Rage Against The Machine drummer Brad Wilk has shared a previously unseen photo of himself partying with Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder.
He wrote on Instagram, “Me, Eddie Vedder, Kyle Baer, and Matty Goodman hangin in Hollywood just before playing a show. #1988 #wbw #⏳”
Many fans don’t know that Rage Against The Machine drummer Brad Wilk was in Pearl Jam for a couple of weeks in 1991 as they finished up mixing Ten in London, though he didn’t record anything for the album and just jammed with the band. Wilk was an old friend and bandmate of Eddie Vedder’s, and Vedder wanted him to replace original drummer Dave Krusen after his departure. The chemistry wasn’t there, and Dave Abbruzzese joined instead, while Wilk went on to form Rage Against The Machine with Zack de la Rocha, Tom Morello, and Tim Commerford.
Wilk recently shared a rare photo taken during his very brief Pearl Jam stint. He wrote on Instagram, “#FBF CHEERS! 23 years old. London pub w a friend. #perseverance #blitzed #beforeallthehubbub.”
Rage Against The Machine drummer Brad Wilk discussed auditioning for Pearl Jam in 1991 in a new Let There Be Talk podcast interview. Alternative Nation transcribed his comments.
“They go to England to mix Ten, which Tim Palmer was doing, I get a call from Eddie: ‘We just lost our drummer, I’d love for you to come up and meet everybody. I’m going to send you the tape of the songs.’ I’m like shitting my pants, I’ve never been out of the country, I’ve got to go get my fucking passport, I’m listening to the songs, I’m super young and thinking this is my break, this is my time. I go to Europe and we play together, me and Eddie have this history, and we’re bonding over in Europe, but to the others I’m just the new guy.”
“The original drummer that played on Ten had drug issues, so they needed a new drummer. So this was right after that guy, Ten wasn’t even mixed yet. They’re at this farm house in England mixing Ten, and I’m just so young, and they’re on Sony/Epic Records at the time.
Long story short, I go there, and I just don’t click musically, mostly with Jeff, who is an incredible bass player, awesome guy, and this is a classic case, it doesn’t matter how good you are, chemistry is everything. It just wasn’t clicking. For me, I wanted to be blinded by that, I just want to be in a band with my buddy, what an incredible opportunity. It didn’t work out, and I remember kind of leaving Europe with my tail between my legs, driving off going fuck, there was my opportunity.”
“I was there about a week, we’re rehearsing, we’re playing. Some of it I thought sounded incredible. Maybe some of it just didn’t, for whatever reason, that’s the way it goes. It wasn’t exactly clicking, who knows for whatever other reasons, but I just wasn’t the guy.”
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