Pearl Jam still haven't been able to tour on their latest album Gigaton, but they're already looking ahead to who they want to work with on its successor.

During a recent interview (via NME), Eddie Vedder revealed that the band hopes to get in the studio with Andrew Watt, the influential producer who helmed Vedder's upcoming solo album Earthling, has work with everyone from Ozzy Osbourne to Justin Bieber, and took home the Non-Classical Producer Of The Year Grammy last year.

“We’ll make a record with Andrew, I believe. We’ve already talked about it," Vedder said in the interview. "You know, the pandemic came right as we were leaving for a tour on the Gigaton record. We had a lot of shows planned. Two-thirds of those shows were put on sale, even. So one thing we’ll be doing in 2022 in making good on promises to play those shows.”

Although the rescheduled dates have yet to be announced, Pearl Jam assured fans that they plan to hit the road this May.

The frontman went on to explain that Pearl Jam plans to record music with Watt between touring commitments “because now we’ve got a strong, healthy ambition to do so.”

As for Watt, working with Vedder has been a dream come true. The producer gushed about being a fan of the band during a recent interview with Billboard.

“I was born in 1990 and my brother was born in ’85, so all we listened to growing up was Pearl Jam and the Chili Peppers," he explained. “If I admitted to you how many Pearl Jam concerts I’ve been to, it probably wouldn’t be good for anything. But I used to go to Pearl Jam concerts with a sign that said, ‘Let me play the guitar solo to ‘Alive’,’ and I found myself onstage at the Ohana Festival playing the guitar solo to ‘Alive’ with Pearl Jam.”

“So (working with Vedder) was just an actual full-circle, unbelievable moment that I feel like I’ve been ready for my whole life," he added.
"It’s not supposed to happen like that – you’re not supposed to have those posters on your wall and be in the position where you’re creating with those people.”

Aside from working together in the studio, Watt will also be part of Vedder's backing band during his intimate Earthling tour next month. See a full list of dates here.

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Mel Taylor