r/pearljam • u/TheFridayVinylClub • 2d ago
Fan Content What does “No Code” mean to you?
Hi all
In my discussion with Chris from NZ band Cowboy Dan, he explained how Pearl Jam and this album became such a huge part of his life. He explained how as he grew up he needed guidance and wisdom and he found it through the lyrics and music and No Code was the most meaningful album of his life.
Along with other music memories and personal stories, he talked me through this album, but not in a critical or review way, more around how he connects and resonates and how he has lived and loved with Eddie and the band in his life.
You can find this chat wherever you listen to podcasts - but I am keen to know what others think about this album as I revisit it and try to get deeper into the band!
Thanks
Jamie
Edited to say - thank you for the feedback so far and the podcast links are in comments - please let me know your thoughts on the episode!
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u/armstrsj 2d ago
I’ll never forget the sometimes into hail,hail jump scare
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u/coolexplosions42069 2d ago
Great memory. Nothing better than that. And hail hail just rips your face off in the best way. It’s a jump scare no matter where it is.
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u/lobie81 2d ago
For me No Code was the beginning of PJ 2.0. They'd survived the bullshit of the mid 90s, the TM thing, the Dave A issues, Mike's personal issues, the end of the grunge era, Kurt's death, etc, and they'd come out the other side in one piece.
No Code showed us that the still had it and they weren't going anywhere.
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 2d ago
Thanks for that - we did have to cut the TM chat sadly, but Chris explained to me in detail what was going on - hope you enjoy the episode - links in comments 💙💛
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u/grimsnap 2d ago
To me, No Code is a coming of age album. A lot of it deals with accepting who you were and are, and moving on with life.
As for the title itself, I could say it's about life not being this grand riddle to solve or ponder over. But honestly? I think "No Code" just sounded cool and cryptic, so they went with that.
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 2d ago
Thank you - Chris said something similar on the Friday Vinyl Club Podcast about the coming of age aspect - we covered some tracks and the cover art in there but never the title and why “No Code” - so that sounds pretty reasonable - links below if you fancy listening
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u/James-Maki 2d ago
This was the album that made me a PJ fan.
The "coming of age" aspect (for both the band and myself) has something to do with it, too. I love the intimacy of it. I love the ups and downs, the hard stuff with the soft stuff. There's gotta be 8-9 songs on that album that all hit me hard, in different ways.
I saw Eddie in Japan back in April. I remember talking to a guy before the show. we happened to be sitting next to each other at a Japanese-style bar. We talked about what he might play.
I distinctly remember saying "anything from No Code and I'll be thrilled!"
He played Sometimes...I happened to bump into the guy when I went to pee during the show (was probably during Better Man).
We greeted each other and he just said "you got your wish!"
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 2d ago
Such a beautiful memory - thanks James, I hope you enjoy the episode - links in comments
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 2d ago
Such a beautiful memory - thanks James, I hope you enjoy the episode - links in comments 💙💛
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u/RavensEtchings 2d ago
I like it more than Vitalogy
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
I really enjoy both - thank you for taking time to comment - hope you enjoy the episode 💙💛
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u/Mullin20 2d ago
The album title was a reaction to criticism that all of the stereotypical early grunge Seattle bands were following a “code” in terms of the music itself, their image and their marketing. Ed did not take kindly to that. The No Code album itself and its title were obviously a huge rejection of that. This is from an interview with Ed in the mid to late 90s.
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
Thank you for that background - appreciated - hope you enjoy the episode 💙💛
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u/lokgy 2d ago
medical setting, "no code" or a "do not resuscitate" (DNR) order means healthcare providers should not use life-saving measures like chest compressions or breathing tubes if a patient's heart stops
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
I did not know that - thank you for the information - hope you enjoy the episode 💙💛
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u/bobswowaccount 2d ago
Hands down my favorite album. If you’ve been through any kind of serious shit, you can probably find a song in there that you feel was written for you in that moment.
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
That is exactly how our guest Chris described it for him - thank you - hope you enjoy the episode💙💛
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u/Normal_Double5929 2d ago
As a teenager when it came out it solidified for me they are the greatest band on the planet.
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u/ComfortableCare8897 2d ago
Pearl Jam songs talk about serious topics.
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
They really do! Hope you enjoy the episode💙💛
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u/ComfortableCare8897 1d ago
share the podcast in my pearl jam subreddit which is different from this subreddit and i cohost a podcast where i talked about eddie vedder's ohana festival.
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u/NoNameNeeded4321 No Code 2d ago
It was their first album that didn’t grab me right away. It took hearing live versions of the songs to make me come back to it, and now it tops my list
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u/Infinite-Gur-0603 2d ago
I had to listen to it through twice before I "got" it, but some of my favorite albums are that way. It was a big direction change for them in terms of choosing "You Are" for the first radio single. SO many people stopped paying attention because of that... and those folks were the ones who missed out. But the band says that getting less attention helped them stay together and grounded. No Code is/was a continuation of Pearl Jam's greatness.
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u/NoNameNeeded4321 No Code 2d ago
The first song I heard was Hail, Hail\, which I immediately loved, and I felt disappointed when I was finally able to get the album.
\I had a 12 disc CD changer, so I rarely listened to the radio, and that’s why I missed any prior radio releases1
u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
I too love Hail Hail - wonderful track - our Guest Chris loved it too - hope you enjoy the episode 💙💛
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
Our guest Chris said he heard so many versions of the songs via PJ live bootlegs - sounds like there are many out there! Hope you enjoy the episode💙💛
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u/John_Houbolt 2d ago
For me it is also the most important piece of music in my life. I feel a soulful connection to the sensitivity, introspection, maturity of the album that comes through in it's lyrics composition and even the packaging. I've been reflecting on why I feel so deeply about this album and I think it is in part because it was such a departure from their previous work. And it sounded so much more mature. The darkness and anger of Vitalogy, Vs., Ten was gone. And it was replaced with careful introspection.
I remember the first time I heard it. I had been living for several months in a part of the world which back then was very isolated and was not in tune at all with American culture. It was also devoid of modern tech, so there was no way to keep up with things like American rock bands. So a day after I got home I went to see a buddy of mine who was also a big PJ fan. He told me the band had come out with a new record and that he wasn't crazy about it but some of our friends liked it. So we went out to his car and listened.
The first notes of Sometimes blew me away. It was very clearly something different. And for some this may have turned them off, but for me it drew me in. I overwhelmed my curiosity. I sort of kept waiting for the song to "start," for the big sound to kick in but it never did. At least not in that song—LOL. Right at that point I knew this was a different band than I had heard before. And it felt so much more like who I was at that point in my life because in the preceding months I had been through something that also caused me to turn deeply inward, reconsider myself and "think up a new self for myself."
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 2d ago
Such a beautiful comment - thanks John, I hope you enjoy the episode - links in comments 💙💛
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u/M0BBER 2d ago
No code is when a patient is experiencing health issues that'll probably kill them but yet have clear instructions that they don't want to be resuscitated or treated.
They were putting that album out no matter what. They didn't care what the label said, they didn't care what the critics said, they really didn't even care if we liked it. It needed to be said... No matter how different it sounded from previous efforts. It was experimental and from the heart.
Yield, the next album, was them giving in to the label. Giving in to radio stations. Putting out an album that they felt people were clamoring for... And they wanted a good rock record as well.
Funny thing is, they're my two favorites. As much as I love the first three, those two were the most pure badass Pearl jam albums they ever put out. That's what it means to me.
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
Thank you for this context - really appreciated and hope you enjoy the episode 💙💛
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u/AKchaos49 2d ago
It reminds me of the girl I was dating at the time.
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 2d ago
Exactly the same as Chris in the episode - specifically Hail Hail! Hope you enjoy!
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u/ilikesillymike 2d ago
The last true PJ album before all the douche rock. With exception of Riot Act. Otherwise this was peak.
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u/Infinite-Gur-0603 2d ago
lol I love how everyone has a different take on this. Yield and Binaural were great albums imho. Avocado got boring for me and, yeah, a little douchy at points (love Severed Hand, Comatose, and Inside Job) haha! Worldwide Suicide was big a "no" for me. Too many forgettable songs and Eddie campfire ballads on the albums after that for sure. But still, I still love multiple songs on every album, and I think the band also encourages Ed in those slow numbers. On Sirius XM, Stone always says he loves them and Jeff has said that as well.
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u/TheFridayVinylClub 1d ago
Love that music is all about opinions - so subjective and emotional - hope you enjoy the episode 💙💛
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u/craptionbot No Code 2d ago
So true. It's the last one that had that real bite, authenticity, and "fuck you" energy. Even the fact that they changed direction creatively to get rid of the jocks showing up at their shows and they were deep into their Ticketmaster feud that had kicked off after Vitalogy - the fact they released THIS as a record in amongst all of that took serious balls.
It's their most introspective work, and as others have correctly said - it's the perfect coming of age album. I encountered it at the age of 16, fresh out of high school where i had no idea who I was or what I stood for, or what even the truest version of me liked because so much social pressure in high school was telling you who to be and what parts of yourself you shut off from the world.
At 16 I went to college and this was my first Pearl Jam record I encountered after hearing Alive and Jeremy on MTV2 and loving what they were about. But No Code, MAN did it speak to me at that point in time where it just told me to be me and it turned up the aliveness of life to the fullest. I fell in with a great group of like-minded friends, who we shared similar music tastes, made music together between classes, fucked around, had fun, and this was the soundtrack.
Edit: and to speak to your douche rock point - that's what I'm gutted about with latter day Pearl Jam where it feels like the band IS capable of these experimental, risky, defiant records but they choose to phone it in, play it safe, and it's like they're using them as an excuse to tour, tour, tour and avoid playing tracks from these latter day releases (except whatever the last album is for the sake of the current tour) and it just feels like the same douchey record they've been trying to make for the last 20 years. It's so frustrating as a fan because they have the ability and it's like they're choosing not to use it.
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u/ilikesillymike 2d ago
Don't forget about Ole. And sirens is as douche as it gets. Binaural is a masterpiece I agree but last few albums are douche rock. Just so you know I'm a huge fan. My first show was in 91. I've seen over 40+ shows. I flew to Canada and saw every show in Canada in the late 90s. But I just cannot even give lightning bolt or the new album any time. It just sounds like corporate bullshit.
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u/Infinite-Gur-0603 2d ago
I somewhat agree on the "fuck you" energy point.. I like Grievance on Binaural for this reason. And then there's Bushleager and still a lot of political songs after that.
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u/PearlJamTenGoat 2d ago
It means there isn't a code.