Pearl Jam, everything you need to know about Dark Matter

DARK MATTER

Pearl Jam’s twelfth studio album, Dark Matter, will be released on Monkeywrench Records/Republic Records on April 19, 2024.

DARK MATTER: LYRICS

1. Scared of Fear 4:24
2. React, Respond 3:31
3. Wreckage 5:00
4. Dark Matter 3:31
5. Won’t Tell 3:28
6. Upper Hand 5:57
7. Waiting For Stevie 5:41
8. Running 2:19
9. Something Special 4:07
10. Got To Give 4:37
11. Setting Sun 5:44

Release date: 04/19/2024
Lenght: 48:19

Jeff Ament: Bass, Baritone Guitar, Guitar
Stone Gossard: Guitars
Mike McCready: Guitars, Piano
Ed Vedder: Vocals, Guitars, Piano
Matt Cameron: Drums, Percussions

Josh Klinghoffer: Guitars, Keyboards
Andrew Watt: Guitars, Piano

Produced by Andrew Watt
Artwork byAlexandr Gnezdilov

Recorded at Shangri-La, Malibu, California

RECORDING SESSIONS

After the first sessions at Andrew Watt’s personal studio in Beverly Hills, the album was largely recorded at Rick Rubin’s Shangri-La recording studio in Malibu last year. Dark Matter was born in just three weeks. As a result, the album “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”.

Dark Matter was recorded over three weeks – the first in July 2021 and the other two in March 2023 – at Shangri-La in Malibu, California and, according to a press release, “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“. On November 29, 2023, drummer Matt Cameron revealed that they finished a record with assistance from Andrew Watt and that it was “mastered, mixed, ready to go” at the time. On January 5, 2024, guitarist Mike McCready described the album as “a lot heavier” than one might expect, saying that recording was less time-consuming than for their previous record Gigaton, mostly thanks to the involvement from Watt, who was said to have “kicked” their “asses”.

Later that month, on January 31, the band and Watt debuted Dark Matter in front of a group of fans at the Troubadour in West Hollywood, California, without revealing lyrics or song titles. During the event, Eddie Vedder opined that this is their best work to date and how he could not be prouder of the band.

DARK MATTER: VINYL & BLU-RAY/CD & ARTWORK

Dark Matter pre-orders are now available and include several vinyl variants. HD Audio and Dolby Atmos mixes will be available on a deluxe CD/Blu-ray. Pearl Jam is also celebrating indie record stores with the release of a special edition of Dark Matter on April 20.

Here’s a list of all current available formats of Pearl Jam’s new album:

Ten Club exclusive red vinyl with 24-page booklet (only at pearljam.com)
Crystal vinyl with 24-page booklet
Standard vinyl with 24-page booklet
Standard CD
Deluxe CD/Blu-ray with HD Audio and Dolby Atmos immersive mix

All vinyl packages will include one of three unique sticker sheets with 5 center label stickers and a logo sticker.

The album’s packaging features light painting art by Alexandr Gnezdilov. The album cover art was crafted using a large self-made kaleidoscope. Each letter visible on the cover was individually captured and handwritten midair with a specially designed flashlight to create the pearlescent effect.

THE FIRST SINGLE: DARK MATTER

Dark Matter is available from 2/13 as a seven-inch vinyl single backed with an instrumental version on the b-side. The song was written by all five members of Pearl Jam along with their producer Andrew Watt. It is also available as a digital single on pearljam.com.

THE 2ND SINGLE: RUNNING

Running is available from 2/13 on every streaming platforms. The song was written by all five members of Pearl Jam along with their producer Andrew Watt.

THE THIRD SINGLE: WRECKAGE

Wrekcer is available from 4/17 on every streaming platforms. The song was written by all five members of Pearl Jam along with their producer Andrew Watt.

THE FOURTH SINGLE: WAITING FOR STEVIE

Waiting For Stevie (Radio Edit) is available from 9/23 on every streaming platforms. The song was written by all five members of Pearl Jam along with their producer Andrew Watt.