I am a big fan of Princes music, but i also dig REM's music very much. Sometimes its sound lke a very weird combination: Princes always a bit pompeous funk-rock, and REM's more subtle, understated guitarrock, But these two artists really are my favorites.

Just curious, but are there any people in here who also dig REM (I am not talking about people who consider themselve a 'fan' because they like Losing my religion or Everybody Hurts, but people who can really connect to REM's music)

I mean:
- I really enjoy the mystery, enigma on their first three albums, mixing folkrock with new-wavish pop.
- I love their middle period (from Lifes rich Pageant to Green), where they played a harder, more direct kind of music, but still with deep, thoughtfull, sometimes very poetic lyrics.
- I consider Murmur and Green my favorite REM-albums (because of the ambivalence, the nuances, the fact that these are records you need to listen more often to appreciate, understand, but both they show life-affirming magic), together with Automatic for the People (elegant, thoughtfull, and involved), these form my top 3 of REM-albums
- Since Bill Berry left, their quality of music has suffered, but there are brilliant moments on cd's like Up (moto: sometimes a person needs to fall, to grow further) and Reveal (Saturn Return is both haunting and deep, uncomfortable to listen to, but a heartfelt statement)

Any other REM-fans in here who can relate?

Since no-one is answering...
I like their music as much as to own all their albums...
...but not as obssesive fan as to go buy the new re-released versions

My favourite? Automatic 10/10

They're playing next month in Spain and I got tickets

i cant be classed a big fan ,.... but,.... their greatest hits album is,...

AWSOME !

When I first really got into music in my later high school years, they were certainly my favourite band. If you listened to "college" music back in those days, you listened to REM - that was practically a given.

I followed them up to Automatic, and then stopped paying attention as it seemed they lost the plot pretty severely after that.

When I go back to revisit their albums, I find they don't hold up particularly well. I think the first three have aged the best, though I may have rose-coloured blinders on since those are the the records from the era when I first listened to the band.

I liked "Fables of the Reconstruction" and "Life's Rich Paegeant" but I have to say that me favorite R.E.M. album is "Automatic For The People." I know that most people remember that album for "Everybody Hurts" and "Man On The Moon," which I do like, but my favorite song on that album is "Nightswimming."

Someone mentioned in another thread that most people and critics consider "Monster" to be R.E.M.'s worst album. I personally don't believe it's that bad. I think that Michael Stipe knew that he couldn't create Automatic For The People 2, and since it was the age of grunge, they attempted their own "hard rock/grunge" album. Most of it was pretty decent, but they did have some throwaway tracks like "Crush With Eyeliner."

Actually, I think their worst albums came after Bill Berry left the band due to health reasons. It wasn't so much that they put out crap; but they did lose some of their musical cohesiveness when they lost Bill Berry. I also think they suffered along with all of the other remaining alternative bands when Kurt Cobain died and the Spice Girls, the boy bands and P Diddy became hot. I think people wanted to party with their music, and the introspective works of R.E.M. became tiresome to a lot of people.

I love them, but I haven't been a fan of their latest album.

My fave albums:

Automatic For The People
New Adventures In Hi-Fi
Reveal

Fave songs:

Beachball
Electrolite
Sweetness Follows
Star Me Kitten

damosuzuki said:

Have you heard New Adventures In Hi-Fi?

I think that album is incredibally strong and criminally overlooked, even by most REM fans...

I am a huge fan, although I thought this last CD was not good.

Murmur is one of my all time favorite albums. I also really dig "Dead Letter Office." It's a great collection of bsides and a whole lotta fun. Especially on CD since you get Chronic Town as well.

Of their later works, Out of Time is deservong of the classic status it has attained and as I noted in my post above, I really like New Adventures in Hi-Fi.

endorphin74 said:

This is near (or at) the top of my favorite REM CD's. It's an incredible listen.

riverpoet31 said

Out of their early period, I think Reckoning is the best. Murmur does nothing for me, strangely enough. Life's Rich Pageant and Green are both better than the overrated Document (IMO), also. I like 90's-era REM. Automatic and HiFi are their two best albums in my book, and I think Monster is underrated.




I think the great thing about REM is that even among their mediocre CDs, they still have excellent songs; Up wasn't exactly a masterpiece, but it had at least 6 or 7 keepers, Reveal is probably the worst CD in their catalog, but I still like 3 or 4 songs on it, and ATS is far from Automatic for the People, but nothing is cringe-inducing or anything. .

endorphin74 said:

I gave a few listens to a friend's copy when it was released. Frankly I can't remember anything about it other than thinking that the album as a whole seemed a little undistinguished. I'm certainly open to giving it another try - any particular tracks you recommend?

damosuzuki said:

My favorite track is New Test Leper

but I also really enjoy:
How The West Was Won...
Undertow
E-Bow The Letter
Be Mine
Electrolite

The album as a whole is strong, but that handful stand out most to me.

Thanks for the input - I'll give them a listen.

I love me some R.E.M., but especially their early New Wave stuff. It's angular, jittery, and yet full of lush pop.

I recommend everyone get their first album, Chronic Town.

NWF said:

i'm pretty sure that was an EP, not an album


.
[Edited 4/17/05 17:48pm]

Riverpoet31 said:

I also dig thier stuff and I think Micheal Stipe is kind of sexy.

I love R.E.M. and have done for some time. I went to se them last year for the first time in Dublin and they were fantastic. I just saw them a few weeks ago in Belfast too - amazing gig and the first time they had ever played here.
Had a real impromtu part in the middle when Michael was introducing the band - played the guitar riff from "Teenage Kicks" and whole crowd just started singing along. A great night!!

I have all of their albums but I really love "Life's Rich Pageant", "Green", "Automatic for the People", "Monster", and I even quite liked "Up". I haven't quite managed to get into "New Adventures in Hi-Fi" yet but I'm trying - really like Electrolite though.

LolaM said:

I just fell back in love with them a little bit just for having read that.

God I love Teenage Kicks - the most perfect pop song ever recorded.

I love 2001's Reveal. It was such a sleeper record though. I remember the first time I played it. I was so ready for an album like this at the time. It was such an escape lyrically. Im going to have to pull this one out and play it tonight. Loved that Immitation of Life video too. U caught something different in it each time u saw it. It was one of their best.

damosuzuki said:

Michael was introducing everyone in the band, when he introduced Scott, he started playing Teenage Kicks and everyone started singing. Michael started joking that he was going to have to leave the tour if he kept stealing the limelight. It was a fantastic night, really fun atmosphere. I think that Belfast has just been waiting for them to play for years and the crowd was really up for it.

The first time i heard "Half a world away" on the radio i thought....yes, there is much more good music on this world then Prince

They helped me to broaden to my music horizons, and i am still thankfull for that