Though they made their initial mark as frontrunners of the grunge movement of the early ’90s, Pearl Jam began — and have remained — more emotionally curious and stylistically adventurous than many of their flannel-clad peers of that era, expanding past the angst and dissonance often associated with grunge to become one of the most popular and enduring rock & roll bands of their time. Their 1991 debut Ten stood out in an age defined by irony, offering loud, guitar-forward anthems that were unflaggingly sincere. Much of this earnestness stemmed from Eddie Vedder, a lead singer of uncommon charisma and passion who helped the group’s arena rock moves seem intimate. Vedder’s emotional acuity remained a touchstone for Pearl Jam throughout the years, giving the band’s unpredictable business moves — such as their mid-’90s battle with Ticketmaster — and embrace of controversial causes genuine heft. Pearl Jam arrived at the nexus point of the ’90s where alternative ideas and mainstream success briefly met, but they continued creating long after the trends that brought them overnight fame changed. Their passionate performance style and willingness to wander made them a consistent live draw year after year, with fans trading recordings of concerts on a level usually reserved for jam band culture. On album, Pearl Jam harnessed the energy of their stage show while also exploring sophisticated songwriting, evolving their heady brew of roots rock, punk snarl, supernatural playing chemistry, and introspective moods, and reconnecting with their ’90s sound on 2024’s Dark Matter.
Pearl Jam emerged after the end of Seattle hard rock band Mother Love Bone. After Mother Love Bone’s vocalist, Andrew Wood, overdosed on heroin in 1990, guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament assembled a new band, bringing in Mike McCready on lead guitar and recording a demo with Soundgarden’s Matt Cameron on drums. Thanks to future Pearl Jam drummer Jack Irons, the demo found its way to a 25-year-old San Diego surfer named Eddie Vedder, who overdubbed vocals and original lyrics and was subsequently invited to join the group (then christened Mookie Blaylock after the NBA player). Dave Krusen was hired as the full-time drummer shortly thereafter, completing the original lineup. Renaming themselves Pearl Jam, the band recorded their debut album, Ten, in the beginning of 1991, although it wasn’t released until August; in the meantime, the majority of the group appeared on the Andrew Wood tribute project Temple of the Dog. Krusen left the band shortly after the release of Ten; he was replaced by Dave Abbruzzese.
Ten didn’t begin selling in significant numbers until early 1992, after Nirvana made mainstream rock radio receptive to alternative rock acts. Soon, Pearl Jam outsold Nirvana, which wasn’t surprising. After all, Pearl Jam fused the riff-heavy stadium rock of the ’70s with the grit and anger of ’80s post-punk, without ever neglecting hooks and choruses; “Jeremy,” “Evenflow,” and “Alive” fit perfectly onto album rock radio stations looking for new blood. Pearl Jam’s audience continued to grow during 1992, thanks to a series of radio and MTV hits, as well as successful appearances on the second Lollapalooza tour and the Singles soundtrack. Meanwhile, Temple of the Dog’s self-titled album became a platinum-selling hit, thanks to renewed interest in the project (which, in addition to Pearl Jam, featured grunge heavyweight Chris Cornell) and strong radio support for the single “Hunger Strike.” Stone Gossard also embarked on a side project called Brad, which released the album Shame in early 1993.