Pearl Jam's Backspacer More of Same

Pearl Jam “plays it tight, short and fast on its ninth studio album, Backspacer (Monkeywrench), out Tuesday,” writes Greg Kot for the Chicago Tribune. In its first self-released album, the band steamrolls through 11 songs in just 37 minutes—but it’s 37 minutes of “step-on-it-and-go attack.” The guitars are a thick tangle,” Eddie Vedder sings “like he’s cornered,” and the drums “keep the songs rocketing along.”

Of course, much of the attention focused on Backspacer revolves around the deal Pearl Jam brokered with Target to release it—so fans will likely be happy to know “Pearl Jam hasn’t sold out,” writes Jim DeRogatis for the Chicago Sun-Times. However, “neither has it bravely reinvented itself; it essentially has given us more of the same—some strong, some filler, but nothing mind-blowing.” (More Pearl Jam stories.)