Binaural (Bonus CD)

Japanese edition of Pearl Jam's 2000 & seventh album with exclusive bonus disc which features two tracks recorded at a Bridge School Benefit in Northern California in October of 1999, 'Footsteps' and 'Better Man'. 15 tracks on 2 CDs, including the first single 'Nothing As It Seems'. Digipak and plastic sleeve.

Pearl Jam lowered its profile after becoming a worldwide musical phenomenon in the early '90s, pulling back from the touring, radio, and press fronts. And this diverse 13-song outing, lacking another "Alive" or "Better Man," isn't the album to thrust Pearl Jam back into the limelight. Binaural kicks out the jams with a grandiosity worthy of the Who, as Pearl Jam roars through the loose, raucous two-minute-plus opener "Breakerfall" and into another brief rave-up, "God's Dice." Quickly, though, the loud MC5-style guitar outpourings that begin PJ's seventh album (and first to feature former Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron) morph into the edgy, taut "Evacuation" and the midtempo "Light Years." The spare, mournful "Nothing as It Seems" (with lyrics and music by bassist Jeff Ament), "Thin Air," and the lilting "Parting Ways" all reflect romantic introspection. Eddie Vedder's poignant ukulele-accompanied "Soon Forget" is an affecting aside, and the rollicking "Insignificance" and Middle Eastern-tinged "Of the Girl" are all noteworthy. That's a strong lineup, but Binaural nevertheless falls short of the heights this talented group scaled in the past. --Katherine Turman

Pearl Jam lowered its profile after becoming a worldwide musical phenomenon in the early '90s, pulling back from the touring, radio, and press fronts. And this diverse 13-song outing, lacking another "Alive" or "Better Man," isn't the album to thrust Pearl Jam back into the limelight. Binaural kicks out the jams with a grandiosity worthy of the Who, as Pearl Jam roars through the loose, raucous two-minute-plus opener "Breakerfall" and into another brief rave-up, "God's Dice." Quickly, though, the loud MC5-style guitar outpourings that begin PJ's seventh album (and first to feature former Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron) morph into the edgy, taut "Evacuation" and the midtempo "Light Years." The spare, mournful "Nothing as It Seems" (with lyrics and music by bassist Jeff Ament), "Thin Air," and the lilting "Parting Ways" all reflect romantic introspection. Eddie Vedder's poignant ukulele-accompanied "Soon Forget" is an affecting aside, and the rollicking "Insignificance" and Middle Eastern-tinged "Of the Girl" are all noteworthy. That's a strong lineup, but Binaural nevertheless falls short of the heights this talented group scaled in the past. --Katherine Turman