Chaosly

Backspacer是Pearl Jam于2009年发行的第九张录音室专辑。09年时我因为Alice In Chains的重头大戏而忽略了这张Backspacer，因为最初听到Backspacer时有些失望，感觉没有Lost Dog和Binaural精彩。但对我来说，Pearl Jam的特点仿佛就在于此——从不要指望一开始就喜欢上他们的某张专辑。似乎整张专辑中有几首歌带来些小惊喜，而这些歌曲中的某几秒钟的片段又有些小惊喜，而这一系列小惊喜会支持者我继续听整张专辑，最终到深深的喜爱上这张专辑——从我听到的第一张珍珠酱Live On Two Legs就是如此。

从Backspacer整体上看，吉他solo的比例较之Ten来说少了不是一点半点，可以说几乎没有；失真音色相对于Binaural也轻了许多，没有Grunge的肮脏却更像传统摇滚乐的硬朗；歌曲的多样性于Lost Dog比也简单了许多，Lost Dog中的风格如此不同听上去更像是一张实验性质的专辑，而Backspacer中每一首都平均3分钟左右，首首干净利索。

最初听Backspacer，感觉Pearl Jam在这张专辑上有种应付了事的嫌疑，太简单太短了，而随着听得逐渐深入，才能体会都每首歌曲的妙处。比如Johnny Guitar中长篇叙事的歌词，唱出来时总是和伴奏的节奏间有那么四分之一秒的延迟，我总是掌握不好却又忍不住的一次次尝试；Amongst The Waves中唱到”Remember back the early days When you were young and thus amazed”时，绝对能体会到温柔如诗一样的意境；Force Of Nature也是首倍受我喜爱的作品，100% Pearl Jam的标签，每当副歌前那几声酷似U2吉他手The Edge风格的吉他点缀出现时，我也同样看到了钻石般的光辉在闪烁。另外觉得值得一提的是两首原声歌曲，Just Breathe和The End。其中Just Breathe来自电影Into the Wild——一个主动远离现代文明，进入荒野生活的大学生最终死在荒野大故事——的Soundtrack。Pearl Jam一贯的大气和细腻温柔的抒情相结合，Ed源自内心深处的真情演唱，用心去听绝对能够找到一种在生命、人生层面上的共鸣，贯穿全身的感动。

Just Breathe

西雅图因星巴克、太空针塔而闻名，当然，还有grunge。90年代早期的grunge运动产生出Nirvana、Pearl Jam和Soundgarden这样的摇滚标志象征。在Greg Prato的新书Grunge is Dead: The Oral History of Seattle Rock Music(本月初于ECW出版社出版)中，作者采访了130多名西雅图的音乐家、日报记者、唱片业巨头和乐迷，编译了描绘当时独特情景的详细的口述历史。其中的声音包括Eddie Vedder、Jeff Ament、Mark Arm、Matt Cameron、Chad Channing、Jack Endino、Duff McKagan和Hiro Yamamoto。

“我想从grunge产生的最初讲述这些故事，”Prato说。关于grunge根源的讨论已经延伸到了像Wailers和the Sonics这样的乐队，Grunge is Dead一书从五六十年代的车库朋克组合到七八十年代的西海岸朋克来追踪西雅图的进程。到了八十年代末，像Malfunkshun和Screaming Trees这样的乐队孵化出来新的“西雅图之声”，最终成为grunge。“这是我认为西雅图摇滚乐到达顶峰的时候。”Prato说。

当采访Layne Staley的母亲时提到了极有价值的信息，最有意义的被采访者当属Pearl Jam的Vedder，因为Vedder的Pearl Jam是西雅图最后幸存的grunge代表。在与Prato漫长的电话通话中，因谨慎而著称的Vedder在夏威夷开始娓娓而谈。

“那时他正坐在海滩上看着落日和我谈话，”Prato回忆道。“他最初从从Jeff Ament和Stone Gossard那搞到磁带，里面有几首为Pearl Jam写的歌，Vedder那天在冲浪时来了写歌的灵感，包括Once和Alive。Eddie说他在整个歌手生涯中会永远感谢冲浪的那一天，因为那天他清楚他能想出这样两首伟大经典的歌曲。”

Prato的书名取自西雅图最引人注目的形象——Kurt Cobain的一副讽刺画，画中的Cobain穿着印有“Grunge is Dead”的T恤，抱着他还是婴儿的女儿Frances Bean。采访提供了关于许多西雅图音乐史上重大事件的生动透视，从家庭party到Cobain和其同样作为西雅图象征的Andrew Wood的悲剧性死亡。Grunge Is Dead中也有一些艺术家对于西雅图运动落末的反应。“当听到一些之前未曾听到的消息时，我总是很吃惊”，Ament告诉Prato。“我感觉有些事情应该变一变了”，谈到自己的乐队时，Vedder说，“但我不感到惭愧。”

Eddie Vedder(Pearl Jam主唱)指定出个人巡演计划，其中包括在夏威夷的三场演出；Korn春季重返了公路巡演，来自澳洲的新晋乐队the Veronicas也登陆美国。三个巡演的具体细节如下：

Eddie Vedder
June 8 – Albany, NY @ Palace Theatre
June 11 – Philadelphia, PA @ Tower Theatre
June 12 – Philadelphia, PA @ Tower Theatre
June 14 – Baltimore, MD @ Lyric Opera House
June 15 – Baltimore, MD @ Lyric Opera House
June 18 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
June 20 – Memphis, TN @ Orpheum
June 23 – Atlanta, GA @ Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center
June 29 – Maui, HI @ Arts & Cultural Center, Castle Theatre
July 1 – Honolulu, HI @ Hawaii Theatre
July 2 – Honolulu, HI @ Hawaii Theatre

Korn
April 25 – Tucson, AZ @ Tucson Electric Park
April 26 – Albuquerque, NM @ Albuquerque Convention Center
April 27 – El Paso, TX @ El Paso County Coliseum
April 29 – Denver, CO @ Fillmore Auditorium
April 30 – Grand Island, NE @ Heartland Events Center
May 2 – Memphis, TN @ Tom Lee Park
May 4 – Belton, TX @ Bell County Expo
May 5 – Midland, TX @ Midland Horseshoe Arena
May 6 – Corpus Christi, TX @ Concrete Street Amphitheater
May 8 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Zoo Amphitheater
May 9 – Frisco, TX @ Pizza Hut Park
May 10 – The Woodlands, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
May 12 – Sioux Falls, SD @ Canaries Stadium
May 13 – Duluth, MN @ DECC Arena
May 15 – Clarkston, MI @ DTE Energy Music Theatre
May 16 – Columbus, OH @ Columbus Crew Stadium
May 18 – Rochester, NY @ Armory
May 19 – Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom
May 21 – Atlantic City, NJ @ House of Blues
May 22 – Wallingford, CT @ Chevrolet Theatre
May 23 – Gilford, NH @ Meadowbrook
May 30 – Kansas City, MO @ Rockfest
May 31 – Des Moines, IA @ Balloon Classic Field

The Veronicas
April 29 – Tucson, AZ @ Arizona Stadium
May 1 – St Petersburg, FL @ The State Theatre
May 2 – Lake Buena Vista, FL @ House of Blues
May 3 – Agawam, MA @ Six Flags New England
May 5 – San Antonio, TX @ Hemisfair Park
May 6 – Austin, TX @ Austin Music Hall
May 8 – Little Rock, AR @ Revolution
May 9 – Nashville, TN @ Rocketown
May 10 – Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall
May 12 – Columbus, OH @ Skully’s Music Diner
May 13 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Diesel Club Lounge
May 15 – Camden, NJ @ Susquehanna Bank Center
May 17 – Mansfield, MA @ Comcast Center
June 4 – Providence, RI @ Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel
June 7 – Fishkill, NY @ Duchess Stadium
June 9 – Norfolk, VA @ NorVa
June 10 – Greenville, SC @ The Handlebar
June 12 – New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues
June 13 – Baton Rouge, LA @ Varsity Theatre
June 14 – Memphis, TN @ Hi-Tone Cafe
June 16 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Diamond Ballroom
June 17 – Dallas, TX @ House of Blues
June 20 – Bonner Springs, KS @ Capitol Fed Park at Sandstone
June 21 – San Francisco, CA @ Golden Gate Park
June 23 – Los Angeles, CA @ Music Box
June 24 – Vallejo, CA @ Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
June 26 – Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
June 28 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
June 30 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Club Sound
July 1 – Colorado Springs, CO 2 Black Sheep
July 3 – Bessemer, AL @ Alabama Adventure Theme Park
July 5 – Milwaukee, WI @ Summerfest Grounds
July 7 – Sauget, IL @ Pop’s
July 8 – Des Moines, IA @ People’s Court
July 10 – St Paul, MN @ Station 4
July 11 – Chicago, IL @ Metro/Smart Bar
July 12 – Grand Rapids, MI @ The Intersection
July 14 – Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
July 17 – Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of the Living Arts
July 18 – Denver, CO @ Elitch Gardens

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