Pearl Jam has revealed its twelfth album, Dark Matter (Monkeywrench Records/Republic Records), out April 19, along with the first single, and title track. Dark Matter marks the band’s first new music since Gigaton in 2020.
Produced by Andrew Watt, Dark Matter was recorded at Rick Rubin‘s Shangri-La Studios in Malibu, California in 2023. There Eddie Vedder, Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Matt Cameron wrote and recorded Dark Matter within three weeks.
Steal the lights from our eyes / Take my blood from my heart / We’re in all of this dark matter sings Vedder on the propulsive title track, which revolves around disunity and people paying for others’ mistakes. “‘Dark Matter’ channels the shared spirit of a group of lifelong creative confidants and brothers in one room playing as if their very lives depended on it,” reads a descriptor of the 11-track album.
“I’m getting chills because I have good memories,” said Vedder in a statement. “We’re still looking for ways to communicate. We’re at this time in our lives when you could do it or you could not do it, but we still care about putting something out there that is meaningful and we hopefully think is our best work. No hyperbole, I think this is our best work.”
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Ament added, “What Ed said about getting us in a room at this point, we felt like we were about to make a really important record. A lot of that had to do with the atmosphere Andrew [Watt] set up. He has encyclopedic knowledge of our history, not only as a band and how we wrote songs but
as players. He could pinpoint things we did on old songs to the point where I was like, ‘What the
f–k is he talking about?’ His excitement was contagious. He’s a force. I just want to say thanks
for keeping us on track.”
The album’s cover art illustrated by Alexandr Gnezdilov, features a large self-made kaleidoscope with each letter individually handwritten midair with a specially designed flashlight capturing the pearlescent effect.
[RELATED: Top 10 Pearl Jam Songs]
To commemorate Record Store Day on April 20, Pearl Jam will release a special edition of the album at select stores.
“I couldn’t be prouder of us as a band,” added Ament. “I feel so grateful for the fans, but mostly for my brothers and these people I’ve made music with.”
‘Dark Matter’ Track Listing:
1. “Scared Of Fear”
2. “React, Respond”
3. “Wreckage”
4. “Dark Matter”
5. “Won’t Tell”
6. “Upper Hand”
7. “Waiting For Stevie”
8. “Running”
9. “Something Special”
10. “Got To Give”
11. “Setting Sun”
Photo: Danny Clinch / Courtesy of UMe
