Over the course of eleven near perfect songs, the band takes the listener on an emotional roller coaster comforting, scaring and redefining what an album could do. One of the reasons this record sold north of eight figures (thirteen-million in the US to date) is because of the bevy of top-tier songs. People discovered that this was a record that contained more than MTV hits, but a multitude of cuts that serenaded not just one's ears but their inner psyche as well. From the misunderstood and misdiagnosed narrator of "Why Go", to the existential anthem "Alive", to the harrowing heartbreak of "Black" to the outward aggression of "Porch", there was no holding back of emotions and for a short time, wearing your emotions on your sleeve were more than just a passing fad but proved to be a release needed by much of the world. One has to wonder if there is a higher power playing chess allowing certain lives to intersect and weave together for a band like Pearl Jam to stay together. Even if Ten was not a landmark record, it would still be a wildly important one because of the impact it gave and its everlasting legacy. Every tour I see by Pearl Jam features a significantly younger audience that was not at the previous tour. There's something universal about the battles we face in life and how Pearl Jam found a way to triumph through the sheer will of the fight. struggles and despair evoked out of these songs. Even when my love and admiration fell to the wayside a few years later, I would return to this record time and time again always discovering something about myself in the process. There was an unspoken instinctive trust between band and fan. These songs weren't just songs on the radio but the listener felt as if they were reading out of someone's diary and as a result, it was all that more real to them. It wasn't a sound or image that took the wind out of the sails of polished music, it was the sincerity. Ten< is a startling testament of survival and I'm glad I still turn to it for the continual ride we call life.