There comes a time in most, if not all critics' careers when one must try to give fair treatment to something that is loved by many. Ten is considered a must-have for any rock fan, especially those who are fans of the early 90's Seattle scene. So, it should come as no surprise that I believe I am going to catch some opposition for not giving this my highest rating (actually, two points less than it).

But of course, most of it isn't bad. Actually, none of it is really "bad." Somewhat inconsistent in quality, though. Highlights include "Once," "Evenflow," "Alive," "Jeremy," "Black," "Release" and "Garden." "Once" and "Evenflow" are driving rockers with bite. Lots of bite. What do I mean by that? I don't know, but it sounded like a good way to describe them. They hit hard, and they hit fast, making for a very good introduction to a great album. And the hard-hitters keep a-comin' with "Alive," a creepy, dark song about incest, death, people not being who they claim to be… Fun stuff.

As for the other highlights, "Jeremy" is the ultra-big-hit single that had one of the greatest music videos ever made to accompany it. A tale of teen suicide and angst, it's a pretty good contender for "best song" on this CD. "Black" has the reputation as the song Pearl Jam fought not to be released as a single - and won. Dark, sad, and breathtakingly powerful… One of the best songs PJ ever came up with, easily. And then there's "Garden," the rarely-played in concert (at least now) epic with a powerful vocal performance by Mr. Vedder.

And Pearl Jam makes its first misstep with "Why Go." Well, "Misstep" is an overstatement. It's a mediocre track: Nothing special compared to other parts of the whole. Same goes for "Ocean," which is nothing particularly special. At least it's short, though, and comes before a near-highpoint, "Porch." The album version of "Porch" is good, but the song was more fleshed out in a live setting. The way it is here, it's close to being among the best songs here, but not quite. "Deep" is memorable, but not much else ("IN TOO DEEEEP, YEAH YEAH~!").

But it all picks up with "Release," the final (and best) song. "Release" is Pearl Jam's first subtle, slow, and epic masterpiece. It has a similar effect to the WHO's "Love Reign O'er Me" (which should not be a surprise, considering the WHO are one of Pearl Jam's main influences), especially with its place at the end of the album. The only thing it doesn't have (compared to "Love Reign O'er Me") is bombasticism (new word~!). And that, is not all bad.

So, to conclude, I'd throw Ten in the same category as such titles as Led Zeppelin's untitled fourth album… Extremely good, but very, very slightly over rated. Actually, I take that back about it being like Zep's fourth album. It's more like the Rolling Stones' Emotional Rescue: A very good album for any band, however, its high points make the (relative) low points seem more mediocre than they really are. Pearl Jam's later albums surpassed this effort in many ways, but I'd still recommend this one as an excellent starting point, and a near-must-own.