I love REM with my whole body including my pee pee, and I really think they should get to express their political views however they want to. But I sure would be pissed to sit through a whole set of that.

What songs? Like the stuff from Document? Exhuming McCarthy? I wouldn't mind hearing that.

I wish they would stick to songs about peeing by the roadside at night and Roger Miller covers.

JerseyTim: What songs? Like the stuff from Document? Exhuming McCarthy? I wouldn't mind hearing that.

Sounds like they are just rehashing the Green tour, which I saw, and was pretty damn good.

Sorry, subby. This is neither weird nor boring. I swear that some people comb the internet for famous people saying political things so that they can tell them to STFU and just sing/ act/ whatever. Ask yourself which is more pathetic- The fool using the bully pulpit to espouse his politcal views, or the fool who uses every opportunity to bash those whose views are different from theirs simply because they are entertainers.

lunchinlewis: I wish they would stick to songs about peeing by the roadside at night and Roger Miller covers.

And Velvet Underground covers, too.

"also set record for putting on most boring concert ever"

No, that would be Marc Bolan and T-Rex.

lunchinlewis: I wish they would stick to songs about peeing by the roadside at night and Roger Miller covers.

Great idea...well at least the Roger Miller part. "Dang Me"

biyaaatci: Sorry, subby. This is neither weird nor boring. I swear that some people comb the internet for famous people saying political things so that they can tell them to STFU and just sing/ act/ whatever. Ask yourself which is more pathetic- The fool using the bully pulpit to espouse his politcal views, or the fool who uses every opportunity to bash those whose views are different from theirs simply because they are entertainers.

I would say the latter. I mean sheesh check out the Rage Against the Machine thread today. Its as if bands are only here for our entertainment and any deviation from that by voicing their political views they become sell-outs and hypocrites because they happen to be on a major label. Completely forgetting any of the political activism they have done. Its ridiculous and stupid.

/Oh and R.E.M. is cool too.

People love to whine about US politics over in the UK. they probably got fantastic reviews.

Subby only if they played Shiny Happy People and Stand over and over would that be boring.

/ Loves R.E.M., new cd Accelerate is a breath of fresh air
// SHP and Stand make me stabby

It's pretty hard to make a stab at judging the set without a set list.

The StipeNozzle!

vonster: The StipeNozzle!

Frontman Michael Stipe says the band played some rare tracks from their back catalog at Scotland's T in the Park festival, including numbers written about George Bush Senior's government in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Hey, at least they were playing stuff they wrote while they still rocked.

/respectfully disagree with other Farkers about the qualities of their new album, or anything since 1993
//their best work: Reckoning or Green

JerseyTim: What songs? Like the stuff from Document? Exhuming McCarthy? I wouldn't mind hearing that.

When I saw them a month ago, they did Ignoreland, so I'm guessing that's what they were referring to.

mofomisfit: It's pretty hard to make a stab at judging the set without a set list.

Yep...And I'd pass without Pretty Persuasion, Driver 8, Can't Get There From Here, South Central Rain, The Wake Up Bomb, Bittersweet Me, Talk About the Passion, Bang and Blame...Well you get the idea.

What would Gibby Haines say?

"R.E.M. uses a festival in Scotland to preach American politics by playing a set full of political songs; also set record for putting on most boring concert ever"

it must be hard topping their own record with this after each show.

biyaaatci: Sorry, subby. This is neither weird nor boring. I swear that some people comb the internet for famous people saying political things so that they can tell them to STFU and just sing/ act/ whatever. Ask yourself which is more pathetic- The fool using the bully pulpit to espouse his politcal views, or the fool who uses every opportunity to bash those whose views are different from theirs simply because they are entertainers.

There's a big difference between someone spouting off on Entertainment Tonight, which I can easily ignore, and someone I'm paying to entertain me based on past performances and song catalog.

I almost always check set lists for performances of a tour that's headed toward Pittsburgh to set my expectations (or decide to pass). But I think subby is at least partly right. If one has no warning that Stipe & Co. is going to use a concert for a political purpose, and if I'm paying for a ticket, then yeah, it could definitely suck. It doesn't even matter if I'm agreeing or not with the position taken, it's simply not what I paid for.

As it was T in the Park, tix aren't too precious. And apparently they did play Losing My Religion, Man on the Moon, End of the World, Rockville and Drive. The whole set list is here.


/likes R.E.M.
//once shouted at Springsteen to just shut up and play
///own a great T in the Park CD compilation from the 94-96 shows

Wait, you guys didn't know that Maps and Legends is actually a scathing indictment of the Electoral College?

I would bet that Coldplay puts on a more boring set. Anyday.

Dancin_In_Anson: What would Gibby Haines say?

I read that as Gabby Hayes


/For the record no one can possibly put on a more boring show than Dashboard Confessional

lunchinlewis: Wait, you guys didn't know that Maps and Legends is actually a scathing indictment of the Electoral College?

I have a friend who argues, in all sincerity, that Murmur is a political album. I guess it could be true, and it just went over my head.

R.E.M. Suck

/that based on their music, not their political stance
//or douchehat Michael Stipe's wide stance

Here's the setlist from T in the Park... courtesy of some fanboy who was there...

R.E.M. - T in The Park, 7/13/08 Scotland

1.Living Well Is The Best Revenge
2.These Days
3.What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
4.Begin The Begin
5.Man-Sized Wreath
6.Drive
7.Ignoreland
8.The Great Beyond
9.Hollow Man
10.Imitation Of Life
11.(Dont Go Back To) Rockville
12.Electrolite
13.The One I Love
14.Losing My Religion
15.Fall On Me
16.Let Me In
17.Horse To Water
18.Bad Day
19.I'm Gonna DJ
20.Orange Crush
21.Supernatural Superserious
22.It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
23.Man On The Moon

/Seems like a typical setlist on their current tour....
//checking facts surrenders to lazy reporting...

Randyman: Here's the setlist from T in the Park... courtesy of some fanboy who was there...

R.E.M. - T in The Park, 7/13/08 Scotland

1.Living Well Is The Best Revenge
2.These Days
3.What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
4.Begin The Begin
5.Man-Sized Wreath
6.Drive
7.Ignoreland
8.The Great Beyond
9.Hollow Man
10.Imitation Of Life
11.(Dont Go Back To) Rockville
12.Electrolite
13.The One I Love
14.Losing My Religion
15.Fall On Me
16.Let Me In
17.Horse To Water
18.Bad Day
19.I'm Gonna DJ
20.Orange Crush
21.Supernatural Superserious
22.It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
23.Man On The Moon

/Seems like a typical setlist on their current tour....
//checking facts surrenders to lazy reporting...

Seems like a whole lot of awesome to me. A few I don't recognize, but a lot a great tunes in there.

Aldo the Wonder Dog: biyaaatci: Sorry, subby. This is neither weird nor boring. I swear that some people comb the internet for famous people saying political things so that they can tell them to STFU and just sing/ act/ whatever. Ask yourself which is more pathetic- The fool using the bully pulpit to espouse his politcal views, or the fool who uses every opportunity to bash those whose views are different from theirs simply because they are entertainers.

There's a big difference between someone spouting off on Entertainment Tonight, which I can easily ignore, and someone I'm paying to entertain me based on past performances and song catalog.

I almost always check set lists for performances of a tour that's headed toward Pittsburgh to set my expectations (or decide to pass). But I think subby is at least partly right. If one has no warning that Stipe & Co. is going to use a concert for a political purpose, and if I'm paying for a ticket, then yeah, it could definitely suck. It doesn't even matter if I'm agreeing or not with the position taken, it's simply not what I paid for.

As it was T in the Park, tix aren't too precious. And apparently they did play Losing My Religion, Man on the Moon, End of the World, Rockville and Drive. The whole set list is here.


/likes R.E.M.
//once shouted at Springsteen to just shut up and play
///own a great T in the Park CD compilation from the 94-96 shows

Thing is, I wonder about the sanity of someone who could call themselves a fan of Springsteen or REM and not know that politics play a tremendous role in their songwriting.

biyaaatci:
Thing is, I wonder about the sanity of someone who could call themselves a fan of Springsteen or REM and not know that politics play a tremendous role in their songwriting.

A fair point, but I'd argue in my case more nostalgia than anything. When you've seen the bands before they got mega-status, and even at early mega-status, they're not on stage preaching, they're entertaining. Some songs have political meaning, many don't. The difference is that earlier on, there might be some personal anecdotes during the performance, but not speechifying. It's only after they've got mega-status that it seems they feel entitled to bloviate from the stage. And that's what I object to.

And yeah, it does make me less likely to see them next time.

Aldo the Wonder Dog: biyaaatci:
Thing is, I wonder about the sanity of someone who could call themselves a fan of Springsteen or REM and not know that politics play a tremendous role in their songwriting.

A fair point, but I'd argue in my case more nostalgia than anything. When you've seen the bands before they got mega-status, and even at early mega-status, they're not on stage preaching, they're entertaining. Some songs have political meaning, many don't. The difference is that earlier on, there might be some personal anecdotes during the performance, but not speechifying. It's only after they've got mega-status that it seems they feel entitled to bloviate from the stage. And that's what I object to.

And yeah, it does make me less likely to see them next time.

Fair enough. I guess I am a bit obsessive about my trival knowledge of stories behind music, and I rarely go to concerts just to see the hits, but I understand how that could make someone reconsider their investment in being rapedpaying for tickets to a concert.

Hebalo: Seems like a whole lot of awesome to me. A few I don't recognize, but a lot a great tunes in there.

My PBS station ran an R.E.M. episode of Austin City Limits this weekend, and the setlist was shorter but was pretty close to that.

Randyman: Here's the setlist from T in the Park... courtesy of some fanboy who was there...

R.E.M. - T in The Park, 7/13/08 Scotland

1.Living Well Is The Best Revenge
2.These Days
3.What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
4.Begin The Begin
5.Man-Sized Wreath
6.Drive
7.Ignoreland
8.The Great Beyond
9.Hollow Man
10.Imitation Of Life
11.(Dont Go Back To) Rockville
12.Electrolite
13.The One I Love
14.Losing My Religion
15.Fall On Me
16.Let Me In
17.Horse To Water
18.Bad Day
19.I'm Gonna DJ
20.Orange Crush
21.Supernatural Superserious
22.It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
23.Man On The Moon

/Seems like a typical setlist on their current tour....
//checking facts surrenders to lazy reporting...

I'd pay good money to see that.

tarkus1980: JerseyTim: What songs? Like the stuff from Document? Exhuming McCarthy? I wouldn't mind hearing that.

When I saw them a month ago, they did Ignoreland, so I'm guessing that's what they were referring to.

OH, god. I would die a happy girl to see Ignoreland live.

Ignoreland was the highlight of the MSG show this tour. Let Me In was done acoustic; very beautiful.
/the new record is even better live

Dancin_In_Anson: What would Gibby Haines say?

he pumped gas next to me in austin during a lunch break once. i can never think of anything cool to say though, so i didnt.

/awaits the 'thats not all he'd like to pump' jokes

REM lyrics are about things?

/Shut up and sing.

I saw them at Red Rocks last month, one of the better shows i've seen. And the acoustic version of "Let Me In" was pretty kick ass.

They're playing here in Dresden tonight. Too bad "Superman" isn't on that set list. Love that song. If only they could only replace "Losing my Religion" with "Superman".....that'd be perfect.