The song is the latest from Dark Matter
Pearl Jam presents their latest single, “Wreckage,” the final single in advance of their anxiously awaited 12th studio album, Dark Matter, available this Friday, April 19th via Monkeywrench Records/Republic Records.
“That one probably has the biggest build for me personally, in terms of hearing it at first and thinking, it’s kind of an Ed song,” Stone Gossard shares. “I wasn’t quite aware of its potency until later. Andrew [Watt] encouraged me to play this little harmonic, acoustic part almost like a Cure melody. I’ve been playing along with the song to relearn it and I’m really looking forward to playing it live. It’s a really powerful lyric and I think we did a really great job of taking something and really pushing it to its limit.”
“[‘Wreckage’] started with the riff and everyone kind of formulating sections together,” adds producer Andrew Watt. “That song just came to Ed right away. Within the first couple takes before the music was even right, his vocals were right. His melodies and words are so strong in that song. Once the initial spark was there and there were a few sections, it was just really about following him.”
Dark Matter marks the band’s first release since critically acclaimed Gigaton in 2020. In 2023, the members of Pearl Jam retreated to Shangri-La Studios in Malibu where they simply plugged in and played with producer Andrew Watt at the helm.
The band is celebrating indie record stores with the release of a special edition of the project on April 20th for Record Store Day.
Last night, the group premiered the album with an exclusive cinematic engagement, Pearl Jam – Dark Matter – Global Theatrical Experience – One Night Only. Distributed by Abramorama, Dark Matter came to life in over 800 locations worldwide in Dolby Atmos.
Dark Matter album packaging features light painting art by Alexandr Gnezdilov. Light painting is an artistic form of photography in which images are created by adjusting a camera’s exposure for an extended period and using a light source, such as a flashlight, to “paint” in the dark. The album cover art was crafted using a large self-made kaleidoscope. Each letter visible on the cover was individually captured and handwritten midair with a specially designed flashlight to create the pearlescent effect.
In support of the album, Pearl Jam will head out on a world tour this year, marking the first time the band has announced a new album and tour simultaneously and the first time the group has unveiled all worldwide tour dates at once. Their global tour, hitting nine countries and 25 cities, kicks off at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, and will cover much of North America including shows at Wrigley Field, Madison Square Garden, Fenway Park, and their first hometown performance in six years at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena, the world’s first net zero certified arena.
The tour continues with performances in the UK and Europe, including their first performance at London’s brand new and state-of-the-art Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, through September, followed by the group’s long-awaited ten-year return to New Zealand and Australia this November.
