I had four or five songs basically done and I wanted to wrap it up so I began combing through all of it. These songs were written between 20 and came from a pile of demos and half-baked ideas, and as I listened through all that stuff at one point I felt I needed to finish this record.
I think it was just a matter of the right songs over a long period of time and then choosing which ones will make the cut. What inspired the direction of Moonlander? What this song is saying is something that I need to do personally as opposed to something I need to say in Pearl Jam.” It’s really just a gut instinct and so far there’s never been an issue with it. But I think it’s more of a gut feeling of when you write a song and you basically just say, “OK, I love this song and I need to do this song. Having said that, he’s sung other people’s lyrics in our band and he’s done it quite a bit so any of these songs could have been taken to Pearl Jam. He really is a fantastic poet, and I think him understanding the words and really feeling them is a big part of why a song is successful. But for the most part I’m gonna want Ed to write lyrics because he’s one of the greats. Once I start writing lyrics and vocals, I think there’s a tendency for me to say, "You know, Pearl Jam is going to put a record out every two or three years and I might write a couple of songs on that album. Were the songs on Moonlander anything you had brought to the table for Pearl Jam or were they written exclusively for a solo record? This week’s track is the slow-building burner “Battlecry”, easily one of the highlights of a record filled with them. In the weeks leading up to Moonlander’s release, a different track from the album will stream on Pearl Jam’s web site accompanied by one of the eleven pieces of art created by Gossard himself that coincide with each song. Working alongside such names as Pearl Jam/Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron, fellow Brad member Reagan Hagar, singer-songwriter Pete Droge, Zombi keyboard wizard Steve Moore and Seattle-based horn arranger Hans Teuber among others, Moonlander finds Stone expanding the base of his trademark guitar groove. But with Moonlander, his first album by his own accord since 2001’s understated Bayleaf, Gossard delivers a collection of songs that brings him out from the shadows of his prolific resume.
For nearly 30 years, the 46-year-old father of two has been a crucial staple of the Jet City music scene as a key member of such influential groups as grunge forefathers Green River, proto-glam giants Mother Love Bone, alt-rockers Brad and, of course, modern AOR kings Pearl Jam. June 25th will see the release of the sophomore solo album from legendary Seattle guitarist Stone Gossard.