R.E.M. Monster

24

Comments

  • digster
    digster Posts: 1,293
    Funny timing. I pulled Monster out for the first time in a year a few days ago; I had bought it at that time, dismissed most of the album, and stored it away. I listened to it again and every song blew me away. I think, like it's follow-up New Adventures in Hi-Fi, it is a very underrated effort and a stellar album. Each song, from Kenneth to You, is uncomfortable, quick, dirty and hard to love, but over the past five days they've all easily ingrained themselves in my head. Also, this is one of Stipe's darkest lyrical efforts.

    As it always is with this band, it took Monster a while for me and it just clicked. Although I'm not a big Pitchfork fan, I always loved this quote from an R.E.M. record review, where they talked about the difficulty of making a classic album that stands the test of time; "make one classic, and you've earned your place in the canon. Make two, and you stand with the greats of all time. Make five or six and you're R.E.M." That's how I feel about them; I can't believe this much good music from this band. Arguably the best band of the 80's and 90's.
  • Pearls&Stones
    Pearls&Stones Posts: 585
    I want to touch on a few things that were brought up...


    I think "A Bigger Bang" is a great Rolling Stones record.

    I've always liked "Star Me Kitten"

    I am always shocked when people say they aren't crazy about "Reveal." Sometimes I have to drive an hour for work, and when I do, "Reveal" is one of my go-to cd's for the drive. I never skip any songs on it.

    My opinion of "Monster" is the bad songs are really bad, and distract from the great ones.
    I love my female wife...
    we sit around and wonder exactly why our marriage should feel threatened by gay marriage
  • bladworth116
    bladworth116 Posts: 344
    why must people compare one R.E.M. album to another? each one is a different monster, pardon the pun. balls to R.E.M. for putting out Monster after appealing to all of the baby boomers w. Automatic & Out of Time

    most people forget that Bill Berry half seriously threatened to quit the band unless they put out a rocker after Automatic.
  • culot4
    culot4 Posts: 775
    No album with Tongue on it is bad.
    Once in a while you can get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right.
  • Pearls&Stones
    Pearls&Stones Posts: 585
    Kind of off topic, but I picked up "R.E.M. Live" tonight, great disc and great DVD. I went against my own rule of never buying a live album of a band I have never seen live, except for a band like Nirvana, where there really is no chance.

    I hope to catch R.E.M.'s Toronto show in June, I hope I didn't jinx myself.
    I love my female wife...
    we sit around and wonder exactly why our marriage should feel threatened by gay marriage
  • Anon
    Anon Posts: 11,175
    where is the love for life's rich pageant?! flawless record and their best in my opinion. not a bad song there.
  • culot4
    culot4 Posts: 775
    GlorifiedAnimal wrote:
    where is the love for life's rich pageant?! flawless record and their best in my opinion. not a bad song there.

    I love that album. I think PJ loved it too because Sad sounds likes a blatant Begin the Begin copy to me.
    Once in a while you can get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right.
  • Anon
    Anon Posts: 11,175
    culot4 wrote:
    I love that album. I think PJ loved it too because Sad sounds likes a blatant Begin the Begin copy to me.

    you are right! i never thought of that but i can see it perfectly. good pick up.
  • btb002
    btb002 Posts: 183
    GlorifiedAnimal wrote:
    you are right! i never thought of that but i can see it perfectly. good pick up.

    Eddie must really love that song. I found a file floating out on the net with Vedder duetting with them on it. Must have been from the inductions.
    You are just a negative mindless pud.
  • restlesssoul
    restlesssoul Posts: 6,952
    culot4 wrote:
    No album with Tongue on it is bad.


    what they said.
    Van '98, Sea I+II '00, Sea '01, Sea II '02, Van '03, Gorge, Van, Cal, Edm '05, Bos I+II, Phi I+II, DC, SF II+III, Port, Gorge I+II '06, DC, NY I+II '08, Sea I+II, Van, Ridge , LA III+IV' 09, Indy '10, Cal, Van '11, Lond, Van, Sea '13, Memphis '14, RRHOF '17, Sea I+II '18, Van I+II, Vegas I+II, Sea I+II '24
  • Anon
    Anon Posts: 11,175
    btb002 wrote:
    Eddie must really love that song. I found a file floating out on the net with Vedder duetting with them on it. Must have been from the inductions.

    is it good quality? care to share?
  • DriftingByTheStorm
    DriftingByTheStorm Posts: 8,684
    GlorifiedAnimal wrote:
    where is the love for life's rich pageant?! flawless record and their best in my opinion. not a bad song there.

    My favorite too.
    Though you actualy get some shit for saying that, as "Superman" was a bit over the top cheese for that time in their career.

    All things considered, i think LRP is their best mix of styles and musical range.

    But ON TO MONSTER, lol ...

    I tend to disagree with Monster causing a fall in popularity, to start. I think they did well to add some cock to their rock during the grunge-laden mid 90's ... i think it scared some of the more "sensitive" fans ... but i don't think it hurt their mainstream status ...

    i do think it was a limited record in style ... its all extremely distorted (mostly) and much more aggressive on the whole ... that being said i realy liked Monster when it came out ... it was different ... it sure as fuck rocked in comparison with either OOT or AFP ...

    The only thing that Monster looses points for, and i guess it looses a lot on the whole with fans ... is that it's replay value just isn't there. Its like a realy great movie that you only want to watch once or twice. It, to me, has a very stuck-in-time kind've feel to it ... it could only be the mid 90s ....

    I dunno.
    I do know, as i've said, i did really like Monster a lot the first few months it was out. Every song was a hit in some way or another ... i just think it doesn't replay that well.

    I know i'd take it over the last two anyday. ;)

    If i had to pick a least favorite, it would most likely be Fables Of The Reconstruction (or Reconstruction of the Fables, har har) ...

    second most favorite (behing LRP) it would be, Reckoning (and NAIHF a close 3rd), with Green having a special sentimental place in my heart.l
    If I was to smile and I held out my hand
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  • exhausted
    exhausted Posts: 6,638
    love the record. hate the guitar tones.

    i remember all the hubhub about this being a big rock record and the guitars are just so disappointing.
  • Strangest Tribe
    Strangest Tribe Posts: 2,502
    wtf????

    Monster is a great record....

    if there was a decline it was because Bill dropped out of the lineup.

    Plus all the real fans thought they were serious about hanging it up for the 2K. like they said they would.
    the Minions
  • glasshouse
    glasshouse Posts: 1,762
    This is the most interesting thread I’ve read on here for some while. :cool:

    I’m not familiar with monster, so I can't really contribute to this thread, but i will add that I believe up is one of the more underrated albums of the 2nd part of the 90s.
    Athens, Greece: 2006/09/30

    "Call me Ishmael. Some years ago- never mind how long precisely- having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world." Herman Melville : Moby Dick
  • Zoso
    Zoso Posts: 6,425
    Pearls&Stones wrote:
    With R.E.M. set to release their first rocker since 1996's "New Adventures in Hi Fi," I thought I'd pop in "Monster" for a listen. I tend to agree with the consensus that "Monster' is not very good and is solely resposnible for the band's popularity decline in the U.S. I've always liked "What's the Frequency Kenneth," "Crush With Eyeliner" "Bang and Blame" and "Strange Currencies," plus a few of the other songs are ok ("I Took Your Name") but the songs that are bad are REALLY REALLY bad. For example, I can't stand "You," but that is at the end of the cd and easy to avoid. The other one is "Tongue" which is right in the middle and ruins the whole album. Everything else is kind of hard on the ears too.

    I know there are a lot of R.E.M. fans on here (I LOVE 95% of their stuff), and I know there are others that don't love Monster (which is obvious by the nosedive their sales took afterword and the dozens of copies that are available in used cd bins everywhere.)What are your thoughts?

    NO CODE copies are littered in the same bins because of the same reason. It's a different REM album thats for sure... possibly the least accessible album yet. I love monster. I really do I played it today and really enjoyed it especially the first half of the album... Kenneth, Crush, star 69 are good R.E.M. gold. I'm a big fan so maybe this is why I like it.. I guess only big pj fans like no code and binaural also.
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  • Ricsard
    Ricsard Posts: 1,943
    Well, I am a big fan of Monster and New Adventures, No Code, Binaural, AND even Riot Act...but Up and Reveal are not my cups of tea.
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  • gabers
    gabers Posts: 2,787
    GlorifiedAnimal wrote:
    is it good quality? care to share?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XaoF8bDMcM&feature=related

    This was my first time hearing it. Pretty cool.
  • Stinkfoot
    Stinkfoot Posts: 546
    exhausted wrote:
    love the record. hate the guitar tones.

    i remember all the hubhub about this being a big rock record and the guitars are just so disappointing.

    Wasn't pretty much the whole album written because Peter Buck had bought a new delay pedal he loved so he wrote a load of songs using it? (I'm sure I read/heard that somewhere?)
    "I get into a state of consciousness that I can't explain. It is about feeling and not thinking. I get positive chills and insight into things that I can't get to any other way. It is Healing of the Soul." - Mike McCready
  • Cropduster84
    Cropduster84 Posts: 1,283
    Ricsard wrote:
    Well, I am a big fan of Monster and New Adventures, No Code, Binaural, AND even Riot Act...but Up and Reveal are not my cups of tea.


    Im with you, but i love Up.

    I love up but cant stand reveal.
    'The more I studied religions the more I am convinced that man never worshipped anything but himself.' - Sir Richard Francis Burton

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