pearl jam, /backspacer/

[rone]

Backspacer is easily Pearl Jam's most disappointing album.  Unlike Vs. or Vitalogy, the problem here isn't some gems buried among unsuccessful experiments; its biggest flaw is laziness.  "The Fixer", their first single, was promising due to its somewhat different sound from previous albums; when you hear the whole album, though, what stands out is how similar it is to the most of the other tracks: it's short, structurally simple, and lacking any musical depth.  The whole album lasts less than 37 minutes.  It's not a bad album, i suppose, but it's certainly not good.  It's eminently forgettable (Results 1 - 100 of about 71,200 for "eminently forgettable"; does that qualify it as a cliché?).  "Just Breathe" sounds like it would be much more at home on an Eddie Vedder solo album.  They'd better pick up their game on the next album.

Comments

[tau-iota-mu-c.livejournal.com]

Grah! New music! All sounds the same!

The most offensive example I can think of is John Butler's new album. Just sounds like pop music now.

[ronebofh.livejournal.com]

Their previous album came out in 2006 and it was probably their best album since Ten. I don't know how they went from that to this in 3 years.

[also-huey.livejournal.com]

The autotuning in 'Breathe' pisses me off so much that I change the channel when it comes on. 'Auto-Tune The News' is funny; auto-tune the Eddie Vedder is just sad.

[palecur.livejournal.com]

I was so bummed when whoever produces Shakira started to auto-tune away her signature warm warble. Seriously what the hell.

[occhiblusf.livejournal.com]

The local radio station keeps playing "Just Breathe." I keep thinking, "This sounds like a really crappy Pearl Jam cover band."

[peglegpete.livejournal.com]

I second this disappointment.