Pearl Jam Tell Story Behind "Backspacer" in Making-Of Video

Acclaimed rock photographer Danny Clinch is helping Pearl Jam tell the story behind their ninth album Backspacer in a 10-minute making-of video that was recently posted on MySpace Music. In addition to interviews with Eddie Vedder, Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard and Co., the short features extended snippets of songs like first single "The Fixer" and "Got Some," which the band debuted on The Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien. The clip also provides fans with a first listen to Backspacer ballad "Just Breathe."

"It was all based on the brand new idea to us of 'Let's write the songs before we record them,' " Vedder says of Backspacer, which is the shortest Pearl Jam album yet but also "tight and concise," according to guitarist Mike McCready. "I don't think there's a record out there that has better lyrics," adds Ament. "To be honest, it makes me feel really proud to be up here providing some sort of background for that." Vedder goes on to say Backspacer features some of McCready's best guitar solos.

Clinch's video also provides insight into the camaraderie between the members of Pearl Jam, as we get a close-up look at group activities like throwing a giant axe at a target (watch it in the video above). As Rock Daily previously reported, Backspacer is out September 20th.

Pearl Jam are currently touring Europe, where the band is playing among the most eclectic set lists of their career. For instance, the Saturday, August 15th show in Berlin featured a sampling of new songs ("Got Some," "The Fixer"), Lost Dogs rarities like "Hard to Imagine" and "Bee Girl" and covers of the Dead Boys' "Sonic Reducer" and the Rolling Stones' "Angie," which Pearl Jam hadn't covered since 1998, according to the Ten Club site. Last week Rolling Stone reported from a London gig that featured a special appearance by Ronnie Wood. The band will head back to the States for an autumn tour starting August 23rd in Chicago.

Related Stories:
• Pearl Jam Break Out New Songs, Rarities, Ronnie Wood in London
• Pearl Jam Give "Backspacer" Art Hunters "Speed of Sound" Demo
• Pearl Jam Reveal "Backspacer" Track List, Pre-Order Details

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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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