Eddie Vedder recently performed Pearl Jam song “Future Days,” at the 2020 Game Awards, which took place on Dec. 10. Vedder performed live from his home in Seattle, playing a stripped-down version of the song.
Vedder was introduced at the awards by voice actor Troy Baker, who plays the character Joel in the game The Last of Us: Part II. Baker’s character plays the song “Future Days” on guitar in one of the games’ scenes, and then the player gets the opportunity to try to play the instrument in the game.
Vedder performed the sweet, sentimental tune in a darkened room lit by candles, and sat in front of a stack of amps lighting up in different colors. The performance consisted of just him and his vocals singing the 2013 cut of the song from Pearl Jam’s Lightning Bolt album. The video switched between him at home and him in black and white on the award stage’s screen surrounded by a cityscape background.
After the performance, Vedder shared his thoughts on the game’s use of the song.
“I really appreciate the way that was used, especially bringing Joel and Ellie together, connecting through music. I thought it was cool too that it made you perhaps want to pick up a guitar yourself and write a song for your loved one,” he said. “It’s nice to be a part of this year’s Game Awards. What a fascinating way to tell a story, and it’s getting better all the time.”
The Last of Us: Part II took home the award show’s biggest prize, Game of the Year, and won seven out of the 11 awards it was nominated for. The awards include Best Narrative, Game Direction, Best Audio Design, and Best Performance for Laura Bailey who voiced the character Abby.
The show included a huge tease for new entry in the Mass Effect franchise, as Bioware shared they’re working on the next game in the series and provided a teaser trailer. Another game, Hades, won two awards, Best Action Game and Best Indie Game. Final Fantasy VII: Remake also took home two awards, Best RPG and Best Score and Music.
It was announced at the end of November that Pearl Jam frontman Vedder would be performing at the awards. Vedder has had busy year, debuting two new songs, “Matter Of Time” and “Say Hi” recently and the instrumental song “Cartography” alongside remix done by Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs in September. He also teamed up with Red Hot Chili Peppers to take on songs from Prince and Jimi Hendrix.
Vedder joined Alessia Cara, Billie Eilish, Glen Hansard, Adam Levine and Willie Nelson for the Venture Into Cures live stream, which took place on November 18.The benefit was to support those suffering from a disease called Epidermolysis Bullosa, commonly known as EB.
Pearl Jam has also been active this year, debuting previously unreleased music for the compilation Good Music to Avert The Collapse of American Democracy, Volume 2, which features David Byrne and Little Dragon. The band also announced they will be performing at Sea.Hear.Now next year.
Featured image: Alyssa Fried
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