Nestled in the top left hand corner of the United States of America is the biggest city of the Pacific Northwest, Seattle. Seattle is home to many famous iconic things, such as the Space Needle, and the Pipe Place Market. Along with historic land marks and such, Seattle was the birth place of one of the strongest alternative rock movements in the late 80’s/early90’s. The movement was sparked by a hot new sub-genre of rock, called Grunge. Many new grunge bands came out of the Seattle area, the earliest being Green River, who lasted for a short three year stand, from 1984 until 1987. While Green River may not be the most famous grunge band that came out of Seattle, there are many others, the most notable being Nirvana, Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, and Pearl Jam, otherwise known as the “Big Four”. Most people know about the shear strength but sad story behind Nirvana, making them the most well known grunge act out of the Seattle area, as well as probably the most followed. While Nirvana has the largest following of the four, what about the other three? Both Alice In Chains and Sound Garden have had sad histories, having to deal with the difficult business of breaking up, and for Alice In Chains, the burden of death.
While the other bands of the “Big Four” disbanded awhile ago, Pearl Jam is the only surviving band of the “Big Four”. In 1991, they came out with their killer debut, “Ten”. With flashy but sharp songs like Evenflow, Alive, and Jeremy, it’s no wonder “Ten” was such a huge hit. But while attaining fame and fortune, the band ran into barriers in their road, their main concern being the media. After “Ten” was released, eager fan’s sat on their seats and waited for Pearl jam to make another album. On October 19th, 1993, Pearl Jam fan’s got their wish, as Pearl Jam released their sophomore effort, “Vs”. Some were disappointed by the album, as it did not live up to the expectations that the media gave it. Most, however, found that the album did not sound like “Ten”, but enjoyed it nonetheless.
Pearl Jam is-
Eddie Vedder-Vocals
Mike McCready-Lead Guitar
Stone Gossard-Guitar
Jeff Ament-Bass
Dave Abbruzzese-Drums
Upon first listen to “Vs”, one will most likely be able to tell the instrumentation is different on “Vs” than on “Ten”. While the instrumentation has a lighter, more free flowing sound on “Vs”, the bands playing is tighter, thus leading to the instrumentation on “Vs” being a bit more advanced than the instrumentation on “Ten”. One of the main strengths that Pearl Jam has is the guitar playing courtesy of Mike and Stone. Each has their own style and approach of playing the instrument. Even though their approaches might be different, they compliment each song nicely, making a nice mix of dirty grunge guitar riffs with a more traditional style of playing the instrument, both combining to make a nice mesh for Vedder’s vocals. Their guitar parts are layered perfectly for the most part, adding a punch to the guitar influenced tracks on “Vs” The other instrument that adds strength to Pearl Jam’s music is the bass. Ament’s heavy bass lines often drive the heavily structured songs, while adding a provocative feel to each song. The overall mix of instrumentation is another strength that propels “Vs” The band relies on the heavy drum fills that Dave brings to the table in each song, as the guitar and bass take it from there. All of these make a nice cocoon for Vedder’s powerful but rough vocals. If there is one category that “Vs” beats “Ten” in, it’s the instrumentation department.
While it may seem rightfully so for a band’s second album to mimic the sound of their first album, especially if the album was popular, Pearl Jam does not follow this trend. The band experiments with a more upbeat, raw sound on “Vs”. Though the band experiments with the sounds of some songs on “Vs”, the more so hardcore grunge feel that Pearl Jam introduced to us on “Ten” is present in the opening track of “Vs”, Go. One of the most underrated Pearl Jam songs, Go contains a healthy serving of heavy grunge aggression mixed with a newer Pearl Jam sound. Go relies heavily on the bass playing of Jeff Ament, for Go is a bass driven song. As usual, the guitars line up together to make a beautiful layer of solid grunge guitar work. The guitars also flex to accommodate, Vedder’s vocals, giving them an extra burst of energy. Go is the ideal album opener. The next song, Animal, does not let up one bit. Though it does have a more welcoming tune than Go, the momentum level is off the charts. The guitars are going full throttle, shredding nasty riffs and supplying depth for the bass to build on. Vedder’s vocals supply the bang on Animal, letting out some of the nastiest yells you’ll ever hear from a lead singer.
Another song on “Vs” that could be categorized with Go and Animal is Blood. The drums are what supply the building block of the song. Abbruzzese throws in some nice fills along the way, while getting to the breaking point, as he beats the drums to death at the chorus. The bass, which gets help from the gnarly drumming of Abbruzzese, branches to make another strong point, as well as the hook on Blood. The guitar is not as important on Blood, but is more so experimenting with different sounds and effects. Vedder’s larynx gets absolutely shredded, as he screams the whole way through except for a few brief stopping points midway through the song. These three raw grunge tunes are perfect examples of what kind of meat “Vs” is made up of.
Though “Vs” does have its fair share of loud songs, it does have a few mellower tunes. One of the biggest hits off of “Vs” is the acoustic ground breaker Daughter. Filled with an acoustic guitar that delivers solemn, moody riffs, a drum part that smoothes the path of the song, and some of the most emotional Eddie Vedder lyrics you’ll ever here, Daughter makes for a truly magnificent song as well as a nice change of pace for “Vs”. One of the other mellower songs that grace “Vs” is a mouthful: Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town. The acoustic guitar leads the way for most of the song, though at some points giving way to Vedder’s powerful vocals. Like most songs on “Vs”, the bass drives Elderly Woman at a slow but steady pace. Elderly Woman is also one of the only songs where all of the instruments, in this case, an acoustic guitar, bass, and drums, mix perfectly together. Vedder’s vocals are the highlight of the song. Though they’re not as emotional as his vocals on Daughter, they suite Elderly Woman perfectly, for his lyrics are crisp, but very mellow.
Closing out “Vs” is Indifference, a very experimental song. The instrumentation experiments throughout the song. The percussion (I believe it is a tambourine) drives the song. The bass is more background, but can still be heard, as a keyboard part mixes in nicely with the bass line. Vedder’s almost hazy vocals add a soothing feel to the song, finishing the execution of Indifference off in a calm manor.
Lyrically speaking, “Ten” and “Vs” have a lot in common. Both of the albums have well thought out, well written lyrics, though “Vs” may have the edge. While they may not be the best vocals you’ve ever heard, they are not gouged down with cheesiness or irony. Elderly Woman’s lyrics are arguably the best lyrics on the album: “I seem to recognize your face. haunting, familiar, yet I can't seem to place it. Cannot find the candle of thought to light your name. Lifetimes are catching up with me, all these changes taking place, I wish I’d seen the place, but no one's ever taken me. Hearts and thoughts they fade, fade away. Hearts and thoughts they fade, fade away...” Vedder’s vocals execute the perfect combination of strength and finesse, making the lyrics sound almost godly.
While some may think that “Vs” is a disappointment compared to “Ten”, it truly isn’t. Pearl Jam truly does a good job with everything, as the songs are catchy as hell, the instrumentation is top notch, and the lyrics are written to the perfect extent. Pearl Jam delivers another high quality grunge album in “Vs”, which can mean only one thing… Chalk up another point for Seattle.
4.5-5
Recommended Tracks
Go
Animal
Daughter
Rearviewmirror
Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town
Indifference
Sorry Hummer
