Absolutely agree. They are one of the greatest, if not THE greatest, bands of all time and my personal favorite. Plus, no scandals, they weren’t assholes, they cared about social issues, and remain close friends to this day- all of that is reflected in their music. Brilliant, haunting, emotive, provocative, thoughtful, joyous, mysterious music-that is R.E.M. Nobody does it better- and they did it on their own terms without selling out. Who else can say that? Judith
My favorite REM Album is probably which ever one I am listening to at the time. Each one has its own vibe, a different color on their palette, a different brush stroke on their canvas. Murmur is different, raw, energetic, ambiguous. Where automatic for the people is lush, mature, poetic and harmonically beautiful., a very focused effort. Fables is dark, mysterious and haunting. Throughout their career they always amazed me. Even their last Album accelerate contained some of their best music such as mr richards, hollow man, and supernatural superserious. Even the outakes album had the gem of gems in Voice of Harold. I Wish almost every day I could talk to people who love REM as much as me.
Agree that each of their albums stand on their own. The IRS years were their best. The late 90s/early '00s were probably their weakest but they did finish up strong, particularly with their last album.
Thanks for this. Couldn't agree more. R.E.M. were for decades the perfect group: elusive, punchy, cutting edge, yet with something traditional. Simply a marvel. That they could do all this for so long at such an incredible level is up there with Rush, the Stones, Pink Floyd and the rest of them. For me they were a strange mix of CCR and The Cure, as strange as that sounds. Wholly unforseeable. That they are all but forgotten today speaks far more of our present cultural empoverishment that of their greatness.
Thank you for doing justice to this band. They mean a lot to me, especially when I was a teenager in the 90's. R.E.M is still, in my opinion, one of the most exemplary bands in the world. They broke up when they thought It was time to, not so many bands are this smart.
R.E.M. should've done what Joy Division/New Order did - if R.E.M. broke up when Bill Berry left and the three remaining members re-grouped under a different name to release those last 5 lesser albums, their 10 album run would be unparalleled
Abso-fucking-lutely. Had they disbanded after New Adventures, they would have an undisputed claim as to having one of the most pristine discographies in not just rock but pop music history.
I don't agree with you that those last 5 albums are in any sense 'lesser' and neither do they (Michael's favourite is 'Reveal') but even if they did, what you're suggesting only makes sense in hindsight: every R.E.M. album is the best one they could have made at the time and under the circumstances and they didn't set out to make 'lesser' albums following Bill's departure.
R.E.M. are one of my favorite bands of all time and I've also been feeling that they don't get the credit they deserve. Thank you so much for this great video.
My love of REM started at the age of 14 when i bought a copy of Out of Time on cassette after hearing Losing My Religion on the radio. However, it was a copy of the IRS years Greatest "Hits", borrowed from a friend's mum that really pulled me in. I was utterly spell bound by what i heard on that compilation and proceeded to buy all the albums one by one (I was earning £8 a week for delivering newspapers, so it took me a few months). REM have left us with one of the greatest back catalogues in rock music history and are the best live act I've ever been to see by some distance.
I bought that same compilation on CD around '96 - not too long after hearing 'It's The End Of The World...' for probably the first time in 'Independence Day' 😄. Pretty sure that was my first proper introduction to the band.
I really enjoyed ‘Automatic for the People’. Then years later ‘Monster’ came out. Holy crap what totally different album that was compared to their earlier stuff! Great album, even better tour!
@@stromer24 Yeah I couldn't believe he slammed Monster during his praising of REM! Not every song is great, but some are GREAT! They decided to go heavier distortion on the guitar while keeping their REM sound - Crush With Eyeliner - c'mon that's so many 90's punk sounding love stories. Who else can conjure that up so perfectly you sad tomatoes?! Monster is my 2nd favorite album after New Adventures which accomplishes the absolute rare feat of every song being great. To me at least. Here's to the guy though for making their well deserved case. They're a fixture on my top 5 desert island bands. Everybody's different, for reference/perspective here's mine with a gun to my head... Zeppelin, REM, Stones, U2, ahhhh can't pick the last, so many rock greats I'm snubbing, but need some country if I'm stuck on the islanf give me some George Strait :) or Buffett. Or an actual buffet on the island would be a smarter list. Anyway, REM -so many great songs - so many different album sounds along the way, they're like getting a few bands in one. Love em.
Thank you. I love Monster. I listen to it all the time. I love the sound and I think the lyrics are some of Stipe’s best work. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I believe it’s a great album.
R.E.M. is arguably the greatest band of the 80's *and* 90's. The only other band who I think has influenced as many artists is The Pixies, their contemporaries. Their run of the first 8 (and I would say 10) albums, is one of the most unparalleled streaks of songwriting in the history of popular music. Even half of "Collapse Into Now" is brilliant. In fact, I can't think of another band who had that many perfect to near-perfect albums in a row. I don't know why popular radio stations don't play them anymore. I don't know why you never hear their name from modern bands (apart from a very select few). They basically wrote the soundtrack to the late 20th century - and the number of bands who wouldn't exist because of what they did is bewildering. I can only think it's because that when they ended, they *ended*. Stipe's never done anything else, Mills has never done anything else, Buck's been mostly behind the scenes, Berry's been practically non-existent. They did their re-issues recently, but besides that, they just disappeared from the spotlight - and as such, the spotlight forgot about them. But it still blows my mind that they're barely talked about now. They mean more to me than ANY band I grew up with. If I had a "desert island" band, I wouldn't even hesitate to say R.E.M.'s catalogue. And Stipe was one of the greatest lyricists in the history of rock.
You hit every nail on the head here, i’ve always felt this way as a younger R.E.M. fan. I dismissed them early on because i had only known them from Everybody Hurts and Shiny Happy People (which i grew to love) but my mind was blown when i heard Harborcoat for the first time because i had no idea they even made music like that. I think the way they carried out their career definitely explains why they haven’t been “retrofied” yet, but maybe they will be made cool again like The Smiths were when music communities re-acclaimed some early alternative greats
When I was 16 years old, i was driving my car, with friends, when driver 8 came on the radio. It connected with us so deeply, as American kids, that REM became the soundtrack of our youth. Nice to see them get the recognition they deserve. Great job. Thanks.
REM is in my Top 5 bands of all time. The 1st song/video i heard was "Can't Get There From Here" in 85. The following year in 1986 i saw them live in Vancouver during the Life's Rich Pageant tour playing an "all ages" gig in a Gymnasium at the University of British Columbia with Guadalcanal Diary opening. Tickets were only $12.75.
I was at that show at UBC! After their brilliant show at The Commodore the year before, I was stoked for the UBC show. Do you remember how there was a big section of the floor in front of the stage that had collapsed and was taped off? Michael was somehow able to bridge the physical gap between band and audience resulting in a memorable, one-of-a-kind show! In my opinion, REM are the best band of their generation.
To me R.E.M. is the greatest band of all times... of course just in my personal life. I discovered them when I was a teen in the 90s. For years before, they were just "there", but when I heard Nightswimming one summer night, combined with this video, I was completely lost and fell in love. I discovered all their music from the years before and this opened such a brillant world of music to me, undescribable! I followed the band until their end. They set the marks for my musical socialisation. The band of my life, no doubt.
I got aboard the REM train with Monster as a teenager… Still regard it as my favorite album from them… I then became hooked, and I started to explore their earlier stuff, and it was like a revelation how well rounded they were…
My favourite band ever. I discovered them in 1990, and fell in love. Then found out they had a huge backlog of albums and was overjoyed. Every album is brilliant, but some better than others. The loss of Bill changed things, but the later stuff is still much better than a lot of other things around then and now. Thanks for this video, and being so eloquent.
I think most people are unaware of how great their first (IRS albums) were .. their songs / hooks are so catchy & can't get them out of my head ! They were tight in the beginning years :Starting with Chronic Town right thru Life's Rich Pageant - immaculate ,jangly guitar parts , harmonies , good lyrics / singing .. a good example of this is the concert from Capitol Theatre NJ 1984
Well said. It really comes down to, they had basically two careers, indie in the 1980s, major label fame in the 90's, and therefor two fan bases. The cult fan base discounts the later output and the late joiners are often not too familiar with the early stuff. And that is probably why they are not held in the highest regards by as many people as the legendary 60-70's groups you cited.
Love this so much. Thank you. And I love your shoutout to "Perfect Circle"-what a glorious 3:31 seconds of pure art. It galls me to go on RYM and see 'Murmur' their highest rated album, only score at 3.92 out of 5.00(near excellent) whereas the very fine but flawed 'Doolitle' by The Pixies or The good but highly overrated 'In The Aeroplane Over The Sea' by Neutral Milk Hotel both are more highly rated but overpraised.
Never figured out what perfect circle is about but I enjoyed it best in evening around sunset with sound of kids playing in the street and wailing sound of heavy traffic in the distance … don’t know why
Congratulations friend, you spoke for thousands of fans of this magnificent band, who, like The Smiths, made the lives of those who love music essentially happy...
This was so great. Thank you, and you're so right. R.E.M. was consistently THE best American band for decades, so why are they now so seemingly forgotten? I love every album, and each was unique and special in its own way, and had its own distinctive vibe or personality. If some of the quality got a bit diluted as the albums rolled on, as on "Up" and "Collapse Into Now", most conspicuously, it wasn't because they stopped crafting quality songs, but only because a tiny number of isolated songs against the whole seemed ill-chosen and weren't discarded as they should've been. This band was still producing masterful songs and music right up to the last.
Gutted I never saw REM live. I had front row seats for the Monster tour at Sheffield Arena that got cancelled. An amazing band - their 80s output alone is beautiful. Green my favourite album.
Thanks for this informative video. I saw them open for The Police on the synchronicity tour (1983), then saw their Fables tour ('85), then Life's Rich Tour ('86) and that was for me the end of their great period. They still made some great songs, but for me, Chronic Town (their six-song EP, 1982) through Life's Rich Pageant is all gold. Certainly those albums helped create the "alernative" grunge 90s music. At the same time (late 1970s to mid 1980s) you had the post-punk revolution across the pond--Joy Division, The Cure, echo and the bunnymen, Gang of Four, Jesus and Mary Chain's Psychocandy, The Fall, etc. Just one correction, REM signed with Warner Brothers in 1988; they had been on IRS Records (headed by Police drummer, Stewart Copeland's, brother, Miles) through Document, but Green was with Warner.
Since REM has been my focus since my reincarnation-within-life in1989, and Stipe's abstract expressionist lyrics proved a springboard for my poetry ... i've never been aware that benighted others didn't hold them in the same reverence...until this video ... then, i reflected that this has happened in every musical age ... and am back to focusing on REM.
Almost no one mentions how great the double album new Adventures In Hi Fi is: so many great songs and E-Bow The Letter is among their most original and spine-tingling creations
Absolutely my favorite band. I still find a lot to love in those albums post-Bill Berry, and I think they went out on a high note with their last two albums. To me, it would have been tragic if they did split when Berry quit the band, and I think they quit at just the right time.
Wasn't sure what to expect. Found so little on REM on YT. Gotta say this is a terrific critique of the band. I agreed wholeheartedly with every word. Even your assessment of "New Adventures In High Fi" was spot on. I'm going to recommend this revue to my fellow audiophiles who I now realize always did have a snub-nosed look when I brought up REM. Never knew many fellow fans post-97.
REM completely changed my life in terms of musical taste. I have had the honor and privilege to see them twice live. They are a powerhouse in the live venue. They will forever be one of my absolute favorite bands.
REM's '80s material is just (almost) absolute perfection for me. What amazes me is not only the quality, but how prolific they were too, without the quality ever letting up - they were releasing an album a year and touring at the same time. It really is an incredible back catalogue that deserves a bit more attention and respect: Chronic Town EP (1982) Murmur (1983) Reckoning (1984) Fables of the Reconstruction (1985) Lifes Rich Pageant (1986) Document (1987) (albeit the one that doesn't really do it for me) Green (1988) That is an absolutely incredible run that Michael and the rest of the band should be eternally proud of. OK they aren't the first band to be releasing one (or more) album/s a year, but the consistent quality just emphasises how brilliant they were - other than Document, which I would class as 3.5 or 4 out of 5, the rest are 5/5 albums, no debate. And then after Document, they returned to 5 star form with Green. I didn't even have to look up the years those albums were released - those albums, the songs on them and the year are forever stamped on my mind. It's hard to think of any other band who had, from start to finish, such a consistently brilliant decade. The '90s for me were hit and miss - Out Of Time probably my favourite from the '90s - have to admit I thought Automatic For The People was good but overrated, and Monster and New Adventures were alright but patchy. Up wasn't bad but I'd kind of lost interest by then, and couldn't really tell you anything at all about anything after Up. But yeah - that '80s run - just wow. I can't think of a band who had such a consistent decade from start to finish.
I think you've got the right idea when you mention that a lot of their '90s singles are sort of "unrepresentative" of their broader sound. I'd even extend that to some of their late '80s singles like "It's the End of the World As We Know It" and "Stand". Some of their singles are among their best songs (like "Orange Crush"), but if you only listen to the songs that get radio play it's almost like it's a different band. So maybe the problem is that R.E.M. is probably the band that most rewards exploration. "Life and How to Live It", "Sweetness Follows", and "Welcome to the Occupation" (to name just three of many) are absolutely masterful songs, but you will never, ever hear them on the radio, or even most playlists. You've really got to either search them out yourself or someone needs to show them to you.
Could not agree more! Now a professionnal musician, I had the chance to grow up in the mid 80’s when each new album was a treat to discover, absolut masters of song structure, harmonies, mood and emotion, they where my Beatles!
Whilst Monster can be pointed at as the start of the downward curve, I genuinely think you needed to experience it live to understand why they released it. I was lucky enough to see them a number of times, the first time being on the Monster tour. They are without doubt the best live experience I had with music, nothing came close after. Thank you for making this, I couldn't agree more.
I got into music in general when I was like 14, and R.E.M. was the first band I decided to check out myself, due to liking "It's the End of the World as we know it" from the movie Independence Day. To this day, they remain my favorite band. Did they make great music after their mid 90s stuff? Certainly! their 2001 album Reveal I consider to be one of their top 3 albums, up there with Automatic and Reckoning.
Ahhh yes I remember that scene where the song plays in the film with the guy playing golf 😄 great song choice. From what I've heard, it was originally going to be Tears For Fears' 'Everbody Wants To Rule The World'!
Living in Atlanta, during the 80's and 90's...REM was a "local" phenomenon since the mid 80's. It was surprising to us locals that they weren't "famous" until the early 90's. In the Atlanta area, they were and had been "famous" for many years before that.
Really good and well spoken essay on REM. I have been a fan of the band since the early 80s and wholly agree with your perspective. I would be curious to hear your thoughts on Lloyd Cole, London artist from 80s who I thought should have had more commercial success.
Thanks! Lloyd Cole is someone I keep meaning to check out more in depth - I've only really heard the one song ('Rattlesnakes') but always enjoyed it. I know he's sited as an important figure in the Scottish scene. Will delve further!
I appreciate this. REM were a massive band for me and really perfectly timed in terms of my age - from a teen to an adult I followed them from their grassroots beginnings to the super stardom. I entered university in 84 just as they were getting airplay on College radio and saw them at my university on the tour for Life's Rich Pageant, got all their records through the 80s, and kind of lost interest in the later 90s, although always respected them. I noticed in recent years that they are dissed by hardcore punk devotees and others into heavy music as representing "soft" or wimpy alternative music - I think that analysis is shallow and lame and ignores the breadth of their material and the power of the songwriting. Peter Buck is in the line of post punk guitar playing that focusses on texture and rhythm over virtuosity, and is really creative. Mike Mills is a beautifully melodic bass player and on of the great back up voices. And watching the hugely charismatic Stipe develop and change over the years as a singer was a beautiful thing. Rock and roll was their toolbox, and the dreamy and jangly were only one aspect. I agree, one of the great bands.
ITS ABOUT TIME!!!! Its about time someone posted a video like this. Thank you so much!! To me R.E.M. just might be the most underrated bands of all time. They really dont get the credit they deserve. Just look at what they have done. When we think of the 80s, we think big hair bands like Def leppard, Warrant, Van Halen, Bon Jovi and the rest of the whole sex, drugs and rock and roll scene. R.E.M. was not like that. They were different from all the rest. They were the first band to have initials in their name. They wrote songs that were completely unlike the usual rock songs that you heard in the 80s. Compare Van Halens' Hot for Teacher to Coyahoga. Or Def Leppards' Armageddon It to King of Birds. Through out the 80s and 90s every album of theirs were classics. Lifes Rich Pageant to me was the best album of the 80s. Even in the 90s while teenagers were listening to either grunge or gangsta rap, I would be listening to Automatic for the People. Its a shame that songs like Nightswimming and Ignorland were never played on the radio. Its hard to say what album of theirs is the best in the 90s, but what I do know is that New Adventures in Hi-Fi was their most underrated album. And although they didnt have that success like they had after Bill Berry left, I still think that UP was their best album post Bill Berry. I really am hoping for an R.E.M. reunion tour.
They were an amazing band, even non Indie/College/Alternative Rock music fans purchased thier albums. My personal favourite R.E.M album is UP. I can't wait to purchase the 25th anniversary version of the album on November 10th. ❤
Preach brother, preach! I was hooked the moment I heard 7 Chinese Brothers on KROQ in 1984. REM is simply one of the most important American rock bands of all time
I Love Up and love how it rubbed rockists the wrong way :P And i agree: their 4 albums between 1983 and 1986 is the greatest one ever. 80s REM is far too mysterious and enigmatic to be easily understood. Which is great, it means that everyone can have their own unique relationship to those songs. Other great 4 albums runs imo: Sonic Youth 1985-1988 The Mountain Goats 2005-2009 Dead Can Dance 1984-1988 Animal Collective 2004-2009 Waxahatchee 2013-2020 Radiohead 1997-2003 Jens Lekman 2005-2017 Wow, what a nerd i am!
Good points made here. Living in Atlanta in the 80's/90's, REM were always revered LOCALLY. Part of the issue was the lack of radio play over their first 5 or so albums. You only heard them on college radio stations until they released, "It's the End of the World as We know it". Even in ATLANTA, they didn't get a lot of commercial radio play. There was a HUGE national bump with the release of the album "Document". From that point forward, they became much more than a "local" band.
Kudos on the absolute best summation of REM's greatness I have ever heard.! This band's willingness to embrace different styles, to follow the muse wherever it leads, is a true template for any rock band aspiring to creative and commercial heights. Just the fact that Peter Buck decided to not write any songs on guitar for a couple years, eventually emerging with the game-changing brilliance of "Losing My Religion", speaks volumes about REM's commitment to creativity above all else. And I agree, "New Adventures In Hi-Fi" is a sprawling masterpiece full of amazing songs. Though their output becomes more spotty after Bill Berry's departure, the first 4 songs on "Accelerate" (especially Supernatural Superserious ) provide proof that REM could still craft amazing songs, even as their career was drawing to a close.
I like this video because you're expressing a view that I've had for some time. I've never understood why many listeners turn their nose up at REM. The first album I heard was Out of Time off the success of Losing my Religion. I then went to the record shop and immediately bought Murmur on vinyl and my love affair with REM began. The breadth and depth of their catalogue is well worth a look for anyone who remains to be convinced.
Great job!!! Yeah. I remember when they were on Letterman singing “Radio Free Europe” then continued singing at county fairs for 50 people. They were my age and I followed them from Murmur. Their talents were amazing, their music great, lyrics thoughtful.
The idea of R.E.M. not getting enough credit today is wild. In their day, they were hailed as legends and hugely influential. It was probably nauseating to people who weren’t fans.
REM is an intelligent Band that's stayed true to themselves. They were and remained artisans. Great poignant lyrics, poetry really and great musicians.
Growing up in Atlanta and attending college in Athens, R.E.M. was our hometown heroes. We loved them (and still do) like Liverpool love the Beatles. I feel privileged to have seen them live through each stage of their evolution.
Coming to this late, but my favourite band of all time - discovered them as an angsty pre-teen and their music was with me through all the important points in my life. (I also like Shiny Happy People, but yeah, it's not the most representative of the rest of the catalogue....) Automatic for the People may be late in the game but it really is a masterpiece of an album, though I share your appreciation for New Adventures in Hi-Fi; it's a whole experience. Supersonic Superserious was a joy, when it came out. I saw them a few times in the early 2000s and it was always somehow both epic and intimate. And they were always themselves - they made great music, played what they wanted to play, and hung it up when it was time. Love them always.
Wow, yes I agree fully. I graduated college in 1983. The horrors of post-school jobs I could not have imagined. Taking orders from people I hated and did not respect seemed like the end of the world. R.E.M. was the alternative universe. A second life I cared about. Every release was anticipated. I had a friend in the music biz that got new releases about 2 weeks early. He would call me when he had the new R.E.M. album. One Friday he called me and said he had "Lifes Rich Pageant" not to be released until the following week. I picked it up and went to a party at the shore. Some guy was manning the boombox and playing the new Peter Gabriel album over and over again. I didn't hate the album but 5x in a row was killing me. I gave the R.E.M. tape to my girlfriend and said see if this guy will play it. I watched as she approached. I fully expected a "No way, Sledgehammer is going for round number 6" response. No, he immediately popped the Gabriel tape threw it over his shoulder and played the new R.E.M. album. What a relief and a great night.
For me, R.E.M. put out Automatic right when I started college, Hi-Fi when I was starting my life out of college, and Up right when I started grad school--all Sept. or OCt. releases. Life companions.
Thanks for the video, I for one noticed that, despite once being among the biggest bands, they're rarely mentioned nowadays. I never really listened to them, but my best friend was a big fan and their book/biography he once borrowed me is damn interesting. Your theory is interesting, too and you're probably right: they were big and revered in the so called "underground", but when they reached the mainstream success they were already past their prime creatively speaking. And all those great albums from the 80s are mostly obscure stuff for the big audience.
first time i seen ur channel but u sir are 100 percent right. they will be discovered by new crowd as thre music will stand the test of time im older neow and some one stole my out time cd and so i bought the deluxe version and has rekinkled my love thank u for posting this. from ox
The first time I heard and saw them at Piedmont Park, Atlanta, May 1982 I really liked them but can't say I knew they'd take over my life for the next decade and a half. It does my heart good to hear someone so young get them . Bravo !!
So much truth about "New Adventures in Hi-Fi". I didn´t love the album from the get-go, but it continuously kept growing on me until I regarded it as one of their deepest and most textured piecees of work.
Another band who don’t get enough credit they deserve is The Psychedelic Furs and I’d also argue that like R.E.M. there first 5 albums are all great, each one produced a hit single which is a phenomenal feat for quite an arty band. Yet bizarrely the band always gets overlooked by other New Wave or Post Punk acts of the time despite the fact they did get some mainstream success and influenced a bunch of new musicians… I’ve never understood why they also don’t get discussed enough in the wider 80s music canon!
The way I see it, that they have been largely forgotten by the mainstream is a good thing. We don’t need to hear a bunch of crappy covers of their songs, or hear them over-played on the dreaded classic rock radio. Their music is better preserved, this way. Your summary of the band and their career is spot on. Bill Berry’s hi-hat and snare work were so distinctive, they were never the same after he left, even though I followed them to the end. I remain proud of them for calling it a career at age 50, never to reform, and never to become a money-milking nostalgia act like all the shameless legacy acts of today. I would argue they are the greatest American band of all time, but I prefer not to call that sort of attention to them. I’d rather Peter have the chance to record new songs in his basement with his friends, or jump on stage with the local bar band … in peace. Cheers.
I disagree. They SHOULD be remembered by the current and future generations of rock music fans as, if not the greatest American band of all time (I like that you think that, though), then easily one of the 10 best. Being forgotten doesn't preserve anything except for a small cult of fans, and R.E.M. deserves better than that. They were the closest thing Generation X had to the Beatles.
R.E.M. made a lot of people feel good for being a little different. It made people feel like they belonged. It was so different than the normal music you'd hear on the radio. Then they got big, and the music changed. "Smiling Happy People" really felt like watching Dylan dance around in a tutu.
Totally agree with all of this. Except I totally neglected Accelerate and Collapse into Now for the last 10 years and having finally listened to them I find that they're the sound of a band really rediscovering their form and making vital music again. Collapse ranks alongside New Adventures in my book. Absolutely went out on a high, and induced some very belated grief at their split. Imagine what those final albums could've been with Bill Berry on board.
When I first heard Murmur, it was so different than what was being done, it grabbed me immediately. I saw them in 1983 for my first and only time. The IRS years are the best IMO.
So TRUE! consider them the greatest US band ever (such quality and longevity; and never a bad album); so true about the slow development (the Doors debut might have doomed them); you are also correct about their fade....I'm 58 and a high school teacher, a decade ago many kids were into REM, today they are really forgotten; here's hoping a REM renaissance; when is your video on catherine wheel?
Agree. I'm 59 and followed REM from their very beginnings...the IRS years were their best IMO. Saw them open for The Police at Shea Stadium in '83. That was the high mark for The Police and also the beginning of the end. Joan Jett preceded The Police that night. Unfortunately, REM was a complete unknown and it poured the entire time during their all too brief set...which I recall was all of maybe 20 minutes. They were on and off in the blink of an eye. MUCH better days were to come.
I’m definitely one or those who jumped in the bandwagon way too late, like in 1998… but I’m glad I have seen at least 10 years of concerts of this great band. Very interesting video, thanks
I think that many people would indeed agree that REM were one of the best bands ever. As far as their unusual style, apart from having, in earlier albums, a mix which deliberately buried the vocal, their whole musical basis was different: Unilke most rock music, REM hardly ever use the pentatonic scale, and often use the mixolydian mode and other modes which are hardly ever used in rock music. They get this influence not from the Blues (like most classic rock), but from bluegrass and celtic music which is in their cultural roots (they are from the southern US of course). This all came together to give them a sound that was very atypical of most music in the rock genre.
I saw R.E.M. live 19 times between 1985 and 2008 and I treasure them all. Luckily they were also cult quite early in Europe (where I live). I discovered the band when Rolling Stone made 'Murmur' their album of the year, which made me curious. It turned out to be a love for life.
I was on board early. For me the IRS years were when I fell in love with the band. Everything after that was hit and miss. There were only like three albums that I really liked on Warner Bros. But every single album on IRS was pure gold to me.
You hear about a man's man, or in sports a player's player. R.E.M. are musician's musicians. They completely paved their own way and were a pioneer in a new genre. Countless musicians have credited them with influencing their own music, most notably Kurt Cobain.
The answer to your questions I think is in the nature of the band themselves. No matter what they did there was always a sense of modesty and understatement.Even when they rocked loud and hard, or when M.Stipe said things like "Out Of Time will redefine pop history" they never seem arrogant or ego-crazed and also they seem to genuinely like each other. There's very little of their music for which you would use the word overt - but a lot where the word "slightly" comes in.They have a slightly conservative element (from Mike Mills I'm guessing) with one foot in a Byrdsian/Bandish style country/folk , but they also have a singer who has no real precedent at all. He's slightly off-centre and a seriously original writer, but he's not a Captain Beefheart or Roky Erikson(who the band clearly love.) But he's nowhere near the puffed-up stadium bombast of a Bono or Springteen, and yet he can command said stadium as easily as those types. Some of their influences are very well hidden and subject to a very powerful group filter. They gave the game away a little here by covering Wire's "Strange" and with P Buck's association with Robyn Hitchcock whose band The Soft Boys were along with Wire the foremost Syd Barrett-influenced post-punk groups. I've heard Stipe and Buck mention Wire's "154"; listen to the track "Map Reference" and you will hear a secret source of REM's slight opaqueness and angularity .But Wire were so ultra-British art school and REM are so American Liberal you'd never know it. So they're simultaneously conventional and unconventional, appear at the heart of the mainstream but never seem part of it., they're slightly strange and quirky, often with a surreal sense of humour that's never upfront . Who else would put a picture of a young Mr Stipe on a back cover with "They Airbrushed My Face" written on it? Who else could write "I believe my throat hurts"? They don't smash hotel rooms or throw lawsuits at each other and their political involvements never seem self-aggrandising - unlike everybody else .REM are the greatest band that seemed to slip through net a net into megastardom without ever shouting about it. .They instinctively never played the game straight.
Well said my brother! i went to college and high school in the 80's in the South. REM blared from every Fraternity party, car stereo, and hip bars! The are a on-of-a-kind-band and also great to see live! Check out The Connells. They were also amazing, from The South and had a great run, but should have been bigger!
I was late to catch the back catalogue of R.E.M. This coincided with me trying to improve my bass playing with a pick, and what a surprise I found with Murmur, Reckoning, Reconstruction, Life's Pageant and Document!! Add Green to that as well. I do enjoy the fact that they are still quite obscure, makes them so enigmatic and iconic. And I believe Monster was so full of swag and unexpected. That was a boss move!!! I don't sleep, I dream!!!!
Such Icons...True Democracy...All songs were published Berry, Buck, Mills and Stipe, unrtil Berry left. It did not matter who wrote etc, they payed each other the same...No Ego, just brillant music
Throughout the 80’s R.E.M. was one of those bands that had a huge influence on the underground music scene, and deservedly so, blew up from there. They truly worked hard for their success. They were an amazing band with a unique sound at the time. For me it started with their first ep they released called Chronic Town. It came out my first year in University and it blew me away. I remained a fan of theirs ever since. Another great review! Thanks for this. How about a review on The Church? A band probably influenced by R.E.M. in the beginning. Besides in Australia, their home country, where they may be more known they are a great band that continues to write great music and has been flying under the radar since the 80’s as well. Very influential band in their own right.
Couldn’t agree more, the amount of varied music they have put out that I can enjoy again and again, over and over depending on my mood. My favourite band of all time, and soundtrack to a large portion of my life. I think most people think of the three piece R.E.M. from 1998 to 2011 when you mention R.E.M. I enjoyed that part of their career too, but they were at their peak as a four piece. Revisiting Chronic Town and it’s 👌🔥
Absolutely. Their split was still (relatively!) not that long ago. So it's likely that, for people of a certain age, or those only familiar with their output from the 90s onwards, the latter day incarnation of the band is likely the perception that's still fresh in their mind. Given time, I'd hope that R.E.M.'s imperial phase gets revisited and thrust back into the spotlight.
The thing is with REM is that when I go back to their music they still relevent to me no matter how many times I listen or how old. Think its because their sound is so unique but also very accessable at the same time yet they never get old. Man on the moon for example. Its hard to figure out the decade it came out if someone new to REM listen to it. Yet it still fresh and nice to listen to. I mean even the one I love from the 80's is still fresh if it was released this year. Heck it would have been better than most music out now. Yes REM and Beatles for me will never get old
Well, R.E.M. is my favorite band of all time, so they get a whole lot of credit from me. I was going to college not too far from Athens, GA, in 1981, so they were all around the South and colleges then. If I could pick three bands as to your question, R.E.M., The Eagles, and The Who. Enjoyed your talk!
They were an acquired taste but once you latched onto their complex ingenious chords and esoteric lyrics, it’s like getting high. Not everybody gets it. Also they kept changing and didn’t fit into a specific genre. There wasn’t a niche that they fit in that fans of niches could latch onto. Their true fans went with the flow and were able to open our minds and tag along for the ride.
Great pick bro...so many hits and under-hits, different vibe album-to-album, sing-alongside and anthems along with obscure insider favorites. REM is my jam.
I just found a copy of _Monster_ at a thrift store and the CD itself was pristine with no scratches. 🤣 After listening to all of their greatest hits, I quite liked this one though.
Absolutely agree. They are one of the greatest, if not THE greatest, bands of all time and my personal favorite. Plus, no scandals, they weren’t assholes, they cared about social issues, and remain close friends to this day- all of that is reflected in their music.
Brilliant, haunting, emotive, provocative, thoughtful, joyous, mysterious music-that is R.E.M. Nobody does it better- and they did it on their own terms without selling out. Who else can say that?
Judith
exactly...! =)
@@lindseeziegler90 ❤️
Absolutely...they're the best!!!👍❤
@@keiraaguillon2000 ❤️
You said it all for me, thanks.
Such and underrated band. Rem wrote some of the greatest albums ever.
By whom. Idiots?
My favorite REM Album is probably which ever one I am listening to at the time. Each one has its own vibe, a different color on their palette, a different brush stroke on their canvas. Murmur is different, raw, energetic, ambiguous. Where automatic for the people is lush, mature, poetic and harmonically beautiful., a very focused effort. Fables is dark, mysterious and haunting. Throughout their career they always amazed me. Even their last Album accelerate contained some of their best music such as mr richards, hollow man, and supernatural superserious. Even the outakes album had the gem of gems in Voice of Harold. I Wish almost every day I could talk to people who love REM as much as me.
Agree that each of their albums stand on their own. The IRS years were their best. The late 90s/early '00s were probably their weakest but they did finish up strong, particularly with their last album.
Thanks for this. Couldn't agree more. R.E.M. were for decades the perfect group: elusive, punchy, cutting edge, yet with something traditional. Simply a marvel. That they could do all this for so long at such an incredible level is up there with Rush, the Stones, Pink Floyd and the rest of them. For me they were a strange mix of CCR and The Cure, as strange as that sounds. Wholly unforseeable. That they are all but forgotten today speaks far more of our present cultural empoverishment that of their greatness.
The early IRS years were their best.
Thank you for doing justice to this band. They mean a lot to me, especially when I was a teenager in the 90's. R.E.M is still, in my opinion, one of the most exemplary bands in the world. They broke up when they thought It was time to, not so many bands are this smart.
R.E.M. should've done what Joy Division/New Order did - if R.E.M. broke up when Bill Berry left and the three remaining members re-grouped under a different name to release those last 5 lesser albums, their 10 album run would be unparalleled
Abso-fucking-lutely. Had they disbanded after New Adventures, they would have an undisputed claim as to having one of the most pristine discographies in not just rock but pop music history.
I own the first 10 on vinyl.
I don't agree with you that those last 5 albums are in any sense 'lesser' and neither do they (Michael's favourite is 'Reveal') but even if they did, what you're suggesting only makes sense in hindsight: every R.E.M. album is the best one they could have made at the time and under the circumstances and they didn't set out to make 'lesser' albums following Bill's departure.
R.E.M. are one of my favorite bands of all time and I've also been feeling that they don't get the credit they deserve. Thank you so much for this great video.
Reckoning is one of the most underrated albums of all time.
Excellent album
10 from Pitchfork.
There’s absolutely nothing underrated about it. This whole video posting is bizarre.
Very true. A bosnian radio station played the song Harborcoat a couple of days ago. I was very surprised.
Hell, Dead Letter Office has some better songs than other bands main albums. Sorry but Voice of Harold is amazing!
My love of REM started at the age of 14 when i bought a copy of Out of Time on cassette after hearing Losing My Religion on the radio. However, it was a copy of the IRS years Greatest "Hits", borrowed from a friend's mum that really pulled me in. I was utterly spell bound by what i heard on that compilation and proceeded to buy all the albums one by one (I was earning £8 a week for delivering newspapers, so it took me a few months). REM have left us with one of the greatest back catalogues in rock music history and are the best live act I've ever been to see by some distance.
I bought that same compilation on CD around '96 - not too long after hearing 'It's The End Of The World...' for probably the first time in 'Independence Day' 😄. Pretty sure that was my first proper introduction to the band.
That compilation was also sold as eponymous I think , I had it on tape too
REM will always be one of the greatest bands ever and never be forgotten
I love R.E.M. seen them twice and still listen to them today . Fantastic band ❤️
R.E.M. is one of my favorite bands. They were always true to their vision and put out consistently great music right up until the end.
Call me biased but I think Monster is a masterpiece.
the best one they put out
I really enjoyed ‘Automatic for the People’. Then years later ‘Monster’ came out. Holy crap what totally different album that was compared to their earlier stuff! Great album, even better tour!
@@stromer24 Yeah I couldn't believe he slammed Monster during his praising of REM! Not every song is great, but some are GREAT! They decided to go heavier distortion on the guitar while keeping their REM sound - Crush With Eyeliner - c'mon that's so many 90's punk sounding love stories. Who else can conjure that up so perfectly you sad tomatoes?! Monster is my 2nd favorite album after New Adventures which accomplishes the absolute rare feat of every song being great. To me at least. Here's to the guy though for making their well deserved case. They're a fixture on my top 5 desert island bands. Everybody's different, for reference/perspective here's mine with a gun to my head... Zeppelin, REM, Stones, U2, ahhhh can't pick the last, so many rock greats I'm snubbing, but need some country if I'm stuck on the islanf give me some George Strait :) or Buffett. Or an actual buffet on the island would be a smarter list. Anyway, REM -so many great songs - so many different album sounds along the way, they're like getting a few bands in one. Love em.
Not their best but brilliant!
Thank you. I love Monster. I listen to it all the time. I love the sound and I think the lyrics are some of Stipe’s best work. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I believe it’s a great album.
R.E.M. is arguably the greatest band of the 80's *and* 90's. The only other band who I think has influenced as many artists is The Pixies, their contemporaries. Their run of the first 8 (and I would say 10) albums, is one of the most unparalleled streaks of songwriting in the history of popular music. Even half of "Collapse Into Now" is brilliant. In fact, I can't think of another band who had that many perfect to near-perfect albums in a row. I don't know why popular radio stations don't play them anymore. I don't know why you never hear their name from modern bands (apart from a very select few). They basically wrote the soundtrack to the late 20th century - and the number of bands who wouldn't exist because of what they did is bewildering. I can only think it's because that when they ended, they *ended*. Stipe's never done anything else, Mills has never done anything else, Buck's been mostly behind the scenes, Berry's been practically non-existent. They did their re-issues recently, but besides that, they just disappeared from the spotlight - and as such, the spotlight forgot about them. But it still blows my mind that they're barely talked about now. They mean more to me than ANY band I grew up with. If I had a "desert island" band, I wouldn't even hesitate to say R.E.M.'s catalogue. And Stipe was one of the greatest lyricists in the history of rock.
Good point.
Once the band ended, out of sight, out of mind.
You hit every nail on the head here, i’ve always felt this way as a younger R.E.M. fan. I dismissed them early on because i had only known them from Everybody Hurts and Shiny Happy People (which i grew to love) but my mind was blown when i heard Harborcoat for the first time because i had no idea they even made music like that. I think the way they carried out their career definitely explains why they haven’t been “retrofied” yet, but maybe they will be made cool again like The Smiths were when music communities re-acclaimed some early alternative greats
When I was 16 years old, i was driving my car, with friends, when driver 8 came on the radio. It connected with us so deeply, as American kids, that REM became the soundtrack of our youth. Nice to see them get the recognition they deserve. Great job. Thanks.
Thanks very much!
Thankyou for this. It is appreciated. I don't know why they are ignored. They are easily the best band I ever heard.
REM is in my Top 5 bands of all time. The 1st song/video i heard was "Can't Get There From Here" in 85. The following year in 1986 i saw them live in Vancouver during the Life's Rich Pageant tour playing an "all ages" gig in a Gymnasium at the University of British Columbia with Guadalcanal Diary opening. Tickets were only $12.75.
I was at that show at UBC!
After their brilliant show at The Commodore the year before, I was stoked for the UBC show.
Do you remember how there was a big section of the floor in front of the stage that had collapsed and was taped off?
Michael was somehow able to bridge the physical gap between band and audience resulting in a memorable, one-of-a-kind show!
In my opinion, REM are the best band of their generation.
To me R.E.M. is the greatest band of all times... of course just in my personal life. I discovered them when I was a teen in the 90s. For years before, they were just "there", but when I heard Nightswimming one summer night, combined with this video, I was completely lost and fell in love. I discovered all their music from the years before and this opened such a brillant world of music to me, undescribable! I followed the band until their end. They set the marks for my musical socialisation. The band of my life, no doubt.
I got aboard the REM train with Monster as a teenager… Still regard it as my favorite album from them… I then became hooked, and I started to explore their earlier stuff, and it was like a revelation how well rounded they were…
I saw REM in a small club in LA in 83. They were beyond electrifying. Changed my life.
Nice...I remember Radio Free Europe surfacing...loved it !!!
Quite jealous of that feeling. Everyone that saw them in that time knew there were seeing something truly special.
My favourite band ever. I discovered them in 1990, and fell in love. Then found out they had a huge backlog of albums and was overjoyed. Every album is brilliant, but some better than others. The loss of Bill changed things, but the later stuff is still much better than a lot of other things around then and now. Thanks for this video, and being so eloquent.
You make some great points. «Why don't R.E.M. get the credit they deserve?» I guess some people just don't have what it takes to appreciate great art.
I think most people are unaware of how great their first (IRS albums) were .. their songs / hooks are so catchy & can't get them out of my head ! They were tight in the beginning years :Starting with Chronic Town right thru Life's Rich Pageant - immaculate ,jangly guitar parts , harmonies , good lyrics / singing .. a good example of this is the concert from Capitol Theatre NJ 1984
The IRS years were their best.
@@brettjames8220 - definitely
Well said. It really comes down to, they had basically two careers, indie in the 1980s, major label fame in the 90's, and therefor two fan bases. The cult fan base discounts the later output and the late joiners are often not too familiar with the early stuff. And that is probably why they are not held in the highest regards by as many people as the legendary 60-70's groups you cited.
Love this so much. Thank you. And I love your shoutout to "Perfect Circle"-what a glorious 3:31 seconds of pure art. It galls me to go on RYM and see 'Murmur' their highest rated album, only score at 3.92 out of 5.00(near excellent) whereas the very fine but flawed 'Doolitle' by The Pixies or The good but highly overrated 'In The Aeroplane Over The Sea' by Neutral Milk Hotel both are more highly rated but overpraised.
Thanks Dennis! I'm a big fan if 'Perfect Circle' - it's definitely one of my favourites by them. A hauntingly beautiful song.
Perfect circle was for a long time my favorite REM song. Now, I don't have favorite, only favorites and it's one of them.
Never figured out what perfect circle is about but I enjoyed it best in evening around sunset with sound of kids playing in the street and wailing sound of heavy traffic in the distance … don’t know why
RADIOHEAD always talks about R.E.M. as being their biggest influence.
Congratulations friend, you spoke for thousands of fans of this magnificent band, who, like The Smiths, made the lives of those who love music essentially happy...
This was so great. Thank you, and you're so right. R.E.M. was consistently THE best American band for decades, so why are they now so seemingly forgotten?
I love every album, and each was unique and special in its own way, and had its own distinctive vibe or personality.
If some of the quality got a bit diluted as the albums rolled on, as on "Up" and "Collapse Into Now", most conspicuously, it wasn't because they stopped crafting quality songs, but only because a tiny number of isolated songs against the whole seemed ill-chosen and weren't discarded as they should've been. This band was still producing masterful songs and music right up to the last.
Gutted I never saw REM live. I had front row seats for the Monster tour at Sheffield Arena that got cancelled. An amazing band - their 80s output alone is beautiful. Green my favourite album.
Fables is #1 💪
@@zulfhashimmi2040 this is the correct opinion
Thanks for this informative video. I saw them open for The Police on the synchronicity tour (1983), then saw their Fables tour ('85), then Life's Rich Tour ('86) and that was for me the end of their great period. They still made some great songs, but for me, Chronic Town (their six-song EP, 1982) through Life's Rich Pageant is all gold. Certainly those albums helped create the "alernative" grunge 90s music. At the same time (late 1970s to mid 1980s) you had the post-punk revolution across the pond--Joy Division, The Cure, echo and the bunnymen, Gang of Four, Jesus and Mary Chain's Psychocandy, The Fall, etc. Just one correction, REM signed with Warner Brothers in 1988; they had been on IRS Records (headed by Police drummer, Stewart Copeland's, brother, Miles) through Document, but Green was with Warner.
Since REM has been my focus since my reincarnation-within-life in1989, and Stipe's abstract expressionist lyrics proved a springboard for my poetry ... i've never been aware that benighted others didn't hold them in the same reverence...until this video ... then, i reflected that this has happened in every musical age ... and am back to focusing on REM.
Almost no one mentions how great the double album new Adventures In Hi Fi is: so many great songs and E-Bow The Letter is among their most original and spine-tingling creations
Most people aren't aware of the IRS years, their best stuff in my opinion. This band is up there with the kings.👌
Absolutely my favorite band. I still find a lot to love in those albums post-Bill Berry, and I think they went out on a high note with their last two albums. To me, it would have been tragic if they did split when Berry quit the band, and I think they quit at just the right time.
Wasn't sure what to expect. Found so little on REM on YT. Gotta say this is a terrific critique of the band. I agreed wholeheartedly with every word. Even your assessment of "New Adventures In High Fi" was spot on. I'm going to recommend this revue to my fellow audiophiles who I now realize always did have a snub-nosed look when I brought up REM. Never knew many fellow fans post-97.
Thanks very much Daniel, glad you liked it!
REM completely changed my life in terms of musical taste. I have had the honor and privilege to see them twice live. They are a powerhouse in the live venue. They will forever be one of my absolute favorite bands.
REM's '80s material is just (almost) absolute perfection for me. What amazes me is not only the quality, but how prolific they were too, without the quality ever letting up - they were releasing an album a year and touring at the same time. It really is an incredible back catalogue that deserves a bit more attention and respect:
Chronic Town EP (1982)
Murmur (1983)
Reckoning (1984)
Fables of the Reconstruction (1985)
Lifes Rich Pageant (1986)
Document (1987) (albeit the one that doesn't really do it for me)
Green (1988)
That is an absolutely incredible run that Michael and the rest of the band should be eternally proud of. OK they aren't the first band to be releasing one (or more) album/s a year, but the consistent quality just emphasises how brilliant they were - other than Document, which I would class as 3.5 or 4 out of 5, the rest are 5/5 albums, no debate. And then after Document, they returned to 5 star form with Green.
I didn't even have to look up the years those albums were released - those albums, the songs on them and the year are forever stamped on my mind. It's hard to think of any other band who had, from start to finish, such a consistently brilliant decade.
The '90s for me were hit and miss - Out Of Time probably my favourite from the '90s - have to admit I thought Automatic For The People was good but overrated, and Monster and New Adventures were alright but patchy. Up wasn't bad but I'd kind of lost interest by then, and couldn't really tell you anything at all about anything after Up.
But yeah - that '80s run - just wow. I can't think of a band who had such a consistent decade from start to finish.
I think you've got the right idea when you mention that a lot of their '90s singles are sort of "unrepresentative" of their broader sound. I'd even extend that to some of their late '80s singles like "It's the End of the World As We Know It" and "Stand". Some of their singles are among their best songs (like "Orange Crush"), but if you only listen to the songs that get radio play it's almost like it's a different band.
So maybe the problem is that R.E.M. is probably the band that most rewards exploration. "Life and How to Live It", "Sweetness Follows", and "Welcome to the Occupation" (to name just three of many) are absolutely masterful songs, but you will never, ever hear them on the radio, or even most playlists. You've really got to either search them out yourself or someone needs to show them to you.
I love you man for saying all those things about REM , succinctly yet so eloquently you have conveyed everything that was so great about them
Could not agree more! Now a professionnal musician, I had the chance to grow up in the mid 80’s when each new album was a treat to discover, absolut masters of song structure, harmonies, mood and emotion, they where my Beatles!
Whilst Monster can be pointed at as the start of the downward curve, I genuinely think you needed to experience it live to understand why they released it. I was lucky enough to see them a number of times, the first time being on the Monster tour. They are without doubt the best live experience I had with music, nothing came close after. Thank you for making this, I couldn't agree more.
Love "Monster." My overall favorite is "Lifes Rich Pageant." (No apostrophe!)
Not a fan of Monster...and I did see them on this tour. The follow up New Adventures was a nice bounce back.
Monster is one of their best albums - more aggressive, glam oriented rock. It is quite the opposite of Automatic for the people
I got into music in general when I was like 14, and R.E.M. was the first band I decided to check out myself, due to liking "It's the End of the World as we know it" from the movie Independence Day. To this day, they remain my favorite band.
Did they make great music after their mid 90s stuff? Certainly! their 2001 album Reveal I consider to be one of their top 3 albums, up there with Automatic and Reckoning.
Ahhh yes I remember that scene where the song plays in the film with the guy playing golf 😄 great song choice. From what I've heard, it was originally going to be Tears For Fears' 'Everbody Wants To Rule The World'!
Reveal has its moments but doesn't come close to any of their IRS years outputs, by far their best IMO.
Living in Atlanta, during the 80's and 90's...REM was a "local" phenomenon since the mid 80's. It was surprising to us locals that they weren't "famous" until the early 90's. In the Atlanta area, they were and had been "famous" for many years before that.
Really good and well spoken essay on REM. I have been a fan of the band since the early 80s and wholly agree with your perspective. I would be curious to hear your thoughts on Lloyd Cole, London artist from 80s who I thought should have had more commercial success.
Thanks! Lloyd Cole is someone I keep meaning to check out more in depth - I've only really heard the one song ('Rattlesnakes') but always enjoyed it. I know he's sited as an important figure in the Scottish scene. Will delve further!
I appreciate this. REM were a massive band for me and really perfectly timed in terms of my age - from a teen to an adult I followed them from their grassroots beginnings to the super stardom. I entered university in 84 just as they were getting airplay on College radio and saw them at my university on the tour for Life's Rich Pageant, got all their records through the 80s, and kind of lost interest in the later 90s, although always respected them. I noticed in recent years that they are dissed by hardcore punk devotees and others into heavy music as representing "soft" or wimpy alternative music - I think that analysis is shallow and lame and ignores the breadth of their material and the power of the songwriting. Peter Buck is in the line of post punk guitar playing that focusses on texture and rhythm over virtuosity, and is really creative. Mike Mills is a beautifully melodic bass player and on of the great back up voices. And watching the hugely charismatic Stipe develop and change over the years as a singer was a beautiful thing. Rock and roll was their toolbox, and the dreamy and jangly were only one aspect. I agree, one of the great bands.
ITS ABOUT TIME!!!! Its about time someone posted a video like this. Thank you so much!! To me R.E.M. just might be the most underrated bands of all time. They really dont get the credit they deserve. Just look at what they have done. When we think of the 80s, we think big hair bands like Def leppard, Warrant, Van Halen, Bon Jovi and the rest of the whole sex, drugs and rock and roll scene. R.E.M. was not like that. They were different from all the rest. They were the first band to have initials in their name. They wrote songs that were completely unlike the usual rock songs that you heard in the 80s. Compare Van Halens' Hot for Teacher to Coyahoga. Or Def Leppards' Armageddon It to King of Birds. Through out the 80s and 90s every album of theirs were classics. Lifes Rich Pageant to me was the best album of the 80s. Even in the 90s while teenagers were listening to either grunge or gangsta rap, I would be listening to Automatic for the People. Its a shame that songs like Nightswimming and Ignorland were never played on the radio. Its hard to say what album of theirs is the best in the 90s, but what I do know is that New Adventures in Hi-Fi was their most underrated album. And although they didnt have that success like they had after Bill Berry left, I still think that UP was their best album post Bill Berry. I really am hoping for an R.E.M. reunion tour.
They were an amazing band, even non Indie/College/Alternative Rock music fans purchased thier albums. My personal favourite R.E.M album is UP. I can't wait to purchase the 25th anniversary version of the album on November 10th. ❤
Preach brother, preach! I was hooked the moment I heard 7 Chinese Brothers on KROQ in 1984. REM is simply one of the most important American rock bands of all time
Truly one of the most iconic bands of a generation, if not all time. This video is spot on!
I Love Up and love how it rubbed rockists the wrong way :P And i agree: their 4 albums between 1983 and 1986 is the greatest one ever. 80s REM is far too mysterious and enigmatic to be easily understood. Which is great, it means that everyone can have their own unique relationship to those songs.
Other great 4 albums runs imo:
Sonic Youth 1985-1988
The Mountain Goats 2005-2009
Dead Can Dance 1984-1988
Animal Collective 2004-2009
Waxahatchee 2013-2020
Radiohead 1997-2003
Jens Lekman 2005-2017
Wow, what a nerd i am!
Don’t forget the smiths , they had some great albums in mid80s
Good points made here. Living in Atlanta in the 80's/90's, REM were always revered LOCALLY. Part of the issue was the lack of radio play over their first 5 or so albums. You only heard them on college radio stations until they released, "It's the End of the World as We know it". Even in ATLANTA, they didn't get a lot of commercial radio play. There was a HUGE national bump with the release of the album "Document". From that point forward, they became much more than a "local" band.
Kudos on the absolute best summation of REM's greatness I have ever heard.!
This band's willingness to embrace different styles, to follow the muse wherever it leads, is a true template for any rock band aspiring to creative and commercial heights. Just the fact that Peter Buck decided to not write any songs on guitar for a couple years, eventually emerging with the game-changing brilliance of "Losing My Religion", speaks volumes about REM's commitment to creativity above all else. And I agree, "New Adventures In Hi-Fi" is a sprawling masterpiece full of amazing songs. Though their output becomes more spotty after Bill Berry's departure, the first 4 songs on "Accelerate" (especially Supernatural Superserious ) provide proof that REM could still craft amazing songs, even as their career was drawing to a close.
Thanks Johnny!
What a consistent, brilliant, intelligent, unique band. By far, the best of the 90s.
I like this video because you're expressing a view that I've had for some time. I've never understood why many listeners turn their nose up at REM. The first album I heard was Out of Time off the success of Losing my Religion. I then went to the record shop and immediately bought Murmur on vinyl and my love affair with REM began. The breadth and depth of their catalogue is well worth a look for anyone who remains to be convinced.
Great job!!!
Yeah. I remember when they were on Letterman singing “Radio Free Europe” then continued singing at county fairs for 50 people. They were my age and I followed them from Murmur. Their talents were amazing, their music great, lyrics thoughtful.
Thanks Claire!
The idea of R.E.M. not getting enough credit today is wild. In their day, they were hailed as legends and hugely influential. It was probably nauseating to people who weren’t fans.
Yeah. Iirc Radiohead and Nirvana named them as major influences.
im 51. r.e.m. were one of the best live bands ever.
Had they broken up after Automatic, this would not be an issue. Their first three records, especially, are as strong as anything ever recorded.
No. Otherwise we would be deprived of 'New Adventures in Hi-Fi', Thom Yorke's favorite R.E.M. album.
REM is an intelligent Band that's stayed true to themselves. They were and remained artisans. Great poignant lyrics, poetry really and great musicians.
Growing up in Atlanta and attending college in Athens, R.E.M. was our hometown heroes.
We loved them (and still do) like Liverpool love the Beatles.
I feel privileged to have seen them live through each stage of their evolution.
Coming to this late, but my favourite band of all time - discovered them as an angsty pre-teen and their music was with me through all the important points in my life. (I also like Shiny Happy People, but yeah, it's not the most representative of the rest of the catalogue....) Automatic for the People may be late in the game but it really is a masterpiece of an album, though I share your appreciation for New Adventures in Hi-Fi; it's a whole experience. Supersonic Superserious was a joy, when it came out. I saw them a few times in the early 2000s and it was always somehow both epic and intimate. And they were always themselves - they made great music, played what they wanted to play, and hung it up when it was time. Love them always.
Wow, yes I agree fully. I graduated college in 1983. The horrors of post-school jobs I could not have imagined. Taking orders from people I hated and did not respect seemed like the end of the world. R.E.M. was the alternative universe. A second life I cared about. Every release was anticipated. I had a friend in the music biz that got new releases about 2 weeks early. He would call me when he had the new R.E.M. album. One Friday he called me and said he had "Lifes Rich Pageant" not to be released until the following week. I picked it up and went to a party at the shore. Some guy was manning the boombox and playing the new Peter Gabriel album over and over again. I didn't hate the album but 5x in a row was killing me. I gave the R.E.M. tape to my girlfriend and said see if this guy will play it. I watched as she approached. I fully expected a "No way, Sledgehammer is going for round number 6" response. No, he immediately popped the Gabriel tape threw it over his shoulder and played the new R.E.M. album. What a relief and a great night.
What a fantastic story!
For me, R.E.M. put out Automatic right when I started college, Hi-Fi when I was starting my life out of college, and Up right when I started grad school--all Sept. or OCt. releases. Life companions.
LRP their best album IMO.
Thanks for the video, I for one noticed that, despite once being among the biggest bands, they're rarely mentioned nowadays.
I never really listened to them, but my best friend was a big fan and their book/biography he once borrowed me is damn interesting.
Your theory is interesting, too and you're probably right: they were big and revered in the so called "underground", but when they reached the mainstream success they were already past their prime creatively speaking. And all those great albums from the 80s are mostly obscure stuff for the big audience.
first time i seen ur channel but u sir are 100 percent right. they will be discovered by new crowd as thre music will stand the test of time
im older neow and some one stole my out time cd and so i bought the deluxe version and has rekinkled my love thank u for posting this. from ox
The first time I heard and saw them at Piedmont Park, Atlanta, May 1982 I really liked them but can't say I knew they'd take over my life for the next decade and a half. It does my heart good to hear someone so young get them . Bravo !!
So much truth about "New Adventures in Hi-Fi". I didn´t love the album from the get-go, but it continuously kept growing on me until I regarded it as one of their deepest and most textured piecees of work.
Another band who don’t get enough credit they deserve is The Psychedelic Furs and I’d also argue that like R.E.M. there first 5 albums are all great, each one produced a hit single which is a phenomenal feat for quite an arty band.
Yet bizarrely the band always gets overlooked by other New Wave or Post Punk acts of the time despite the fact they did get some mainstream success and influenced a bunch of new musicians…
I’ve never understood why they also don’t get discussed enough in the wider 80s music canon!
REM is my favorite band. I saw them only once live in Buenos Aires and I loved them more than ever. Thank you!! The video is very good
I’m 21 years old and recently heard about the band on twitter was thinking of getting into them thanks for this vid!!
The way I see it, that they have been largely forgotten by the mainstream is a good thing. We don’t need to hear a bunch of crappy covers of their songs, or hear them over-played on the dreaded classic rock radio. Their music is better preserved, this way. Your summary of the band and their career is spot on. Bill Berry’s hi-hat and snare work were so distinctive, they were never the same after he left, even though I followed them to the end. I remain proud of them for calling it a career at age 50, never to reform, and never to become a money-milking nostalgia act like all the shameless legacy acts of today. I would argue they are the greatest American band of all time, but I prefer not to call that sort of attention to them. I’d rather Peter have the chance to record new songs in his basement with his friends, or jump on stage with the local bar band … in peace. Cheers.
I disagree. They SHOULD be remembered by the current and future generations of rock music fans as, if not the greatest American band of all time (I like that you think that, though), then easily one of the 10 best. Being forgotten doesn't preserve anything except for a small cult of fans, and R.E.M. deserves better than that. They were the closest thing Generation X had to the Beatles.
R.E.M. made a lot of people feel good for being a little different. It made people feel like they belonged. It was so different than the normal music you'd hear on the radio. Then they got big, and the music changed. "Smiling Happy People" really felt like watching Dylan dance around in a tutu.
I guess you mean 'shiny happy people'
Totally agree with all of this. Except I totally neglected Accelerate and Collapse into Now for the last 10 years and having finally listened to them I find that they're the sound of a band really rediscovering their form and making vital music again. Collapse ranks alongside New Adventures in my book. Absolutely went out on a high, and induced some very belated grief at their split. Imagine what those final albums could've been with Bill Berry on board.
Both very solid...and underrated...albums.
I agree. I really like those last two albums.
When I first heard Murmur, it was so different than what was being done, it grabbed me immediately. I saw them in 1983 for my first and only time. The IRS years are the best IMO.
So TRUE! consider them the greatest US band ever (such quality and longevity; and never a bad album); so true about the slow development (the Doors debut might have doomed them); you are also correct about their fade....I'm 58 and a high school teacher, a decade ago many kids were into REM, today they are really forgotten; here's hoping a REM renaissance; when is your video on catherine wheel?
Agree. I'm 59 and followed REM from their very beginnings...the IRS years were their best IMO. Saw them open for The Police at Shea Stadium in '83. That was the high mark for The Police and also the beginning of the end. Joan Jett preceded The Police that night. Unfortunately, REM was a complete unknown and it poured the entire time during their all too brief set...which I recall was all of maybe 20 minutes. They were on and off in the blink of an eye. MUCH better days were to come.
I’m definitely one or those who jumped in the bandwagon way too late, like in 1998… but I’m glad I have seen at least 10 years of concerts of this great band.
Very interesting video, thanks
I think that many people would indeed agree that REM were one of the best bands ever. As far as their unusual style, apart from having, in earlier albums, a mix which deliberately buried the vocal, their whole musical basis was different: Unilke most rock music, REM hardly ever use the pentatonic scale, and often use the mixolydian mode and other modes which are hardly ever used in rock music. They get this influence not from the Blues (like most classic rock), but from bluegrass and celtic music which is in their cultural roots (they are from the southern US of course). This all came together to give them a sound that was very atypical of most music in the rock genre.
Thanks for the technical explaination. Probably why I was convinced they were an Irish band , for many years. Utterly convinced😊
Brilliant stuff. I deeply love REM and very much enjoyed your argument for them being giants they are.
I saw R.E.M. live 19 times between 1985 and 2008 and I treasure them all. Luckily they were also cult quite early in Europe (where I live). I discovered the band when Rolling Stone made 'Murmur' their album of the year, which made me curious. It turned out to be a love for life.
You describe and talk about music better than just about any music writer I can think of.
Texarkana is forever my fave R.E.M. song. Great video!
My favorite band, and I’m super lucky I was able to see them once
I was on board early. For me the IRS years were when I fell in love with the band. Everything after that was hit and miss. There were only like three albums that I really liked on Warner Bros. But every single album on IRS was pure gold to me.
Cant believe Im just finding your channel, The Sound, Throwing Muses, and THIS!!!
You hear about a man's man, or in sports a player's player. R.E.M. are musician's musicians. They completely paved their own way and were a pioneer in a new genre. Countless musicians have credited them with influencing their own music, most notably Kurt Cobain.
The answer to your questions I think is in the nature of the band themselves. No matter what they did there was always a sense of modesty and understatement.Even when they rocked loud and hard, or when M.Stipe said things like "Out Of Time will redefine pop history" they never seem arrogant or ego-crazed and also they seem to genuinely like each other. There's very little of their music for which you would use the word overt - but a lot where the word "slightly" comes in.They have a slightly conservative element (from Mike Mills I'm guessing) with one foot in a Byrdsian/Bandish style country/folk , but they also have a singer who has no real precedent at all. He's slightly off-centre and a seriously original writer, but he's not a Captain Beefheart or Roky Erikson(who the band clearly love.) But he's nowhere near the puffed-up stadium bombast of a Bono or Springteen, and yet he can command said stadium as easily as those types. Some of their influences are very well hidden and subject to a very powerful group filter. They gave the game away a little here by covering Wire's "Strange" and with P Buck's association with Robyn Hitchcock whose band The Soft Boys were along with Wire the foremost Syd Barrett-influenced post-punk groups. I've heard Stipe and Buck mention Wire's "154"; listen to the track "Map Reference" and you will hear a secret source of REM's slight opaqueness and angularity .But Wire were so ultra-British art school and REM are so American Liberal you'd never know it. So they're simultaneously conventional and unconventional, appear at the heart of the mainstream but never seem part of it., they're slightly strange and quirky, often with a surreal sense of humour that's never upfront . Who else would put a picture of a young Mr Stipe on a back cover with "They Airbrushed My Face" written on it? Who else could write "I believe my throat hurts"? They don't smash hotel rooms or throw lawsuits at each other and their political involvements never seem self-aggrandising - unlike everybody else .REM are the greatest band that seemed to slip through net a net into megastardom without ever shouting about it. .They instinctively never played the game straight.
Well said my brother! i went to college and high school in the 80's in the South. REM blared from every Fraternity party, car stereo, and hip bars! The are a on-of-a-kind-band and also great to see live! Check out The Connells. They were also amazing, from The South and had a great run, but should have been bigger!
I was late to catch the back catalogue of R.E.M. This coincided with me trying to improve my bass playing with a pick, and what a surprise I found with Murmur, Reckoning, Reconstruction, Life's Pageant and Document!! Add Green to that as well. I do enjoy the fact that they are still quite obscure, makes them so enigmatic and iconic. And I believe Monster was so full of swag and unexpected. That was a boss move!!! I don't sleep, I dream!!!!
Such Icons...True Democracy...All songs were published Berry, Buck, Mills and Stipe, unrtil Berry left. It did not matter who wrote etc, they payed each other the same...No Ego, just brillant music
Throughout the 80’s R.E.M. was one of those bands that had a huge influence on the underground music scene, and deservedly so, blew up from there. They truly worked hard for their success. They were an amazing band with a unique sound at the time. For me it started with their first ep they released called Chronic Town. It came out my first year in University and it blew me away. I remained a fan of theirs ever since. Another great review! Thanks for this. How about a review on The Church? A band probably influenced by R.E.M. in the beginning. Besides in Australia, their home country, where they may be more known they are a great band that continues to write great music and has been flying under the radar since the 80’s as well. Very influential band in their own right.
The Church - I love 'Under The Milky Way' and 'Reptile' but not delved much further yet. I will do eventually though!
@@2020Sound Oh yes the earlier Church albums- so good!
Life’s rich pageant … is my all time favourite … even the title is brilliant… I just love the images in my head when I listen to their music.
Their first two albums were everything to me.
Couldn’t agree more, the amount of varied music they have put out that I can enjoy again and again, over and over depending on my mood. My favourite band of all time, and soundtrack to a large portion of my life. I think most people think of the three piece R.E.M. from 1998 to 2011 when you mention R.E.M. I enjoyed that part of their career too, but they were at their peak as a four piece. Revisiting Chronic Town and it’s 👌🔥
Absolutely. Their split was still (relatively!) not that long ago. So it's likely that, for people of a certain age, or those only familiar with their output from the 90s onwards, the latter day incarnation of the band is likely the perception that's still fresh in their mind. Given time, I'd hope that R.E.M.'s imperial phase gets revisited and thrust back into the spotlight.
The thing is with REM is that when I go back to their music they still relevent to me no matter how many times I listen or how old. Think its because their sound is so unique but also very accessable at the same time yet they never get old.
Man on the moon for example. Its hard to figure out the decade it came out if someone new to REM listen to it. Yet it still fresh and nice to listen to. I mean even the one I love from the 80's is still fresh if it was released this year. Heck it would have been better than most music out now.
Yes REM and Beatles for me will never get old
Well, R.E.M. is my favorite band of all time, so they get a whole lot of credit from me. I was going to college not too far from Athens, GA, in 1981, so they were all around the South and colleges then. If I could pick three bands as to your question, R.E.M., The Eagles, and The Who. Enjoyed your talk!
Thanks Susan! Did you get to catch them live at the time?
Sadly, no. I was a poor college student with no money, no wheels, and no means.@@2020Sound
They were an acquired taste but once you latched onto their complex ingenious chords and esoteric lyrics, it’s like getting high. Not everybody gets it. Also they kept changing and didn’t fit into a specific genre. There wasn’t a niche that they fit in that fans of niches could latch onto. Their true fans went with the flow and were able to open our minds and tag along for the ride.
This.
Great pick bro...so many hits and under-hits, different vibe album-to-album, sing-alongside and anthems along with obscure insider favorites. REM is my jam.
Recently found a used copy of Lifes Rich Pageant on vinyl at a local used record store. What a find, its my favorite one.
I just found a copy of _Monster_ at a thrift store and the CD itself was pristine with no scratches. 🤣 After listening to all of their greatest hits, I quite liked this one though.
Absolutely the best catalogue of any American band in history (and it isn't particularly close).