Pearl Jam - "The Fixer"
Penned by Matt Cameron, "The Fixer" is Pearl Jam's most commercial sounding lead track from an album since, well, I'd say Ten and "Alive." It's also one of their most optimistic sounding songs in a long time. When Eddie Vedder sings the first verse, I'm inclined to believe he can do this entire laundry list of tasks:
"When somethings dark, let me shed a little light on it
When somethings cold, let me put a little fire on it
If somethings old, I wanna put a bit of shine on it
When somethings gone, I wanna fight to get it back again"
Add in the production touch of Brendan O'Brien (strategically placed handclaps, a tiny piano part, guitars that sound like 80s synths, or perhaps actually 80s synths) and you've got one great 2:55 song.
(Sidebar: Why has Brendan O'Brien made other acts--the E Street Band, cough cough--sound so muddled, yet this PJ track has the treble all the way up? Weird.)
With O'Brien's behind the console for the new album Backspacer (his the first time recording the band since my favorite Pearl Jam album, 1998's Yield) and its 11 tracks clocking in at under 37 minutes, I am optimistic that it might be a damn fine disc. That will only get more excited to see them in Austin at the close of ACL (even if both my friends going to ACL ditch me because they don't care to see the band).
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2 comments:
Sorry Steve, but Eddie Vedder is simply incabable of writing anything resembling a good melody and he's even worse with lyrics. I kind of like this song despite Eddie. It sorta rocks and is definitely better than anything I've heard from these guys in eons.
I guess we'll agree to disagree.
(And as I wrote, Vedder didn't write this song. Maybe that's why you like it.)
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