American Death Squad

Today, Jeff Ament has released a surprise 7" EP called American Death Squad.  It features five songs:

Piano - Side A: 1. The Divine Perfume 2. No Papers

Guitar - Side B: 1. Loss Leaders 2. Killer 3. Revenge 

“In the days following the postponement of our tour, I found it necessary to find an outlet for the energy we had created going into the tour. Pivot was the word of March. So, every morning, I retreated to the studio with the goal of writing a song every day, no matter how shite. Days of isolating and watching the news of the destruction courtesy the virus (and the ineptitude of our leadership or as named here, the American Death Squad) made for vivid dreams and a helplessness. These were some of the first songs out of the gate. Raw and succinct.” -Jeff Ament.

You can order the EP from the Ten Club for $10 (+$7 domestic S&H), or stream it on several services.

Or enjoy the video of the first song, The Divine Perfume.

All in Washington: Dance of the Clairvoyants

Pearl Jam's performance from last night's All In Washington streaming concert is up on YouTube for fans to enjoy.  It was a performance of Dance of the Clairvoyants featuring an appearance by former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist, Josh Klinghoffer, and Ed's daughters as background dancers.

For the whole All In Washington show, you can head to Amazon Prime where it is currently streaming for free.

Podcast: State of Love and Trust

Two Pearl Jam fans, Jason Kerepesi and Paul Ghiglieri, started a podcast last month for the super fan that digs into the minutia of all things Pearl Jam.

You can check out their first issue here, or subscribe via iTunes.

If you've ever wished you could sit down and drink a beer with someone who likes Pearl Jam as much as you do, this is the podcast for you.

Art of Do The Evolution, Finally?

We've been waiting SIX YEARS for IDW Publishing to bring us the book, Art of Do The Evolution, and it looks like the wait may be over.  This week Blabbermouth announced the official release date, October 6th, 2020, and published several quotes and pages from the book, and it looks GREAT!

"Being able to produce this seminal animated video at my studio for PEARL JAM and to work with super talents like Eddie Vedder, Todd McFarlane and Kevin Altieri was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," says Pearson. "And then to see the positive and continuing worldwide reaction of millions of fans to our group effort was the icing on this dense cake of edgy music and animation."

Justin Eisinger, IDW's editorial director of graphic novels & collections, says, "PEARL JAM's 'Do The Evolution' brings the threat of man's quest for domination into stark, relatable terms, a theme that remains at the forefront of current conversation. Filled with bold imagery and layered visual storytelling that accentuates the already searing lyrics, McFarlane and Altieri created a video that spans the history of mankind. And now their groundbreaking work can be fully appreciated in this in-depth, behind-the-scenes book that explores how it all came together."

The book can be found on Amazon or at your local comic book retailer, comishoplocater.com.

Sweet Relief, New Date

Thanks to changes to Record Store Day, the Sweet Relief benefit compilation LP has a new release date.  The 2600 copies of the 2 LP album will be released to independent record stores on October 24th, 2020.

Sweet Relief is an album of songs written by Victoria Williams, but performed by artists popular in the 90s.  It was a project inspired when Williams was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and supports the Sweet Relief Fund, which aids professional musicians in need of health care.

All in Washington: June 10th

It looks like Pearl Jam might be getting together for some sort of show.  The campaign, All In Washington, has announced that they will be having "A Concert for COVID Relief," a virtual benefit concert featuring Pearl Jam, Macklemore, Brandi Carlile, Sir Mix-A-Lot, Dave Matthews, and several other Washington-state musicians.  It is unknown if bands will be together or separated.

The event will air June 10th at 6:30pm (presumably Pacific time).  

To learn more and get updates, visite the KEXP website.

Binaural Turns 20

Video: Retrograde

Today, Pearl Jam released an official video for the song, Retrograde, on Gigaton, featuring a whole new crew of filmmakers.

Video Credits:

Director: Josh Wakely

Producer: Rachel Pinchbeck for Grace - a storytelling company

VFX Supervisor: Daniel Roizman

Post-Production Producer: Paul Furminger & Steve Won

Editor: Simon Furminger

High End Gigaton Prints in the Ten Shop

The Ten Club is currently offering high end posters by Ken Taylor and Krzysztof Domaradzki commemorating Gigaton.  Both retail for $250 (plus $22 domestic S&H).  The Ames Bros. poster, previously sold on their website, has already sold out, so don't waste time.

Pearl Jam (The Album) Turns 14

Record Store Day(s) 2020

Record Store Day has announced more changes for 2020.  Instead of releasing albums on one day later this year, they're going to release albums on three different days.  Coming June 1, they plan to announce a new list of releases for each day.

Since 2008, Record Store Day has grown into the world’s largest single-day music event, shining a light on the culture of the indie record store across the globe. In 2020, that world is different, so Record Store Day will be too. RSD is now scheduled to be celebrated with special, properly distanced release dates on Saturdays in August, September and October.

Record Store Day will look very different this year, but supporting indie record stores may be more important than ever. We don't know what sort of rules will be in place, or what sort of gatherings people will be in the mood for this year, so we're focusing on the music and getting the really great titles on the RSD Official List this year into the stores and into your hands, in the most financially and socially responsible way.

The titles on the RSD 2020 Official List, launched on March 5th, will be released at participating record stores on one of these three RSD Drops: August 29th, September 26th, and October 24th. The new version of The List, with newly assigned RSD Drops dates will launch on June 1 so check back here for a look at when you'll be able to pick up the titles on your RSD 2020 wishlist at your local record store.

Jeff Covers Buzzcocks' Sitting Around At Home

Today, Pearl Jam posted a video of Jeff Ament and John Wicks (of Fitz and The Tantrums) covering Buzzcocks' Sitting Around At Home.  The Pearl Jam website calls it a "single."  Could we expect a 45 in the near future?

"This Buzzcocks’ tune (written by Steve Diggle) has entered my brain every bored moment I’ve had since 1979. Different Kind of Tension is a great existential pandemic listen. Recorded with my crosstown brother John Wicks, crushing the drum kit in his basement". - Jeff

Eddie Vedder on the Kōkua Festival Stream

Last night, the Kōkua Festival, which was forced to cancel this year, aired several artists from home.  Among them, Eddie Vedder, singing Far Behind from his Soundtrack for the movie Into the Wild, a duet of Constellations with Jack Johnson, and Better Together with Jack Johnson, Ben Harper, and an entire ensemble. 

Other artists included in the stream were Willie Nelson, Ben Harper, G. Love, Ziggy Marley, Lukas Nelson, Paula Fuga, Kawika Kahiapo, John Cruz, Anuhea, Ron a Artis II, and Thunderstorm Artis.

Peak to Sky 2020, Cancelled

Gigaton Visualizer Comes to Apple TV

Pearl Jam has announced a week-long collaboration with Apple TV to bring you the Gigaton Visualization Experience in Dolby Atmos to your living room.  Apple TV subscribers will be able to watch Gigaton (oh, and also the Beastie Boys Story) starting today. 

Pearl Jam and Apple TV are announcing the release of the Gigaton Visual Expierence in Dolby Atmos - a special audio visual event. This experience will be available for free to all Apple TV users for one week. Start watching on Friday, April 24.

Check tv.apple.com for a free week offer, if you want to subscribe.