Photo Credit: Owen Ela
Earlier this year, legendary rock act Pearl Jam saw the departure of their longtime drummer Matt Cameron after 27 years with the band. After months of wait, the band finally revealed the identity of the latest to take up the mantle of drummer for the iconic rock act during a set at Ohana Festival on Friday. According to Blabbermouth, Abe Laboriel Jr. joined for a surprise performance by the band during a set by Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder on the 25th of September.
The set, billed simply as “Eddie Vedder and Friends,” saw the frontman joined by Mike McCready and Stone Gossard on guitars, Jeff Ament on bass and Laboriel on the drums. While the band has yet to officially confirm if Laboriel, a longtime Paul McCartney collaborator, is in fact the new drummer, the band is scheduled for another performance on Sunday, September 27th, meaning the appearance of Laboriel and the rest of the band on Friday likely came as a tease for the band’s first performance with their new formation.
Pearl Jam held their last live performance on May 18th, 2025 at the end of their Dark Matter world tour in support of the titular album. Cameron’s departure was announced two months later in July, and fans have been waiting since to discover the latest lineup for the band.
During the same festival, Vedder had another surprise in store when he joined Bad Religion for their performance of the song “American Jesus,” with official clips of his appearance uploaded to Instagram.
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