By Jae-Ha Kim
Amazon.com
September 25, 2007
Released more than a decade past its peak in popularity, Pearl Jam proves it still has what it takes to captivate an audience with the concert film Immagine in Cornice.
Culled from footage taken throughout the band’s 2006 tour of Italy, the film captures the preternaturally youthful Eddie Vedder mesmerizing audiences with his full, rich voice.
One of grunge music’s defining bands, Pearl Jam continues to produce new music but isn’t afraid to rest on its laurels. Unlike some groups that refuse to perform “oldies” for their fans, this DVD shows that fans are treated to hits such as “Alive,” “Even Flow,” and “Better Man,” as well as an incendiary cover of their buddy Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.”
Directed by Danny Clinch, who exhibits a keen eye for capturing a live concert experience, Immagine offers peeks backstage, as well as moments that are both charming and calculated, such as Vedder learning to speak a few Italian phrases to win over the crowd (Not that the fans needed to be won over).
There are a handful of groups that can play sold-out venues without having a record at the top of the charts, and Pearl Jam–an incredibly seasoned live band–is one of them.
The songs sound crisp and the musicians (guitarists Stone Gossard and Mike McCready, bassist Jeff Ament, drummer Matt Cameron, organist Boom Gaspar) look as though they are having the time of their lives.
While not as compelling as Jim Jarmusch’s Year of the Horse, which documented Neil Young’s 1996 tour of the same name, Immagine in Cornice is a thoughtful look at a thought-provoking and still relevant band.
