PEARL JAM

You know, I was never one of the folks who thought that they fell off. The only records I have are Yield and Binaural, both of which are excellent and both of which are fairly recent. Sure, they went their own way, and that meant sliding off of MTV and pop radio a bit, but if you know me you know I hate commercial radio anyway.

I had no idea how amazing they are, though, until I saw two shows this week. One was the Sunday performance at the forum, and the other was the KROQ contest show at the tiny Henry Fonda Theater in Hollywood. And let me just say... HOLY SHIT.

BOTH shows were magical.

What makes it so amazing? Rabid fans who know every lyric and are singing in unison at the top of their lungs is one part of it. Great songs well played is another. The energy on stage though... not campy, and not an act. Honest rock and roll energy in the tradition of Springsteen. Sets that go on for ever. Long, multiple encores. Eddie pouring his wine into people's glasses, like rock and roll salvation.

I now understand where the fans get their obsession... what drives them to travel with the band from city to city, singing along the whole time. And I can honestly say that I will see them every chance I get from now on. They have vaulted from a band I really like to one of my all-time favorites. I am a fan for life. Well done, guys.

Of course, the person who really gets the most credit is Liz, my awesome GF who bought tickets for the stadium show and listened to KROQ for three days (without vomiting!) to win the theater tickets. I'm a lucky guy to be in a relationship that constantly helps me grow in ways I don't expect. Now if I can just get her to love CRACKER, we'll be set.