1. Fables of the Reconstruction 2. Out of Time 3. Automatic for the People 4. Life's Rich Pageant 5. Murmur 6. New Adventures in Hifi 7. Up 8. Reveal 9. Reckoning 10. Monster 11. Green 12. Document 13. Around the Sun 14. Accelerate 15. Collapse into Now
Man this is tough.. been on a big R.E.M. kick lately so I’ll give you my top 5 as of today (subject to change, but I do prefer the IRS years thru Bill Berry’s departure the most): 1) Document 2) Automatic For The People 3) Lifes Rich Pageant 4) Reckoning 5) Fables Of The Reconstruction (“Driver 8” might be my favorite song from them of all time, I just never get sick of it.. that bridge is so awesome 😮)
I really liked your format and discussion. I was t pleasantly surprised to see new fi win. This was one of the best album reviews and definitely the best remix album ranking. I liked your openness to each era!
My favourite band of all time... in the history of music... in the history of the world! Here's my list ^^ 1. MURMUR 💖💓💝❤🔥 (and one of my Top 5 albums ever EVER in music history by any band!) 2. RECKONING (this is beyond indescribable...) 3. AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE (the home of my favourite R.E.M. song of all time... the third one) 4. LIFE'S RICH PAGEANT / GREEN (tie, because I believe they're kind of brother-albums, because of their environmental themes, they're tit for tat!) 5. NEW ADVENTURES IN HI-FI (the greatest album to listen on a road trip) 6. DOCUMENT (such an attitude! personality! fire! so much fire! this album is intense!) 7. OUT OF TIME (another lovely parade into the world's highways... what a magic trip) 8. FABLES OF THE RECONSTRUCTION (so dense and atmospheric and groovy... again, what a magic trip) 9. MONSTER / ACCELERATE (Tie, again, I think of them as brother-albums, sames rockn'rollin' vibes) 10. UP (atmospheric as hell, I adore being in the places this album leaves me) 11. AROUND THE SUN (yeap, underrated, such a beautiful, moving album) 12. REVEAL (It was hard for me to love it, it took me some time, but now I love it) 13. COLLAPSE INTO NOW (being my favourite band and everything... I have to admit... I don't like it. Maybe a couple... or 4... but nope) This was fun, you guys, this video relaxed me a lot. Greetings from México!
The hardest thing about ranking REM albums is having a bottom 5. I’d feel like I’m doing the dirty on them, but for a long time I’ve always thought Green is the weakest. New Adventures In Hi Fi is number 1 for me too. The rest of the top five will consist of Monster, Automatic For The People, Murmur and Document. I’ll have to think far too much to rank numbers 6 to 14. Maybe one day I’ll get around to doing it. Great video, gentlemen. 😎
True…..I feel rem made quite a few albums that could contend for one of the best of all time (if you were doing the best 500) I would expect to see at least 5
Very enjoyable video. I think Around the Sun is underrated, but that may be because most REM fans like faster, harder alt rock. I also like prog rock, and I think Around the Sun fits well in my collection. Show this album some love. That being said, Document is my number 1.
Great video and I pretty much agree with your rankings. Top 3 is my clear Top 3 as well - the actual ranking between them depends on my mood on the day.
Monster is the record( lets face it CD) that draws a line for remfanz. You guys are very diplomatic. Have to admit I don't own one REM but about to get murmur and since Drive is my fave I'll get AFThePeople soon.
Reading these comments and the wildly different rankings just shows how good R.E.M were. For me.....they changed my taste in music in the mid-80s, I lived in very rural Scotland and listened to a diet of heavy rock. A friend's older sister was listening to Reckoning and it just grabbed my ears and shook them and sent me down a listening path that's stuck with me to this day. For what it's worth my top 5 : 1) Life's Rich Pageant 2) Reckoning 3) Document 4) Murmur 5) New Adventures in Hi Fi
Hallelujah! New Adventures at #1! I am not sure I would have it at #1, but it's definitely a contender. I couldn't believe when I looked up rankings and saw people ranking it DEAD LAST. Conversely, I'm just not sure what people see in Automatic for the People. I mean, it's fine, but there's not a lot that really grabs me. I would probably have to go as follows, but the top 3 are really, really hard to separate and on a given day I might choose any of them as my #1: 1) Life's Rich Pageant 2) New Adventures in Hi-Fi 3) Document 4) Monster 5) Reckoning 6) Murmur 7) Automatic for the People 8) Green 9) Fables of the Reconstruction 10) Out of Time 11) the rest (I don't know them well enough to have a strong opinion)
I really like your ranking!!! The only one I would change to a lower position is Automatic. I know everyone loves it but I’d knock it all the way down to 8.
R.E.M. is my favorite band! Having said that, everyone values their records differently .. here’s my ranking: 1 Fables 2 Out of Time 3 Murmur 4 Reckoning 5 Monster 6 Lifes 7 Automatic 8 Up 9 New 10 Green 11 Around 12 Document 13 Collapse 14 Reveal 15 Accelerate
Green, Out of Time, Reckoning… I don’t get your ranking at all. You may think I’m late to the party but I jumped on at Reckoning and saw Green twice on tour.
Id say this is the best rem ranking ive seen. The only things i would change is id have 'document' in 3rd and 'around the sun' last. Tried my best to like around the sun but its just flat.
1. Automatic (favorite album of all time of any band), 2. Murmur, 3. Monster, 4. NAIHF. Great fun video guys. The late 80s albums have AMAZING songs, can IMHO, some filler. No filler on my faves.
Hi, let me think..... top 10, it could change in the future but the top 3 is quite solid 1) Automatic for the people ( although i'm a great fan of the I.R.S. spell this is the one i listen to the most) 2) Murmur 3) Life's rich pageant 4) Reckoning 5) Fables of the reconstruction ( this is the one i bought back in 1985, first purchase) 6) Green 7) Out of time ( shiny happy people and radio song spoil the entire album) 8) New adventures in hi-fi ( what's wrong with it? i don't know, it was much higher before) 9) Monster ( I'm puzzled about this one, sometimes i like it, it depends on my mood) 10) UP
1 Automatic 2 New adventures 3 Murmur 4 Out of Time 5 Life's Rich Pageant 6 Reveal 7 Green 8 Reckoning 9 Document 10 Accelerate 11 Up 12 Fables 13 Monster 14 Around the Sun I've never understood the hype surrounding monster! I never got into the songs and it just didnt work for me. I think youre completely right about the top two, id just put automatic first. Still not listened to collapse into now, but i will someday.
I agree with your list and ranking. New adventures is one of my favourite albums but Auto is amazing and should be #1. I would have put Monster a bit higher.
I think Monster was a worthwhile experiment into adding more rock influences into their movement that has a handful of bangers surrounded by a bunch of duds.
I could not stand Monster when it come out in '94 and for many years after. (Ironically, I love New Adventures, which is Monster but evolved and perfected.) But I've come around to it in recent years. It plays much better than it used to, and it's now in my Top 10. (Number 9, currently.) It has what might be one of my top 3, certainly Top 5, R.E.M. songs in "Strange Currencies".
2:59 this is when you're gonna grab the first one, so let me post my top 3: life's rich pageant reconstruction of the fables murmur (Im sorry new adventures, but you make my top 4!) OK lets watch :D
Huge Fan Top 10 1. Automatic for the People 2. Out of Time 3. Murmur 4. Life’s Rich Pageant 5. Green 6. Document 7. Monster 8. Fables of the Reconstruction 9. New Adventures 10. Reckoning (just above Up)
Is it just me or is New Adventures the REM album that divides opinion the most! I see it as, for the most part, an overlong dirge of samey AOR songs that rates just above Around the Sun at the bottom of the ratings table. Compared to their classic 80s and early 90s albums it sound really labored.
I agree that Green feels a bit weird in their discography, kinda disappointing upon relistening. Standout track surely must be "I Remember California", which is pretty haunting tbh, but then it has earsores like Stand and Pop Song, which are just sort of obnoxious and a little bit off. And some soft ballads. It's like they are all over the place, not really unfocused, but I get a little bit confused by all the moods maybe. But let's remember that it follows an insane streak of like 5 (FIVE) masterpieces in a row xD I mean, what a band!
Love their whole discography. The lower albums are there only because the other albums are better. There's no worst. And yes, "New Adventures" is their best album. My current ranking (bottom to top): 15. Accelerate 14. Collapse Into Now 13. Around the Sun 12. Fables of the Reconstruction *. Dead Letter Office 11. Green 10. Reckoning 9. Monster 8. Out of Time 7. Reveal 6. Up 5. Murmur 4. Lifes Rich Pageant *. Chronic Town 3. Document 2. Automatic for the People 1. New Adventures in Hi-Fi
15.- Around the Sun (the only one really bad, bad, bad, painful) 14.- Reveal (This album does deserve an anniversary reissue in which it is left naked, without so much production. So it will be good, but the way it came out it's very bad) 13.- Collapse into now (A very good farewell. Much better than Reveal and Around the Sun, but it has to be put somewhere on the list) 12.- Out of Time 11.- Fables os the Reconstruction 10.- Accelerate 09.- Monster 08.- New Adventures in Hi-Fi 07.- Document 06.- Green 05.- Automatic for the people 04.- UP (their last really good album, the last one in which they looked for something new, just as they did in the 80s and until Automatic. The usual REM with analog electronics and almost lo-fi production. A marvel) 03.- Life's Rich Pageant 02.- Reckoning 01.- Murmur If REM are anything in the history of music, they are because of Murmur, Reckoning and Lifes Rich Pageant, the rest was to continue making good music with the luck/genius of achieving massive stardom and making music for all ears, but none of that It already marked the history of REM. Except, perhaps, UP, where yes, they jump on the electronic trend, but in a very special way, with analog machines, not in a conventional or saturated way, as they did later in Reveal and Around the Sun.
If you cut me open you would find IRS era REM. Green broke me. I like inside out and crush is ok but the rest is unlistenable. Their later albums aren’t the same for me but i do like some of them. I probably rate Monster higher than most. It’s a fun album. I’m not really a fan of adventures in wifi.
Murmur is head and shoulders above the rest on all counts, but every album is 4-5 stars. New Adventures is definitely in number 2 or 3 spot. Very underrated
What about Chronic Town did you leave that off the list because it was an EP and not a full album Gardening at night Lower Wolves and Stumble are great early R.E.M. songs and Dead Letter Office I guess that was left off because it was Out Takes and B Sides but Voices of Harold Pale Blue Eyes and their version of Toys in the Attic were also great songs
Ok no more comments from me now, but I have never met an REM fan who didnt think New Adventures was their finest 90s album, its super popular among fans! Often overall top 5 REM album too. Just sayin... Great watch guys :D
This video gave me anxiety guys 😂 Here's my list and I'm HUGE on REM for the last 20 years: Reckoning Out of Time Automatic for the People Lifes Rich Pageant Fables of the Reconstruction Murmur Green Collapse into Now Up New Adventures in Hi Fi Document Monster Reveal Accelerate Around the Sun
I gotta line up with you both here! Great list! 1. New Adventures in Hi-Fi (1996) 2. Automatic for the People (1992) 3. Murmur (1983) 4. Green (1988) 5. Reckoning (1984) 6. Lifes Rich Pageant (1986) 7. Out of Time (1991) 8. Fables of the Reconstruction (1985) 9. Document (1987) 10. Monster (1994) 11. Accelerate (2008) 12. Collapse into Now (2011) 13. Up (1998) 14. Reveal (2001) 15. Around the Sun (2004)
new adventures would be my nr 2, automatic my nr 1. i would put green and monster higher, and up and out of time lower. the last few albums, i'm not familiar with.
I respectfully disagree with your rankings - With that said, IMHO REM second to The Beatles is the greatest band ever. 1. Document - 1987 (One of the greatest albums of the century), I saw REM during the Document tour, so this has sentimental value as well. "Sharpening stones, walking on coals, to improve your business acumen..." 2. Automatic for the People - 1992 (Mellow, but contains hit after hit...) So much hype when this was released, it was a big deal on WHFS the great alt station in Annapolis. REM was at its peak in popularity, no question about it. 3. Murmur - 1983 (One of the greatest debut albums ever) 4. Out of Time - 1991 My "go to" for feel good hits, "New Wild Heaven and "Texarkana" are fantastic. 5. Life's Rich Pageant - 1986 - Mid 80s releases paved the path for alternative rock. Loved "Hyena" and "Flowers of Guatemala". I love this album so much. 6. Green - 1988 ( Under appreciated, has some many great tunes, "Pop Song 89", "Get Up", and "Orange Crush". Ok "Stand" is silly, but this album is a banger. I disagree, this holds up well through the years for me. 7. Reckoning - 1984 - every song is quality. 8. Fables of the Reconstruction - 1985 - greatest album cover artwork, rather dreary overtone, but good. I was obsessed with "Can't get there from here" 9. Chronic Town/Dead Letter Office - 1982/1987 (It's criminal to just pretend this doesn't exist, "Wolves, Lower", "Crazy" and "Windout" are in my top 30 REM songs). 10. Up - 1998 - Very mellow, but not a bad song on it."Why not Smile" is in my top 10 REM songs, I almost have tears when I listen again. 11. New Adventures in Hi-Fi - 1996 - "E-Bow the letter" and "Bittersweet Me" are great, but this isn't their best effort. 12. Reveal - 2001 - "All the Way to Reno" is outstanding. "You're gonna be a star......" 13, Monster - 1994 - "King of Comedy" rocks, but I remember ('94) thinking - this is just ok, they must be going through a mid-life crisis. 14. Accelerate - 2008 - "Mr. Richards" and "I'm Gonna DJ" are superb. 15. Collapse into Now - 2011 - meh - sounds like recycled ideas. 16. Around the Sun - 2004 - ugh, this is a forgettable release. I was disappointed, still am. Meh meh meh.
1. Fables of the Reconstruction - dark, murky, layered yet oddly comforting, Michael shines 2. Lifes Rich Pageant - the range of songs from Begin to Begin-Fall on Me-I Believe are impressive 3. Reckoning - more direct and sparse than Murmur, Peter's guitar work is the star 4. Green - as much as I hate Stand, and I truly do, this album flirts with beauty and brilliance 5. Document - 3 of my least favorite REM songs keep this album from being higher on the list.
For me it's Automatic New adventures Monster Out of time Document Reveal Murmur Fables Reckoning Pageant Around the sun Green Accelerate Up Collapse into now
My Top 3: #3 - Automatic For The People, #2 - Document, #1 - Life's Rich Pageant... Honorable Mentions: Out Of Time & Fables Of The Reconstruction ... Dead Last: Around The Sun (I have the actual Music Den's Promo Copy)... I do have a soft spot for Reveal though... Meeyahhh
"In real time" What does that even mean? In fake time? is that such a thing. If something is done "in real time" a four year old can figure out that it is "in real time."
Lifes Rich Pageant (no apostrophe) is their best album. And Monster is right up there, too. Murmur, Reckoning, Document and Automatic are awesome. Reveal and Around the Sun are awful.
Just discovered your channel. Chilling out on an REM binge in a hotel room in Texas. I have to say…New Adventures is unlistenable to me personally. To me, I just get bored with it. I just feel it is uninspired and a tired version of REM. But what does that say about REM, their brilliance and their fans? To me it proves music is a universal connector and yet speaks to each of us differently. I’ll post my ranks later lol. Great channel!
So true. REM fans are fantastic cause they all are so detailed in their knowledge of the catalogue. I’ve been blown away to see the responses on this video.
1. Fables of the Reconstruction
2. Out of Time
3. Automatic for the People
4. Life's Rich Pageant
5. Murmur
6. New Adventures in Hifi
7. Up
8. Reveal
9. Reckoning
10. Monster
11. Green
12. Document
13. Around the Sun
14. Accelerate
15. Collapse into Now
I agree with your number 1
Fables, Reckoning and Murmur are all top 5 for sure.
I love people who love Fables
Man this is tough.. been on a big R.E.M. kick lately so I’ll give you my top 5 as of today (subject to change, but I do prefer the IRS years thru Bill Berry’s departure the most):
1) Document
2) Automatic For The People
3) Lifes Rich Pageant
4) Reckoning
5) Fables Of The Reconstruction (“Driver 8” might be my favorite song from them of all time, I just never get sick of it.. that bridge is so awesome 😮)
I really liked your format and discussion. I was t pleasantly surprised to see new fi win. This was one of the best album reviews and definitely the best remix album ranking. I liked your openness to each era!
My favourite band of all time... in the history of music... in the history of the world! Here's my list ^^
1. MURMUR 💖💓💝❤🔥 (and one of my Top 5 albums ever EVER in music history by any band!)
2. RECKONING (this is beyond indescribable...)
3. AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE (the home of my favourite R.E.M. song of all time... the third one)
4. LIFE'S RICH PAGEANT / GREEN (tie, because I believe they're kind of brother-albums, because of their environmental themes, they're tit for tat!)
5. NEW ADVENTURES IN HI-FI (the greatest album to listen on a road trip)
6. DOCUMENT (such an attitude! personality! fire! so much fire! this album is intense!)
7. OUT OF TIME (another lovely parade into the world's highways... what a magic trip)
8. FABLES OF THE RECONSTRUCTION (so dense and atmospheric and groovy... again, what a magic trip)
9. MONSTER / ACCELERATE (Tie, again, I think of them as brother-albums, sames rockn'rollin' vibes)
10. UP (atmospheric as hell, I adore being in the places this album leaves me)
11. AROUND THE SUN (yeap, underrated, such a beautiful, moving album)
12. REVEAL (It was hard for me to love it, it took me some time, but now I love it)
13. COLLAPSE INTO NOW (being my favourite band and everything... I have to admit... I don't like it. Maybe a couple... or 4... but nope)
This was fun, you guys, this video relaxed me a lot. Greetings from México!
The hardest thing about ranking REM albums is having a bottom 5. I’d feel like I’m doing the dirty on them, but for a long time I’ve always thought Green is the weakest. New Adventures In Hi Fi is number 1 for me too. The rest of the top five will consist of Monster, Automatic For The People, Murmur and Document. I’ll have to think far too much to rank numbers 6 to 14. Maybe one day I’ll get around to doing it. Great video, gentlemen. 😎
Automatic for the People isn’t just the best REM album - it is one of the best all time
True…..I feel rem made quite a few albums that could contend for one of the best of all time (if you were doing the best 500) I would expect to see at least 5
Facts.
Very enjoyable video. I think Around the Sun is underrated, but that may be because most REM fans like faster, harder alt rock. I also like prog rock, and I think Around the Sun fits well in my collection. Show this album some love. That being said, Document is my number 1.
What an insanely great band.
I was surprised Green was so low, but hard to rank REM. All so good.
Great video and I pretty much agree with your rankings. Top 3 is my clear Top 3 as well - the actual ranking between them depends on my mood on the day.
Monster is the record( lets face it CD) that draws a line for remfanz. You guys are very diplomatic. Have to admit I don't own one REM but about to get murmur and since Drive is my fave I'll get AFThePeople soon.
It sucked so bad I never bought another rem cd
Good job. REM is fantastic no matter what. Fun stuff!
Great video. This is one tough assignment- so many great albums from this band
Reading these comments and the wildly different rankings just shows how good R.E.M were.
For me.....they changed my taste in music in the mid-80s, I lived in very rural Scotland and listened to a diet of heavy rock. A friend's older sister was listening to Reckoning and it just grabbed my ears and shook them and sent me down a listening path that's stuck with me to this day.
For what it's worth my top 5 :
1) Life's Rich Pageant
2) Reckoning
3) Document
4) Murmur
5) New Adventures in Hi Fi
Hallelujah! New Adventures at #1! I am not sure I would have it at #1, but it's definitely a contender. I couldn't believe when I looked up rankings and saw people ranking it DEAD LAST. Conversely, I'm just not sure what people see in Automatic for the People. I mean, it's fine, but there's not a lot that really grabs me.
I would probably have to go as follows, but the top 3 are really, really hard to separate and on a given day I might choose any of them as my #1:
1) Life's Rich Pageant
2) New Adventures in Hi-Fi
3) Document
4) Monster
5) Reckoning
6) Murmur
7) Automatic for the People
8) Green
9) Fables of the Reconstruction
10) Out of Time
11) the rest (I don't know them well enough to have a strong opinion)
I gave your #1 another listen and I must admit it is under appreciated - but I would still have Murmur and Reckoning as 1a and 1b
I really like your ranking!!! The only one I would change to a lower position is Automatic. I know everyone loves it but I’d knock it all the way down to 8.
New Adventures in Hi FI is my favourite album. So good o hear someone agree!
Yeah baby!
R.E.M. is my favorite band! Having said that, everyone values their records differently .. here’s my ranking:
1 Fables
2 Out of Time
3 Murmur
4 Reckoning
5 Monster
6 Lifes
7 Automatic
8 Up
9 New
10 Green
11 Around
12 Document
13 Collapse
14 Reveal
15 Accelerate
Glad to see Monster getting some love
Green, Out of Time, Reckoning… I don’t get your ranking at all. You may think I’m late to the party but I jumped on at Reckoning and saw Green twice on tour.
Ouch! New adventures over Automatic😮 sucker punched right at the end
1. Fables
2. Green
3. Pageant
4. Document
5. Automatic
Id say this is the best rem ranking ive seen. The only things i would change is id have 'document' in 3rd and 'around the sun' last. Tried my best to like around the sun but its just flat.
1. Automatic (favorite album of all time of any band), 2. Murmur, 3. Monster, 4. NAIHF. Great fun video guys. The late 80s albums have AMAZING songs, can IMHO, some filler. No filler on my faves.
Hi, let me think..... top 10, it could change in the future but the top 3 is quite solid
1) Automatic for the people ( although i'm a great fan of the I.R.S. spell this is the one i listen to the most)
2) Murmur
3) Life's rich pageant
4) Reckoning
5) Fables of the reconstruction ( this is the one i bought back in 1985, first purchase)
6) Green
7) Out of time ( shiny happy people and radio song spoil the entire album)
8) New adventures in hi-fi ( what's wrong with it? i don't know, it was much higher before)
9) Monster ( I'm puzzled about this one, sometimes i like it, it depends on my mood)
10) UP
1 Automatic
2 New adventures
3 Murmur
4 Out of Time
5 Life's Rich Pageant
6 Reveal
7 Green
8 Reckoning
9 Document
10 Accelerate
11 Up
12 Fables
13 Monster
14 Around the Sun
I've never understood the hype surrounding monster! I never got into the songs and it just didnt work for me. I think youre completely right about the top two, id just put automatic first. Still not listened to collapse into now, but i will someday.
I agree with your list and ranking. New adventures is one of my favourite albums but Auto is amazing and should be #1. I would have put Monster a bit higher.
I think Monster was a worthwhile experiment into adding more rock influences into their movement that has a handful of bangers surrounded by a bunch of duds.
I could not stand Monster when it come out in '94 and for many years after. (Ironically, I love New Adventures, which is Monster but evolved and perfected.) But I've come around to it in recent years. It plays much better than it used to, and it's now in my Top 10. (Number 9, currently.) It has what might be one of my top 3, certainly Top 5, R.E.M. songs in "Strange Currencies".
2:59 this is when you're gonna grab the first one, so let me post my top 3:
life's rich pageant
reconstruction of the fables
murmur (Im sorry new adventures, but you make my top 4!)
OK lets watch :D
Huge Fan Top 10
1. Automatic for the People
2. Out of Time
3. Murmur
4. Life’s Rich Pageant
5. Green
6. Document
7. Monster
8. Fables of the Reconstruction
9. New Adventures
10. Reckoning (just above Up)
Out of Time is their best.
Is it just me or is New Adventures the REM album that divides opinion the most! I see it as, for the most part, an overlong dirge of samey AOR songs that rates just above Around the Sun at the bottom of the ratings table. Compared to their classic 80s and early 90s albums it sound really labored.
Reckoning is their best but kudos for putting it in the top 3
Top 3 the same has mine so glad new adventures is top .One of my favourites of all time
I agree that Green feels a bit weird in their discography, kinda disappointing upon relistening. Standout track surely must be "I Remember California", which is pretty haunting tbh, but then it has earsores like Stand and Pop Song, which are just sort of obnoxious and a little bit off. And some soft ballads. It's like they are all over the place, not really unfocused, but I get a little bit confused by all the moods maybe. But let's remember that it follows an insane streak of like 5 (FIVE) masterpieces in a row xD
I mean, what a band!
Love their whole discography. The lower albums are there only because the other albums are better. There's no worst. And yes, "New Adventures" is their best album.
My current ranking (bottom to top):
15. Accelerate
14. Collapse Into Now
13. Around the Sun
12. Fables of the Reconstruction
*. Dead Letter Office
11. Green
10. Reckoning
9. Monster
8. Out of Time
7. Reveal
6. Up
5. Murmur
4. Lifes Rich Pageant
*. Chronic Town
3. Document
2. Automatic for the People
1. New Adventures in Hi-Fi
Reveal should be WAY higher!! 🤦🏻♂️
Great video
15.- Around the Sun (the only one really bad, bad, bad, painful)
14.- Reveal (This album does deserve an anniversary reissue in which it is left naked, without so much production. So it will be good, but the way it came out it's very bad)
13.- Collapse into now (A very good farewell. Much better than Reveal and Around the Sun, but it has to be put somewhere on the list)
12.- Out of Time
11.- Fables os the Reconstruction
10.- Accelerate
09.- Monster
08.- New Adventures in Hi-Fi
07.- Document
06.- Green
05.- Automatic for the people
04.- UP (their last really good album, the last one in which they looked for something new, just as they did in the 80s and until Automatic. The usual REM with analog electronics and almost lo-fi production. A marvel)
03.- Life's Rich Pageant
02.- Reckoning
01.- Murmur
If REM are anything in the history of music, they are because of Murmur, Reckoning and Lifes Rich Pageant, the rest was to continue making good music with the luck/genius of achieving massive stardom and making music for all ears, but none of that It already marked the history of REM. Except, perhaps, UP, where yes, they jump on the electronic trend, but in a very special way, with analog machines, not in a conventional or saturated way, as they did later in Reveal and Around the Sun.
If you cut me open you would find IRS era REM. Green broke me. I like inside out and crush is ok but the rest is unlistenable. Their later albums aren’t the same for me but i do like some of them. I probably rate Monster higher than most. It’s a fun album. I’m not really a fan of adventures in wifi.
1.Automatic 2.Lifes 3.Fables 4.New 5.Out 6.Reckoning 7.Accelerate 8.Murmur 9.Document 10.Green 11.Monster 12.Reveal 13.Up 14.Collapse 15.Around
Murmur is head and shoulders above the rest on all counts, but every album is 4-5 stars. New Adventures is definitely in number 2 or 3 spot. Very underrated
I love each album as they were released.
1. AFTP, 2. Up, 3. Monster, 4. OOT, 5. LRP, 6. Document, 7. Reckoning, 8. Green, 9. Fables, 10. Murmur, 11. Reveal, 12. ATS, 13 . NAIH, 14. CIN, 15. Accelerate
New Adventures is their overlooked masterpiece.
Sorry, got to 11 minutes, couldn’t watch any more. Really didn’t want to see them use Fables of the Reconstruction as a coaster.
1.Chronic Town 2. Automatic 3. Murmur
What about Chronic Town did you leave that off the list because it was an EP and not a full album Gardening at night Lower Wolves and Stumble are great early R.E.M. songs and Dead Letter Office I guess that was left off because it was Out Takes and B Sides but Voices of Harold Pale Blue Eyes and their version of Toys in the Attic were also great songs
Chronic Town if it were included would probably be tops for me. It’s my favorite EP of all time! Five songs that are all five stars!
Chronic Town is my favorite
Ok no more comments from me now, but I have never met an REM fan who didnt think New Adventures was their finest 90s album, its super popular among fans!
Often overall top 5 REM album too. Just sayin... Great watch guys :D
They did two and a half albums that were crap.
So an excellent hit rate.They were brilliant live.
for me its:
1 out of time best produced album their peak as musicians
nothing
also nothing
2 automatic for people
3 new adventures
This video gave me anxiety guys 😂
Here's my list and I'm HUGE on REM for the last 20 years:
Reckoning
Out of Time
Automatic for the People
Lifes Rich Pageant
Fables of the Reconstruction
Murmur
Green
Collapse into Now
Up
New Adventures in Hi Fi
Document
Monster
Reveal
Accelerate
Around the Sun
absolutely on board with a New Adventures #1 ranking 🤘🤘🤘
I gotta line up with you both here! Great list!
1. New Adventures in Hi-Fi (1996)
2. Automatic for the People (1992)
3. Murmur (1983)
4. Green (1988)
5. Reckoning (1984)
6. Lifes Rich Pageant (1986)
7. Out of Time (1991)
8. Fables of the Reconstruction (1985)
9. Document (1987)
10. Monster (1994)
11. Accelerate (2008)
12. Collapse into Now (2011)
13. Up (1998)
14. Reveal (2001)
15. Around the Sun (2004)
new adventures would be my nr 2, automatic my nr 1. i would put green and monster higher, and up and out of time lower. the last few albums, i'm not familiar with.
Reveal and Around the Sun are horrible.
@@davidbowman4259 In my opinion reveal is fantastic and around the sun gets too much hate
@@tricolore31 I think I'll revisit both of them. Sometimes another listen can "reveal" things.
@@davidbowman4259 yes sir
I respectfully disagree with your rankings - With that said, IMHO REM second to The Beatles is the greatest band ever.
1. Document - 1987 (One of the greatest albums of the century), I saw REM during the Document tour, so this has sentimental value as well. "Sharpening stones, walking on coals, to improve your business acumen..."
2. Automatic for the People - 1992 (Mellow, but contains hit after hit...) So much hype when this was released, it was a big deal on WHFS the great alt station in Annapolis. REM was at its peak in popularity, no question about it.
3. Murmur - 1983 (One of the greatest debut albums ever)
4. Out of Time - 1991 My "go to" for feel good hits, "New Wild Heaven and "Texarkana" are fantastic.
5. Life's Rich Pageant - 1986 - Mid 80s releases paved the path for alternative rock. Loved "Hyena" and "Flowers of Guatemala". I love this album so much.
6. Green - 1988 ( Under appreciated, has some many great tunes, "Pop Song 89", "Get Up", and "Orange Crush". Ok "Stand" is silly, but this album is a banger. I disagree, this holds up well through the years for me.
7. Reckoning - 1984 - every song is quality.
8. Fables of the Reconstruction - 1985 - greatest album cover artwork, rather dreary overtone, but good. I was obsessed with "Can't get there from here"
9. Chronic Town/Dead Letter Office - 1982/1987 (It's criminal to just pretend this doesn't exist, "Wolves, Lower", "Crazy" and "Windout" are in my top 30 REM songs).
10. Up - 1998 - Very mellow, but not a bad song on it."Why not Smile" is in my top 10 REM songs, I almost have tears when I listen again.
11. New Adventures in Hi-Fi - 1996 - "E-Bow the letter" and "Bittersweet Me" are great, but this isn't their best effort.
12. Reveal - 2001 - "All the Way to Reno" is outstanding. "You're gonna be a star......"
13, Monster - 1994 - "King of Comedy" rocks, but I remember ('94) thinking - this is just ok, they must be going through a mid-life crisis.
14. Accelerate - 2008 - "Mr. Richards" and "I'm Gonna DJ" are superb.
15. Collapse into Now - 2011 - meh - sounds like recycled ideas.
16. Around the Sun - 2004 - ugh, this is a forgettable release. I was disappointed, still am. Meh meh meh.
I love this list. I’m shocked you have Hi-Fi so low but I know it’s a polarizing album.
Totally agree about Document. Outstanding album, one of the best albums of any artist.
1. Fables of the Reconstruction - dark, murky, layered yet oddly comforting, Michael shines
2. Lifes Rich Pageant - the range of songs from Begin to Begin-Fall on Me-I Believe are impressive
3. Reckoning - more direct and sparse than Murmur, Peter's guitar work is the star
4. Green - as much as I hate Stand, and I truly do, this album flirts with beauty and brilliance
5. Document - 3 of my least favorite REM songs keep this album from being higher on the list.
NAiHF - Automatic - Green - Murmer - Reveal - Accelerate - Reckoning - Out of Time - LRP - Monster - LRP - Fabvles -Up - Document - CIN - AtS
This ranking is absurd. 😬
Bruce Springsteen listeners. Not fans of music!
I strongly disagree. But their top three Springsteen albums probably are Human Touch, Wrecking Ball and Working On A Dream.
@@tillwesenberg1178 Could be, but don't all his songs sound much the same?
For me it's
Automatic
New adventures
Monster
Out of time
Document
Reveal
Murmur
Fables
Reckoning
Pageant
Around the sun
Green
Accelerate
Up
Collapse into now
Murmur is a good album, but comparing it to the tracks on Document, it just doesn’t stand up. Oh and Green is waaay better than Accelerate.
New adventures is an incredibly underappreciated gem of an album.
As with most bands - the 80's ones are this best.
My Top 3: #3 - Automatic For The People, #2 - Document, #1 - Life's Rich Pageant... Honorable Mentions: Out Of Time & Fables Of The Reconstruction ... Dead Last: Around The Sun (I have the actual Music Den's Promo Copy)... I do have a soft spot for Reveal though... Meeyahhh
"In real time" What does that even mean? In fake time? is that such a thing. If something is done "in real time" a four year old can figure out that it is "in real time."
Fables
LRP
Reckoning
Document
Murmur
Out of Time
Lifes Rich Pageant (no apostrophe) is their best album. And Monster is right up there, too. Murmur, Reckoning, Document and Automatic are awesome. Reveal and Around the Sun are awful.
You guys have got to be joking. Reckoning doesn't even rank!
Monster was so bad i never bought another rem cd
Just discovered your channel. Chilling out on an REM binge in a hotel room in Texas.
I have to say…New Adventures is unlistenable to me personally. To me, I just get bored with it. I just feel it is uninspired and a tired version of REM.
But what does that say about REM, their brilliance and their fans? To me it proves music is a universal connector and yet speaks to each of us differently. I’ll post my ranks later lol.
Great channel!
So true. REM fans are fantastic cause they all are so detailed in their knowledge of the catalogue. I’ve been blown away to see the responses on this video.