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Decades after the fact, it's easy to forget that in grunge's heyday, Pearl Jam were even bigger than Nirvana. Though Kurt Cobain became the scene's icon (especially in death), Pearl Jam commanded the attention of an even wider swath of America. And their second album, <i>V.</i>, marks the moment where the band proved that both they and the movement they spearheaded had the legs to move forward and evolve. In the wake of their debut's record-breaking success and resultant overexposure, Pearl Jam tried to avoid making another blockbuster. <i>V.</i> is less polished and anthemic than <i>Ten</i>; the songs are more idiosyncratic, and the band declined to make music videos for the single. The core elements of the sound that made Pearl Jam superstars are still evident here—the big, blazing riffs on tunes like "Blood" and "Animal," and Vedder's leonine roar throughout most of the album. .

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The Clerk says

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