Friday's are going to be reserved for photos that tell a story...
I'm proud to have our first
from
Ten Club member
Andrew Hess
Andrew was lucky
enough to be in the "pit"
or general admission area at the Epic Pearl Jam Wrigley show on July 19th.
Andrew snapped this when Ed hopped into the crowd during Porch.
We haven't seen Ed do much crowd surfing in the last few years.
The early days of climbing like a jungle chimp over every and any
stage or building he came upon....
freaking out his bandmates who just hoped he wouldn't fall to his death... Maybe that has been replaced with "I do have kids now - BUT I'm Eddie freakin' Vedder- I'll just jump in instead of dive off the scaffolding"
The Wrigley show sold out in minutes and
was highly anticipated by fans
all over the world.
Despite the crazy weather - the appearance of the lightning bolt-
and an almost 2 hour delay...
the band played until 2 a.m. and delivered a set that more than made up for the wait.
Shortly after Andrew posted his pic it blew up on sharing sites with fans...
He had no idea until later in the week.
I contacted him to ask about using the picture because
I wanted him to have credit for such a great split second shot.
A great memory from an amazing night. Thanks for sharing your moment with us!
Andrew requests that if you'd like to use the photo to please contact him by e-mail-
andrew.j.hess@gmail.com
If you're a fan and have pics you'd like me to share or feature
feel free to contact me.
The music is also about the experience....
Come back tomorrow for our next delve into Vitalogy....Have a great Friday and Rock on!
Pretty sure no one was playing them on radio here...
so again-
Headbanger's Ball to the rescue...
which seems very funny now for some reason.
Same as Soundgarden...
Where do we put these guys?
Man in the Box-
I was blown away by the sound...
no one else like them around.
It just haunted you...and it was kind of groovy under all
that distortion in certain places...
Layne mimicking the guitar
his voice was just so unique for that time...
unforgettable, and
unmistakeable.
Jerry complimented him so well-
for a long time I never even realized how much
of Jerry's voice was really on each track they seemed like one..
Soon to follow -
Would? from the Singles soundtrack... I was in love...
Alice was the "bar" band in the movie...
Then DIRT came out ... Would? Angry Chair , Them Bones, Rooster, Down in a Hole... This album felt a bit moodier to me and it also showed off a bit more of their musical range... they slowed down some - but then packed the punch when you were least expecting it. I won't delve in to every album because this was just the beginning for me... This footage is from Seattle favorite The Off Ramp Cafe 1990 some of the best Alice you've never heard. Facelift music... none of the post "grunge" explosion MTV stuff Again - I love this kind of live footage where the crowd is on fire and you get that small venue feel... You'll always find those vids of MTV appearances, etc. We'll save that stuff for later. Pure raw original Alice here...
This was when you could see two great bands for like $8!
I know there are a few versions of who started it..
as with any legends there always are...
Well - Once upon a time....
the story is that
Mark Arm wrote a letter to a local Seattle
Zine in 1981
describing his then band (Mr.Epp) as
"Pure Grunge, Pure Noise, Pure Shit!"
Later the guys at SubPop started using it
to describe other groups on their label in the late 80's...
The term had also been thrown around mid 80's
in other countries to describe up and coming bands.
Whomever used it first - descriptive or as a label...
The term took off and later the media ran with it...
It may be one of the most loved/hated words to describe
a musical genre...
I laugh when I see encyclopedic definitions of the
musical term"grunge" and what specifically the music should sound like,
what kind of clothes they are supposed to wear,
and how ANGST ridden the lyrics and people are supposed to be.
Those attempts to put the scene in a category and box it and label it
are usually more of what Mark described as
"Pure Noise - Pure Shit"
by the media and mainstream.
Don't get me started.
We will explore that another day.
Gen - Xers know what I mean.
If you're under 30 I hope this was fun
and it peaked your interest.
Some fun ealry footage of Mr.Epp at the Metropolis - 1984
So young!
If you want a good laugh... go over to The Urban Dictionary this link will take you to the page for the submitted definitions of "Grunge" hilarious... maybe you want to submit your own? The look up "Soft Grunge" even better...
I'm not sure if it was Loud Love but I remember they stood out to me.
(how come duct tape shorts never caught on?!)
Funny-
I know Axl Rose was a big fan of Chris Cornell..
but as much as I loved Gun's and Roses...
I'd grown tired of them. They had started to become what I thought they had rebelled against in the first place.
They went from raw and gritty to overdone.
I'd always been a bit uneasy with their portrayal of women in my young mind too.
Don't get me wrong - I still have a place for them but there is a cut-off.
Chris said they later decided to tour with them because who else would they tour with? Again - no one knew who to put them with... they wanted to tour and they'd go out with who they had to!
The SOUND of Soundgarden just intrigued me.
It was so different than all of the copy cat bullcrap that was out there.
No makeup and ridiculous hair or goofball clothes
Let's not name names - but you know who they are! Subsequently - I went down to the record store to try and dig out anything I could find on them . When they didn't have it - I asked them to get it!
I scored points with the clerk who was there for even knowing who they were.
A proud point in my 17 something year old life.
UltaMega O.K. and Louder than Love - if I'd only known then...
don't buy Cassette tapes - they won't work in 10 or 15 years-
buy Vinyl!
When Badmotorfinger came out
and the videos started to follow...
I was like THIS is music! Chris seemed to lower his range a bit and the music just got this quality to it - I don't know what to describe it as. A bit thicker, more grinding, and a slowed down more powerful edge? Radio here wasn't playing this kind of music yet- so the videos were the first link I had to it.
Badmotorfinger had that SOUND... Slaves and Bulldozers - that Bass , the slow buildup.... and then Chris pounding you with that voice ! Letting you back down only to build it back up again and again!
Jesus Christ Pose...Outshined...Rusty Cage... I was converted. Birth Ritual and Seasons on The Singles soundtrack... sealed the deal.
Let's re-visit Rusty Cage simply because it is the first song my 5 year old asks for on a regular basis and knows all the words to...
The lyrics to the music on this album were like poetry but in a way that I could really understand...
Of course I'm not talking Lord Byron either - I'm just saying no "all night long girl - Cherry Pie kind of stuff" Something with imagery and some meaning.
Seemed like a lot of people misunderstood Chirs lyrics on the other hand. To me - you can sit down with lyrics just like a book. Look at them, read them, think about it. Everyone is going to have their own interpretation. The crap that followed after Jesus Christ Pose is a perfect example of misunderstanding. A song written to admonish people who use religion to portray themselves as being persecuted or to push their causes. What does the mainstream do with that? Don't think - just automatically turn it around - not listen to the lyrics - and call them anti-Christian and send them death threats?! Do exactly what the song is speaking out against! The Irony of it all- I hope Chris laughs at it to this day! Go back and listen people - the song is still pertinent in 2013! I kind of think however when people see the imagery that was in the video certain minds automatically don't listen. The older I have gotten- I agree with Eddie Vedder in basically saying that he didn't want imagery to affect what a person got out of a song - he wanted the individual to use their own mind and go from there.
Anyway - I was fascinated and on board with Soundgarden. The soon to come flood of what came out of Seattle only fueled my fire...
When they later broke up ...it was like... "NO WAY!?" Now that they're back together and you can kind of get a glimpse as to why things broke off - I can respect that... Every artist - heck - human being- at some point has issues. As artists I think it is harder for people who aren't creatively minded to understand why you do some of the things you do. When I try and "push" myself to finish something (artwork) when I'm not feeling it... it turns out crap in my opinion. Who wants to put that out there? That break caused them to grow in my opinion.
King Animal is in the vehicle on a daily basis right now... bringing me back to the early 90's and the music I fell in love with. A live peek at the song "Worse Dreams" It has that awesome bass thing going on courtesy of Ben ... There may be better audio/visual of this out there... but this video has the Crowd who is loving them! What a show is all about. You can hear the "perfect" version on the album if that's what you want... for now some raw new SG.
we're using it!
I also didn't want to keep filling up my FB page
with this musical stuff that not everyone gets.
I know people who visit here are actually interested
and want to share!
If you're visiting from 10C - love ya!
I've had a love for the sound since
it first met my ears in the early 90's.
None of the overpackaged , corporate made bullshit that
had been shoveled at me for so many years.
The sound was refreshing,
unique ,
and had meaning.
These guys and girls looked like you
and your neighbors.
Who walked around like a Glam Rocker every day?
Eddie Vedder , Tad Doyle, Mark Arm, Kim Thayil,
Mia Zapata or Kim Warnick
could have been the guys or girls in the basement next door
annoying the neighborhood with
that LOUD music.
I loved that they were keeping it real.
Andy Wood was the character
we'll give a pass for -
he was in his own league
but he was the guy you were rooting for to make it!
I plan on sharing
lots of pics, music, videos, stories,
and my own thoughts,
as well as
obscure things about this music
and the people who create it
and love it!
So what to share first?
Self Pollution?
What's that all about?
If you don't already know....
a reference taken from the Pearl Jam Vitology
vaults...
For now how about a little Self Pollution Radio Snippet?
