Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, as well as Matt Cameron (drums), who joined in 1998. Keyboardist Boom Gaspar has also been a touring/session member with the band since 2002. Jack Irons, Dave Krusen, Matt Chamberlain and Dave Abbruzzese are all former drummers for the band. Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, and is considered one of the most influential bands from that decade, dubbed "the most popular American rock and roll band of the '90s".
Pearl Jam performing in Amsterdam in 2012. From left to right: Mike McCready, Jeff Ament, Matt Cameron, Eddie Vedder, and Stone Gossard.
Pearl Jam performing in July 1991
Pearl Jam with President Bill Clinton in the Oval Office in April 1994
Lead guitarist Mike McCready performing in Columbia, Maryland in September 1998
Alternative rock is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s with the likes of the grunge, shoegaze, and Britpop subgenres in the United States and United Kingdom, respectively. During this period, many record labels were looking for "alternatives", as many corporate rock, hard rock, and glam metal acts from the 1980s were beginning to grow stale throughout the music industry. The emergence of Generation X as a cultural force in the 1990s also contributed greatly to the rise of alternative rock.
Live, an alternative rock band from York, Pennsylvania, performing in May 2008
R.E.M., one of the first alternative rock bands, relied on college-radio airplay, constant touring, and a grassroots fanbase to break into the mainstream.
Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth performing in July 2005
Robert Smith of the Cure performing in June 2004