Tonight's Top Stop: Pearl Jam at Verizon Center

EVEN NIRVANA PARTISANS might now have to concede that Pearl Jam is, far and away, the world's greatest grunge band. When Nirvana's Kurt Cobain committed suicide in 1994, Pearl Jam was arguably a bigger act. In the 12 years since, Pearl Jam has shunned the spotlight and paradoxically become one of America's greatest touring bands: Pearl Jam, hiding in plain sight at a packed arena near you.

Beyond Nirvana, the members of Pearl Jam, of course, stand head and shoulders above every other Seattle band of their youth. Alice in Chains and Soundgarden -- the only two other groups to release widely popular records -- are long since defunct, no matter what Alice guitarist Jerry Cantrell thinks.

Meanwhile, Eddie Vedder and the gang tour with Tom Petty and Sonic Youth at their leisure and continue to release hit records. As for the question of whether Pearl Jam is the greatest band of the alt-rock era, the answer remains "no": Pearl Jam is in no sense alternative. They play classic rock with a few updates and sound a lot like a heavy jam band with a great singer. And they do it successfully: Though it's no "Nevermind," Pearl Jam's new eponymous CD remains in Billboard's Top 10 in the weeks after its release.

"Pearl Jam" again proves that the band can construct a solid album out of a mix of muscular riff rockers, dark, mid-tempo tunes and quiet pop songs. The band plays the Verizon Center tonight and can be expected to ruthlessly jam out so many hits and reach so many soaring choruses that even the most hardened cynics will find themselves strangely uplifted. My Morning Jacket opens.
» Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW; 7:30 p.m., $54; 202-397-7328. (Gallery Place-Chinatown)

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Today's Top Stop was written by Express' Tim Follos.