Free Carmen on Pearl Jam: Why I Love

By Special Guest on 9th February 2026 • ( Leave a comment )

Finland based, four-piece alternative rock output, Free Carmen continue their highly creative musical journey through the seasons with their new album Solstice II that concludes a double album concept that started with Solstice I – a body of work that evolved into a double album concept across a focused three-year creative process. A journey through the shifting cycles of light and darkness, reflecting the theme, both albums are tied to natural milestones: Solstice I — released on the summer solstice (June 21st, 2025) and Solstice II released on winter solstice, December 21st, 2025. Free Carmen will embark on The Solstice Tour in Spring 2026 across their home market, followed by a run of summer festival appearances.

Veeti Mäkinen of Free Carmen joins us for his Why I Love on Pearl Jam.

A DEDICATION TO PJ

When the fifteen-year-old me heard the guitar solo of Alive while cycling home from school, I was convinced. It was also a turning point for me, as Eddie Vedder’s voice really got me to focus on the lyrics for the first time. That’s when a transition started from an “I only listen to the bands where Slash is” boy to an “oh there’s actually something much deeper in music than just guitar solos” guy. Five years later I saw the band live in Stockholm, which was the final blow that manipulated me into fully dedicating myself to Pearl Jamism. That band has something so real and pure in the way of doing things that it has become an example for me to follow.

When the band has once again found itself without a drummer, I feel like this is the perfect place for me to lay my suggestion for the next one. I think it’s time to bring Jack Irons back. His style of playing on No Code and Yield is musical and innovative, which makes that specific Pearl Jam era so magical.

ON THE EDGE

The other thing I love about those two albums is that Eddie’s voice sounds like it’s on the edge of breaking up.It’s not as warm or present as we are used to. If you take the song Blood (Vs.), for example,and listen to its unbelievable vocal performance, it’s no wonder where he might have done some damage. Basically, he’s been blasting it through Ten, Vs. and Vitalogy and it’s finally starting to show some signs. There’s something so convincing and real to it, especially with a song like No Way (Yield) where it sounds like he’s losing his mind. I deeply enjoy both sides of Eddie’s voice and his unique way of singing, but the way he writes might just be my favourite thing.

There are too many great Pearl Jam lyrics to even begin listing but for some reason In My Tree (No Code) has resonated with me lately. In those lyrics, there’s some kind of truth in them which I have yet to find out. Just imagine being good enough to write something like that. Kind of scary actually.

PJ WITH STRINGS

f course, the string section of Pearl Jam is also absolutely amazing. Even though I said that it was the solo of Alive that got me into Pearl Jam, I still don’t think of them as a band with some heroic or magnificent guitar solos. I just listened to their self-titled album and once again was amazed how inventive the guitar parts are. At many times it feels like Stone Gossard and Mike McCready aren’t even playing the same song, yet it’s still working perfectly. What makes it even more interesting is Jeff Ament’s not-at-all-typical bass playing that works more as an art of its own than a typical glue of the band. And then there’s the cherry on the top, Eddie’s roaring Pete Townshend-style yanks.

With the two most recent albums excluded, I’ve been through the ”this is their best album” phase with almost every Pearl Jam album. And the thing is, many of these albums took me a long time to understand – or even to like. Lately I’ve been listening to Binaural and wondering how I could’ve been so blind with it before. And even though I exhausted myself with Ten early on, I know I’d go crazy if someone would put it on because it’s simply such a great album. I think that’s the number one reason why I love the band, it keeps on giving.

Our thanks to Veeti for the insight into Eddie and the gang.

Here’s the visualiser for Free Carmen’s II: