Eddie Vedder Says Pearl Jam ‘Between Eras’ After Matt Cameron Exit

Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder revealed the band is creating music in the studio. This comes seven months after drummer Matt Cameron departed. Vedder spoke with Rolling Stone through a Zoom call on February 11.

The rock group is "woodshedding," but Vedder wouldn't disclose whether they've found someone new.

"The quote was, I think, 'Pearl Jam is in between eras at the moment,'" Vedder said. "And I thought that was actually pretty concise."

The singer avoided answering whether or not the band secured a replacement. "If I were to say anything, I think we'd wanna have a band discussion about what we'd wanna say or who would be the messenger or whatever," he said.

But Vedder made one thing clear. The remaining members are jamming and welcoming what comes next. "We're in the lab, we're woodshedding, excited," he said. "It's cool to think of change. As much as we'd like to have done it the way we did it forever — and we'll still be able to do that thing — I think we're all just excited for the future."

Cameron announced his departure in July. This happened after the band completed a spring arena tour. He first gained attention as a member of Soundgarden before joining the Seattle rock outfit in 1998 after his original band's first breakup.

The drummer played on every studio album from Binaural through last year's Dark Matter. His 25-year run with the group beat every predecessor combined, as the band has cycled through five drummers since their founding in 1990.

Cameron discussed struggling with the band's relentless touring schedule when he announced his exit. "I'm at a point in my life where I want to redirect my time and energy in a way that is a little bit based on what I want to pursue as an artist at this point," he said, according to Tone Deaf.

Vedder's interview centered on his new documentary Matter of Time, which showcases his charity work supporting medical research through the EB Research Partnership. The film is streaming on Netflix.