We'll never get another album like No Code/Yield. But if they even think about anything close to that we might finally talk about an actual return to form.

Return to from!

Can someone explain why there is negativity for "returning to form" but not similar negativity for "returning to the good old days of No Code/Yield/Binaural"? Aren't both nostalgia, just 2 different flavors?

Both "return to form" (ie. being the big arena rock band) and wanting them to be the band you loved from 1996-2002 are fan-driven and nostalgia-oriented. Some people (not saying who) just want them to return to ... something.

Like "hey, can you just bring Jack Irons back and have Ed dye his hair kinda darker w/ blond streaks just like in Single Video Theory? But no beard, though, cause that's when it all went downhill. Also, can he get on Dennis Rodman's shoulders like that one time and play Can't Help Falling in Love in Vegas too? Also, play Randall's Island, but only if it's raining just like that time in 1996. And aw man, how about a song called Off SHE Goes .. hahaha that'd be awesome."

Can't speak for others, but my fondness for that era is not in the individual songs, per se; it's more about their willingness to explore new territory and play with subtlety and a nice sense of space.

Ed had a meaty beard at TFC 97 and also American Tour 00. So, get out of here with that noise.

I get what you're saying, but I think Backspacer is some shit they never did before. Like, I can't even fathom them coming up with that in any other era ... ever. It's just not the ground a few people wanted covered, although I was pretty pleased with it. Like, No Code pissed a ton of people off, and that's sorta why I liked it. That's also sorta why I love Backspacer.

It's much more about process than it is about style.

FWIW, I appreciate the concept of BS waaaaay more than that of LB. I think BS is 5 fun, fantastic songs weighed down by 6 duds.

I agree with this. Backspacer is as experimental as Yield i my book.

It's about great songs. I'd love for them to write great songs. I'd love for them to make great albums. However that happens is fine, and when people look back to that period, I think they're looking at a time when this band consistently made great songs and great albums.

that depends of course...at the time No Code was the bad album from PJ. The same with Binaural and RA.

Well, sure, people's opinions can change over time. Some music hits you immediately, some music takes a while. And others may not feel that way about those albums. I'm just saying why people may look to that period as a guide for where the band should go.

I've been on these sorts of message boards for years .. and the above has probably been said word for word, letter for letter, by Ten fans during the No Code-Binaural days. People have their favorite eras and times, but strung together, each era (early/middle/later) have their own distinct thing going for them, with each also having some weaknesses as well.

I still remember how bad i felt because i love Binaural at the time and everyone else felt it was the weakest pj album to date.

YOU FUCKERS.

I only got into the band at RA and by that time people were lamenting the loss of the Yield standard regularly, and that the band had become something different. I was fully onboard and I thought that "the black albums" were a better / more complex listen than what had initially been produced 91-96. I still do

How times have changed. I'm sure guys would love another Riot Act standard record.

But how is that different from people who used to say during the No Code days, "man I want them to rock and stage dive and play aggressive and vicious and go bananas just like in Lollapalooza. None of this Who You Are shit for me." I'm not trying to be a dick, just want to understand better.

Because them playing Who You Are, with Jack, during their anti-fame phase, was edgy and cool because it went so strongly against the expectation. And there was a sense of mystery. What the hell was Ed singing about? How did they even write such an odd song?

The expectation for them now is to play muscular riff-based rock with punk influences and clear, breathy vocals; sprinkle in some solo Ed ballads. They keep delivering the same thing. The last three albums have been variations on a theme, whereas every prior albem felt (to me, at least) like a big creative step forward from the one that preceded it. Those first four songs on Backspacer are almost like the best-case scenario for what they've been trying to tackle since S/T.

Because at the time of "No Code" they were making good sounding albums with really good songs. Now they are, uh....

A lot of people had already jumped ship before "No Code" because PJ had gotten all of that angsty shit out of their system and the status quo didn't want to hear of it. It really had nothing to do with the quality of the songs themselves.

the packaging for the 11th album will be covered in art that appears random, but when all of the panels are opened, and you stare at the image long enough, instructions on how to bypass the alternative minimum tax appears

Yield was hated too.

In ten years, Backspacer and Lightning Bolt will be held in the same esteem as Vitalogy.