Movie Rental Review: Twenty (Pearl Jam)

This is it. For any true Pearl Jam fan, this is the documentary movie that you have been waiting for.

It delves a bit into the early days of the band and the whole Seattle scene, prior to the "grunge" explosion of the early nineties. We're talking about the Mother Love Bone days. We're talking Andy Wood, and how he eventually overdosed, and died far before his time. He also died just before Mother Love Bone was about to hit it big, it seems. Andy himself was sure that he was destined to be a rock star.

Then, Mike McCready gets together with Stone Gossard, and convinces him to bring along Jeff Ament (although Stone was, surprisingly, reluctant at first). Eventually, they get drummer Matt Cameron to work with them on some stuff. But the band still needs a singer. Eventually, someone has an idea to try a guy who lives all the way in Los Angeles, a singer in a relatively unknown band, and works a security job to pay the bills.

They send this singer a tape, and he sends a tape back, which will acquire the now legendary name, the Mamasan tape. The man's name is Eddie Vedder, now legendary front man for the group that came to be known as Pearl Jam. But that was before the name "Pearl Jam" was yet known, even to the band that would take that name. This was 1990, and once Eddie Vedder received confirmation of the band's interest, he went off to Seattle. The group that formed in October of that year first went under the banner "The Mookie Blaylock Band". They had only rehearsed together as a band for five days when they played their first ever show at The Off Ramp, in Seattle. They show a clip of that in this movie, although, having been obsessed with Pearl Jam for many years like I was, I managed to get my hands on a couple of copies of the show, and had seen it a few times. I will admit that, over the years, I have acquired a fairly extensive collection of bootlegs of shows and video clips and such from the band's past, distant and otherwise. Again, I was obsessed with them, on some level, for quite some time.

They worked quickly, and within a few weeks, had enough material for an album, what was to become "Ten", a record smashing release that contributed greatly to the explosive success of the "Seattle sound", when everyone suddenly wanted to be grunge. For anyone wondering about the reason why the album was named "Ten" specifically (there are eleven songs on the album, so that's not the reason, if you were wondering), you should see this movie to find out.

It did not take long before the band was huge. They worked hard, toured often, and did a lot of shows and public appearances to promote themselves, and all of this really did pay off, as they made quite a name for themselves. However, they would be criticized by many later on over the years, when they would seem to show signs of being uncomfortable with their own success, given how hard they had worked to obtain it in the first place. Also, some felt that their actions (some cynics might use the word tactics) amounted to publicity stunts, such as their sudden lack of concert appearances and touring, and then, only using secondary ticketing agencies, as they battled Ticketmaster, which they claimed to be a monopoly. Quite a few people seemed to express skepticism about the band, and felt that they were merely playing the part of rejecting their own big name and big status, while secretly doing everything that they can, underneath the radar, to make sure that they remained as huge as ever.

The band toured all over the place in those earliest days, which helped the band to make it big, to make a name for themselves. They played all over the North American continent, including iin New York City, at some places that I have since been to, like the Limelight and the Wetlands. They also went to Europe and did quite a few shows, and increasingly, the anticipation by the ever larger crowds grew and grew. But it was really the Lollapalooza tour of 1992 really helped to put them on the map in a big way, as did Edddie Vedder's legendary acrobatics and antics during these shows, when he would climb all over the place, up in the lighting and stage setting, up to thirty to fifty feet high, and often allowed himself to drop, placing his faith that the crowd assembled below would catch him, would break his fall. This was just one part of the enormous energy that the band in general, and Eddie Vedder in particular, brought to fans, and which proved so attractive (a big part of the mass appeal that the band enjoyed in the early nineties). There was a feeling that anything could happen, and there was an intensity to everything that they did, from these acrobatics of Vedder's, to the music (which always has been very tight, and the reason that the band is best known for being a great live band in particular), to the lyrics that were often angry and pregnant with meaning.

I have been a Pearl Jam fan since 1993. For many years, my two favorite bands had been the Dead Kennedys and Metallica. One was an ultra political punk band that also possessed meaningful, protesting lyrics and a tremendous amount of energy, but they had ceased to exist in 1987, and there was little to no hope of them ever getting back together. The other was a metal scene icon who, at least I felt, had sold out (and in the process, become a whole lot less metal) with their black album. It seemed that Metallica's focus went from being heavier than thou, and with potent and meaningful lyrics, to a group that focused almost exclusively on just how big they could be, and how many millions of dollars more they could make. In other words, they had become businessmen, dressed in all black rock clothing, and posing as some sort of rebellious and heavy music act. There were other bands that I liked as well, but those two had so long been my favorites, that no one had even challenged them as my favorites. But it was time to move on, and Pearl Jam came along and became a new and exciting young band that I felt I could follow. There have been other bands, for that matter, that have come since, and many have had some appeal. But few had the full package that Pearl Jam possessed, or at least seemed to possess. So, I stuck with Pearl Jam especially, more than any other band. Eventually, I have come to feel that I grew up with them.

I'll admit, that early on, when I was a fan of Nirvana, I actively avoided Pearl Jam. That probably seems silly in retrospect, but there you have it. The name just sounded stupid, and besides, Nirvana was the shit. But eventually, someone spoke to me about a song, she was not sure what it was called, but it had the lyrics "Jeremy spoke in class today". It did not take too long before I heard it on the radio, and then, it took even less time to learn who had done the song. Little by little, I began to listen to them more, and they seemed to offer all that I was looking for in a band. They had meaningful lyrics, they were young and exciting and intense. They seemed to have before them a long and promising career to follow. I became a Pearl Jam fan.

Maybe this sounds naive, but I felt I could identify with them. I wanted desperately to feel like I could make some sort of difference towards improving the world, and it seemed like that was what they were striving for, as well. Most fans (if they could be called fans) that I knew just enjoyed their music, the intensity, the energy of it. Perhaps, on many levels, many simply liked the image. On many levels, Pearl Jam became the "in" thing in the early to mid-nineties. They achieved levels of popularity that I had never seen before, and still think have not been reached since. Yet, far too many of these fans of theirs were fair weather fans. They liked Pearl Jam, but for superficial reasons.

But ask them to scratch beneath the surface just a little bit, and almost all of the fans I knew did not bother. Pearl Jam was the cool band of the moment, the big thing. Eddie Vedder, to my understanding, was a sex symbol for women. The band rocked, was an outlet for youthful energy, undeniably. I could identify with this, having a lot more youthful energy back then, as well. What amazed me most was that people, including young, but quite conservative people at heart, would not be offended by Pearl Jam, and their protesting message, their critique of the nation that they were citizens of, and of the American Way, in general.

How could people not see? There it was, for all to see, in the very popular video, Jeremy. Right while everyone in the classroom has placed their hands on their heart while doing the pledge of allegiance, they suddenly, very briefly, are holding their arms up in a straight arm, fascist salute. It was in their lyrics, as well. Almost all of it had a very different message than what was out there, and what had been out there before Pearl Jam, and so-called "grunge" as a whole, broke out.

Of course, fashion by it's very nature is superficial. So it should not have been surprising that most people liked Pearl Jam for superficial reasons. For whatever reason, I had been amazed that people would so easily and readily accept a group like Pearl Jam, when that very group was so critical of the lifestyles of so many of their very own fans. It was worked into their lyrics, often quite cleverly. It showed in their overall approach, as well.

I wanted to believe that I could make a difference, and saw what I wanted to see with the fans of Pearl Jam. It seemed like the dawning of something new, some new age of skepticism towards big power. Of perhaps even some new enlightenment.

Obviously, that was not the case. But I wanted to believe. I wanted to believe in Pearl Jam, the group, itself, as well.  To believe that they were having an impact, and making a difference. Yes, it was naive, but there you have it. I sided with them in their battle with Ticketmaster, and hoped that they might be making a difference. I studied the lyrics, watched the videos, and kept listening to their music as the years wore on. They eventually lost a lot of popularity (particularly beginning with the release of the No Code album). I heard some other "fans" dismiss them as having lost their edge, some outright saying that they were now "pussies". Obviously, such "fans" really never had been fans, and had simply liked the group because it was the cool thing to do, or to get their anger out. Ask them to actually take an intelligent approach, to think about any messages or lyrics or what have you, and that is too much, even far too much, for most people. America can be a cocoon of laziness when it comes to thinking, and such was largely the case with young people of my generation, I am ashamed to say.

And so, I stayed on as a fan. Saw plenty of shows, and rushed out to get every album on the day that it was released. One time, I even went to New York for a midnight opening of a store, in order to get one of the free lithographs that were being offered, but only for those who actually showed up for the midnight store opening. I read articles and followed the band, long after they had lost much of their former popularity. And I was proud of their anti-war stance when the Iraq war came. I was in attendance in the infamous Long Island show in the spring of 2003, at Nassau Coliseum, when they were effectively booed off the stage for playing "Bushleaguer". I cheered, while most of the arena jeered them the rest of the way.

I was a fan club member, and had a decent number that allowed me to obtain some incredible seats to their shows. I've also traveled quite a bit to get to their shows. Two different countries (the United States and Canada), having seen them in New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Washington, Boston, Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa. Almost two dozen shows in all over the years, and sometimes, the seats were incredible.

My own enthusiasm did die down...eventually. Not entirely, mind you. I still like them, and still would love to see them again. When a new album comes out, surely I'll buy it and give it more than one listen. If I encounter an article, surely I'll read it, if the opportunity arises. When they come on the radio, I almost always turn up the volume.

Yet, I am not obsessed with them like I was in the past. Part of it was a bit of a feeling of betrayal, admittedly. There came a point when it felt to me like they had become more muted in their desire to make a difference, and more interested in the business aspect of being Pearl Jam. I heard Jeff Ament once mention that he was glad that Metallica had take the action that they did over piracy of their music, and that was precisely the kind of thing that had turned me off to them (Metallica used to be one of my favorite groups, prior to Pearl Jam). Also, at least this was true for the New York area shows, the ticket prices were the same for front row as they were for the nose bleeds. That might sound decent on some level, but the thing is, the experience is nowhere near the same if you're in the upper decks, as opposed to the floor. I know, because I have been in both. So, if it's not the same, why charge the same? My suspicions of greed began to kick in, especially when, after allowing my membership to remain inactive for a year or so, I lost my good number, and was given a very bad number. I went from being in the 1's of a six digit number, to 1's in the seven digit number. So, when I ordered tickets, they were systematically nosebleeds, and paying as much as those who got front row tickets. That did not sit well with me, admittedly. This might not bother me as much if it was the uniform policy. But since the New York area seemed to be the only one where this was practiced, it began to seem a little strange, and not in a good way.

There were also times when I questioned their intentions. Yes, they protested things, and tried to go their own way, touring out of the way places in the mid-nineties, presumably in an attempt to keep ticket prices a bit lower. Was it just a stunt, as so many believed? I read a few books on them, and one in particular, "Five Against One" by Kim Neely, was very good. It was fascinating, but she also addressed some of these suspicions that many people seemed to hold of Pearl Jam, that they seemed to be a paradox on so many levels. How was it that they worked so hard to become popular, then acted like they hated that very popularity, and shirked the responsibilities over being hugely popular, only to work towards gaining some of that back and expressing worries of becoming obsolete?

Still, there really are not tons of other bands that have as much to offer, and I guess that is what keeps me going back to Pearl Jam.

This movie is certainly worth watching for any fan of Pearl Jam, grunge, or Seattle music overall. Hell, it is a must see if you are a fan of good music, in general, or if you've ever wondered what it might be like to be in a band, particularly one that suddenly explodes with success.