Pearl Jam's second album, Vs., is a
dynamic masterpiece that contains many different kinds of rock that all roll. Vs. starts
off with Go, which is a pounding thrasher about being left behind by someone you love. Eddie Vedder's trademarks howls are turned into yelps on both this song and the following Animal, but it is with intensity that can be matched by no one else in grunge or any rock today. Daughter is
dynamic in itself. A mostly acoustic ballad about fitting in, even when you don't know where you stand with those closest to you. Glorified G is a compelling anti-handgun rocker that pokes fun at the jockular crowd that enjoys keeping loaded weapons around their house. Dissident is another rocker, but differs in the notion that it has infectious hooks, which is why it was released as one of four singles off this stellar disk. Next comes W.M.A, a song that exposes the abusiveness of white policemen and the fact that they usually get away with what they've done. Blood is all over the place, but is good because it is meant to have no direction, and just meant to be chaotic like like sometimes can be. Then there's Rearviewmirror, a song that has clinging arpeggios that ends with wild guitar screeches and wails. Rats is another biopic that compares
humans to rats and ends with the idea that humans are a lesser species because humans feel fear and hate, while rats just live and f**k. Elderly Woman is a very folksy piece that shows Vedder's cautionary whims on regret and nostalgia, with all the acoustics and the vocals there is no losing here. Leash rocks on in a Who-like manner with rebellion against authority as the main theme. Last, but certainly not least is the moving Indifference, that has mostly vocals over layers of keys and guitars that set the mood so that Eddie Vedder can tell it where to go, up or down.