November 10, 2024 – Go Media Stadium Mt. Smart, Auckland, NZ

Show Notes:

Just like on night one, local group Te Whare Karioi performs a traditional Haka, but this time it’s just before Pearl Jam takes the stage with “Release.” Ed holds the last note of “Low Light” for seventeen seconds, then says…

Show Notes: 

Just like on night one, local group Te Whare Karioi performs a traditional Haka, but this time it’s just before Pearl Jam takes the stage with “Release.” Ed holds the last note of “Low Light” for seventeen seconds, then says a quick hello before they launch into “Once,” making it two out of the first three from Ten on a night when seven in total are played from that record. There’s a delay on Ed’s vocals during “Once,” giving it a unique echoing effect. “Do the Evolution” is early tonight. Before “Wreckage,” Ed sees a sign in the crowd for someone who wants to come up and play guitar, joking “…but what are you going to do for me?” He adds that Friday night was “one of the best crowds we’ve ever played for,” and says that Sunday night can be tough but it’s Saturday night in Seattle (due to the time difference). He compares Auckland and Seattle, calling them sister cities, and asks if the band would be welcome if they wanted to move there. Mike performs a guitar solo by himself afterwards, not “Eruption,” but in a similar vein. “Stevie” is heavy, with a thick guitar tone, and hits a little rough patch in the middle but they get it back on track. Ed mentions how the band was nominated for a Grammy award yesterday, to which Mike points out that it’s actually three. Ed lets the crowd take the “Better Man” intro, almost dropping out completely. He sings a little of Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over” (“…never let them win…”) during the tag before getting into “Save It For Later.” Before “Even Flow,” Ed talks about long relationships, building up to Jeff and Stone’s forty-year musical partnership. He adds that Ten was he and Mike’s first record they had been on, but it was already Jeff and Stone’s fourth. Mike’s solo is a showstopper, as usual. After, Ed lists all the records since No Code, and says that none of them would be possible without the lifeguards who saved his life back in 1995 when he was carried out by a current while surfing and tells the story. He draws a parallel between the kid in “Jeremy” and the person in the next song, saying they “never had…the upper hand. Come with us on this bit of a journey, will you please.”

After the break, Ed speaks:

“It’s been a very intense week…it’s a bumpy world we live in, and it felt like we fell off a highwire the other day, and you provided us with a reminder of hope, strength, and provided us with a safety net, and that we will never forget.”

He promises to be back “much sooner” than the 10 years it’s been since they’ve played New Zealand, and says he learned about New Zealand not from geography class, but from reading the liner notes of a record, and brings out Neil Finn on stage. He then sees the sign for the kid who wants to come up and play guitar again, and jokes “I’m sorry kid, it was either you or Neil Finn…I got my eye on you.” Neil and Ed duet on a beautiful rendition of “Throw Your Arms Around Me” with Neil on acoustic guitar and Ed on his electric. Ed introduces “Smile” as “a song I’m feeling deeply right now…miss you already.” During the “Alive” solo, Ed exclaims “…can I just say…this is the most energized back of the floor…I can ever remember playing for!” The young person with the sign, Leon, finally gets a chance to come up on stage before the second verse of “Rockin’,” gets a guitar, and immediately starts bouncing and rocking out. Ed adds “…as you!” to the “never get to be cool” line, looking over at him. Leon’s having the time of his life, going over to Jeff and Mike and laughing, going up to Stone’s mic and singing backups with him, and dancing with Ed. Stone misses a few notes on “Ledbetter,” causing Jeff and Josh to laugh. Ed leaves with “…seriously chills right now…we love you.”


November 8, 2024 – Go Media Stadium Mt. Smart, Auckland, NZ

Show Notes:

Local music group Te Whare Karioi leads a traditional Haka before Pearl Jam takes the stage for their first show in New Zealand in ten years. Ed exclaims “It’s been awhile!” as “Given to Fly” opens with a visual of…

Show Notes: 

Local music group Te Whare Karioi leads a traditional Haka before Pearl Jam takes the stage for their first show in New Zealand in ten years. Ed exclaims “It’s been awhile!” as “Given to Fly” opens with a visual of waves crashing, the ocean, and drone footage from the area. Ed yells the “…hey FUCKERS…” line with extra emphasis. He adds the “…I’m glad I saw this place, thank you all for taking me…” line in “Small Town.” He leads a call-and-response chant of “Alright” a few times, then adds “…it wasn’t feeling alright not that long ago, right now it feels alright,” perhaps alluding to the recent US election results. Another line change in “Corduroy,” “…absolutely everything’s changed.” Stone is rocking up and down at the end as the band surges. “Eruption” is added to the setlist after “React, Respond.” Before “Wreckage,” Ed talks about playing it at soundcheck the day before and how the song took on a new meaning to him because of “events in the world, events in your life” as he was singing it, another allusion to the election. There’s an incident in the crowd, Ed says the crowd is happy because they got rid of a “bogan” (slang term for an unrefined individual) and says “…bogans beware.” “Daughter” has two tags, “Monkey Gone To Heaven” by opening band the Pixies, followed by “Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2),” with Ed improving about politicians and women’s rights. The crowd is loud on “Even Flow,” and Ed does the “we’re not worthy” bow to Mike after the solo. He compliments the crowd on their singing after “Jeremy,” and tells the story of “Quick Escape,” tongue-in-cheek calling it “…a work of complete fiction.” “Wishlist” sees “all of Auckland’s hands upraised.” “Not For You” is extended, with the crowd chanting during the bridge, the band seems like they’re not sure how to get out of it, it’s a little different-sounding. “Spin the Black Circle” is dedicated to Zane Lowe, the New Zealand radio DJ who had interviewed the band earlier in the year. Ed thanks the crew, including the local crew, for getting everything set up and continues:

“…Growing up, you know…the one bright idea I stumbled on, and I think we all did around the same time, we find ourselves needing a guitar, needing an instrument, needing a way to express ourselves, and I found a guitar…and Jeff found a bass, Stone found a guitar, Matt found some drums, Boom Gaspar found a keyboard…Josh Klinghoffer must have lived in a music store ’cause he can play every fuckin’ thing…we found these instruments, but we also found our tribe, and now all these many years later, when the shit hits the fan, you can gather up the tribe, you can get plugged in, you can turn it up, and if you’re really, really fuckin’ lucky, you’ll get to share the music with a bunch of really great people, all in a wonderful gathering, and share in the volume and remember that this is a life of challenges and it is always certainly worth living.”

Ed trips and falls backwards during “Lukin,” but recovers in time to finish the vocals. During the “Porch” jam, he asks the crowd “…can you feel the life out there?” and then adds “everything is precious….precious” before the song kicks back in.

After the break, Ed says “…can we catch a few more waves with you tonight?” and points out a woman up front, giving her the “New Zealand Kiwi Cheerleader of the Year award,” and asks the crowd for quiet so he can hear what she says. He then sees someone from Boston, joking “we just played in Boston, you could have saved a whole lot of money!” He talks about being in New Zealand and how clean it is, then adds:

“…it’s unrealistic to think that life on this planet will always be smooth…hardship, and struggle, and loss, it’s all part of the deal, it’s all part of the human experience. And so you do your best to keep hope, and you use your actions in such a way that you can help shape a more positive world, a positive neighborhood, a positive community, a positive country…and we were thinking that maybe progress scares people, and that acceptance and inclusivity, they might think that they may be excluded because of it, but there’s room for everyone, and we can figure it out, and we will figure it out, and we made progress…now we’ve gone backwards, we’re gonna figure it out, it just might take a little longer.”

Liam Finn (who also opened up the show) joins on stage to play guitar and sing for “Habit.” As the song heads towards the pause, Ed motions for Liam to take the microphone, and Liam says “…speaking as a child of Aotearoa,” the Maori name for New Zealand. Liam and Ed go back-to-back at the end and Liam falls down during the chaotic ending. A fan in the front row has a request, and “Hard to Imagine” is played, Ed saying it wasn’t on “the menu.” Liam Finn rejoins, along with EJ Barnes, for “Rockin'” to close the show.


January 17, 2014 – Western Springs, Auckland, NZ

Show Notes:

The Southern Pacific portion of the Lightning Bolt tour begins with a stop in Auckland. The Big Day Out festival takes place in six different cities over three weekends, and Pearl Jam takes the stage with a warm and welcoming…

Show Notes: 

The Southern Pacific portion of the Lightning Bolt tour begins with a stop in Auckland. The Big Day Out festival takes place in six different cities over three weekends, and Pearl Jam takes the stage with a warm and welcoming version of Release. The next four songs were played with high energy and no breaks in between. Ed yields the mic to the fans during Mind Your Manners. With a short pause between songs, he addresses the crowd and mentions that they have been in town for a few days, saying “We’ve had some big days off; now we are up for a big night out!” He reminds everyone to look out for one another before rushing into the next song. Mike continues his wizardry with Given to Fly, Brain of J., and Even Flow. Ed takes time to shout out some of the other bands playing the festival, and reminisces about the first time they played New Zealand, telling the story about how he was almost lost at sea while surfing before being rescued, adding that at the time he had “nothing to lose,” but now that he has a wife and two daughters he’s even more grateful for the rescue that day. That sets the stage for a poignant Sirens. A rare main set Black is punctuated with an Ed improv:

Wasn’t that long ago
You were by my side
I still feel you by my side
Four years ago
You were by my side
I feel you here
Here tonight

Liam Finn joins the band to sing on Habit. Afterwards, Ed praises the whole musical Finn family, many of which are in attendance. Footsteps is played by request, and the band is seated through Nothingman. Ed goes down to the front row for Porch, sharing his wine and giving high fives. He starts the last chorus while swinging from a globe and almost misses the first line. The band waves goodbye, but hurry back to the stage, saying they have five more minutes, and cap off the evening with a thunderous Baba O’Riley.