Pearl Jam’s Unyielding Artistry

Declining sales can do strange things to bands--and few rock groups have seen their U.S. sales drop as dramatically as Pearl Jam. The Seattle quintet’s unit count has plummeted from the 9-million figure of 1992’s “Ten” to the 1-million mark of 1996’s “No Code.”

The irony is that Pearl Jam’s music--both in the passion of the music and in the range of the themes--has advanced during that time in ways that are equally dramatic.

Those elements began surfacing in “Vitalogy,” the breakthrough 1994 collection that began separating Pearl Jam from the ‘90s grunge pack. The band’s playing went from rigid to passionate and free, while singer and chief lyricist Eddie Vedder’s words became more revealing and mature.

That growth continued in 1996’s “No Code,” which incorporated elements as varied as the calming spirit of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s music and the wistful introspection of Neil Young ballads.

But in the music industry, the Pearl Jam story tended to focus more on the declining sales than on the escalating artistry. The question wasn’t “Why is this band getting better?” but “Why is it selling less?”

There are several factors that contributed to the sales loss, most of them tied to Pearl Jam’s reluctance to promote its albums with the customary videos and concert tours.

But there was also another possibility: the music itself. Were the musical changes causing the group to lose touch with its young, hard-core audience?

So Pearl Jam was at such a crossroads when it went into the studio last year to follow up “No Code” that it’s tempting to think of the new album cover--with its highway “Yield” sign--as a playful comment on its dilemma.

Should the band yield to the temptation of trying to go back and regain the commercial momentum of “Ten,” or should it face the challenge of trying to push the boundaries of its music even further?

In its moment of truth, Pearl Jam didn’t blink.

In such tracks as “Brain of J” and “MFC,” Pearl Jam has come up with music as combustible as “Corduroy,” the fireball song from “Vitalogy” that is one of the group’s most electric concert numbers. The new song refers to the “brain of JFK” as one image in a general questioning of what one learns and knows.

Elsewhere, however, there is music that glides along with the warmth and soulfulness of such Pearl Jam high points as “Long Road” and “Around the Bend.” There is even the kind of naked idealism in the new “Wishlist” that we heard from U2’s Bono before he got tired of being ridiculed for his uplifting beliefs.

The most affecting line is one that seems especially tender from a rock star who has often complained about the dark side of fame. In the song, Vedder acknowledges quite sweetly his own blessings: “I wish I were as fortunate . . . as fortunate as me.”

In a far different vein, “Do the Evolution” is a fierce track that takes a jab at the idea of the steady progress of humankind. Like much of the album, the tune contains some striking experimental touches--in this case the sound of a church choir--that add to the album’s sense of adventure.

Vedder’s gritty, convincing vocals--long one of the band’s strong points--continue to express a variety of emotions with character and authority.

Indeed, the vocals and themes flow so seamlessly on “Yield” that it’s surprising to learn that Vedder, who normally writes all the band’s lyrics, didn’t write the words to four tunes, including Jeff Ament’s gentle, contemplative “Low Light” and Stone Gossard’s tender, anthem-like “All Those Yesterdays.”

We won’t know until the album hits the stores whether “Yield” will reverse Pearl Jam’s commercial fortunes, but the album’s contents answer the most important question. The band’s music continues to grow in all the important ways.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to four stars (excellent).

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* Excerpts from these albums and other recent releases are available on The Times’ World Wide Web site. Point your browser to: https://www.latimes.com/soundclips