Vs. - Pearl Jam (CD 1993)

In 1993, Pearl Jam were one of the biggest acts in rock music. Having enjoyed enormous success with their debut album Ten, the group took an unlikely route with their sophomore album, Vs.. Instead of doing big stadium tours and working the publicity machine, the band decided to stop making music videos and even refused to release singles from their album. Nevertheless, Vs. sold millions of copies and was a critical success, earning three Grammy nominations.

The album begins with Go, and I can't think of a better opening song. It starts off with some steady pounding drums and soft guitar before the explosive heavy rocking guitars come in. The guitar work on this track is amazing, from McCready's electrifying solo to Gossard's powerful riffs. Vedder's vocals are frantic and fast-paced, and he will have you screaming the "Don't go on me" chorus right along with him.

Animal is a short, angry track that is slower than "Go" but still fast and rocking. Abbrusseze's drumbeats keep the rhythm as Gossard and McCready do some more stellar guitar work, and the solos here rival the best from the first track. Again, the verses are quick and the chorus is screamed by Vedder, and this is another great song.

Daughter starts out with some nice simple acoustic guitar work, and the song keeps a soft, almost ballad feel when the other instruments join in. The lyrics are about abuse, and even though the song was kind of overplayed on the radio, it's still honest and moving. Glorified G is much harder than the previous track, with powerful drums and guitars and some awesome bass hooks. The lyrics are a biting attack on the National Rifle Association, with lines like "Glorified version of a pellet gun/ Feel so manly when armed." But don't think this is just a boring message song, because it's actually a fun, upbeat rocker.

Dissident features a beautiful wailing guitar and is softer than most of the songs on here. The lyrics for this one are quite good, and I especially like the line, "Escape is never the safest path." W.M.A. features some guitar work but is mostly dominated by a fast tribal drumbeat and a cool bass riff. The song's almost six minutes long, but it goes by pretty quickly.

Blood is a loud, angry song with Vedder practically tearing his vocal chords during the chorus of "It's my blood!" There are some really cool distorted guitar sounds accompanied by powerful drums and crashing cymbals. Rearviewmirror has an almost punk feel to it, with an awesome guitar riff throughout and excellent bass and drum work.

From what I've heard from other fans of this album, Rats is one of the weaker tracks on here. I guess I'm in the minority, but I actually like this song, especially the funky bassline the whole thing is built on. There is also some great drumming and another superb guitar solo. Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town is an acoustic song that is a nice break from the loud rockers. It's a soft, beautiful ballad, not exactly the kind of thing I expected from Pearl Jam, but it was a welcome surprise.

Leash is another loud, angry song with some cool wailing guitars, and the "Drop the leash, drop the leash, get outta my fucking face" chorus is rather catchy. It's a good song, just not one of the strongest on the album. I have heard it's great live, which I'll hopefully be able to find out for myself one day. Indifference is a slow, soft close to an album made up mostly of loud, aggressive rockers. The melancholy guitar and bass hooks give this a great haunting melody, and Vedder's vocals are some of his best on the album.

With this album, Pearl Jam did exactly what they wanted and earned a lot of respect by proving they weren't just a commercial group trying to capitalize on the grunge craze of the early 1990s. Few groups could refuse to make music videos or release singles and still watch their album become a number one, multi-platinum success, but that's what happened with Pearl Jam and Vs. It was my first Pearl Jam CD, and it made me a fan. Hopefully, it'll probably do the same for you too.