Dark Matter arrives relatively quickly on the heels of
Gigaton, an urgent warning call coincidentally delivered at the dawn of the COVID-19 pandemic. Teeming with apoplectic energy,
Gigaton activated
Pearl Jam's collective muscle memory, tapping into the messianic fervor that ran through the band's earliest records.
Dark Matter doesn't traffic in that sense of righteousness, choosing instead to concentrate on replicating the sound and form of their '90s heyday. The conduit for this conversion is
Andrew Watt, a producer who wasn't yet a year old when
Pearl Jam released
Ten, who nevertheless cultivated a reputation as a classic rock rejuvenator partially due to records like
Earthling,
Eddie Vedder's bright and colorful solo record from 2022. After
Earthling,
Watt managed to shepherd records by
Ozzy Osbourne,
Iggy Pop, and
the Rolling Stones that felt like their iconic work while also still sounding fresh. He repeats that trick on
Dark Matter, crafting a record that hints at the heights of
Ten and
Vs. without precisely sounding like either -- there's too much sonic separation, too much punch, too much digital sheen to be mistaken for a
Brendan O'Brien production.
Pearl Jam is older, too. Not only are they not as interested in exorcising demons, but they're also unlikely to stray from their chosen path. Lacking the aimless detours that gave
Vs. and
Vitalogy an off-kilter charm,
Dark Matter is streamlined and purposeful, never overstaying its welcome on either the ballads or rockers. While that can be a slight detriment on the album's loudest number -- combined, the sleek sound and concise compositions give the faintest suggestion of restraint -- the efficiency is ultimately to the band's benefit, highlighting their empathetic interplay by pushing melodies and hooks to the forefront. "Scared of Fear" and "React, Respond" provide a bracing opening to the record but
Dark Matter is at its most compelling at its quietest moments ("Setting Sun" provides a suitably contemplative closer) and on "Waiting for Stevie," a song that summons
Pearl Jam's inherent sense of majestic melodrama. "Waiting for Stevie" suggests the days where the horizon seems boundless, an aesthetic that used to be the unifying force on
Pearl Jam records, but here it's used as an effective flair on an album that, above all, aims to please. That impulse is rare for
Pearl Jam and it's satisfying to hear them play to their strengths throughout
Dark Matter. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
![Greatest Hits [Deluxe Edition]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0602448963932_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "Greatest Hits [Deluxe Edition]")
![Weezer [Blue Album]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0720642462928_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "Weezer [Blue Album]")
