Pearl Jam’s “The Fixer” hits radio stations

Early this morning, radio stations across the US premiered “The Fixer”; the first single off of Pearl Jam’s upcoming release, Backspacer. For those unable to tune into their local radio station, the band is streaming the new single on its Ten Club Myspace page. The upcoming album will be the band’s ninth studio effort and the first since 2006’s Pearl Jam. Although the last album received critical acclaim and has sold enough units to grant it “gold” certification, many long-time fans voiced their wishes for a return to Pearl Jam’s old days, when albums like Ten, VS, and Vitalogy gave the band the hard-edged, progressive reputation that has defined its success.

On June 1st, the band performed “Got Some”, another song off of the upcoming Backspacer album, on the Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien. In comparison, “The Fixer” is far more laid-back and radio-friendly than the gritty punk growl of “Got Some”. Indeed, after several listens to the new single, it bears significant resemblance to the polished production values found on the 2006 self-titled release, with the closest match being the anthemic “Unemployable”.

Despite the broad spectrum of opinions the new release is bound to evoke, the band still regularly sells out venues across North America and Europe. Pearl Jam will be hitting the road in support of Backspacer starting on August 8th at Calgary Alberta’s Virgin Fest. View a complete list of tour dates here, and stay tuned to The Rock Dose for a full review of the new album which is due for tentative release on Sept 22nd.

Photo: ZUMA Press