The anticipation of a tour isn’t as one-dimensional as some may think. People always ask, ‘are you getting excited yet!?’ I usually respond with a convincing, ‘yah of course!’ using the same automation you might have in response to the question, ‘how have you been?’ after running into someone you have not seen in a while. The truth is, sometimes I’ll be so caught up in the present events and everyday anxieties that I feel like I haven’t even had a chance to wrap my head around the notion of seeing another amazing live performance. Then other times I will feel a calming bliss wash over me knowing that the second I feel Eddie’s voice in the same room as me there is not a thing in the world that can interfere with the smile on my face and the chills through my body.
Almost as important as the experience itself is the idea of sharing it with someone you know will feel the energy of the show in a similar, profound manner. This honour goes to my lovely girlfriend, Laura, who is tracing my obsession through the majority of the concerts. Show one in Brisbane meant beers at The Fox before finding our seats amongst the 2,000 available in the intimate acoustic set of the QPAC Lyric Theater. This concert was going to be unlike any Pearl Jam concert I had ever attended.
Yes, this is an Eddie Vedder solo tour. But what some people might not realize is that in addition to being without the remaining talent of Pearl Jam, he is truly SOLO and without any backup band, drums, bass, or keyboard. This in itself is a truly amazing concept considering the dynamo of energy that fills the room with nothing but one man at the epicentre illuminated by a single spotlight. The second major difference was that the entire audience was seated for the duration of the show which was an experience I had simply never had at any of my previous Pearl Jam Concerts. I’m not going to lie, it was rather difficult to maintain seated the whole time given the energy I was feeling. I tried my hardest not to make a spectacle of myself as I lost voluntary muscle control over my neck and inappropriately strummed the skin off my girlfriend’s left inner thigh. However, it was an experience to be truly appreciated and was very well suited to the atmosphere Eddie conducted.
The third major difference between this tour and any other Pearl Jam show I had ever been to was the small, intimate venue with exceptional acoustics and sound quality. Usually, I’m close enough to the front stadium speakers that I can’t even hear my own absurdly off-tune voice as I belt out the lyrics to as many songs as I have breath for. With such an intimate venue everyone in the audience could hear the clear ring of the guitar and the outstanding range in Eddie’s voice. It also meant I had to mute my singing to a light hum so as not to disrupt the experience for the rest of the audience. I did a pretty good job too… right up until “Hard Sun” was played for the third Encore… But now I’m just getting ahead of myself.
Eddie opened with a medley of cover songs by Daniel Johnson, Cat Stevens, and Pink Floyd. The second Eddie stepped on stage I freaking lost it! Ever seen that YouTube clip of the little kid opening a Nintendo 64 for Christmas? Picture that but with a 25-year-old man in a public setting. YES! YES!! YESSS!!!! *cue fist-pumping action*. It’s a good thing I have a very understanding girlfriend. I can’t even remember if my eyes were open for the first two songs but the depth of Mr. Vedder’s voice was freaking unreal. I didn’t even notice that he hadn’t properly addressed the audience until he stuffed up a chord along the way and apologized for the error and for being so rude as to start a concert without so much as a cliché, “Hello Brisbane!” Oh Eddie, you can do whatever you want up there just promise you’ll never leave us.
The fifth song in, shit got real. Now first you have to understand that the Riot Act tour was my first ever Pearl Jam experience and as a possible result of nostalgia, I have an unusual soft spot for any song on that album. So when he played “I Am Mine”, I gripped Laura’s arm to steady my shaking as I tried to make sure I wasn’t somehow mistaken. Hand to God, I have NEVER heard “I Am Mine” sound so good! It has completely changed the way I view this little gem that I’ve often neglected partly due to the radio play it received as the album’s first single. I could have sworn the whole band was right there playing with him, Even Boom. To open your eyes and return to the realization that it is in fact just Eddie up there is like watching a magician perform his most outstanding illusion- you just can’t accept what you’ve witnessed as reality.
Halfway through the first set, he played a fabulous new song I’d later learn is titled “Sleeping by Myself” and I cannot wait to hear the rest of his new album. I laughed along to “Drifting” loving how much the lyrics made me feel more comfortable with my own life’s capricious motions and I felt Laura’s arm fill with chills at the first chord of “Just Breathe”. “Lukin” into “Porch” was a rockin’ way to finish the first set but the show stopper for me was between “Man of the Hour” and “Unthought Known”. During “Unthought Known” Eddie’s voice echoes ecstasy through your heart but at the first notes of “Man of the Hour” I felt a very real surge through my whole outer body and a tear stroll past my eyes. No longer in control of my emotional state, sound becomes responsible for my every emotion the way a heroin addict surrenders to the exaltation of opiate.
First Encore Break wasn’t nearly long enough to allow my heart rate to return to normal. Another batch of covers with a bit of help from the warm-up band, Evil J & Saint Cecilia, was just what the doctor ordered after set number one. But then “Betterman” was played. Completely different than it has ever been played before keeping only the lyrics unchanged and playing out soft and emotional like a lullaby. Completely stunned by this never before heard rendition, I sat motionless and the entire room was left silent for what felt like hours after the song had finished. Finally, the silence was broken by a woman near the front who praised, “That was beeeeeautiful Eddie!” I couldn’t agree more. Eddie thanked the women saying that’s exactly the kind of support he needed when starting a new tour. It’s easy to forget that Eddie is in fact human and has the same basic emotional needs as anybody else and it’s sometimes hard to realize that the first show of a tour might actually be difficult and nerve-wracking for him. I’ve seen Eddie play an insane two-and-a-half-hour show while he had a terrible flu and he hardly seemed phased by his condition or the burning lights pouring over an outdoor stage on a humid 34°C evening in Sydney. I felt like passing out and Laura caught a rather serious case of Heat Stress but Eddie managed to keep it together. So it was quite refreshing to witness a slight bit of vulnerability on his part to remind us that we are all just human after all.
After the second encore break, Evil J and Saint Cecilia joined Eddie for the grand finale performance of “Hard Sun” as the lights of the theatre came on signifying the end of the show. I don’t even think I was aware I was singing so loudly until halfway through the song… but I figured, stuff it, I’ve made it this far without slipping up, I’m sure I can be forgiven. The song finished with a fully lit room of people standing, whistling and crying for more. Then the theatre began playing some elevator music over the intercom but the cheering continues and no one left their seat. Some are calling it a 20-minute standing ovation to honour the man on his first show of the tour. But I am certain I wasn’t the only one that was convinced Eddie was gonna walk back on stage, a bottle of wine in hand, for one last performance. I began to lose hope after the stage crew unplugged some of the front speakers and started taking them away… but still no one moved. Somewhere along the way one of the crew picked up the mike stand Eddie had thrown to the ground and a bunch of people cheered hoping this was in preparation for a fourth set… Eventually, security began herding people out of the building one by one and the rest of the crowd followed suit. So very glad there are 5 more shows to see!
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