Pearl Jam Announce Tour Dates, "Backspacer" Out September 20th

Pearl Jam have announced a batch of fresh tour dates to celebrate the release of their new album Backspacer, due out September 20th. The album's first single "The Fixer" will hit radio on July 20th. As Rock Daily previously reported, Target stores will have the exclusive mass retail rights to the album, with Pearl Jam's own Ten Club and independent record stores also stocking their shelves with Backspacer on September 20th.

The new dates kick in one day after Backspacer's release with a pair of hometown shows at Seattle's Key Arena. Seattle previously had a taste of their band's new album when the city's Showbox was the host of a commercial featuring Pearl Jam playing "The Fixer" among other new tracks. From there, Pearl Jam head south for a four-concert residency at Los Angeles' Gibson Amphitheatre — with a quick detour at the Austin City Limits Festival — before heading to San Diego on October 9th.

After that, there's a 19-day gap until the band's next two shows in Philadelphia, so keep an eye out as Pearl Jam will likely add more cities to their trek. The band also promises to play New Zealand and Australia in November 2009 (One wonders if the awesome surfing there have weighed at all on Eddie Vedder's decision to venture into the Southern Hemisphere.)

As Rock Daily reported, Pearl Jam debuted the Backspacer track "Get Some" on the premiere episode of The Tonight Show With Conan O' Brien, giving fans a sneak peek at the album's artwork as well. "Backspacer" was also the name of the sea turtle that Pearl Jam sponsored in the Great Turtle Race back in April. For the PJ tour dates as they stand now, check below:

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Pearl Jam
August 8 - Calgary, AB @ Virgin Fest
August 21 - Toronto, ON @ Molson Amphitheatre
August 23 - Chicago, IL @ United Center
August 24 - Chicago, IL @ United Center
August 28 - San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands Festival
September 21 - Seattle, WA @ Key Arena
September 22 - Seattle, WA @ Key Arena
September 30 - Los Angeles, CA @ Gibson Amphitheatre
October 1 - Los Angeles, CA @ Gibson Amphitheatre
October 4 - Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Festival
October 6 - Los Angeles, CA @ Gibson Amphitheatre
October 7 - Los Angeles, CA @ Gibson Amphitheatre
October 9 - San Diego, CA @ Viejas Arena
October 28 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Spectrum
October 30 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Spectrum

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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