NDTA New Drummer Two Albums (Theory)

[Knabetnuom]

During this drummer-less hiatus I thought now's the time to share my thoughts on a theory I've had for a while about the band and new drummers, simply called NDTA or New Drummer Two Albums.

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It seems the band has thus far taken the same approach with each new drummer who joined after Ten.

Their first album together the band meets the drummer more than halfway with their style and approach and with the second their personality is more integrated into the band and not prioritized to the same level.

For their first albums with the band each drummer took a bow in the spotlight, while shifting back to the scenery proper (to varying degrees) for their second.

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Dave Abbruzzese.

The first album with Dave and the band's sophomore effort. Were they going to be a one-hit wonder or in it for the long haul..err, road? Time told that tale but it began here, with Dave's funky, high-energy approach. He was a significant figure in their most volatile days; the man wrote the riff to Go!

I love Vs, it's just an incredible album start to finish and Dave brought a lot of character to it, from the "little" touches like the cymbal notes at the start of Daughter to the funky coda to Blood, let alone all of Rats and WMA.

Sure, now we know things were tense between him and Eddie/Jeff and apparently he was so frustrated during RVM he threw his sticks and pitched his drum over a cliff but man, what a performance.

He even wrote the music to Angel, one of the band's most uniquely beautiful and haunting songs, performed just over a handful times, and whether with just Eddie and Dave or decades later, Matt, it still soars through some twilight sky.

With Vitalogy the band subsumed his more overt style. The drumming is energetic yet tasteful, powerful and restrained with the perfect amount of flourish and individual character.yet still fitting within their context.

I love the sound of his drums and his feel and think one of his best performances is all throughout Immortality.

I'll see comments online where people still wish he'd never been fired and it's an interesting thought experiment, to a degree. But he was let go. And while I can understand (to a degree) his struggles with being fired, anytime he appears these days and mentions the band, I hope he finds some peace. Too bad things weren't patched up enough for a one-off performance.

Still, what he brought to the band was incredible, not just for his two albums but on stage as well.




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Jack Irons.

He had a huge influence on his first record, would we even have Who You Are or In My Tree without him?

Jack's behind the beat drumming and unique sound was such an abrupt change along with the different songwriting that a good number of listeners dropped the band. If Ten established them, and Vs and Vitalogy solidified a foundation they could not build upon in any physics-defying fashion, No Code pointed the way to more interesting directions. Come along or not, we don't care.

Intentionally abandoning the spotlight, band myth or truth, I don't know, maybe a mix, but the end result was an album that drove listeners, let alone mainstream radio away.

Even Flow to Who You Are works for me but I understand why it didn't for so many others.

Sure, Yield has the Red Dot but aside form that showcase Jack's unique behind the beat style and sound (and that incredible drum fill in Brain of J) his drumming feels less a spotlight figure and more of the ensemble.

And what an ensemble! Guitars intertwining, Eddie's voice both fierce and tender and a wide scope of songwriting, from Given To Fly, to Wishlist, Brain of J, the magnificent No Way and potent experimental, Push Me Pull Me, it's a great fusion.

I was shocked when the news came that he was gone and was skeptical about Matt's upcoming tenure. Boy, was I wrong!


******

Matt Cameron.

Just when people thought the band had a "return to form" with Yield, with the trifecta of Given To Fly, Wishlist and Evolution, they took a sharp 90 degree precise turn into dark weirdness with Binaural.

Gone the surfy, behind-the-beat backbone and welcome the high-speed and unique precision of Matt. Sure, a lot of listeners like Evacuation, I do, but for many it's like stabbing their ears with broken glass dipped in gasoline.

Despite high-energy numbers like Hail Hail, Habit and Lukin, No Code is a largely gentle album, Binaural is moody and aggressive, perfectly represented by the album cover, stark beauty amidst endless void.

The band again embraced their new drummer, with more complicated time signatures and weird chord changes, and made their dark masterpiece.

It's not an easy album, but darn, it certainly has seemingly endless depths. And the sound is tremendous, from the stark loss of Nothing As It Seems to the opening beats of Light Years, the sound of all the temples being torn down in grief.

Yet with Riot Act, the band softened the more angular approach Matt had brought to their sixth album, and while he had some excellent experimentation with You Are, the great riffing of Get Right and the off-kilter Cropduster, he seemed to be more of a part of the band proper.

Despite its themes, Riot Act felt like a more listener friendly album, all of their strengths, fast, hard rock songs, potent ballads, moody groove pieces and even the unusual, all peppered with their experience.

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I wondered what would happen after Riot Act since Matt stayed with the band. For me, it's been a jumble of songs I enjoy and too many I don't. Riot Act's been their last record (to date) that is a great run of songs from top to bottom, in my opinion.

Was it necessary for this group of musicians to have a new influx of drummers to keep making albums at the quality of the first seven?

Or did they just naturally grow and change?

I think the latter.

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I'm sure it is a huge adjustment to have a new drummer after 27 years of Matt's energy and style.

While a great live band from the beginning, with Matt they threw open the gates and embraced a great number of lesser played tunes, they played Bugs!

They played Evil Little Goat..!

It felt like they could and would play anything.

And now...who knows.

I think it's interesting, with each drummer change, the band offered up two albums that somehow adhered to this pattern and were all significant records for them.

What do you think?

[lvc]

If Matt Cameron had done what the other drummers had done what jack irons did (jump in for a tour and stay long enough to record two records), we’d have the same amount of Pearl Jam’s best music as we have now. And maybe some of the magic was adapting to a new drummer/personality in the creative process. So if the revolving door had continued to revolve, maybe it could have been really good for the band. Cycling in fresh air.

[Knabetnuom]

Hello,

Interesting.

I don't know how to do the quote/re-direct thing you did so this will have to do:

https://forums.theskyiscrape.com/viewto ... d#p1807152

Re: 91. Hard to Imagine vs. Rats
Post by Knabetnuom » Mon February 28, 2022 9:00 am

By cleverly drawing out the perceived virtues of rats over people Eddie has the listener cheering along to creatures they'd be disturbed by to see in person, not just cheering but pumping their fists in their air for yet another empowering outro as Dave's drums lay down their funkiest of beats, lending credence to the untold drummer theory that...well...that would be telling, wouldn't it?