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I can see the comparison to Gone, but I've never seen the relation between Waves and In Hiding, even though the comparison is often made. I guess broadly they're both mid-tempo inspirational songs, but In Hiding is far more musically nimble; Amongst the Waves tends to feel like a slower, more plodding song than it actually is.
But In Hiding is by far the best song; I actually think Waves and Gone are two of the worst songs on their respective albums. Maybe they've just lost the ability to throw that particular pitch.
Agreed. None of these songs are among Eddie's finest lyrically, but "In Hiding" has musical sensibilities to it that neither "Gone" nor "ATW" has -- there's a whole internal logic to the instrumental composition of "In Hiding" that makes Eddie's contributions feel secondary to me, as much as I enjoy the color/flavor he adds to the overall sound. I always think of the part in Single Video Theory where Eddie talks about listening to Stone's demo over and over, struggling to put a melody and lyrics to it while Stone repeatedly nags him about it, and I feel like I can kind of understand Eddie's predicament -- this is one of a handful of Pearl Jam songs that could be slightly re-tooled and be perfectly satisfying as an instrumental, it feels that fully formed to me. Moreover, even though Eddie's lyrics don't make for good poetry, the tone of the music -- and by that I don't mean the production or the bombastic chorus, but the actual emotional register of the chords, arpeggios, etc. -- really echoes what the song is saying in a way that is unique in their catalog. Like, even if you took Eddie's words away, I think the song would still send more or less the same message. A lot of Yield is like that for me, part of why I love it so much.
"Gone" and "ATW" both have their moments, but they're largely wallpaper music for Eddie's words. "Gone" has a nice gloomy, fatigued vibe in the verses, but the lyrics completely kill it, not that it isn't waiting to be killed by that dreadful chorus anyway. "ATW" is nothing to write home about either but I ultimately like it better -- there are more individual pieces that I like anyway, and while the chorus lets down the verse I feel like it at least sustains the overall sensibility of the song, and feels deliberate. The chorus of "Gone" just feels so musically vacant; in the '90's they came up with improvs that felt more purposeful.
Last edited by Kevin Davis on Fri January 31, 2020 7:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
Joined: Thu December 13, 2012 6:31 pm Posts: 39922
WtOB? wrote:
oh c’mon.
lyrically i think in hiding is really bad - something to grow out of, which is usually a dealbreaker for me. and the discordantly clean music, which I can see why people why like, isnt usually what i go for. we get a thinner version of it in amongst the waves, that I like more
In hiding does clearly have the best chorus of the bunch. not a bad bridge either
Lyrics Amongst the Waves (easily - love the verses and the melody) Gone (ideas and moments I like, clunkers too) In Hiding (among eddie’s weakest)
Chorus In Hiding (it is a great chorus - at least the prechorus part of it) Gone (lyrics are nothing but this is less important in a chorus that can trade off the verses). I do like the music and the classic Eddie soar - Far from the best version of it but still affecting, probably more so juxtaposed against the dour verse Amongst the waves - the chorus performance does not work - needs to be bigger/more cathartic
Verses Amongst the waves - easily the strongest part of the song. love how all the pieces fit gone/in hiding maybe tied. In Hiding gets it with different lyrics
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