Yield - Pearl Jam > Reviews > Do The Evolution!!

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	Flawless
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money

Advantages:	Eddie's vocals, brilliant guitar riffs
Disadvantages:	n/a

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Pearl Jam are one of my most favourite bands. They formed in the early 90’s and their first album “Ten” received many rave reviews from the music press.

Apart from the drummers, their line up has never changed over the years. This is:

Eddie Vedder – Vocals, Guitars.
Stone Gossard – Guitars.
Mike McCready – Guitars. And Jeff Ament – Bass.
With Jack Irons filling in the drumming spot for this release.

They were immediately catoragized with the likes of Nirvana and Soundgarden during the Seattle Grunge era during the beginning of the nineties, but their music was never anything like Nirvana’s.

Yield.
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Brain Of J.
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Kicking straight in with a guitar riff to die for. This really bops along at a ferocious pace. Eddie’s vocals arrive and he’s not in a good mood. With a cracking chorus this really proves to be a fantastic start to the album.

Faithfull.
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Slowing down the tempo, this starts with a single twanging guitar and Eddie’s crooning vocals. This leads up to the band joining in for the bridge and chorus. Again the chorus is easy to sing along to. Track slows again for the fade out. A song about the trust needed in a relationship. Very likeable, and easygoing.

“Just be a darling, and I will be too…faithful to you.”

No Way.
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Raw edged guitar strumming with a steady drum beat. Eddie comes in, restraining his awesome voice, almost pleading. Again this is fairly slow in tempo, but loses nothing for it. A chant along chorus completes this very impressive track.

“I’m not trying to make a difference, no way.”

Given To Fly.
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The single from this album, at first seemed a poor choice. Starts slowly with Eddie warbling on, but as we lead into the chorus, the track builds momentum. After a couple of listens, this becomes one of your favourites.

Wishlist.
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The 2nd single from the album, and possibly the only track on the album that I get tempted to skip. A fairly meaningful song about Eddies wishes, but for me it has never really worked. Slow tempo, quietly strumming guitars, and slow-easy drum track.

Pilate.
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B-side to Given To Fly begins quietly, but leads into a shouty chorus that is hard not to sing along to after a few listens.

Do The Evolution.
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Very raw track, but just what is required. Infectious guitar riff, with relentless drumming and Eddie sounding very primitive in his vocals. This song has a guitar sequence which is reminiscent of a Rolling Stones track, but one that escapes me as I write this. A song that tells of how man has evolved, but still holds similar traits to our ancestors.

“I am ahead…I am advanced…I am the 1st mammal to wear pants… I’m at peace…with my lust…I can kill cause in god I trust, yeah…It’s evolution baby.”

0.
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This is a short musical interval, with drums, steel drums, and strange vocals.

MFC.
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Apparently stands for Many Fast Cars. This really is a track to drive along to. Guitar intro leads to the regular riff, with Eddie matching the riff with his vocals. The chorus completely changes to a pounding little thrash, but not in a bad way. Brilliant.

Low Light.
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And we slow down again for this track. Beautifully crafted, with the track really showing off Eddie’s vocal ability, as the music isn’t really that standout. Feels very acoustic, and very lovely.

In Hiding.
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Sometimes you can tell when a track first starts that we are looking at an “epic”. This track is just one of those. Guitar solo intro leads into a head twitching verse. This is all played out at a nice tempo, with the song slowing and speeding up in what feels like all the right places. Then the bridge to the chorus takes over, and you begin to realise that we are building to a crescendo. The chorus contains all instruments, and Eddie singing “I’m in hiding” over and again, but then it just stops and drops tempo again for the verses. A fantastic mixture of styles, linking together in one excellent track.

Push Me, Pull Me.
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Pearl Jam’s only real movement into the experimental side of things tends to be along the lines of this track. The band strike up various sounds, and melodies, along a verse-chorus-verse format. Whilst all this is going on, Eddie is speaking his vocals like a poem. Sounds similar to the sort of thing The Doors would do.

All Those Yesterdays.
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Again, Pearl Jam finish an album with a slow burning, but reflective track. Leaves you with a warm feeling inside.

So, Yield appeared at quite a difficult point in the bands history.

It came after the album that people believed wasn’t up to the usual PJ standards, and so they seemed to have to prove a point again.

But they come out of it on top.

This is a fine album, with some fantastic tracks. It mixes the very raw-edged rock, and the slow-tempo ballads that Pearl Jam has become well known for.