Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder says he has imposed a half an hour time limit on writing lyrics.

The singer said his new approach had been inspired by his bandmates, who wrote sections of the band's new album 'Backspacer' without him.

“What they did do, is put a lot of work into it,” Vedder told Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe. “The musical ideas were presented a lot closer to song form.

The singer said this allowed him to "throw a vocal on [the songs], and a meaning to it, immediately”.

He added: "Having written for a number of years, a number of records and a number of different reasons, I just can’t handle taking more than half an hour.

"If it’s not gonna happen quick then I don’t wanna do it, because it means there’s another one out there that is gonna happen quick, and is gonna hit you like a lightning bolt.”

'Backspacer', Pearl Jam's ninth studio album, is currently number nine in the UK album chart.

(by Jason Gregory)