[.ca] Yield

From Amazon.com:
The Seattle band once notable for its arena rock anthems is now remarkable mostly for its hushed melodies. On Pearl Jam's fifth album, the rockers seem slapdash ("Do the Evolution", "Brain of J"), and the arty experiments sound self-conscious (especially the 67-second knockoff, "-"). That leaves the ballads, especially the lovely lilt of "Low Light" and the clear-eyed lament of "Wishlist." On the latter song, Ed Vedder (as he now calls himself) yearns to be many different things, from a neutron bomb to a souvenir key chain. However, the line that sticks out is, "I wish I was as fortunate, as fortunate as me." Instead of considering himself lucky to be a rock star, Vedder sounds relieved to have moved beyond it. --Keith Moerer

Pearl Jam remembers itself:
On No Code, Pearl Jam decided to stretch their sound out, trying different textures and varieties from their previous hard-rock style. While it was an impressive in its desire, its results were less compelling. Simply put, the band put out a bad record. With the follow-up record Yield, Pearl Jam didn't necessarily put back on their flannel grunge wear, but they did remember that it was okay to rock, as this record reminded me and probably a few others about what good hard rocking tunes this band is capable of pulling off. An example of this was at a recent concert I attended, where the Yield record produced two concert favourites in Wishlist and Given To Fly (some might argue Do The Evolution, I would not). The quality that is shown throughout Yield is confidence as there are no Who You Are meanderings on this record. Instead the band presents its best qualities front and centre: hard-rock guitar riffs and Eddie Vedders passionate vocals, surrounded by a great rock n roll band. Songs such as Faithful and Pilot sound like previous Pearl Jam records but in new more engaging light that shows a band growing its sound without running away from itself. It is a shame Pearl Jam didn't embrace the energy they showed they still had on Yield, as subsequent records (Binaural and Riot Act) delved into the same darker more expansive qualities on No Code, an approach that the band could not pull off.

pearljam YIELD:
One of the best instrumental albums of all time. Awesome lyrics about civilization destroying the Earth. "IN HIDING" is an excellent song about reading the book "ISHMAEL" written by Daniel Quinn. Buy this album and buy this book.

The All-Important Return To Normalcy, Not PJ's best but good:
(Actual Rating-3.5 Stars) Yield(1998). Pearl Jam's Fifth Album. Throughout the 90's, Pearl Jam was, and still is, an Enigma. Unlike other bands, they despised the spotlight, yet their albums, and the songs off them, became more popular than they could ever imagine. 'Ten', 'Vs.', and 'Vitalogy' were Bona-Fide Grunge classics, and Pearl Jam, instead of embracing their popularity, tried to destroy it. They experimented with New Age in 'No Code', and it was a commercial and critical failure. Then Pearl Jam became embroiled in a Legal battle with Ticketmaster, which put them on hold. So, in an attempt to win back the fans and the critics, Pearl Jam made and produced 'Yield', where they got back to the bare bones of their Early Grunge Days, blending genuine Hard Rock, Punk, and Mellower songs. So, is 'Yield' as good as the Big 3, or is it just another 'No Code' Disaster? Read On To Find Out.... Track Listing- Brain of J- An ode to JFK, "Brain of J" starts 'Yield'off well as Gossard's Black Sabbath-y riff blows out the speakers, and Vedder's questioning vocals echo throughout the room. A Great Rocker, and Gossard/McCready's Guitar Work is amazing! Faithfull- Pearl Jam softens up for "Faithfull", focusing on Vedder's vocal talents, but Gossard/McCready(I'll refer too them as the duo from here on out) shell out riffs and solos that make this "Ballad" an intense rocker. No Way-"No Way" blends Psychadelic Rock with Funk, and by mixing in Vedder's soft-spoken vocals, and "The Duo"'s bluesly guitarwork makes this an interesting experiment. Given To Fly- "Given To Fly" is a "Pearl Jam" Ballad, which means it can go from Vedder calmly belting out lyrics behind mellow guitars, to him screaming out the chorus behind "The Duo's" chugging guitar. "Given To Fly" is no exception! Wishlist- "Wishlist" is 'Yield's biggest hit, but it's a very weak song. Vedder's vocals are inspired, but the song never picks up, and basically Vedder's vocals are all the song has to offer. Pilate- "Pilate" is another "Pearl Jam" Ballad, with slow musical measures being interspersed with energetic choruses. Vedder's vocals are top-notch, and "The Duo"'s riff is enjoyable if a bit dull. Do The Evolution- "Do The Evolution" is an awesome Hard Rocker, with "The Duo"'s Folk Rock-y riff(It sounds nothing like Folk Rock though) blaring out the speakers behind Vedder's angry vocals. Untitled(Red Dot)- This nameless song is basically just a weird filler song with "What, Go Crazy" being said over and over. MFC- "MFC" starts off like "Even Flow" with "The Duo"'s light-hearted riff coming out front and center, with Vedder singing with his usual flair. This is a very "happy" song, and "The Duo"'s guitarwork really makes me happy. Low Light- Another ballad, "Low Light" contains some great vocals and keyboarding, yet it comes out sounding very boring. A decent song. In Hiding- "In Hiding" picks up the pace, emphasizing "The Duo"'s skills, creating another light-hearted song. Vedder's brooding vocals and the guitar riff make this a "Pearl Jam" ballad. Awesome Hard Rocker! Push Me, Pull Me- "Push Me, Pull Me" is very odd, with Vedder talking behind a chugging guitar, and being interrupted by a choir of "Push Me, Pull Me". It's like where Roth talks during "Hot For Teacher", except it's a full song. An okay song. All Those Yesterdays- "All Those Yesterdays" is a mix between Alt Rock and New Age, very much like the material from 'No Code'. Although it takes awhile to get fully going, Vedder's vocals and "The Duo"'s guitarwork really shine. Unfortuneatly it takes too long to get to the point. Overall, I found 'Yield' to be a good, yet flawed album. Although I'm glad they went back in a good direction, Pearl Jam still seems like they haven't quite found another Ten or Vs. yet. While the first half of 'Yield' was excellent, minus "Wishlist", the second half seemed rather bland, with "In Hiding" and "MFC" really only standing out. Vedder's vocals were top-notch, and Stone Gossard and Mike McCready's guitar work were also excellent, but that's wasted on filler like "Untitled" and "Push Me, Pull Me", which really saddens me. A Good, Yet Flawed Album. (...)

Hugely Under-rated:
This is still (in 2006) the best record PJ has made since Vitalogy - maybe even better considering the album as a whole. It seems, however, that it never resonated fully with the public and some fans the way 10, Vs. and Vitalogy did because of the long layoff and more importantly, the fact its predecessor, No Code, was a commerical disappointment. This is unfortunate because Yield stands up, song for song, with their very best works.

Go for "Yield" and don't stop.:
In my years of listening to "Pearl Jam", I've enjoyed everything from "Ten" to "Riot Act". If I had to keep just one of their albums, the one I find is the best of all things "Pearl Jam", it would be this one. It's not the straight forward rock record the first two were, but also not quite the experiments that "Vitology" and "No Code" are. It's the perfect middle ground of everything before it. There's a number of grunge/punk rockers like "Brain Of J" and "Do The Evolution", as well as some mellower tracks which I feel they excell at, like "Low Light" and "All Those Yesterdays". Plus bonafide hit material like "Given to Fly" and "Wishlist" both are. Now again, I like most everything they've done, but this is the disc I'm most "Faithful" to.

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