Gigaton

Last updated

Gigaton
Pearl Jam - Gigaton.png
Studio album by
Pearl Jam
ReleasedMarch 27, 2020 (2020-03-27)
RecordedMarch 2017 - September 2020
Genre
Length57:03
Label
Producer Josh Evans [3]
Pearl Jam chronology
MTV Unplugged
(2019)		Gigaton
(2020)		 Give Way
(2023)
Singles from Gigaton
  1. "Dance of the Clairvoyants"
    Released: January 22, 2020
  2. "Superblood Wolfmoon"
    Released: February 18, 2020
  3. "Quick Escape"
    Released: March 25, 2020
  4. "Retrograde"
    Released: May 14, 2020

Gigaton is the eleventh studio album by American rock band Pearl Jam, released March 27, 2020. [4] [5] It was preceded by the singles "Dance of the Clairvoyants", "Superblood Wolfmoon" and "Quick Escape". [6] [7] It is the band's first studio album in six and half years, and their first album since 2006's eponymous album to feature more collaboration for the lyrics, rather than them being written solely by the frontman Eddie Vedder. [8] The cover artwork was produced by photographer Paul Nicklen. [9] Its release was scheduled to coincide with a tour of North America. [10] However, the North American leg was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and eventually rescheduled for 2022. [11] [12]

Contents

Background and recording

Producer Josh Evans told Variety's Jonathan Cohen [13] that "Seven O'Clock" was pieced together from different portions of a jam early in the recording sessions, and then layered with new elements later on. Eddie Vedder's vocal on the solo acoustic "Comes Then Goes" was captured on the first take, while the 1850s-era pump organ Vedder played on the 2015 demo of "River Cross" was retained for the studio version. [14]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.5/10 [15]
Metacritic 80/100 [16]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [17]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [18]
Consequence of Sound B+ [19]
Entertainment Weekly B+ [20]
Kerrang! Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [21]
Mojo Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [22]
NME Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [23]
Pitchfork 6.2/10 [24]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Spin Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [25]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic , Gigaton received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 80 out of 100 from 26 critic scores. [26] AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine rated the album 4 out of 5 stars, noting that its three highlights were "Who Ever Said", "Dance of the Clairvoyants" and "Never Destination". [17] Rolling Stone writer Kory Grow also gave the album a positive review, also rating it 4 out of 5 stars. Grow wrote that Gigaton is "an admirable, inspiring example of grown-up grunge". [2] Spin writer John Paul Bullock was also positive toward the album, writing, "Gigaton has a little something for everyone. It's a complex, dynamic album full of earnest emotion and subtle humor". [25] Mojo , in yet another positive review, wrote, "Strong and loose, political and personal, Pearl Jam get the balance absolutely right". [22]

Kerrang! writer George Garner gave the album a perfect score, and wrote: "it's Pearl Jam's most incensed album since 2006. It's their most musically inventive since 1998. And, by virtue of its themes, it is their most gravely needed of their entire career. It is, in short, a triumph". Garner also noted that Gigaton "often zips along so quickly that on first listen it's easy to miss the details that make it so special". [21]

Writing for The A.V. Club , Alex McLevy gave the album a B, criticizing it for being uneven, but praising the band for musical experimentation and writing that it "stands out in comparison to several more recent Pearl Jam albums due to the improved ratio of hits to misses on the back half". [27] Consequence of Sound critic Matt Melis graded the album a B+, noting that the three best songs from Gigaton were "Superblood Wolfmoon", "Quick Escape" and "Retrograde". [19]

Steve Lampiris of The Line of Best Fit considered Gigaton the band's most experimental album, and gave it a score of 8 out of 10. [28] Tom Hull was less impressed, giving it a B grade and saying that it is "not bad, nor especially interesting, and by the end I was reminded of how tedious Eddie Vedder's voice is." [29]

Accolades

Accolades for Gigaton
PublicationAccoladeRankRef.
Mojo Top 75 Albums of 202044 [30]
Consequence of Sound Top 50 Albums of 202010 [31]
Insider The 10 best rock albums of 20205 [32]
Spin Spin's 30 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year
N/A

Commercial performance

On the US Billboard 200, Gigaton debuted at number 5 with 63,000 album-equivalent units, marking the band's twelfth top 10 album. Of that sum, it sold 14,000 vinyl copies, the second-largest weekly vinyl sales for a 2020 release. [34]

As of March 2024 the album has earned 172,000 equivalent album units in the US. [35]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Eddie Vedder, except where noted [36]

No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Who Ever Said" Vedder5:11
2."Superblood Wolfmoon" Vedder3:49
3."Dance of the Clairvoyants"  Jeff Ament, Matt Cameron, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, Vedder4:26
4."Quick Escape" Ament4:47
5."Alright"AmentAment3:44
6."Seven O'Clock" Ament, Gossard, McCready, Vedder6:14
7."Never Destination" Vedder4:17
8."Take the Long Way"CameronCameron3:42
9."Buckle Up"GossardGossard3:37
10."Comes Then Goes" Vedder6:02
11."Retrograde" McCready5:22
12."River Cross" Vedder5:53
Total length:57:03

Personnel

Pearl Jam

Additional personnel

Charts

References

  1. 1 2 McLevy, Alex (March 9, 2020). "Pearl Jam does the evolution on the ambitious, if uneven, Gigaton". Music. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Grow, Kory. "Pearl Jam Combine Fury and Maturity on Gigaton". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  3. ↑ Lavin, Will (January 13, 2020). "Pearl Jam announce new studio album Gigaton". NME . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  4. ↑ Willman, Chris (January 13, 2020). "Pearl Jam Announces First Album in Seven Years, Along With North American Tour". Variety . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  5. ↑ Bloom, Madison (January 13, 2020). "Pearl Jam Announce Tour and New Album Gigaton". Pitchfork . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  6. ↑ Jones, Damian (February 13, 2020). "Listen to a preview of Pearl Jam's new single Superblood Wolfmoon by pointing your phone at the moon". NME. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  7. ↑ Blistein, Jon (March 25, 2020). "Pearl Jam Plot 'Quick Escape' From Environmental Doom on New Song". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  8. ↑ Green, Andy (January 13, 2020). "Pearl Jam Announce New Album Gigaton, North American Tour Dates". Rolling Stone . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  9. ↑ Childers, Chad (January 12, 2020). "Pearl Jam Scavenger Hunt Teasing 'Gigaton' Title + Artwork". Loudwire. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
  10. ↑ Lifton, Dave (January 13, 2020). "Pearl Jam Announce New Gigaton Album and Tour". Ultimate Classic Rock . Retrieved January 14, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Spring Tour Postponed". Pearl Jam. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  12. ↑ "Pearl Jam, Miley Cyrus and Madonna scrap gigs over coronavirus fears". BBC News. March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  13. ↑ Cohen, Jonathan (January 25, 2020). "Eddie Vedder Unveils Pearl Jam's New Album, 'Gigaton,' at Intimate Listening Session".
  14. ↑ Hodge, Will (March 30, 2020). "Pearl Jam Producer Josh Evans Unpacks The Iconic Band's New Album, 'Gigaton'". Grammy. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  15. ↑ "Pearl Jam: Gigaton". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
  16. ↑ "Critic Reviews for Gigaton". Metacritic . Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  17. 1 2 Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Pearl Jam - Gigaton". AllMusic. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  18. ↑ Petridis, Alexis (March 26, 2020). "Pearl Jam: Gigaton review – grunge gurus revel in the end times". The Guardian. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  19. 1 2 Melis, Matt. "Pearl Jam Preach Self-Preservation Amidst the Storm on Gigaton". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  20. ↑ Rodman, Sarah. "Pearl Jam's Gigaton is a bracing shot of rock: Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  21. 1 2 Garner, George. "Pearl Jam - Gigaton". Kerrang!. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  22. 1 2 "Pearl Jam - Mojo". Mojo. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  23. ↑ Bhagwandas, Anita. "Pearl Jam – 'Gigaton' review: one of the biggest rock bands in the world return to semi-brilliance". NME. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  24. ↑ Sodomsky, Sam (March 27, 2020). "Pearl Jam: Gigaton". Pitchfork . Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  25. 1 2 John Paul Bullock. "Pearl Jam Bounce Back with Gigaton". Spin. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  26. ↑ "Critic Reviews for Gigaton". Metacritic . Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  27. ↑ McLevy, Alex (March 8, 2020). "Pearl Jam Does the Evolution on the Ambitious, If Uneven, Gigaton". The A.V. Club . Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  28. ↑ Lampiris, Steve. "Pearl Jam mark their return with the solid and experimental Gigaton". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  29. ↑ Hull, Tom (July 13, 2020). "Music Week". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  30. ↑ Pearis, Bill (November 17, 2020). "MOJO's Top 75 Albums of 2020". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
  31. ↑ "Top 50 Albums of 2020". Consequence of Sound. December 1, 2020. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  32. ↑ "The 10 best rock albums of 2020, ranked". Insider. December 22, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  33. ↑ Spin Staff (May 21, 2020). "The 30 Best Albums of 2020 (So Far)". Spin . Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  34. 1 2 Caulfield, Keith (April 5, 2020). "The Weeknd's 'After Hours' Spends Second Week at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart". Billboard. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  35. ↑ "Pearl Jam Lands Atop Hot Hard Rock Songs Chart With 'Dark Matter'". Billboard. March 1, 2024. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
  36. ↑ "Gigaton: all songs credits from the new album have been revealed". pearljamonline.it. March 16, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  37. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Pearl Jam – Gigaton". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  38. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Pearl Jam – Gigaton" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  39. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Pearl Jam – Gigaton" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  40. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Pearl Jam – Gigaton" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  41. ↑ "Pearl Jam Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  42. ↑ "top-lista.hr – Strana top lista prodaje Week 21/2020". HDU . Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  43. ↑ "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 14.Týden 2020 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100" to retrieve the correct chart. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  44. ↑ "Danishcharts.dk – Pearl Jam – Gigaton". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  45. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Pearl Jam – Gigaton" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  46. ↑ "Pearl Jam: Gigaton" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
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  48. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Pearl Jam – Gigaton" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  49. ↑ "Album – Top-75 Albums Sales Chart (Combined) Week 16/2020" (in Greek). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Greece . Retrieved April 27, 2020.
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  51. ↑ "Official Irish Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  52. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Pearl Jam – Gigaton". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  53. ↑ "Oricon Top 50 Albums: 2020-04-13" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
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  55. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Pearl Jam – Gigaton". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  56. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  57. ↑ "Portuguesecharts.com – Pearl Jam – Gigaton". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  58. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  59. ↑ "Gigaton - Pearl Jam - EPDM". El Portal de Música (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España . Retrieved August 2, 2020.
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  62. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  63. ↑ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2024.
  64. ↑ "Pearl Jam Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
  65. ↑ "Pearl Jam Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
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