rEd mozziE: PEARL JAM - "NO CODE" ALBUM

".. lying sideways atop crumpled sheets and no covers he decides to dream .. dream up a new self for himself"
I'M OPEN

NO CODE

TEN .. VS .. VITALOGY .. YIELD .. LIVE ON TWO LEGS .. BINAURAL .. RIOT ACT .. LOST DOGS ..
BENAROYA HALL .. REARVIEWMIRROR .. PEARL JAM
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ALBUM: No Code
RELEASED: 27^th August 1996
LENGTH: 49:39
SINGLES: Who You Are, Hail Hail and Off He Goes
TRACK LISTING:
Sometimes [2:41]
Hail, Hail [3:41]
Who You Are [3:50]
In My Tree [3:59]
Smile [3:52]
Off He Goes [6:02]
Habit [3:36]
Red Mosquito [4:03]
Lukin [1:02]
Present Tense [5:46]
Mankind [3:28]
I'm Open [2:57]
Around The Bend [4:37]

MIKE McCREADY - guitar .. JEFF AMENT - bass .. STONE GOSSARD - guitar, vocals .. JACK IRONS - drums .. EDDIE VEDDER - vocals, guitar

NOTES: PRODUCED BY BRENDAN O'BRIEN AND PEARL JAM .. MIXED BY: Brendan O'Brien/Nick Didia .. RECORDED BY: Nick Didia .. MASTERED BY: Bob Ludwig .. RECORDED IN: Chicago, Atlanta & Studio Litho [Seattle] .. ASSISTANT ENGINEERS: Matt Bayles, Jeff Lane, Caram Costanzo .. 144 POLARIODS BY: E.Vedder w/J.Ament, M.McCready, B.Ament, A.Fields, C.McGann, L.Mercer PLUS 1 by Dr. Paul J.Bubak .. BLACK & WHITE PHOTOGRAPHS BY: Jeff Ament, Lance Mercer .. LAYOUT BY: Barry Ament, Chris McGann, Jerome Turner .. CONCEPT OF NO CODE BY: Jermone Turner

.. uhh did anyone manage to deciIpher the CODE here¿ *L* and hey .. did y'guys know that NO CODE was released exactly five years after their debut album TEN¿ Wells it was indeedy and it came out as a groOvy digipak along with a set of nine TRADING CARDS [the b&w pics up theres is the front 'n back of the littl' pocket thingy they come in]. I thought the whole package deal was perty kewl .. hell their whole approach to it was different and interesting¡ The digipak opens up with one section containing the cd and the other section containing the set of nine trading cards. The trading cards being selected polariod shots taken by the band with lyrics on the flipside .. perty cool huh¿ .. but the only down side was .. there were four sets of these trading cards and you didn't know which set you had until you bought it as the digipaks were all shrink wrapped. That bites¡ =( but anywayz .. if you reckon that's grOOvy then check out the cassettes¡ there's a littl' booklet in it .. all of which are all the same .. but there are nine different covers to choose from¡ get that ..
This wAs mOre of a jaMMing recOrd .. bUt the tracks on NO CODE are pretty varied .. meaning the band have perty much taken a whole different direction with this album. Kinda makes you think like maybe they've taken a wrong turn somewhere down the line .. cuz much gone is the anthemic cries and the grungey riffplay we've all come to know and lurv. Instead it offers tracks which vary from rock, to that eastern sound, to folk and pop .. so yeh .. maybe it can be perceived as experimental. But HEY¡ this is a gOod thing¡ just shows these guys aren't stuck in the one direction and are comfortable enough with themselves to explore different horizons.
Although sales were pretty disappointing with NO CODE I still thought the albUm was perty gOod .. as bOld a move as it was by the band .. who knOws .. maybe after the first three albums they were juz sick of all the shit and expectations so with this album, they put themselves first and did something THEY as a bAnd .. wanted to do. I know I was a little surprised when I listened to NO CODE for the first time .. I came home all excited .. cranked it up .. and sat back expecting the first track to be somewhat explOsive .. BIG SUPRISE¡ NO CODE opens with "Sometimes" .. a track where you can hear every twist, crack, rise, fall and breath in Eddie's vocals
The second trAck .. now THAT'S explOsive¡ *lOl* i neArly fell outtA my chAir¡ "Hail, Hail" rOcks¡ and is prObably mOre in line with their trAditionAl stuff alOng with "Red Mosquito" .. the tracks "Habit" and "Lukin" .. [a sOng 'boUt Matt Lukin of Mudhoney] alSo rOck hArd enoUgh while the pOp sOUnding trAck "Mankind" wAs left to the vOcals of Gossard .. whO's mayBe a littl' mOre caRefRee soUndin' thEn whAt Vedder caN be. InflUences and inspiRationS from Neil Young is evideNt on the track "Smile" mayBe from the MIRRORBALL days .. and saMe gOes for "Who You Are" wHicH may've bEEn inflUenced by Nursrat Fateh Ali Khan [Vedder's partner on Deadman Walking soundtraCk]. I'm not sUre 'boUt "I'm Open" thOugh .. wHere Vedder dElivers as if he was reAding a piece of pOetry .. "Off He Goes" is an acoustic balland and the albUm clOses with "Around the Bend" .. a gOrgeous lullaBy tHat was wRitten aboUt Jack's kid.
tHeir first in single "Who You Are" prObably thrEw everyoNe oFF a littl' .. bUt heaRing it aloNg with the reSt of the albUm proBaBly maKes a littl' moRe senSe .. aNd what Eddie hAd to say about it aLL¿ .. "Making No Code was all about gaining perspective."