OooOOo, another album of craftily worded political ideas written around random words grabbed from a 8 year olds letter to a pen-pal.

No thanks

R.E.M. works on new album, shares in-studio photos, still looks old suck.

beerrun: R.E.M. works on new album, shares in-studio photos, still suck.

Damn, beaten to the punch.

Didn't they just come out with a new album? Someone pull the emergency brake on that wheelchair.

Michael Stipe seems very determined to never shed his Dachau-chic look.

REM was a good starter band for me. Mid-80s, pre-pubescent, and looking for something different - REM was a group that helped me find out about bands like the Velvet Underground and Wire.

But at some point you realize that those bands are so much better than REM, and you move on. I stuck with them for awhile, even went to see them play at the Omni on the Green tour. But started having reservations about Out of Time, and completely realized we were on different paths by Automatic for the People. One verse of "Drive" was enough to let me know that it just wasn't for me anymore.

After that, REM always seemed behind the curve by a couple years, to the point where they sounded more like followers than leaders. Monster was a rock album that came out 2-3 years after grunge broke out. And so many of the influences and elements of Up sounded like rehashes of the indie/college scene from a couple years prior -- the Brian Wilson influence, the Neutral Milk/Elf Power sound of "Hope" (Yes, they claim it borrows its melody from Leonard Cohen, but it sounds remarkably like NMH's "Song against Sex" or some Elf Power to me - and I know Stipe spent more time hanging out with the latter, rather than the former)

If REM still does it for you, great. But for me, they were more of a signpost, a rest stop on the way to better music. I've tried hard to go back and listen to Murmur, Reckoning, etc, but I just can't connect with it anymore.

OK, that's my self-absorbed rant for the day.

I have'nt listened to an REM album since monster, whenever that was. Despite what any of you think of their politics or music, when did Mike Mills get fat? That makes me feel way out of touch. Or old or something, and I know it wasn't that long ago.

Murmur was a great album.

Could have stopped there, for all I care.
Glad they made a buck.

you all hate and that's ok. i've never been one to go with the crowd. rem is one of my favorite all time bands.

carry on.

bungle_jr: you all hate and that's ok. i've never been one to go with the crowd. rem is one of my favorite all time bands.

carry on.


I can tell by your love of obscure and unpopular bands like REM.

(It's fine for you to like REM, but to claim that doing so goes "against the crowd" is just insanity.)

I can still listen to some of the older stuff from time to time. As previous poster mentioned, helped expand my music tastes.

Saw them several times. Most memorable was at William and Mary. Went with some older friends. We all were sneaking alcohol into the event. Guards checking at the entrance, one of my friends had a beer slip out his pants leg, kicked it and ran through the security check. Me with 2 1/5ths of JD and 4-5 beers in my jacket arms, realized that no one was watching me since they chased him. I slipped through. I was officially a member of the band for being the hero with the alcohol!

after the show, as people were leaving, drunk idiot in crutches walking up the steps and falls just in front of me. When he landed his crutch was across some girls finger. she's screaming and the damned finger popped open on all of us. blood every where.

What a great night!

ArturoBandini: bungle_jr: you all hate and that's ok. i've never been one to go with the crowd. rem is one of my favorite all time bands.

carry on.


I can tell by your love of obscure and unpopular bands like REM.

(It's fine for you to like REM, but to claim that doing so goes "against the crowd" is just insanity.)

I'm guessing that his comment was meant in direction to all the "REM sucks" posters. Not a comment that some how mainstream and popular REM is "obscure or unpopular" band that cool people follow.

I'd say irony, but I'd be completely wrong and everyone from 3 threads above and below would come point that out.

/or maybe not.

ArturoBandini: bungle_jr: you all hate and that's ok. i've never been one to go with the crowd. rem is one of my favorite all time bands.

carry on.


I can tell by your love of obscure and unpopular bands like REM.

(It's fine for you to like REM, but to claim that doing so goes "against the crowd" is just insanity.)

Liking ANYTHING goes against the crowd on fark.

I like REM, also.

toetag & Gangway Fathead:

If bungle_jr's entire frame of musical reference is based exclusively on fark.com comments, I fear for his soul...

...but I get what you're saying.

I just remember seeing the video for "Wolves, Lower" a few years ago and thinking, "hey, it's the REM babies!"

/was just listening to Hindu Love Gods on the way home tonight.

I don't care what anyone says - REM farking kicks ass, and I love listening to people who bash them then listen to bands who wouldn't farking exist if REM hadn't paved the way.

Where the hell was Biggles: /was just listening to Hindu Love Gods on the way home tonight.

Love the version of Walking Blues...

rcantley: I don't care what anyone says - REM farking kicks ass, and I love listening to people who bash them then listen to bands who wouldn't farking exist if REM hadn't paved the way.

Where the hell was Biggles: /was just listening to Hindu Love Gods on the way home tonight.

Love the version of Walking Blues...

You know who else paved the way?

rcantley: I don't care what anyone says - REM farking kicks ass, and I love listening to people who bash them then listen to bands who wouldn't farking exist if REM hadn't paved the way.



That's kind of a specious argument. I don't really follow the REM threads, but your argument doesn't apply to this one yet.

Myself, I tend to hate the bands that REM inspired - Toad the Wet Sprocket, Hootie and the Blowfish, and, um, I don't know, what are current bands that are heavily REM influenced?

And my memory of Hindu Love Gods was that Zevon made the band worthwhile, moreso than Buck, etc. But it's been a few years since I've heard any of it.

ArturoBandini: That's kind of a specious argument. I don't really follow the REM threads, but your argument doesn't apply to this one yet.

Fair enough. But REM pretty heavily influenced a lot of beloved bands, including Radiohead and Wilco. Not just the Hooties of the world.

rcantley: ArturoBandini: That's kind of a specious argument. I don't really follow the REM threads, but your argument doesn't apply to this one yet.

Fair enough. But REM pretty heavily influenced a lot of beloved bands, including Radiohead and Wilco. Not just the Hooties of the world.

Well, I'm not a big Radiohead fan, so I can't even tell you if they were influenced by REM, but I'd probably take some issue with the Wilco reference.

Buck did produce an album for Uncle Tupelo, and I'm sure Tweedy is a fan of REM, but considering Uncle Tupelo's roots and the fact that they were together for upwards of 5-7 years or so before they met Buck, I would have a hard time believing that Wilco "wouldn't exist" without REM. I'd imagine Big Star was a bigger influence than REM.

Wilco is a great band, though. Although I haven't been as into the past couple of albums, I'll always consider them a great band.

(Just being anal and driving this argument into the ground while I wait for the Benedryl to kick in)

ArturoBandini: , I would have a hard time believing that Wilco "wouldn't exist" without REM. I'd imagine Big Star was a bigger influence than REM.

True. I'm probably exaggerating a bit.

ArturoBandini: (Just being anal and driving this argument into the ground while I wait for the Benedryl to kick in)

I don't know how I passed the time before the Benedryl kicked in before Fark.

Aww I tried to get in before everyone started saying "This popular and successful band, who has sold many many many records sucks."

here's something i noticed:
two of their recent and semi-recent hit singles have lines in them about "crying" or "see me cry"... weird...

ie. 1. that single "supernatural super serious" from "accelerate"
2. "imitation of life" from "reveal".

Screw all you people who say mean and evil things about my favorite band.

You know, sometimes when you listen to a band you like you end up asking yourself, "I wonder what [band member]'s contribution to this band is, other than playing his/her instrument?"

I'm sure many of us who have listened to REM over the years asked ourselves that question about Bill Berry. "Oh, yeah, well, he's the drummer, but I wonder what other role or roles he plays in this band, if any?" is what we would say.

Apparently Berry's role was to prevent the band from sucking, which they have in spades since he left.

Funny how sometimes you don't know what a band members REAL role is until he's gone.

...at least they got to bang Gen-X groupies back in the Nineteen Hundred and Nineties.

I too like REM. Ya'll can go suck it.

Dialectic: ...at least they got to bang Gen-X groupies back in the Nineteen Hundred and Nineties.

You want Stipe's groupies?

You know what album sucked?

REM's second to last album.

You know what album didn't suck?

Their last one.

Seriously, Up and Reveal weren't that bad, just not as good as their prior stuff. As far as I can tell, they've only had one completely bad album. Even Green and Reckoning still were 1/2 good.

toetag: ArturoBandini: bungle_jr: you all hate and that's ok. i've never been one to go with the crowd. rem is one of my favorite all time bands.

carry on.


I can tell by your love of obscure and unpopular bands like REM.

(It's fine for you to like REM, but to claim that doing so goes "against the crowd" is just insanity.)

I'm guessing that his comment was meant in direction to all the "REM sucks" posters. Not a comment that some how mainstream and popular REM is "obscure or unpopular" band that cool people follow.

I'd say irony, but I'd be completely wrong and everyone from 3 threads above and below would come point that out.

/or maybe not.

No no no. It's hip and trendy to hate R.E.M. and say all their albums suck and they're old and they suck because they're old and only their first four albums before they got mainstream success were worth listening to but they're not worth listening to any more because the band is old and sucks.

Accelerate was a very good album, way better then Up/Reveal/Around the Sun. Heck, better then most of their 90's material.

Third_Uncle_Eno: here's something i noticed:
two of their recent and semi-recent hit singles have lines in them about "crying" or "see me cry"... weird...

ie. 1. that single "supernatural super serious" from "accelerate"
2. "imitation of life" from "reveal".

Years ago I was working in a restaurant doing morning prep, listening to my copy of Chris Isaak's "Forever Blue." The girl I was working with made the observation that the first three songs of the album each make crying references. After realizing she was correct, I've never been able to take Chris Isaak seriously again.

/Somewhere I have a copy of R.E.M. covering "Wicked Game."
//For me, R.E.M. wasn't as good as they were before the drum machine replaced Bill Berry.

Oh great more music from an asshole.
In fact, I'd rather listen to the joyful sounds of a hippie farting his way through Twinkle Twinkle Little Star from a kazoo rammed up his butt.

lehmac: Oh great more music from an asshole.
In fact, I'd rather listen to the joyful sounds of a hippie farting his way through Twinkle Twinkle Little Star from a kazoo rammed up his butt.

I think I saw that one on Youtube the other day.

"Man on the Moon" is my favorite R.E.M song.

I think REM is decent. Once a year or so I'll listen to their best of album.

I like my rock harder though, more like Counting Crows.

What?

I own every album they've ever made. I first heard them when Document came out and went back and bought the earlier albums. They became my favorite band, and as my music tastes changed so did the music they were putting out. Sure, some of their stuff was a year or two behind. Monster definitely came out as grunge was going downhill. So what? It was REM doing it, and it was good music.

About the time Bill Berry left the band was when they went downhill for me. Up, with a damn drum machine, was horrible. And since then the "band" has been less of a "band" and more of Michael Stipe trying to preach to us with musical accompaniment. Which is sad, because the old school REM fans never listened to this band for the lyrics. Even Michael Stipe once upon a time said the lyrics aren't important. He's just singing along with the music.

Sadly, Accelerate was put out to try and get back to their roots, and while it was more enjoyable than any album since New Adventures (I actually loved New Adventures), it proved that they just don't have it anymore.

It was a good ride, guys. You put out some great albums. You changed music for the better for generations to come. Now, off to the nursing home with you. Please stop now.

Mega_Doof: You know, sometimes when you listen to a band you like you end up asking yourself, "I wonder what [band member]'s contribution to this band is, other than playing his/her instrument?"

I'm sure many of us who have listened to REM over the years asked ourselves that question about Bill Berry. "Oh, yeah, well, he's the drummer, but I wonder what other role or roles he plays in this band, if any?" is what we would say.

Apparently Berry's role was to prevent the band from sucking, which they have in spades since he left.

Funny how sometimes you don't know what a band members REAL role is until he's gone.

THIS. So VERY MUCH this.

They should have just followed through on that promise they had to break up if any of the original members left.

You people telling the band to stop making music are ridiculous. It cannot possibly harm you if they put out more records, the ones you like are not going to be changed with any Lucas(c) Wizardry, your childhoods will not be raped.

For the rest of us we get to hear more music from the greatest band in the universe.

baufan2005: Aww I tried to get in before everyone started saying "This popular and successful band, who has sold many many many records sucks."

Yes, because mass popularity or monetary success is equivalent to artistic success (new window).

rcantley:ArturoBandini: (Just being anal and driving this argument into the ground while I wait for the Benedryl to kick in)

I don't know how I passed the time before the Benedryl kicked in before Fark.

I know. I used to have to go to bars and force people to listen to my musical wisdom. Or god forbid, hang out at a record store until somebody expressed an opinion I could challenge.

The internet and sleep aids have saved me. Except for the pompous asshole part. Nothing will ever take that away from me.

Jaromayo: old school REM fans never listened to this band for the lyrics.

I would argue with this. As a kid, I tried hard to decipher the lyrics on Reckoning in particular. "Camera," "Harborcoat," etc, appeared to be full of meaning and purpose, if I could uncover it. Interviews around the time seemed to focus at least partly on Stipe's lyrics and their meaning, asking him to explain the origins of lines such as "Katie bar the door" (from Murmur's "Sitting Still").

If anything, Stipe's lyrical obfuscation was as important a part of their popularity as Buck's jangling guitar.

For myself, I'd even say that my frustrations with Stipe's lyrics, and my ultimate acceptance that they really did mean nothing, was part of my final dismissal of the band (and I say that as an English major and shiatty lyricist myself). So I wouldn't say that the lyrics were worthless w/r/t one's opinion of the band, even early in their career.

ArturoBandini: I would argue with this.

How surprising. I get the impression you would argue with a barn door.



I can talk to myself this way.

Mega_Doof: You know, sometimes when you listen to a band you like you end up asking yourself, "I wonder what [band member]'s contribution to this band is, other than playing his/her instrument?"

I'm sure many of us who have listened to REM over the years asked ourselves that question about Bill Berry. "Oh, yeah, well, he's the drummer, but I wonder what other role or roles he plays in this band, if any?" is what we would say.

Apparently Berry's role was to prevent the band from sucking, which they have in spades since he left.

Funny how sometimes you don't know what a band members REAL role is until he's gone.

Very astute, young farker-Bill was the rudder on that ship and when he left, the band was bound to drift. They should've just broken up.

ArturoBandini: bauf

Why yes, I think that is one of the definitions of success.

baufan2005: ArturoBandini: bauf

Why yes, I think that is one of the definitions of success.


I don't think you quite understood the words I wrote.

They have had their misses, but REM is still a great band. Loved "Accelerate." And people forget how many bands they influenced.

"They look old?" What a cheap, punk-ass, bush league comment, subby.