---

Pearl Jam's Saturday evening concert at the Comcast Center in Mansfield truly was a treat for one of rock's most dedicated followings. The sole survivors of the grunge era, and based on their performance, Pearl Jam deserves all the praise they may receive.

Ted Leo and the Pharmacists opened the show aiming to blend indie and punk influences with a straight up rock n' roll sound. A sloppy performance, coupled with a total lack of stage presence, didn't seem to help the band win over a restless crowd. Perhaps it was beyond their control as anyone would be hard pressed to find an opening act well received by the dedicated Pearl Jam fans.

After the opening band's set, the crowd went silent as the crew set up Pearl Jam's equipment. Before long, the music quieted, the lights dimmed, and a piano piece signaled to the excited crowd that it was showtime. An explosion of cheers and applause marked the beginning of what would turn out to be an unforgettable set from one of rock's most celebrated acts.

Opening the show

The band's set opened with a heartfelt performance of "Hard To Imagine" followed seamlessly by "Why Go." It was at this point that frontman Eddie Vedder first addressed the crowd, saying, "We have a while to play for you tonight, we're gonna test your endurance." And this promise did not go unfulfilled. Over the next two hours the band delivered 25 of their greatest songs, each one bursting with character and beauty. Incredible is really the only way to describe the band's live sound and stage presence. Not a single wrong note was to be observed over the course of all 25 songs.

Vedder's voice has only proven to mature over the span of the band's career, combining his hallmark rasp and timbre of 15 years ago with the experience and skill of a time-tested road musician. Lead guitarist Mike McCready also held up his end of the bargain providing a wealth of ripping guitar solos and unrivaled stage presence.

In addition to their sound, another impressive quality of Pearl Jam is their ability to construct a perfectly-contoured set list, evenly distributing crests of their heavier songs with troughs of their beautiful ballads. They managed to never once lose the crowd's attention, even during some of Vedder's less-than-coherent rambling between songs.

Highlights of the set included stellar performances of "Given to Fly," "I'm Open," a behind-the-head Mike McCready solo during the breakdown of "Evenflow," "Black," "Alive," and an excellent extended version of "Rearview Mirror."

During their first encore, Pearl Jam touched on a powerful cover of The Who's "Love Reign O'er Me," which was nothing short of inspiring.

Incredible moment

But perhaps the most incredible moment of the show happened during a crowd sing along of the first verse of "Better Man." When the verse ended Vedder had to pause for a full minute before the crowd's noise settled down enough for him to be able to resume the song. Such a moment cannot be done justice on paper, you simply just had to be there.