Pearl Jam brings grunge back to Raleigh. See photos from Night 1 of their 2 shows

By Scott Sharpe

Updated May 12, 2025 5:42 PM

Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam in concert at Raleigh, N.C.’s Lenovo Center, Sunday night, May 11, 2025. Scott Sharpe ssharpe@newsobserver.com

Pearl Jam is back.

The alt-rock band from Seattle stopped in Raleigh for two shows, with the first on Sunday night, followed by a concert on Tuesday, at the Lenovo Center as part of their Dark Matter World Tour.

Led by lead singer/guitarist Eddie Vedder, it was more than just a return of one of the best-selling and influential rock bands of all time. It was a return to North Carolina, period.

Two days before Pearl Jam was set to play in Raleigh in 2016, the band canceled the show to protest House Bill 2, the so-called “Bathroom Bill” that, among other things, required people to use the bathroom corresponding to their assigned sex at birth. In a statement at the time, the band called HB2, a “despicable piece of legislation that encourages discrimination against an entire group of human citizens.

Other acts like Bruce Springsteen and Ringo Starr also canceled their shows in North Carolina.

The law was subsequently repealed under then-Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper in 2017.

Today, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers are touring in select cities to perform their greatest hits, including songs from their groundbreaking album, “Ten,” and songs from their most recent Grammy-nominated album, “Dark Matter.”

Here are photos from the May 11, 2025, concert.