I remember when Pearl Jam's first album Ten came out...I was in 6th grade and thought it was the greatest album ever. Of course, at that time the whole grunge movement was in motion & Pearl Jam fit right in with bands like Alice in Chains, Nirvana, and Soundgarden.

Now, 15 years later, Pearl Jam has continualy evolved their music to make songs & albums that they want and not stick to the 'grunge' label they were originally labeled with. Many will say that Pearl Jam has fallen as their album sales aren't always in the top spot on Billboard as their first three were (Ten, Vs, & Vitalogy). However, their official fan club the Ten Club is still going strong and any concert you go to is packed with die-hard fans.

As with seemingly every Pearl Jam album release, I need at least 2-3 full listens to fully appreciate the album and this release was no different. Seemingly all of the tracks on this self-titled release tell a story & deal with issues very much prevalent in the news nearly everyday. Also, the band has gone back to some of their more upbeat/heavier ways with songs like Life Wasted, World Wide Suicide, and Comatose. There are some softer/mellower tracks as well, like Parachutes & Gone.

As mentioned before current news items are the main stories being told throughout the album. World Wide Suicide deals with soldiers dying and reading about it in the local paper. Unemployable speaks about tough times many are running into with an unstable economy and job cuts. Army Reserve again deals with kids or adults leaving to join the reserve and never coming home and spouses/families dealing with the sadness & grief. Gone describes leaving your home & trying to make a fresh start due to failings where you've been.

Looking beyond the meanings of these songs (or at least what I view them to be about) and just enjoying the music I get a feel that the band is more of a whole unit now. The overall feeling I get listening to this latest release is that it isn't really meant to be listened to as a studio recording, but instead would be best enjoyed seeing the band rocking out on stage as a whole. Perhaps that is where Pearl Jam best excels - on stage putting everything out there for their fans. I've gone to about 5 or 6 of their shows and I can honestly say they are the best live band I've seen (I've gone to shows by Tool, APC, RatM, Dave Matthews, Staind, 311, Counting Crows, Nugent, STP, etc). The fun the band has on stage & the vibe felt in the crowd is unbelievable.

Seeing the band perform a bunch of their new tracks on a post-Letterman show webcast from the Ed Sullivan theater was amazing. I for one can't wait to see them in person again (May 22nd in Detroit) and for anyone else debating to see them live I can only hope you do get the chance at least once. If not able to attend a concert, pick-up an official bootleg from any of their shows or even get one of their 4 live DVDs.

In my opinion this is one of those bands that won't fade with time...but will merely keep putting out the music they want and the solid fan base they've built in the years will continue to enjoy the songs provided.