Favorite R.E.M. album(s)?

[lazarus]

BTW, I listened to New Adventures about an hour ago. I have a few random impressions:

• How The West, New Test Leper, Undertow, E-Bow, and Leave start the album off on a great note. They're lyrically challenging and musically experimental, even bordering on avant garde at times.
• Wake Up Bomb and Departure are pure shit. I'm sorry. They suck. I can't find anything particularly redeemable in either. Why the former had to be 5 minutes long, I have no idea. It's torture.
• Bittersweet Me would be wonderful if it cohered properly, but it feels like four songs crammed together to me.
• Low Desert is underrated. Mike Mills owns that song.

Wake Up Bomb has some great guitar work. But it's a bit stupid. Departure I could live without, but I like the vocal. Revolution is better than both, in my opinion, and probably should have been on the album.

Bittersweet Me is without a doubt the weakest song on the album, mainly because of the weak verses. It's just generic.

You're very right about Low Desert, but I'm bummed you neglected to mention Be Mine, as I think it's the highlight of the album. God, that music once it kicks in just sends me reeling.

I'm not a fan of Binky the Doormat, though I know it has its supporters.

 

[LemonMelon]

Wake Up Bomb has some great guitar work. But it's a bit stupid. Departure I could live without, but I like the vocal. Revolution is better than both, in my opinion, and probably should have been on the album.

Bittersweet Me is without a doubt the weakest song on the album, mainly because of the weak verses. It's just generic.

You're very right about Low Desert, but I'm bummed you neglected to mention Be Mine, as I think it's the highlight of the album. God, that music once it kicks in just sends me reeling.

I'm not a fan of Binky the Doormat, though I know it has its supporters.

Very, very true on the Be Mine front. It needs more of that lighter-waving, epic "chorus". Then it would be one of my very favorites. I love that.

 

[corianderstem]

Pilgrimage makes me very, very happy. I always liked it, but after hearing it live in 1999, it got bumped into my top tier of REM songs.

Personally, I would go for Welcome to the Occupation and Disturbance at the Heron House.

The two best songs on Document. The second half of that record just falls flat for me, and I cannot get over the ubiquity of The One I Love and It's the End ... to hear them again in the context of a full album.

Wake Up Bomb and Departure are pure shit.

...

Low Desert is underrated. Mike Mills owns that song.
[/LIST]

I totally love The Wake-Up Bomb. It kicks copious amounts of ass.

Mike Mills owns everything. He's one of the most underappreciated ... uh, sidekicks (for lack of a better wrod) in music.

 

[LemonMelon]

It could be the fact that I completely missed out on the peak of their popularity, but I adore The One I Love and It's The End Of The World As We Know It. They're fantastic songs, ubiquity aside.

 

[MMP]

Seriously, I can understand why people don't like Around the Sun (I try, at least ), but how can someone say that "The Worst Joke Ever" is not a good song is beyond my comprehension. I get high when I hear that.

 

[lazarus]

The two best songs on Document. The second half of that record just falls flat for me, and I cannot get over the ubiquity of The One I Love and It's the End ... to hear them again in the context of a full album.

The second half of the album isn't as good as the first, I acknowledge. And if there's anything that prevents Document from being a supreme masterpiece is Lightnin' Hopkins. But King of Birds really is beautiful (even if it's no Swan Swan H), and Oddfellows Local 151 is creepy-cool.

I also love the album's subtitle "File Under Fire", and how most of the songs have that imagery in the lyrics. You know, better than using "heart" in every song.

Here's a question: Why the FUCK didn't Staring Down the Barrel of the Middle Distance make it onto Accelerate? Lord knows it wasn't a length issue, and it's better than almost (if not) everything on there.

 

[Zoots]

The two best songs on Document.

It's that ringing Byrdsy guitar sound, isn't it?

Oh yeah, I love King of Birds too!

 

[MMP]

if there's anything that prevents Document from being a supreme masterpiece is Lightnin' Hopkins.

Holy crap... how the hell we both like U2??

Here's a question: Why the FUCK didn't Staring Down the Barrel of the Middle Distance make it onto Accelerate? Lord knows it wasn't a length issue, and it's better than almost (if not) everything on there.

I'm not really into R.E.M.'s unrealeased stuff... what song is this? Is it just something they played live or there is some demo?

 

[corianderstem]

The second half of the album isn't as good as the first, I acknowledge. And if there's anything that prevents Document from being a supreme masterpiece is Lightnin' Hopkins. But King of Birds really is beautiful (even if it's no Swan Swan H), and Oddfellows Local 151 is creepy-cool.

I do love King of Birds. Can't stand Oddfellows, though.

Firehouse!

FIREHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUSE!!!!!!

 

[Zoots]

The only bonus song I have from Accelerate is Red Head Walking. I'm curious about the one Laz mentioned too.

 

[lazarus]

It was played during their five-night "rehearsal" residency in Dublin, and for some reason didn't make it onto the album.

YouTube - R.E.M. - "Staring Down the Barrel of the Middle Distance" Live

 

[lazarus]

The only bonus song I have from Accelerate is Red Head Walking. I'm curious about the one Laz mentioned too.

Care to share that? Can't find it online.

 

[MMP]

One thing: what about Dead Letter Office and b-sides and rarities? How many songs will go from these? And what about The Great Beyond, Revolution, Animal, Bad Day, etc.?

 

[onebloodonelife]

Pilgrimage makes me very, very happy. I always liked it, but after hearing it live in 1999, it got bumped into my top tier of REM songs.

Pilgrimage. And, yes, after hearing it live, I fully appreciate it.

 

[onebloodonelife]

I have Airliner from Accelerate, off of the bonus DVD, in addition to Red Head Walking.

 

[lazarus]

One thing: what about Dead Letter Office and b-sides? How many songs will go from these

Problem with Dead Letter Office is that the best stuff on there are covers. You have four(!) Velvet Underground songs (Femme Fatale being one of the finest vocals committed to tape by Stipe), the leadoff Pylon cover Crazy, and of course King of the Road. Burning Down and Ages of You are alright, but I don't think we need to include them in the competition.

It is legitimate, though, to vote on a representative from Chronic Town. It's their first EP, all original material, and there's some great ones. A quick poll to choose the best to include in the main Survivor competition would be fair.

 

[onebloodonelife]

Care to share that? Can't find it online.

.

 

[MMP]

But what about Romance, The Great Beyond, Animal, Bad Day, etc. and b-sides? Fretless is a song as good any great song in their albums.

Yeah, I agree that Chronic Town should have a spot.

 

[corianderstem]

That's the thing about these Survivor games. If you do all albums and all releases for bands that have an extensive catalogue, it stops being fun after a while, especially for the poor person brave enough to organize it.

While I'd love to have a full survivor game for REM, I completely understand why there are wishes to try and narrow it down a bit.

And also, King of the Road is awesome because of the drunkenness, and Mike Mills yelling "Easy with the key! EEEEEEASY with the key!" when Stipe starts veering off into another key.



Thanks for the links, onebloodonelife.

 

[lazarus]

Thanks, but I don't think we're allowed to post links in the forums anymore. PM only.

And I'm uploading the audio of Staring Down the Barrel. If anyone wants it, let me know.

 

[onebloodonelife]

Thanks, but I don't think we're allowed to post links in the forums anymore. PM only.

And I'm uploading the audio of Staring Down the Barrel. If anyone wants it, let me know.

My bad, can everyone get PMs now?

 

[lazarus]

But what about Romance, The Great Beyond, Animal, Bad Day, etc. and b-sides? Fretless is a song as good any great song in their albums.

Yeah, I agree that Chronic Town should have a spot.

Fretless really should have been on Out of Time, or saved for Automatic. It's SO good.

And The Great Beyond has got to be the most overrated R.E.M. song in history. That awkward chorus...my god, don't get me started.

 

[corianderstem]

shut UP! The Great Beyond is awesome!

 

[lazarus]

My bad, can everyone get PMs now?

Yeah.

 

[Zoots]

My bad, can everyone get PMs now?

Thanks. I already have RHW. And I grabbed Airliner just in time before you edited!

 

[Zoots]

The Great Beyond is one of their most beautiful songs ever!

 

[MMP]

Fretless really should have been on Out of Time, or saved for Automatic. It's SO good.

And The Great Beyond has got to be the most overrated R.E.M. song in history. That awkward chorus...my god, don't get me started.

We? Agreeing? Are you sure?

I like The Great Beyond a lot... it should've been on Up

 

[lazarus]

shut UP! The Great Beyond is awesome!

Yeah, the way he rushes through all those syllables in the chorus is just top notch work.

Plus, the verses sound almost exactly like those in an earlier song. I forget which one because I've avoided listening to it since it came out. Bang and Blame or Bittersweet Me, maybe?

Thank god they didn't get an Oscar for that tripe, it would have been like Shuttlecock winning for The Cocks That Built America.

 

[corianderstem]

Yeah, the way he rushes through all those syllables in the chorus is just top notch work.

Plus, the verses sound almost exactly like those in an earlier song. I forget which one because I've avoided listening to it since it came out.

I'm not sure what specifically you think sounds rushed about the chorus. But whatever, you obviously just have crappy taste don't agree with me on this one.

Finest Worksong and Turn You Inside Out are the exact same song, by the way.

 

[lazarus]

Whoever wants the audio for Staring Down the Barrel (live), PM me.