R.E.M. are the soundtrack to my life. Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe started out humbly on an independent label, I.R.S., in the early 80’s, gradually building up a bigger and bigger following thanks to constant touring and airplay on college radio. Along with contemporaries such as The Replacements, Husker Du, Black Flag and The Minutemen, they helped pave the way for bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam to eventually find mainstream acceptance. They are a key branch in the Rock n’ Roll family tree, providing a key link from Patti Smith, the Sex Pistols and the Ramones to Radiohead and the Strokes.
Eventually the “little band that could” from Athens, GA became one of the biggest bands in the world, on par with U2, largely thanks to “Losing My Religion.” It still seems pretty mind boggling to me that a song with no real chorus to speak of and whose main instrument is mandolin took the world by storm. If there is a formula for writing hit radio singles, surely this is not it!
R.E.M. ruled the world when alternative rock was at it’s commercial peak. However, when drummer Bill Berry left the band in 1997, R.E.M. slowly descended into becoming the cult band they started as. Unfortunately, their first three post-Berry albums were not garnering as stellar critical reviews as they were used to.
On top of this, they made the cardinal sin of NOT BREAKING UP. In an age where bands like the Pixies, Dinosaur Jr., The Go-Go’s, etc get major press coverage for reuniting, R.E.M. have followed their own muse and stuck it out. In the process, many music critics and fans took R.E.M. for granted and largely ignored Up, Reveal and Around The Sun.
Then something funny happened. No doubt stung by the critical lashings and lukewarm sales of Around The Sun, R.E.M. got hungry again. They ditched the mellow, atmospherics of their most recent albums and decided to get back to basics. They started writing short, guitar heavy songs with a punk edge. Michael Stipe started writing more visceral, angry lyrics. In short, the band got it’s mojo back.
In preparation for their critical and commercial comeback album, 2008’s phenomenal Accelerate, R.E.M. played a 5 night stint at Dublin’s Olympia stadium. Dubbed as “working rehearsals,” R.E.M. played some new songs, most of which wound up on Accelerate, as well 30 or so songs from their back catalogue.
On October 27, R.E.M. are releasing a double CD/DVD with highlights from their 5 nights in Dublin, appropriately called Live At The Olympia. For a big geek like myself, it’s exciting to get a “document” of a band regaining it’s swagger.
Below is a clip of “Living Well Is The Best Revenge” from the collection.
Living Well Is The Best Revenge
...submitted by JJ
As much as I love a lot of singer/songwriter stuff. I am completely in agreement on the back at 'er opinion. Good to see them crankin' it out again!
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