Pearl Jam Wrap U.S. Leg in Pittsburgh with Chris Cornell Tribute

On the anniversary of Chris Cornell’s passing, the band honored their friend and fellow musician with heartfelt words, powerful images, and unforgettable music.

Opening Act: Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers

Setlist: Garden, Nothingman, Why Go, Deep, Running, Scared Of Fear, Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town, Immortality, Faithfull, Even Flow, Dark Matter, Wreckage, Better Man/I’m One (The Who)/Love, Reign O’er Me (The Who)/Save It For Later (The English Beat), Insignificance, Once, Wishlist/Improv, Rearviewmirror

Encore: Future Days, Hunger Strike (Temple of the Dog), Do the Evolution, Setting Sun, Crazy Mary (Victoria Williams), Lukin, Alive, Rockin’ in the Free World (Neil Young, w/ Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers), Yellow Ledbetter/Little Wing (Jimi Hendrix)

On the second night at PPG Paints Arena, deep tributes, bold messages, and an explosive energy brought the North American leg of the Dark Matter Tour 2025 to a climactic close.

The band hit the stage at 8:57 PM to the haunting tones of Dark Entry, launching straight into a heavy Garden, followed by Nothingman and a ferocious Why Go. Not long after, they busted out a surprise performance of Deep, dedicated to local football legend Franco Harris — the iconic running back who spent 13 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

In the heart of the set, they spotlighted the present with Running and Scared Of Fear, showing off the raw, vibrant energy of their latest material. Just before the latter, Eddie Vedder shared a story about visiting the Andy Warhol Museum with Mike McCready earlier that day, reflecting on how Warhol believed in the power of small towns.

With Immortality, Eddie gave a shout-out to the fans who follow the band from city to city. That was followed by a heartfelt Faithfull, introduced with a personal memory and a special guest moment — Andy, a young baseball announcer-style kid, who got to hype up the crowd and introduce Even Flow.

From there, things took off. Dark Matter hit hard, and Wreckage was dedicated to Pete Townshend ahead of his 80th birthday. Then came Better Man — and before launching into Save It For Later, Eddie dropped not one but two Who covers: I’m One and Love, Reign O’er Me. It was a moment that hit deep, and Vedder followed it up with a fiery speech about women’s reproductive rights: “Strong men support strong women.”

Then came Insignificance, Once, and a version of Wishlist with a beautiful, emotional jam at the end. During the outro, Eddie repeated Comes Then Goes three times — the tenth track off Gigaton, which many fans see as a subtle tribute to Chris Cornell. In the improv, Eddie sang about how he wished he could climb trees like he used to, hinting at a nostalgic memory — possibly about the Soundgarden frontman, though he never confirmed it.

Interesting fact: aside from a few of their “weird” experimental tracks (like Pry, To or Stupid Mop), Comes Then Goes is the only studio-recorded song on an official album that the band has never played live.

The main set wrapped up with a thunderous Rearviewmirror.

During the break, Eddie gave a heartfelt shout-out to Doc Harris — Franco’s son — who was in the crowd, and shared that Pittsburgh was where he had his second date with his now-wife Jill.

The encore opened with a tender Future Days, followed by a full-throttle Hunger Strike, introduced in honor of the day Chris Cornell passed — May 18, 2017. Throughout the song, the big screen often showed Matt Cameron’s shirt featuring a stylized portrait of Chris, making the tribute even more touching.

Bonus layer: Future Days was played not only in honor of the recent Last of Us–themed EP the band released, but also because on the Last of Us TV series, in an episode that aired on May 18, Joel (Pedro Pascal) sang the song to Ellie (Bella Ramsey).

And there’s more: before Future Days, Eddie reminded the crowd that it was right there in Pittsburgh where Pearl Jam played one of their very first shows after the Roskilde tragedy in June 2000. He also made sure to mention the support they received from Sonic Youth, who were the opening act for those shows. He added another touching note: in the crowd that night were two longtime fans celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary — and yes, Pittsburgh was also where he had his second date with Jill.

Then came a full-blown eruption: Do the Evolution, Setting Sun, a hypnotic Crazy Mary, the chaos of Lukin, and an explosive Alive that had the whole arena losing it.

In his final speech, Eddie talked about Bruce Springsteen’s recent gig in Manchester, where the Boss had the guts to speak out against the current U.S. administration (video). Vedder pointed out that instead of addressing Bruce’s message, the only response from those in power was a personal attack — dodging the real issues altogether.

The night closed out in wild style with Rockin’ in the Free World, joined by the opener Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers, plus a bunch of kids on stage — pure joy. And of course, they wrapped things up with the classic Yellow Ledbetter, finishing off with Hendrix’s Little Wing as the outro.

Before saying goodbye, Eddie and Jeff sprayed champagne all over the front rows. The show ran two hours and 45 minutes — one of the longest sets they’ve played in years. A hell of a way to cap off the North American leg of the Dark Matter Tour.