Review: Pearl Jam - Twenty (Soundtrack)

***

Pearl Jam have released nearly as many live albums as studio albums, so it’s no surprise the soundtrack to the film that marks the 20th anniversary of Ten is chiefly a live collection. Twenty's director Cameron Crowe – himself a huge fan – has pieced together an inspired selection of cuts from across the globe that will satisfy casual and diehard fans. Disc one begins with a typically emotive Release from 2006 and ends with Walk With Me – the best of the Eddie Vedder-Neil Young collaborations – and a beautifully spare Just Breathe; in between the band's ascent to grunge superstardom is led by a raw but authoritative Alive from 1990 and a six-minute, unplugged Black. Disc two, laden with rarities and demos of varying quality, includes a rousing, audience-led Better Man.
Key track: A snarling take of Not for You from Manila in 1995.

Review: The Stillons - Earnest

*** 1/2

Every so often a band comes along whose effortlessness makes the difficult seem simple. The Stillsons are one such group, and with their second album they show our nation's many roots-country wannabees just where the bar sits. Earnest in musicianship and album title, the hard-working Thornbury trio – vocalists Justin Bernasconi and Cat Canteri, and former Waifs bassist Ben Franz – toss up a dozen charming and earthy tunes with lyrics that allude to broken relationships and a path to success not easily trodden. The pace varies, from sun-drenched opener Call Me Up and the downbeat Stillson, to the buoyant, menacing Death Country and languid closer In Violence. She Don't Wanna Know, meanwhile, nods warmly to Neil Young.
Key track: Lead single Nobody Knows You Tonight is a southern-twanged drunken escapade that you won't rid yourself of in a hurry.