Pearl Jam gave fans something to be truly thankful for over Thanksgiving weekend: a full-on Sleater-Kinney reunion. On Friday, November 29, the Lightning Bolt titans ended their performance at Portland’s Moda Center by bringing out former Sleater-Kinney members Carrie Brownstein, Corin Tucker, and Janet Weiss to assist with a stellar cover of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World,” from the singer-songwriter’s 1989 LP, Freedom.
Though the indie-rock luminaries have stayed busy since they called it quits in 2006 — Tucker with her solo career, Brownstein with Portlandia and Wild Flag (among other projects), and Weiss also with Wild Flag, Quasi, and Drumgasm — the surprise guest appearance marks the first time all three musicians have played together onstage in seven years. Sleater-Kinney’s last studio album was 2005’s smoldering ode to classic rock, The Woods.
Watch the seven-minute reunion above. Also of note: R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck and longtime collaborator Scott McCaughey contributed to the performance, too (photo evidence via Instagram). Naturally, the other members of R.E.M. were not on hand for their own reunion.
Brownstein recently helped Pearl Jam out with another rendition of “Rockin’ in the Free World” on November 15 in Dallas. Then the guitarist was joined by another famous friend, Annie Clark, a.k.a. St. Vincent. Find footage of that gig right here at SPIN.
