Mike McCready has provided an update on what's next for Pearl Jam, assuring fans that their next album, produced by Andrew Watt, will be “a lot heavier than you would expect.”
The guitarist offered some details about the album in a recent interview with Classic rockand although it has not yet been announced, it seems that the LP is almost complete: “I hope it comes out [in 2024]McCready said. “We have a lot of songs tracked. We worked with Andrew Watt, who's a young pop producer guy, but really he's a rock guy at heart; I think we are his favorite band. When we were in the studio with him last year, he really kicked our butts, got us focused and played, song after song.”
While Watt has worked with the likes of Miley Cyrus, Post Malone and Lana Del Rey, our 2022 Producer of the Year has collaborated with artists like Ozzy Osbourne and Iggy Pop in recent years. “He's a lot heavier than you would expect,” McCready continued. “There is the melody and energy of the first albums. Andrew pushed us to play as hard, melodic and thoughtful as we have in a long time. I feel like Matt Cameron's drumming has elements of what he did in Soundgarden.”
As for his own contributions to the album, McCready was able to revisit some of his old skills: “For better or worse, you'll hear a lot more lead guitar from me, things I haven't done in a long time. I went crazy, like with Chris Cornell and [our supergroup] Temple of the Dog in reach down, So many years ago. I have to do it again. Usually the first or second take is the best. After that I start thinking about it and I don't have the feeling. But Andrew caught lightning in a bottle, as they say.”
Bassist Jeff Ament spoke about the future of Pearl Jam on an episode of Consequence's Kyle Meredith with… podcast last year, while Cameron hinted they hope to celebrate the 2020 follow-up Gigaton with a great tour.
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