Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder has officially released the instrumental track “Cartography” alongside a remix from Yeah Yeah yeahs guitarist/ keyboard player Nick Zinner. This song originally appeared in the 2018 documentary Return To Mount Kennedy.
“Cartography” is a skeletal acoustic guitar track, with chords and progressions that capture the open spaces and journeys that occur throughout its subject Mount Kennedy. Zinner’s remix takes this into a more ambient sound, with a piano recreating the main melody, with underlying synths capturing this ethereal aesthetic. A speech by Bobby Kennedy also performs on top of the instrumental, giving it a message of unity.
“Listening to the speech delivered by Bobby Kennedy in regards to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. 50 years ago, you are reminded that once again we are at a moment in time when our society can and must do better,” Vedder said in a statement. “Voting is our most powerful form of nonviolent protest. And those whom we vote for must be made deeply aware that the issues of equality and justice in America are of the utmost importance and need to be not only restored but taken to the next level. NOW.”
Pearl Jam recently announced their rescheduled 2021 tour dates, but have also been busy during the quarantine, appearing in the All In WA live stream earlier this year. The band released Gigaton back in March, which featured the songs “Dance of The Clairvoyants,” “Superblood Wolfmoon” and “Retrograde.”
Vedder himself made an appearance at the One World Together At Home live broadcast back in April and recently signed an open letter calling for police reform amid the Black Lives Matter movement. Other Pearl Jam members have been keeping busy this year, with Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament pursuing musical ventures outside of Pearl Jam.
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