Say what you want about Pearl Jam but their longevity is almost as undeniable as the colorful discography they’ve created along the way. The iconic band has been around for a few decades and has cultivated a dedicated fan base and their loyal followers are coming out for their short tour across the States. Earlier this year Pearl Jam announced a short run of shows that has the band on the road for nine shows, bringing their recently released Give Way (Live) LP directly to the people. The band has been releasing live versions of their classic albums over the past year with their 2020 LP, Gigaton, also receiving a live reissue last year.
The band kicked off their short tour last night (Thursday, August 31) at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The setlist Pearl Jam put together for last night’s show is nothing short of career-defining as the band traversed their plethora of solidified classics and underrated B-sides. The band kicked things off with an intimate seated performance with a performance of tracks like “Indifference” and “Wishlist”, marking the first time the band opened with “Indifference” since a 1994 Denver performance. After performing the first five songs of the show sitting, they got to work with an electric show. The band primarily focused on their classic debut Ten, pulling out hits like “Even Flow” and deep cuts like “Why Go”. The band also performed “Insignificance” from their 2000 LP Binaural for the first time since 2016. For the encore, Pearl Jam pulled out tracks like “Go” and “Alive” while also covering songs like Tom Petty’s “Wildflowers”, which was a solo performance from Eddie Vedder with the full band returning to the stage for a performance of “Crazy Mary” by Victoria Williams.
With one night down and eight more to go, Pearl Jam shows no signs of slowing down. The band will stay another night in St. Paul for a second performance at the same arena tomorrow (Saturday, September 2) then make the move to Chicago for another two-night stay. The band will wrap things up with a string of shows in Texas that will have them on the road until mid-September. Check out the full setlist, tour dates, and footage from their first St. Paul performance below;
09-02 Saint Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center
09-05 Chicago, IL – United Center
09-07 Chicago, IL – United Center
09-10 Indianapolis, IN – Ruoff Music Center
09-13 Fort Worth, TX – Dickies Arena
09-15 Fort Worth, TX – Dickies Arena
09-18 Austin, TX – Moody Center
09-19 Austin, TX – Moody Center
