Red Mosquito

Sometimes vs. Alive

Alive

Sometimes over Alive is batshit.

Sometimes by a large margin

One of these is a generational defining anthem that still blows the roof off of every building it is played in. The other is a pleasent opener the album then immediately asks you to forget about.

vote for Alive

I wish Pearl Jam had said in the early 2000s that they retired Ten from their concerts, instead on constantly leaning into it. Obviously we all loved it in the early 90s, but that time has come and gone. Now Sometimes is different, absolutely timeless. Will be played hundreds of years now, and still sound like a newly made song.

I would be fine attending a Pearl Jam show and them not playing Alive.

Anders wrote:I wish Pearl Jam had said in the early 2000s that they retired Ten from their concerts, instead on constantly leaning into it. Obviously we all loved it in the early 90s, but that time has come and gone. Now Sometimes is different, absolutely timeless. Will be played hundreds of years now, and still sound like a newly made song.

the reaction to every live performance of ten songs over the last 25 years begs to differ. what is remarkable is the restraint they show in not playing more.

Anders wrote:I wish Pearl Jam had said in the early 2000s that they retired Ten from their concerts, instead on constantly leaning into it. Obviously we all loved it in the early 90s, but that time has come and gone. Now Sometimes is different, absolutely timeless. Will be played hundreds of years now, and still sound like a newly made song.

I don't even think Sometimes will be played hundreds of weeks from now. And I like the song.

I'm unmoved by the "generation-defining anthem" stuff -- "Sometimes" is the side of the band that I like better. I'm impressed that its held its own this long.

stip wrote:

Anders wrote:I wish Pearl Jam had said in the early 2000s that they retired Ten from their concerts, instead on constantly leaning into it. Obviously we all loved it in the early 90s, but that time has come and gone. Now Sometimes is different, absolutely timeless. Will be played hundreds of years now, and still sound like a newly made song.

the reaction to every live performance of ten songs over the last 25 years begs to differ. what is remarkable is the restraint they show in not playing more.

Must get incredibly boring playing the same songs hundreds of times, with lyrics you wrote 30+ years ago.

Sometimes is a really moving song. I adore it.

And I think I value Alive a little less than many Pearl Jam fans (if not RMers). It's a mid-tier Ten track. But it does soar. And I really do appreciate how the song has been sort of "reclaimed" by fans and the band over the years to become an epic live anthem. Alive may not be an important song in the grand scheme of things but it's always been an important song to me. There are a ton of songs I'd vote for over Alive. And as much as I fucking love Sometimes... it just isn't one of them.

But, yeah, I wouldn't be mad at an upset.

Anders wrote:

stip wrote:

Anders wrote:I wish Pearl Jam had said in the early 2000s that they retired Ten from their concerts, instead on constantly leaning into it. Obviously we all loved it in the early 90s, but that time has come and gone. Now Sometimes is different, absolutely timeless. Will be played hundreds of years now, and still sound like a newly made song.

the reaction to every live performance of ten songs over the last 25 years begs to differ. what is remarkable is the restraint they show in not playing more.

Must get incredibly boring playing the same songs hundreds of times, with lyrics you wrote 30+ years ago.

Now imagine 60 years…

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6mEquDtSp ... AyNA%3D%3D

liebzz wrote:

Anders wrote:

stip wrote:

Anders wrote:I wish Pearl Jam had said in the early 2000s that they retired Ten from their concerts, instead on constantly leaning into it. Obviously we all loved it in the early 90s, but that time has come and gone. Now Sometimes is different, absolutely timeless. Will be played hundreds of years now, and still sound like a newly made song.

the reaction to every live performance of ten songs over the last 25 years begs to differ. what is remarkable is the restraint they show in not playing more.

Must get incredibly boring playing the same songs hundreds of times, with lyrics you wrote 30+ years ago.

Now imagine 60 years…

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6mEquDtSp ... AyNA%3D%3D

I already have.

I would only say you might catch me standing with my arms folded if I were listening to a live show on headphones, but in concert, Alive still rips when you are there.

Anders wrote:

stip wrote:

Anders wrote:I wish Pearl Jam had said in the early 2000s that they retired Ten from their concerts, instead on constantly leaning into it. Obviously we all loved it in the early 90s, but that time has come and gone. Now Sometimes is different, absolutely timeless. Will be played hundreds of years now, and still sound like a newly made song.

the reaction to every live performance of ten songs over the last 25 years begs to differ. what is remarkable is the restraint they show in not playing more.

Must get incredibly boring playing the same songs hundreds of times, with lyrics you wrote 30+ years ago.

sometimes contains lyrics that were written about 30 years ago, and its pretty clear that part of what the band gets out of their live performances is the back and forth energy

I got super excited about "Alive" the first time I heard it, mainly because I missed it at my first show (STL 2000), and really went into that show hoping they were going to play everything (it turned out to be a semi-rarities-heavy show for the time, with a lot of staples omitted from the set). So there was a redemptive element to hearing it live in 2003.

I don't think I've really been excited to hear it since, though. It was already a warhorse by the time I started going to shows, and to me it usually just means that the concert is nearing its end and moving into the please-the-masses segment. Totally fine that they do that, but it's not my favorite corner of the PJ canon by a stretch, and I really don't feel the whole "all these half-drunk people are cheering super loud for a song they finally recognize, now it's a special community bonding moment" thing.

Kevin Davis wrote:I got super excited about "Alive" the first time I heard it, mainly because I missed it at my first show (STL 2000), and really went into that show hoping they were going to play everything (it turned out to be a semi-rarities-heavy show for the time, with a lot of staples omitted from the set). So there was a redemptive element to hearing it live in 2003.

I don't think I've really been excited to hear it since, though. It was already a warhorse by the time I started going to shows, and to me it usually just means that the concert is nearing its end and moving into the please-the-masses segment. Totally fine that they do that, but it's not my favorite corner of the PJ canon by a stretch, and I really don't feel the whole "all these half-drunk people are cheering super loud for a song they finally recognize, now it's a special community bonding moment" thing.

Pump your fist just like everyone else, damnit!

Kevin Davis wrote:I got super excited about "Alive" the first time I heard it, mainly because I missed it at my first show (STL 2000), and really went into that show hoping they were going to play everything (it turned out to be a semi-rarities-heavy show for the time, with a lot of staples omitted from the set). So there was a redemptive element to hearing it live in 2003.

I don't think I've really been excited to hear it since, though. It was already a warhorse by the time I started going to shows, and to me it usually just means that the concert is nearing its end and moving into the please-the-masses segment. Totally fine that they do that, but it's not my favorite corner of the PJ canon by a stretch, and I really don't feel the whole "all these half-drunk people are cheering super loud for a song they finally recognize, now it's a special community bonding moment" thing.

This is interesting. My instinct was to say, "oh man, I totally relate" but upon reflection, if I'm honest, that hasn't been my experience at Pearl Jam shows. Maybe it's because I usually have 10 Club seats or maybe it's because most of the shows I've seen have been in NYC, but usually when I'm at a show people are nuts for every song they play. Even rarities. There's no perceptible depreciation between enthusiasm for something like, say Rats or WMA or Got Some, than for songs like Alive and Better Man.

epilogue wrote:

Kevin Davis wrote:I got super excited about "Alive" the first time I heard it, mainly because I missed it at my first show (STL 2000), and really went into that show hoping they were going to play everything (it turned out to be a semi-rarities-heavy show for the time, with a lot of staples omitted from the set). So there was a redemptive element to hearing it live in 2003.

I don't think I've really been excited to hear it since, though. It was already a warhorse by the time I started going to shows, and to me it usually just means that the concert is nearing its end and moving into the please-the-masses segment. Totally fine that they do that, but it's not my favorite corner of the PJ canon by a stretch, and I really don't feel the whole "all these half-drunk people are cheering super loud for a song they finally recognize, now it's a special community bonding moment" thing.

This is interesting. My instinct was to say, "oh man, I totally relate" but upon reflection, if I'm honest, that hasn't been my experience at Pearl Jam shows. Maybe it's because I usually have 10 Club seats or maybe it's because most of the shows I've seen have been in NYC, but usually when I'm at a show people are nuts for every song they play. Even rarities. There's no perceptible depreciation between enthusiasm for something like, say Rats or WMA or Got Some, than for songs like Alive and Better Man.

Interesting. I've definitely been in crowds at PJ shows where the response was a lot more lukewarm for less familiar songs, though I'd agree that Pearl Jam are likely to get bigger reactions from rarer songs than some other artists might be.

I've also never had 10 Club seats and have only ever attended shows in the Midwest, so...maybe that's a difference too.