PEARL JAM - Dark Matter
April 26, 2024, a week ago
(Monkeywrench/Republic)
In 2024, Pearl Jam are one of the few grunge acts to hit in the early '90s that remain standing. And to their credit, unlike other veteran acts in their fourth decade of existence, they continue to issue vital and inspired music – as evidenced by their twelfth studio album overall, Dark Matter.
With the album's recording overseen by super-producer Andrew Watt – who has previously worked with everyone from Miley Cyrus to Ozzy Osbourne – Dark Matter is the type of album that you'd expect from Pearl Jam…which isn't a bad thing.
For example, Eddie Vedder offering up many of his trademark vocal Vedder-isms on such tunes as the tuneful “Wreckage,” while going garage rock on the album opening “Scared Of Fear,” full punk rock on “Running,” metallic on the title track, and then detouring towards meditative territory on the album closer, “Setting Sun.”
In an era of many rock bands getting further away from the sound of a real live band – both on stage and in the studio – you can always count on the P. Jam lads to crank up their amps and let it rip. And that is precisely the continued direction on Dark Matter.
