which is average.

I really, really like the song. It's much better than UK as far as I'm concerned. I just didn't like the fact that they performed it when Ed was clearly not up for it.

I love that the song is so choppy and has several different kinds of parts. I love that it meanders until the end, where that great climax just sneaks up on you. The song doesn't set it up predictably, which will disappoint some people but interest others. The song mixes up a pretty standard rock anthem with a more off-kilter groove-fest like "Evacuation" or even WWS. IMHO. So it sort of doesn't know what it wants to be, but does that really well (again in my opinion) as opposed to Unthought Known, which totally meanders and goes nowhere as soon as it's decided it's got Nothing Left. LB is much better than UK in my book.

People sometimes criticise "Frankensongs" and I always find myself thinking that's my favourite kind of song. I'm sure that's why "Infallible" has grown on me. When I realised that it was two kinds of songs stapled together, I was able to really start to dig it.

harmless wrote:I love that the song is so choppy and has several different kinds of parts. I love that it meanders until the end, where that great climax just sneaks up on you. The song doesn't set it up predictably, which will disappoint some people but interest others. The song mixes up a pretty standard rock anthem with a more off-kilter groove-fest like "Evacuation" or even WWS. IMHO. So it sort of doesn't know what it wants to be, but does that really well (again in my opinion) as opposed to Unthought Known, which totally meanders and goes nowhere as soon as it's decided it's got Nothing Left. LB is much better than UK in my book.

agreed

I want Pearl Jam to create a song with the strength of Unthought Known and LB combined. In Unthought known I like Eddie's voice a lot more and it sounds better to me productionwise but I prefer the songwriting in Lightning Bolt. Not sure which one I prefer overall.

That first verse in L-bolt creates so much extra baggage for that song. I think he sounds great after it, but it leaves that taste in your mouth

That's true, he's pretty good for the rest of the song. I'd also say his perfomance in LB is more powerful than in Unthought Known but there's something about his tone/timbre that I prefer in UK.

Mike wrote:I want Pearl Jam to create a song with the strength of Unthought Known and LB combined. In Unthought known I like Eddie's voice a lot more and it sounds better to me productionwise but I prefer the songwriting in Lightning Bolt. Not sure which one I prefer overall.

Really? I hope ed stops mining this particular well, don't think theres gonna be a song in this vein I actually like.

stupidmop wrote:

Mike wrote:I want Pearl Jam to create a song with the strength of Unthought Known and LB combined. In Unthought known I like Eddie's voice a lot more and it sounds better to me productionwise but I prefer the songwriting in Lightning Bolt. Not sure which one I prefer overall.

Really? I hope ed stops mining this particular well, don't think theres gonna be a song in this vein I actually like.

I don't particularly WANT them to write another one of those, I didn't express myself very good there. But if they feel the need to do it, I'd like it to sound this way.

And still the best song on the album. Enjoyed the performance.

Mike wrote:

stupidmop wrote:

Mike wrote:I want Pearl Jam to create a song with the strength of Unthought Known and LB combined. In Unthought known I like Eddie's voice a lot more and it sounds better to me productionwise but I prefer the songwriting in Lightning Bolt. Not sure which one I prefer overall.

Really? I hope ed stops mining this particular well, don't think theres gonna be a song in this vein I actually like.

I don't particularly WANT them to write another one of those, I didn't express myself very good there. But if they feel the need to do it, I'd like it to sound this way.

I do think Ed's performance of Unthought Known is the best thing about it. The "gems and rhinestones" line is fantastic, and I like a lot of the lyrics. I also agree that the first verse of LB is.... well, it's just not really right for the tone of the song.

that was the best performance of that song ive seen. But my god do i hate the outro screams. On all versions.

So much of that outro is Springsteen-esque, to me.