gonna go ahead and say it... this is my favorite PJ song of all time.

Yep

this thread is truly a berm upon which all who bear the burden of taste can seek respite from the squalls inspired by recent-vintage vedderphoons

So after hearing this live in Columbia I decided to revisit some of the catalog that falls into the category of "songs I really like but kind of forgot about".

This is a fantastic song on the headphones. I was happy to hear it live and it was fine live, but this deserves headphones, a glass of Elmer T. Lee, and all emotional walls down. Just beautiful that way.

Sleight of Hand is PJ's masterpiece. It is every member of the band performing at the absolute peak of their abilities. The album version is the best recording the band has ever made. And it is my all time favorite song. 10 Stars.

This is not unreasonable.

Well I finally read the lyrics while listening to this song and now Im insanely depressed thanks a lot <_<

Probably not the best song to listen to at work.

I would have to say there probably wont be a song Id relate to more than this one which brings it up a lot of points in my book in a sad way that makes me feel like life is over at 24 so thanks Pearl Jam

This song and the sentiments of Im Open get me >_>

I will say that I still am not a big fan of the chorus, I think it lets the song down as many Binaural choruses do (Nothing as it Seems, Light Years, this one) they all hit similar notes that IMO slow down the momentum of the song. But the verses are very good. Its not an all-time favorite of mine, and I think it could have been something more with a different chorus, but good lyrics. Somebody said Eddie writes his best lyrics when writing about a character rather than himself, and I have to agree.

Saying SOH has a weak chorus is fucking lunacy

It reminds me very much of the light years and nothing as it seems choruses and Im not sure what I dont like about it. Maybe its those long loud sustained notes/chords rather than the moving verses which I think flows a lot better.

Those songs also have flawless choruses

These choruses might be my favorite parts of their respective songs, I guess that the sustained chords really do it for me.
I cant imagine a better chorus choice for Sleight of Hand, and I find the slight chord change in NAIS to be charming.

Da fuq.

seriously though like...I was just thinking of the sentiments of this song recently. I mean Ive been working for 9 months now and I can already feel its effect on my psyche, I feel like my brain, my mind, etc, my thoughts, is...'different' now. And not for the better. Ive always pretty much felt like a kid, though now I feel like that has changed, and its so tough to get up every day to go do the same thing with no real motion forward. Its like what gives life meaning? I miss school desperately, I always knew life was going to be downhill after high school graduation - college was ok, but like a transitional period into the blaaaaaaaaaaa that is working life.

I seriously just feel like Im moving forward rapidly through time doing nothing of any importance. Every day just go to work, go home, anohter day another day another day. And I sometimes think I should do something different, or make some change, or just take some time to think or find myself or whatever, but there's no time with work to even think about anything so I just keep going forward, most days being pretty meaningless. I barely even care about a lot of the things I used to care about and I do feel like in a way Ive finally lost myself.

So yeah, this song is depressing.

All that in just nine months? Jesus man. Try being 16 years into a career, divorced, and with three kids.

Drink a beer, hang out with some friends, listen to some Prince... Lighten things up a bit. Fuckn' A.

The sad thing is that MJD is totally right.

GET OUT NOW. DO SOMETHING FULFILLING.

Ahh, life's not that bad. It's all about perspective. But if he's miserable now, then now is the time to change. Do it before you are legitimately stuck and have real life responsibilities that have priority over personal desires.

All those awesome animals in the animal tournament don't give a fuck about fulfillment in life. All that matters in life is captaining a love boat.

The thing is I don't know what to do, and there's no time to think about it because Im always working or tired from working. Video games, friends, etc, just isnt the same as it used to be...Im always tired and rarely in a great move and counting down the time til when I have to be back at work AGAIN.

At least at school things changed. Every year was something different, new people, teachers, etc, or in college new courses. You were always moving going somewhere, every day had purpose, and there were vacations to look forward to. In high school I went to school and though I did well in school I always was looking for opportunities to talk to my friends, etc, mess around with the teachers, whatever. But in work its like you have to go there to work. You can't go there trying to avoid doing work because then you get fired. (Well I post on here all day...but yeah <_<). Nothing ever really HAPPENS. at school I'd always have stories when I got home of something meaningful that happened that day either with teachers or friends, but now I have nothing meaningful to say because every day is the same as the day before it.

9 months flew by like it was 1. The time just passed me by like that. And I just feel like that is ultimately what Sleight of Hand is about right? (Well an older man than I am...but still). A guy just going through the motions and not living, having lost himself somewhere along the way, and having no time to do anything different because he has to keep doing what he's doing as if living in a dream.

I don't really know how to break out of it because I dont know what I really want to do. What I liked doing was being a student, hanging out with friends, going home, playing video games, etc. Life didn't need to have a purpose back then. your purpose was just your social life I guess? But that is gone once work starts, and you have to force yourself to do all the things that just sort of happened before.

I dunno, I dont see it getting much better.

You hear songs like Sleight of Hand and you're like...hmm, I guess everybody is like that. But that doesn't make me feel better at all, in fact it makes it feel worse. If everybody is like this its like adulthood and life is just a giant lie. Its like you have some years of happiness and freedom and then its all downhill from there and youre miserable for years. Just another guy going along.

I dunno I used to imagine, I used to get immersed in things, in dreams, in whatever...now not really, I feel like my ability to do that is just gone over the past 9 months. I just feel much more bitter, less excited about things, and then Im like 'whats the point of life?' which is not something I ever felt as a kid, and something I wish I didnt have to think about.

And the worst part is its just going to get worse and worse and worse from here.

So yeah I connect with this song <_<

Anyways maybe one day Ill have time to think about what else I want to do but my head isnt clear enough to think about that and I dont feel that I have the time to clear it and soul search because I have to go to work. And it never ends!! Its like being a hampster on a wheel spinning endlessly. I mean, nothing changes, there's no vacation Im looking forward to, every week is going to be exactly the same as the last.

Look at it this way: you may not know what you ultimately want to do, but you do know that you don't like what you're doing now. So what do you have to lose by kicking it to the curb and trying out something you might like better? And keep in mind that surfaces can be deceiving -- just because a job doesn't inherently excite you doesn't preclude it from offering opportunities you hadn't considered. At the very least, it might fill your life with new people that you'll be elated to see every day.

But really, LV and PHATJ are right -- get the hell out of any job that is weighing you down like that. I speak from experience. Life is too short.

Not everyone is stuck in a life like the one described in "Sleight of Hand." Yes, there are responsibilities inherent to adulthood that suck compared to playing video games and screwing around with your friends. But that likely isn't going to fulfill you forever either. Change your circumstances, change your way of thinking, do a little of both -- at some point "all downhill from here" is something you choose.