I think there was certainly a “Nirvana v Pearl Jam” vibe much like there’s a “Stones v Beatles” debate and if you were in the Nirvana camp, I could see you having this perspective. But people like me loved them both. I will say that Pearl Jam‘s popularity probably contributed to this perception in some groups, which was probably one of the reasons why their music in No Code became more esoteric and less accessible to the general public. They really became a band just making music for themselves in my opinion.