The Pearl Jam guitarist on smashed Stratocasters, screaming solos, and why his band need their “asses kicked”.
As the Rolling Stones reminded us with this year’s longawaited new album Hackney Diamonds, the bigger the band, the slower it moves. With four years elapsed since Pearl Jam’s last studio release, Gigaton, they might be positively stately these days compared to the early-90s alt.rockers who spat out almost an album a year. But as guitarist Mike McCready tells us, with a North American tour in full swing and new music mooted for 2024, they’re still alive and kicking.
It feels like a long time since the release of Pearl Jam’s 2020 album Gigaton. Are the band less prolific than they used to be, or is that just what happens to big bands?
[Late Soundgarden frontman] Chris Cornell once said something to me. Before he passed, we did a Mad Season concert with the Seattle Symphony, and he said: “You can get eighty musicians to show up in an orchestra, all on time, but you can never get five guys in a band to show up.” When we get together in Pearl Jam, the music is the priority, but we all have our own lives. But we still play, as a unit, like no other five guys do. It’s because we’ve been through so much, for thirty years. The history, the dynamics, the stupid jokes, all that stuff comes back.
So when can we expect the next Pearl Jam album?
I’m hoping it’s gonna come out next year. We have a bunch of songs tracked. We worked with Andrew Watt, who’s a younger pop producer-type guy, but he’s really a rock guy at heart – I think we’re his favourite band. When we were in the studio with him this past year, he really kicked our asses, got us focused and playing, song after song. It took a long time to make Gigaton, but this new one didn’t take long. Andrew was like: “You guys take forever to make records. Let’s do this, right now.”
What does the new material sound like?
It’s a lot heavier than you’d expect. There’s the melody and energy of the first couple of records. Andrew pushed us to play as hard and melodic and thoughtful as we’ve done in a long time. I feel like Matt Cameron’s drumming has elements of what he did in Soundgarden. For better or worse, you’re gonna hear a lot more lead guitar from me, stuff I haven’t done in a long time. I went crazy, like with Chris Cornell and Temple Of The Dog on Reach Down [1991], all those years ago. I got to do it again. Usually the first or second takes are best. After that I start thinking about it and it doesn’t have the feel. But Andrew caught the lightning in a bottle, as they say.
It’s based on my 1960 Stratocaster. Y’know, that thing is a workhorse. I really get into it when I’m playing live – and I’m not f
