From the initial drum crashes of "Last Exit" Vitalogy is a much welcomed blow to your musical cerebellum and that's even before you get Eddie Vedder's delectable (and at times delightfully unintelligible) warble as the greatest consolation prize of all. Just as simply as this song ends with Vedder's calmly painful admission, the quick and heavy guitar bursts of "Spin the Black Circle" kick us in the teeth. If you don't know what hyperactivity feels like, this song comes close. Supposedly, we can thank good ol' Eddie for this. According to a 2003 interview in Rolling Stone, Vedder admits that initially the guitar riff was a lot slower until he asked for it to be sped up. That being said, I think this might quite possibly be the coolest song ever written about spinning a record.
Thus begins the anti-music industry opus that is to follow starting with "Not For You." Vedder has stated that this album, specifically this song, was written as a response to the business side of music. Coming off a lawsuit against Ticketmaster in regards to high ticket prices, Pearl Jam decided to make an album establishing the stance on making music for themselves and those fans listening to it rather than ad executives, ticket sellers, and business moguls. Not to mention, its infectious riff is certified badassery. "Tremor Christ" follows and although some have said the song is reminiscent of the marching beat on The Beatles' "I Am the Walrus," I was reminded of the riff in another Beatles' track, "I Want You (She's So Heavy)." Check the Pearl Jam track at 1:16 and then give The Beatles' track a listen.
Next, one of my two favorite tracks of the album. "Nothingman," while being a wonderfully written ode, hits home for anyone who has lost someone due solely to their own fuck-ups. Vedder reached another level in poeticism when he sings, "Caught a bolt of lightning / Cursed the day he let it go." Powerful stuff here, folks. Another favorite track of mine is "Immortality." Once again, Vedder at his poetic best. This song, in my humbly offered opinion, is pure genius in all its vast simplicity.
The other tracks, such as "Corduroy," "Better Man," "Pry, To," and "Whipping are also great songs. The former two making their way onto rearviewmirrow; Pearl Jam's two-disc greatest hits collection. Amidst these tracks, falls the weird but lovable "Bugs" (Vedder and an accordion?) and the even weirder, "Hey Foxymophandlemama, That's Me." The last song on the album, it consists of creepy musical arrangements played over actual recordings from psychiatric meetings. Some may think this to be a toss-away track on the album and would even argue that the album would be much better suited had that band chosen "Immortality" as the final track, but I disagree. The track seems a fitting choice for an album created by a band that had decided to make music as they chose; conventional approaches be damned.
Fantastic album. I would even venture to offer that I think this album equals the higher ranked album Ten, but perhaps just for arguments sake. This is, by far, my favorite album thus far.
d.
I know it won’t be a popular opinion, but Vitalogy just isn’t my favorite Pearl Jam album. It’s not that I think it’s a poor album. More that it’s inconsistent. Some songs are refreshing and haven’t aged at all. Others sound like a strange attempt to impersonate bands that Pearl Jam themselves influenced. "Tremor Christ" would have been a perfect fit on Neon Ballroom, but Silverchair would’ve done a lot more with it. Meanwhile, "Nothingman" is debatably their best ballad, mostly in competition with "Better Man" (if anyone mentions that horrible cover of Last Kiss you get a cockpunch).
Some of the songs I find fault in are still solid and enjoyable. "Whipping" is pretty damn rocking, but makes me long for "Tad." "Last Exit" is, ironically, a great opener. Of course there’s "Better Man," one of their best ever. But everytime I get into a groove Pearl Jam does something to kill it for me. "Spin the Black Circle" is a nice attempt at a Dead Kennedy’s sound, but lacks the weight of DK’s anger and politics. I’m pretty sure Eddie Vedder stole most of his facial expressions from Jello Biafra as well. "Pry, To" is just a waste of my time. After a decent altpop trip from "Corduroy," you get thrown into "Bugs." Three minutes of someone thinking they’re being creative and trippy like Syd Barrett and instead just yelling and banging on instruments they can’t play.
The majority of the back half of the album just continues downhill. Outside of any songs mentioned above the only standout is the title to "Heyfoxymophandlemama, That’s Nice." I feel ripped off. I paid for a cd, not four great songs and a bunch of self absorbed experimenting. That’s a bullshit move by any band and way too many have made it. So, I have a suggestion for Pearl Jam. Remember all that time you spent telling Ticketmaster not to charge extra for the service of buying through them? How about I only pay for how many songs are listenable, and just ignore the added service of you recording what amounts to musical masturbation.
-The Fat Man
So, we have our first major disagreement. I have a rant brewing, Michael. More on this later.
ReplyDeleteI have a major deuce brewing, so I know the feeling
ReplyDeleteMike, I think this album needs to be appreciated for its' great tracks as well as those where Pearl Jam adamantly said "fuck you" to music executives and made the album they wanted to make. They took some risks making music they wanted to make; not just another "radio rock" piece of shite. For that, I commend them. P.S. I actually like "Bugs."
ReplyDeleteSo I just wrote a huge missive in response but the server decided to screw me. So the short version.
ReplyDeleteI hate people who would rather amuse themselves than entertain others. If I had millions of loyal fans ready to buy my album regardless of content, I owe it to them to put out a great product from start to finish. Instead we have about 5 great songs mired between ego stroking in jokes and sneering irony.
Also, Pearl Jam WAS the pinnacle of rock radio in '94. Whatever they did would become the apex and standard. So they had nothing to lose, thus they gain no respect from me. They could have given us a classic, and boosted rock music at a time that it was reeling from Cobain's death. Instead they let their fights, both with corporations and each other, dictate their direction (which to their credit, they have all admitted was a poor decision.