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List Price: $25.49 | | Label: Monkeywrench
Salesrank: 980
Released: September 22, 2009 |
| Our Price: $15.83 |
| Used Price: $15.82 |
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| Media: Audio CD |
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Backspacer Track Listing:
1. Gonna See My Friend
2. Got Some
3. The Fixer
4. Johnny Guitar
5. Just Breathe
6. Amongst The Waves
7. Unthought Known
8. Supersonic
9. Speed Of Sound
10. Force Of Nature
11. The End
Editorial Review:
Pearl Jam's new CD in a hard bound book/Pizzoli style package. 2009 release from Eddie Vedder and the boys, their ninth album overall. For Backspacer, the lasting Grunge rockers decided to do it big. They left label J Records and decided to release to album themselves, since the certainly have enough money to do that. They also hooked up with '90s Alternative Rock producer du jour Brendan O'Brien (Korn, Bruce Springsteen), the first time that the band has worked with O'Brien since 1998's Yield. The music on the record features a sound influenced by pop and New Wave.
Backspacer Reviews:
They're repeating themselves, but it's still good music 
2009-12-21 - Just to clear things up, I used to be a bigger Pearl Jam fan than all of you combined.
Backspacer isn't one of the Pearl Jam's best albums, because it's one of their least creative albums. A lot of the songs on this album sound too reminiscent of songs they've written before, which has become more & more common with them as the years have passed. The last great Pearl Jam album was Binaural, because it was the last album they released that sounded original & refreshing. It'd be a better idea to pick up Pearl Jam's first 6 albums before getting Backspacer. The album is pretty catchy, it's just not very interesting for the most part.
Also, some songs are ruined a bit for me... Take "The Fixer" for example. Whenever you hear the chorus, "Yeah yeah yeah yeah I'll fight to get it back again!" You can't help but picture a very fat person standing up and throwing punches in the air because they're determined to get back in shape & turn their life around - which is something I find pretty funny.
Also, I enjoyed "The End" the first time I heard it, until Eddie sings "Slide up next to me!" He sings "Slide up next to me" pretty seriously & it makes me laugh. But the song isn't suppose to be funny, it's suppose to be some serious song about life. But when he sings "Slide up next to me" Or whatever, it just sounds too goofy. It's hard for me to take the song seriously because of the way he sings "Slide up next to me!"... It just sounds a little ridiculous.
All in all it's a pretty good album that has minor bad parts here & there that ruin some of the songs a bit. The biggest problem is, Pearl Jam are more afraid of experimenting with songwriting than they've ever been in their career. The lyrics on this album are the type of lyrics deliberatly written to appeal to all people. Such as "I'm just a human being", wow what human being can't identify with that?
I know Pearl Jam are big Sonic Youth fans, they should take a page out of Sonic Youth's book & quit caring so much. I remember when Pearl Jam used to not care so much... They were better back then.
7/10
solid
2009-12-11 - Really like this one. It is a new direction for them as far as I am concerned. It is fun, it has some straight forward hooks which is a rarity for Pearl Jam. I love listening to it. The bands skills still shine through. It is so obvious how far above most bands they are as far as musical talent and composition. Great rock band... keep on, keepin on fellas. Oh yeah... and I was impressed at the lyrical contributions from the rest of the band.... way to utilize eveyones wrting skills on this one!! I think eddy only wrote 4 of 11.
Backspacer - awesome 
2009-12-03 - I can't explain some of the other reviews that are one or two or three stars. I saw Pearl Jam in concert in Philly recently. I've been listening to Backspacer constantly. I love it. All of it. Every song.
Gets better with every listen...
2009-12-01 - There's only a handful of bands that first emerged on the scene in the early 90s who are still recording albums, let alone producing truly great music like Pearl Jam. Their latest release Backspacer is one of their best, with every track worth a listen.
One of the myths of "grunge" rock is that it is/was really heavy rock, bordering on metal. Although some Pearl Jam cuts lean closer to punk and Nirvana was definitely more of a hard sound, Pearl Jam have always been a "finesse" band in my humble opinion, not afraid to show their tender side and write very compelling pop songs.
Backspacer is no exception, although it really rocks when they kick into high gear and I have to compliment the drumming on this album throughout. I know, it's strange to single out the drumming, but Matt Cameron (of Soundgarden fame although he's been with the band for over 10 years) really does an amazing job.
If you're an old Pearl Jam fame who hasn't given the band a chance over the last few years, I highly recommend you check out this album. If you've never heard Pearl Jam, you've obviously been hiding under a rock for nearly two decades. However, this isn't a bad place to start checking them out.
I like to crown one album as the "best" for a particular year, and so far Pearl Jam is right up there with Backspacer for 2009. Time will tell if it gets my final vote!
ebhp
What to compare this album to
2009-11-19 - For good reason, Pearl Jam fans are always looking for the next Ten, Vs, or other great album from their past. The source of much angst is the fact that Pearl Jam has changed their albums each time. Backspacer is a return to their 3rd album, Vitalogy, but only if you take out Vitalogy's filler songs (Bugs, Pry.to, etc.)
Here:
1st two tracks, both fast rockers
then, a solid single type: The Fixer and Not for you
Then, experimental: Johnny Guitar and Tremor Christ
Then, mellow: Just Breathe and Nothingman
Whipping compares to track 6, which name escapes me
Amongst the Waves and Unthought Known compare to Corduroy and Betterman
Speed of sound doesn't compare to Immortality, which is my favorite PJ song, but nothing does anyway.
As you can see, at least in my opinion, this compares to Vitalogy without the filler. So, to compare PJ albums to past ones, this one actually does. If you like the music of Vitalogy, you will enjoy Backspacer. This is nothing like Ten or Vs., or any of their transition albums since Vitalogy. It's an album for people like me, who think Vitalogy was the best album of the 90s.
