Still buzzing from this. It was the kind of gig that helps renew your love and faith in the band. I hadn't seen them since 2010, but knew because I missed out on PJ20 and The Spectrum finale that I wanted to see this gig.

Merch was a bitch outside the venue. I made the mistake of seeing 50 people outside the venue and deciding to come back later to a line of 500 that barely moved over the course of the early afternoon in blazing sun. So other than the kind fans, that was time wasted, but the following day as soon as we got on the field, we snagged everything we wanted at home plate in a matter of minutes. Zero lines.

The Cubs fans next to me called Release because its what they'd seen PJ usually use to open most Chicago gigs. Some of the faithful Cubbie diehards were walking around with bags and plastic cups of dirt from the infield.

The craziest thing is to see a gig start, stop for 3 hours, and then kick back into high gear. It was really surreal. What are the odds that their first ballpark gig would include an eternal rain delay like a real ballgame? It felt like every other song I caught myself saying "Holy shit. Oh my God," when they'd go into a rarity I never thought I'd hear. Nothingman, Hold On, the new songs, Crown of Thorns with the real intro, Ernie Banks onstage, Bugs, Mother, the packed concourse of people smushed together like sardines, the oohs and ahhs of the collective crowd watching lightning light up the city like it was daytime.

During the delay, you'd find an open seat, raining soaking you to the bone, sit down and just start talking to random people and everyone was chill, everyone was cool. Someone from Omaha, Boston, Sacramento, Florida, West Virginia. It felt like it was a gig for fans who'd missed out on the anniversary celebration. People seemed to be from everywhere and everyone knew it'd all work out.

They axed nine songs. Black into RitFW to close the show?? No Alive?? Do The Evolution was fuckin' awesome with Eddie encouraging the crowd to chant along to the melody "South America style." I hope that catches on here in the states. Sounds so cool. It felt like Mike didn't want to stop soloing during Even Flow and even with the breakdown, Corduroy was slick and ripping.

I've been fortunate enough to see some pretty good gigs over the years, but this one is always gonna stand out as exceptionally cool, and exceptionally weird. Throughout the night I'd stop and look back behind me, scanning the upper decks of the ballpark, looking for the enthusiasm in other fans. A lot of people were drained from the heat, the beer, the rain, and standing for hours on end, but even at the close of the show, at 2 AM when the city finally pulled the plug, the energy was still there. Everyone's older and more reserved these days, less inclined to go nuts like when we were all young kids, but the band itself still has what it takes to leave an impact crater that will always leave you in awe every single time.

Bring on the fall tour. Pittsburgh, Philly, Baltimore, Charlottesville, and Charlotte. Its gonna be tons of fuckin' fun.

I met cat power backstage at an EV show last year. She couldn't have been nicer. She had her dog with her and we chatted about dogs at length.

Just odd that he has such a variety of friends.

I heard Rodman got fucked out of wrigley. No surprises there at all.

I ran into a guy today out at lunch wearing a PJ/Wrigley shirt... (and not one that i saw for sale) asked him if he was there... not only was he there, he was part of the crew that did the staging... and was there for 16 hours before the PJ set... 17 hours after PJ / before Jason whomever he was... then had to go over to Soldier field to set up for the JayZ/Timberlake concert... worked well over 50 hours in a 4 day span...

big thanks to everyone who worked on those shows

Those of you who wanted a setlist shirt: http://pearljam.com/goods/product_info. ... ts_id=2117

Those of you who wanted a setlist shirt: http://pearljam.com/goods/product_info. ... ts_id=2117

thirty . . . five . . . dollars

thirty . . . five . . . dollars

Supposedly all the posters will be available online through the 10C at some point.

dude it costs like $3 to make a t-shirt give them a break...

I met cat power backstage at an EV show last year. She couldn't have been nicer. She had her dog with her and we chatted about dogs at length.

Just odd that he has such a variety of friends.

I heard Rodman got fucked out of wrigley. No surprises there at all.

Anyone else think they'll try again next summer?

dude it costs like $3 to make a t-shirt give them a break...