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August 14, 2018: No Code

Hi Brad and Brad,

I am continuing to make my way through season 1 (now halfway through episode 20) and am keeping up with the new episodes as they come out.  I hope you guys have a blast at Wrigley and I wish I could be there to meet both of you.  My wife and I lived in Edgewater (just north of Wrigleyville) for a little over a year and really enjoyed our stay in Chicago.

My main reason for writing you guys tonight is in regards to No Code.  Ever since you guys began to mention that both of your favorite album was No Code, it has been on constant play for me (when I am not listening to your podcast).  It was an album when I first listened to that I only really enjoyed Hail, Hail and Off He Goes, but it kept growing on me over the years as other songs like In My Tree and Present Tense (top 3 song for me now) began to resonate with me.  In the past decade, the album grew on me well enough that I began to better appreciate the brilliance of it.  Now after hearing you guys discuss it more and then go into great detail in Episode 19, it has now taken on the identity of my 2018.  What I came to appreciate after listening to your discussions is the amazing contrast this album provides from track-to-track.  It's such a roller coaster ride of emotions, with the highs coming in Hail, Hail, Habit, and Lukin and lows in Sometimes, Off He Goes, Present Tense, I'm Open and Around the Bend.  The other tracks fill in a great balance between the two extremes in In My Tree, Smile, Red Mosquito and Mankind (by the way Brad L., I am a fan of this song, but can see Eddie pulling off the vocals much better than Stone).  The highs, lows and finding balance describes so much of what I've gone through seeing my wife go through everything she has had to deal with this year.  Almost every song can explain what I have experienced (more in the music than the lyrics) in 2018.  it has me reconsidering where I would place it in my top 10 albums and at some point I'll jot these down and share with you guys.  What I have loved about your podcast is that you have given me point of views on both albums and tracks that I hadn't thought about before and now I am rediscovering so many things about Pearl Jam's music.  It has been very therapeutic for me and I want to thank you both for that.
 
Lastly, I was wondering if I could suggest a couple of show topics, if they haven't already been suggested.  The first is discussing their album art and if either of you are partial to some of their art over others.  I just listened to the discussion you had (it may have had Clint present for it) regarding how much work they put into their vinyl and CD cases/booklets.  I would be curious to know which were your favorites.

The second idea i had spawns from when I had a Sirius XM account and would listen to Pearl Jam Radio.  What i came to enjoy was not so much just their music, but listening to songs by artists that influenced them to become what they are.  I'm not sure how much information you guys currently have on their musical influences, but it's something I've always wanted to learn more about.

Regards,

Chris

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