Pearl Jam Talks Career and New Album
Over the weekend, Pearl Jam was on CBS Sunday Morning to discuss their career and their latest album, Dark Matter.
While on the show, they also shared a special live performance of "Even Flow" from their concert in Missoula, MT. Lead singer Eddie Vedder and bassist Jeff Ament spoke about how they’ve managed to keep their writing process consistent through the years. "Pretty much everything I’ve ever written, it’s always started as a paper napkin," Vedder shared. "Now cloth napkins, because we’re staying in better hotels!"
Vedder also likened writing lyrics to surfing. "You put these building blocks together, so you can kind of, let’s say shape the perfect wave, you know, that has a couple turns, and then a barrel, and then the lyrics come – the lyrics come from surfing that wave," he explained.
Ament talked about their band’s long journey, saying, "It’s miraculous in some ways that we made it through. And then also it’s just a testament to our friendship." Vedder chimed in, "I was gonna say, good, clean living."
Fans think it’s amazing how they’ve stayed together.
In the interview, Vedder also mentioned how much effort he puts into making set lists for their concerts. He spends a lot of time picking songs from a huge list, including many covers and songs they’ve only played once. Sometimes it takes him forever to finalize the set lists, which he writes out in calligraphy. "It keeps me focused and entertained," he noted.
Pearl Jam’s new album, Dark Matter, came out in April. They began a world tour in May to promote the album. One highlight was at Napa Valley’s BottleRock festival, where Bradley Cooper joined them to perform "Maybe It’s Time" from his movie A Star Is Born. The band will also play at the Ohana Festival before heading to New Zealand and Australia.
