Binaural
by Pearl Jam
  • Record Label: Sony
  • Release Date: May 16, 2000
Metascore
69

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 16
  3. Negative: 2 out of 16
  1. Nude As The News
    95
    The band's most consistent, well-written effort yet.
  2. Magnet
    90
    Near-brilliant... smoldering slabs of sonic complexity... [#46, p.86]
    All this publication's reviews
  3. New Musical Express (NME)
    90
    A seething, furious album; a declamatory statement against cynicism and passivity and the simple injustices of everyday life.
  5. Spin
    80
    If there's an ounce of you that's ever been keen on Pearl Jam, or even if you've never bothered, grab a pair of headphones and let Binaural pummel and soak into you, and relax about it.
  6. Dot Music
    80
    In the main they have done away with their more stodgy, pretentious material and distilled their sound into a stripped down rawness, and they sound all the better for it.
  7. AllMusic
    80
    The songs are sharper, the production is layered, and the performances are as compassionate as ever, resulting in their finest album since Vitalogy.
  8. Billboard
    70
    Pearl Jam returns to peak form with a 13-song collection of driving power rock reminiscent of the band's glory days of the early to mid-1990s.
  9. MTV.com
    70
    Probably the last good album we can realistically expect from Pearl Jam.
  10. CDNow
    70
    Oddly, it's the faster songs -- once Pearl Jam's forte -- that detract from Binaural as a whole.
  11. Rolling Stone
    70
    A warts-and-all album; it has grabbers, songs that sink in slowly and a few absolute duds?
  12. Wall of Sound
    65
    A formless collection that drifts from one tune to the next, weighed down by a general sense of murk that pervades everything from Tchad Blake's production to the song arrangements and the lyrics.
  13. Checkout.com
    60
    If Binaural were Pearl Jam's first effort, it would receive little notice and get panned for its lack of focus and abundant musical mediocrity.
    All this publication's reviews
  14. Q Magazine
    60
    At their worst, Pearl Jam witter on pointlessly.... When Pearl Jam gel, though, it's close to special.
  15. Sonicnet
    60
    It's an uneven mix that frustrates by offering just samples of what Pearl Jam increasingly does best, namely, provide clear and, yes, quiet stories about the travails of everyday life.
  16. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    30
    A remarkably overt homage to seventies stadium rock?
  17. Select
    20
    A stinker of an album... a giant leap backwards in combining the overblown punk of 'Vs' with the grunge bluster of 'Ten', minus the tunes. [July 2000, p.107]
    All this publication's reviews

Awards & Rankings

97
#97 Best Album of 2000
32
#32 Most Discussed Album of 2000

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 60 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 54 out of 60
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 60
  3. Negative: 2 out of 60
  1. spacecadet
    Jun 6, 2011
    8
    although it's lost its edge over time. still a remarkable album. not their best. definitly not their worst.
    despite its reputation its NOT    although it's lost its edge over time. still a remarkable album. not their best. definitly not their worst.
    despite its reputation its NOT ONLY for the die hard fans. and its definitly no stadium rock as some people claim    … Full Review »
  2. gazc
    Aug 23, 2009
    10
    An incredible album, do not get the '0' rating. 'Light years' is their most emotional and tear jerking song and the An incredible album, do not get the '0' rating. 'Light years' is their most emotional and tear jerking song and the atmosphere created in 'nothing as it seems is phenomenal. They even hit the mark with the political songs such as 'Grievance', 'insignificance' and 'evacuation'. Lyrical Vedder is flawless.… Full Review »
  3. JackV
    Mar 16, 2005
    10
    pearl jam have never made an album short of brilliant. it is not in their forte to make bad music.
See all user reviews »