Title: Their best since "Ten"
Product review: This is a strong album from Pearl Jam, their best since "Ten," in my opinion. There's a nice mix of slow and fast songs. The lead guitarist (who I believe is Stone Gossard, playing a Gibson) has some ferocious but economical lead lines somewhat reminiscent of Jefferson Airplane's Jorma Kaukonen, circa JA's "Bless Its Pointed Little Head" album. Gossard's playing adds new excitement to well-known songs like "State of Love and Trust." The album is, at about 2 hours 20 minutes,over two compact discs, also incredibly long; I have rarely been able to listen to the whole set at a single sitting. There's also a fair bit of guitar noodling between songs, which suggests to me that the guitarists could have been allowed to "let it out" a bit more in the instrumental sections of the songs. Certainly, long-form tracks like "Sleight of Hand" gain power by their slow increase in musical drama.
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