Heavier Than Pearl Jam

Pearl Jam, one of Seattle bands that survived Y2K, made their 20 years of musical journey last year. With two decades of togetherness, now they are expecting the birth of their 10th album that never will be named Ten because they already used the name for their first album.

Pearl Jam is said to be grown up musically. Depart from Vitalogy, fans are challenged on purpose by the band to swallow uneasy music, Eddie Vedder, the vocalist, said in an interview with Gabriella from NYRock: "We'd rather challenge our fans and make them listen to our songs than give them something that's easy to digest. There is a lot of music out there that is very easy to digest but we never wanted to be part of it"

That is Pearl Jam, but how about their members personally? if they are making their music, is it not going to be easy to digest? Well, it's not easy to tell, but the members of the band known for their projects that offers you taste that are not Pearl Jam, or could it be better.

STONE GOSSARD'S POLYGAMOUS RELATIONSHIP


Brad

Nearly as old as Pearl Jam, Brad, Formed in 1992 as a side project for Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard and vocalist/pianist Shawn Smith (Pigeonhead and Satchel), drummer Regan Hagar (Satchel) and bass player Keith Lowe (Jeremy Toback in other Brad Albums) is going 20 in 2012. So far, they had released five albums, Shame (2003), Interiors (1997), Welcome to Discovery Park (2002), Best Friends? (2010 and United We Stand (2012). The Albums are re-released in 2012 under the label Razor and Tie.

Brad has more things to offer as a band and it is not Pearl Jam. It is not because you are a Pearl Jam fans then you are going into Brad. You will love Brad if you expect nothing in a rush, it's a journey that you will have to travel inch by inch without any hesitation to take a different picture of life. In the end brad was simply sweet and bitter as life.

"It's hard to be in a polygamous relationship. I think there's a lot more of it these days -- there are a lot of people that are in multiple bands. It's always been a little bit of a journey." Stone Gossard told Soundspike  regarding his position being in Pearl Jam and Brad at one time. In other interview with Billboard.com, Stone says "It's a little weird trying to be in two bands, It's more common these days, for sure, but it's always been a little bit of a struggle with me being in Pearl Jam and those other guys being in Satchel and Shawn (Smith) being in Pigeonhed, too. (Brad) has always felt like a little bit of a no man's land where we're making records together but then maybe it's not quite as serious of a band, and Pearl Jam casts such a big shadow."

Bayleaf

Stone really wants to show us something, he is a multi-talented musician. Stone plays almost all the instruments in the album. He worked on guitars, drums, pianos, bass and vocals.

EDDIE'S PLAYGROUND AND LULABY


Into The Wild Soundtrack

What is more important to a film other than the story and the casts? The soundtrack. Into The Wild in a film directed by Sean Penn, a friend of Eddie. Penn trusted Eddie to make the Soundtrack for the film. 

The process took only a couple of weeks, Penn contacted Eddie, they watched the cut together, then Eddie start to work on materials. Vedder said, in an interview with Billboard, it was easier because it's all there. "It was like being a songwriter for a band -- serving the voice of Chris McCandless. Not my voice, or something I wanted to say. In almost every aspect of this process, it simplified things. There were fewer choices. The story was there and the scenes were there. If there was anything that I learned with my own writing process, maybe there's too many choices for what to write about. Just the amount of subject matter in the world these days; maybe that feels chaotic for me. This took away all the choices. There was a point A and a point B, and I found it pretty easy to get there without hitting all the other points in between."

Ukulele Songs

Have you ever figured a rock band frontman that used to scream his lungs out with a Fender in his hand playing a tiny 4 strings instrument and singing love songs?

That's Eddie Vedder. More than 10 years ago he bought a Kamaka tenor Ukulele from a store in Hawaii as he waited for Kelly that went to buy fish at the grocery store after buying some beers, soon he wrote a chorus a few minutes later and made his first $1.50 from the passers by after owning it seven minutes. Then He thought, “Hmmm, this has some possibilities" Eddie told Greg Kot of Chocago Tribune. "It was immediate gratification that maybe I could go places with this thing," he said. "That's just the nature of that instrument. Eddie told Nicole Brodeur from the Seattle Times.

The album consist of songs Eddie wrote for about ten years, one Pearl Jam song ("Can't Keep") and covers of the 1926 ditty "Tonight You Belong to Me" and the 1931 standard "Dream a Little Dream of Me." Basically, it was Eddie and his ukulele.

With the motto "less strings more melody" Eddie really made the melodies. If you are aware when you are listening to the songs, the Ukulele Songs could take you from places to places, from a garden full of flowers to a lake with the rainbow after the rain and probably to the deepest and darkest side of your heart.

JEFF AMENT IS AN ALIEN

Jeff Ament is fabulous (with Pearl Jam), I got to say this, but when he works solo or with the bands other than Pearl Jam, he speaks a language I could barely understand. 

Well it's maybe the demand of a fan like me that a member of Pearl Jam's solo should sounded like Pearl Jam, it's not that easy. Although a few of the materials are meant to be in Pearl Jam album, it never be sounded the same with what it would be sounded if the songs really made into Pearl Jam album. "Well, a few of the songs on this album were part of the group of songs that I presented to Pearl Jam over the last three records but which weren’t ultimately recorded. “The Forest” and “Bulldozer” and “Say Goodbye”, those all went past the group first, so I can certainly hear the band doing those songs. But it’s tough, everybody brings in four or five songs, we work on them and see if they fit, and inevitably some of them end up going away" Jeff told Joe Nickell

Jeff Ament is quite productive,  he played in Three Fish ( Three Fish and The Quiet Table album),  Deranged Diction ( Life Support/No Art, No Cowboys album), Tres Mts ( Tres. Mts album), released two solo albums so far (Tone and While My Heart Beats).

I had to admit that few of Jeff's songs are becoming my favorite in Pearl Jam albums. Sleight of Hand from Binaural and Sweet Lew from Lost Dogs could two of the best songs of Pearl Jam.  Jeff told Joe Nickell about the songs in Tone that could have been worked by Pearl jam "I think for me, in the last three or four (Pearl Jam) records, I think I’ve consciously tried to bring songs that are a little outside the Pearl Jam mode. Occasionally there’s a straight-ahead rock song – “Sleight of Hand” (off the 2000 album, “Binaural”) is one of mine, for example – but more often I’m looking to get a little outside the normal Pearl Jam mode even when I’m working with those guys. To me, it’s about trying to push myself and everybody else to stretch out a little bit and expand what the sound of the band is supposed to be. That’s what makes it fun to be in a band at this point. Oh, sure, it’s fun to get up in front of a crowd and do the stuff that people know; but in the studio it’s great to stretch out and try new things."

MIKE MCREADY'S ROCK AFFAIR

Mad Season

Mad season is a supergroup. It Only happened when Pearl Jam, Alice in Chain, and Sreaming Trees jammed in one group: a Super album is born.

It was all started when Mike McCready went into rehabilitation in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and met The Lamont Cranston Band bassist John Baker Saunders. After they returned to seattle in 1994, they formed a side band with Screaming Trees drummer Barrett Martin. The ban begin to write materials in their studio sessions. Then joined in the Alice in Chains's frontman Layne Staley, and they made a perfect circle. 

The Rockfords
 In mid-1980's there was a band called Shadow. The members were Mike McCready, Chris Friel, Rick Friel, Danny Newcomb. The band did not make it to enter the Los angeles music scene, therefore they disbanded and choosing their own way. Later, McCready with Stone Gossard co-founded bands that becoming Pearl Jam. The Other members of Shadow formed a band called Goodness with Carrie Akre of Hammerbox. In 1995 McCready a.k.a. "Petster" played the guitar of "Electricity, Electricity" with Goodness for a tribute album of a TV Program Schoolhouse Rock! Rocks. The Goodness had been a supporting act for Pearl Jam and disbanded in 1998. In 1999 Mike, together with the former members of The Goodness formed a band called The Rockfords. 

The Rockfords only released one self-titled album, a live album, and a single.

The Rockfords' album The Rockfords is a fresh rock album with Akre's deep, strong and versatile voice topped here and there with of McCready's haunting guitar sound. McCready plays like he is playing in Pearl Jam especially in a McCready's signature song like Riverwide. The album offers a fresh and delight mix of energy ranging from a singalong song like Adelide to a punk beat of sureshot. With the complete dishes on the menu, the album will surely  fulfill your appetite. 

HERE COMES THE DRUMMERS

Dave Krusen

The drums in the songs of Pearl Jam album Ten is Dave Krusen's work. He left the band for some "personal" reasons before the album even released. Leaving Pearl Jam, Krusen joined several bands and released many albums including Akatishia (1997) with Hovercraft. Hovercraft is an experimental rock whom one of the member is Eddie Vedder's ex-wife Beth Liebling.

Krusen co-founded Diamond Star Halo with former Candlebox bass player Aaron Seravo and released In The Rough (1995). In 1997 Krusen joined Candlebox and recorded the album Happy Pills and other songs that appeared in two other Candlebox albums: in Into The Sun (2008) and Love Stories and Other Musing (2012). 

Leaving Candlebox, Krusen founded Unified Theory with two ex-Blindmelon members and released a self-titled album in 2000. Recently Krusen is working on projects with many other musicians.

Dave is currently recording and touring with Ida Maria and working in the studio with a variety of artists, and has recently formed a new band with Ty Willman (Green Apple Quick Step) called Nine50Nine. For his complete discography visit www.davekrusen.com

Matt Chamberline
Chamberline joined Pearl Jam after Krusen left the band and went on a tour with Pearl Jam in 1991, Chamberline appeared in the first Pearl Jam video of the song "Alive". Since the mid-1990s, Chamberlain well known as a session drummer, appeared on over 200 records of the artists including Peter Gabriel, The Wallflowers, Fiona Apple, Sam Phillips, Kanye West, Weapon of Choice, David Torn, Tori Amos, Chris Isaak, Macy Gray, Stevie Nicks, Dave Navarro, Kevin Max, Master Musicians of Jajouka, Stone Gossard, Martina McBride, Garbage, Elton John, Natalie Merchant, Anika Moa, David Bowie, Brad Mehldau, Keith Urban, Liz Phair, John Mayer, Finn Brothers, William Shatner, Jon Brion, Robbie Williams, Shakira, Morrissey, Indigo Girls, Sean Lennon, Sarah McLachlan, Sara Bareilles, Brandi Carlile, Dido, Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis Costello, Bruce Hornsby, and Regina Spektor.

Matt Chamberlain - Company 23

In 2005 he released a self-tittled album call matt chamberlain. His latest work according to his website www.mattchamberlain.com was called Company 23, an instrumental work Inspired by analog synths blasting out of bass amps, experimental electronic music and the spirit of Improv. The Guest musicians are Bill Rieflin (Ministry,Swans, REM) Synths , Bill Horist (Guitar), Kaveh Rastegar (Bass) and Dan Phelps (Drum/Synth processing,Piano).

Chamberlain also in a group called The group with Bill Frisell, Tucker Martine and Lee Townsend Floratone and releasing their new record due to March 6th 2012

Dave Abruzzese

Dave Abruzzese was Pearl Jam's third drummer. He toured for Ten, engineered the album Vs with the band and fired in August 1994 just four months before Vitalogy album released.

In 1995 Abruzzese released Play Parts I & IV and Play Parts I & IV in 1997. Abbruzzese worked with lead vocalist J. Paul Slavens who play most of the instruments on the record, with Abbruzzese playing not only drum kit and percussion but also guitar, bass, and keyboards. The album review in allmusic.com says "Rather, the album is a mature, song-oriented group effort, showcasing Abbruzzese's tasteful restraint as much as it demonstrates his chops."

For me,  Play Parts I & IV is a perfect island with shades of trees where you come home in the night after a long hours of work, and don't forget to treat yourself a glass of beer, cold coffee or orange juice.

Jack Irons
Jack Irons is one of those who responsible in the founding of Pearl Jam. Jack passed the demo tape from a Seattle band named Mookley Blaylock to a local San Diego Musician called Eddie Vedder. The 4th drummer of Pearl Jam is also giving colors to the 4th Pearl Jam album No Code.

Jack Irons being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers on April 14, 2012. You can view the complete list of Jack Irons in www.jackirons.com.

Attention Dimension is his first solo album released in 2004 in this album, Eddie Vedder contributing vocals to a Pink Floyd cover song Shine On You Crazy Diamond. The second solo album was No Heads Are Better Than One (2010). Jack Released another solo album called Blue Manatee in 2011.

Matt Cameron

Matt Cameron was in Skin Yard, Soundgarden and Wellwater Conspiracy. After joining Pearl Jam in 1998 Soundgarden is becoming his latest side project :) and rumoured to release the band's new album in 2012.