Obsessed

1.TV Interview

It is 8:17 pm. The TV on in the background, Mary-Lann is preparing her meal. Pasta on which she pours a tomato sauce cooked with basil and then sprinkles them with parmesan. Her plate full, she leaves the kitchen after having turned off everything inside and goes to the sofa on which she sits. The plate is then placed on the coffee table of the living room on which and also the remote control. As she is about to change the channel, a program starts. Without knowing why, it appeals to her curiosity. 

"It looks interesting" she says to herself as she is eating a first bite of spaghetti, sitting cross-legged.

Sometimes, an evening in front of the TV is good and relaxing.

The credits of the music show start and the name of a band appears on the screen; Pearl Jam. This name does not tell her anything yet, being unknown to the general public. But not for long as the voice-over says. When the singer of this group appears on the screen and says; Hi, in front of the camera, the glance of Mary-Lann is fixed on him. She puts her plate on the coffee table with her fork and swallows the few spaghettis that she has previously put in her mouth.

 While the music journalist whose name appears at the bottom of the screen, is introducing the leader of this new group, whose name is Eddie Vedder, the young woman of 21 years sinks her muscles comfortably in the sofa then starts to look, to listen attentively. She seems to be already under the spell without really knowing who he is and what style of music this band plays. Mary-Lann will find out soon enough.   

Sept. 18, 1991.

"Three weeks after Pearl Jam's debut album, Ten, came out on Epic/Sony, the  music journalist; Karen Bliss  have the chance to interview frontman; Eddie Vedder  for a metal magazine called M.E.A.T. " the voice-over says.

"Hi. How are you?"she asks him with a smile.

"I'm alright." he says with a very nice smile.

"You sound."

He just nods.

"I saw you guys play down at the NMS a couple of months ago. You were very very great and it was completely intense ."

"Oh!  Thank you very much. That's good to hear. But what's NMS?" he asks her with a questioning expression.

"New Music Seminar." 

"Yes." he says with a laugh and adds, Post-music. It's not New Music Seminar! It's Middle of the Road Seminar. 

"What are you thinking  when you're on stage? Your eyes are really glassy.  You're like staring out into space, completely absorbed in the words. Or is it the band?"

"It's kind of the everything. I'm totally hypnotized by the music. I mean, that's like... it's, it's, it's why this music, why we work so well together I think. I mean, it's very groove-oriented the music side, and so it kind of gets you in the state of hypnotic trance."

Then he laughs.

"Are you aware of the audience?"

"Oh, very much so. I mean, I'd look down and I memorize their faces and I'd sing a few lines to the people in the back and then I'd look down and make sure that all those same faces are still standing."

" I think a lot of people went back to see you on the subsequent night. People were very impressed."

"Yeah, the show at Wetlands was amazing. It was religious, for me anyway."

" It sounds a lot like you're running your voice pretty ragged. Have you always sang like that, in past bands?"

"Well, yeah. I mean...but I never learned how to sing or anything, so...I probably should. Because when I do it every night, it probably is gonna hurt 'cause I really don't know what I'm doing. I get really worried though, like if they say, 'Take vocal lessons,' or something because it's kind of like I used to really love to draw when I was a kid and then I took like an art class — because everyone said, 'Oh, you're so good, you should take a class and maybe you can be really good,' and then I went to the class and then they showed me how to use a ruler and perspective and all this stuff and it totally made me not want to do it at all."

The interview continues but Mary-Lann is not listening to it anymore. She just stares at him instead. Her heart starts to race. Isn't that of...

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If you read this first chapter I hope you'll like it.

*I found the interview on billboard website.