10 Perfect Follow Ups To Masterpiece Albums

When you look back on the evolution of Pearl Jam’s sound, their debut Ten is actually a much darker record than most people give it credit for. Even though there were some anthems on there like Alive, the stories behind songs like Jeremy and Why Go were never for the faint of heart, talking about everything from abuse to loneliness to murder. Since they were now on top of the world though, it was about time that Pearl Jam made the kind of music that reflected how heavy their songs were.

While Ten might be the more iconic album in retrospect, Vs. is probably the most aggro that Pearl Jam would ever get, almost sounding metal in some spots on songs like Animal and Go. Although there are still more subdued songs on here like Daughter and Elderly Woman, the main focus is about bringing a certain level of intensity to everything, with even those songs having some fairly harsh stories about people who are truly lost in their own little world.

Now with some new ideas under their belt, the band also started to try out some new things on here as well, like making their first steps into funk rock on songs like Rats and Blood and wrapping things up with a heart tugging ballad on Indifference. Soundgarden may have been compared to Led Zeppelin more than anyone from Seattle, but if you break it down to how eclectic their influences can be, Pearl Jam may have a better case as a Zeppelin successor.