R.E.M.

Lifes Rich Pageant was definitely their best up until then, and i'd say Up was an unexpected standout. after that it really started to go downhill... i loved REM for awhile and can still cite their influence and ear for melody, but honestly, this needs to be said: from the very beginning, REM were way too repetitive, i'll say again, WAY TOO REPETITIVE!!!! every song has the verse and chorus repeated over and over and over and over and over... it's kinda sad that a strong band with talent just went through almost 3 decades without even trying to be progressive or epic. just 4 minute wannabe-hits over and over. thank god there are so many better bands than REM (PJ included) that take into account that the listener doesn't wanna hear the same shit over and over, especially when said songs are on the radio/work stations and i am literally forced to hear the same songs again and again until the once charming pop song 89 or don't go back to rockville turn into nightmarish torture sessions of mediocrity!!!!!

I've loved Auto for the People & Green for a long time.

Last year I got into the early stuff and just can't stop listening. I think Lifes might be the best album of the 80s, period. Something about Fables I just, really like, just a cool sounding record. Awesome atmosphere in Maps & Legends.

I think people tend to say a band is repetitive when they're looking for an explanation of why they don't like them. It's ok, you don't like them, no biggie. But all music is somewhat repetitive to a degree. I don't find most REM songs to be overly repetitive, although some of the big hits sure are. Don't Go Back to Rockville is repetitive? I guess it's the same chorus over and over, but that's what a chorus is. :?

Someone just posted a link to this 1984 French show in an 80s music group I'm in. It sounds like a soundboard and I am LOVING IT TODAY.

Any day is a great day for live REM, especially from the Reckoning era 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMX1Eud6LcA

Get_Right said:

Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, and Dead Letter Office are my favs. Basically not a huge fan of most releases after Document. Once I heard shiny happy people I stopped taking them seriously.

Then you should definitely listen to that show I just posted - I don't think there are any Fables songs on it but it's from the Reckoning era and they do at least 1 song from Dead Letter Office (Pylon's Crazy).

JH6056 said:

Get_Right said:

Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, and Dead Letter Office are my favs. Basically not a huge fan of most releases after Document. Once I heard shiny happy people I stopped taking them seriously.

Oh also, yeah, Shiny Happy People is cringe-y on Green, but that album also has World Leader Pretend, Turn You Inside Out, Hairshirt, and Orange Crush which are all phenomenal songs.

Couple of other things that make Green an awesome album..."I Remember California" and the fact that "Shiny Happy People" isn't on it. 
It's on Out of Time.

Monster is my jam, but I also have and obsess over Out of Time and Automatic.

I gave New Adventures in HI-FI a listen last week, and good god - is that an underrated classic.

halv said:

Was just listening to Document. My first favorite record by them. 

It's a good one!  It produced a couple of fine hits but I think just as good or better are some of the lesser talked about songs like "Lightnin' Hopkins" and "Fireplace".  "Throw the chair into the fireplace", what an image!

On Document, I can still picture that sped-up film footage of ferris wheels spinning and amusement park rides that played behind the band live when they did "It's The End of the World As We Know It"... thrilling!

Can I also say, since this is a Pearl Jam board, that one of the most amazing live REM experiences I ever had was sitting within view of Ed at a Seattle REM show and seeing him enjoy the show a few times when I looked over. He was behind me so I wasn't really watching him much until later when he ended up in same row as me, but I was the only one in my section dancing up a STORM and we looked at each other a few times with big smiles because, fuckin' REM!  That was cool.

Then a few years ago I had a similar experience kind of vicariously through my significant other who is a HUGE Metallica fan, and I'm a huge Radiohead fan and he likes Radiohead, and we ended up standing in the same row of a 2017 Radiohead concert with about 4 empty seats between us as Lars Ulrich, who air-drummed along with Radiohead drummer Phil Selway through THE ENTIRE CONCERT!!!  He's clearly a really big Radiohead fan.  And his girlfriend/wife and I danced our butts off.  But I think I was more excited for that surreal situation than my significant other, he kind of just shrugged about it. LOL!

Poncier said:

JH6056 said:

Poncier said:

JH6056 said:

Get_Right said:

Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, and Dead Letter Office are my favs. Basically not a huge fan of most releases after Document. Once I heard shiny happy people I stopped taking them seriously.

Oh also, yeah, Shiny Happy People is cringe-y on Green, but that album also has World Leader Pretend, Turn You Inside Out, Hairshirt, and Orange Crush which are all phenomenal songs.

Couple of other things that make Green an awesome album..."I Remember California" and the fact that "Shiny Happy People" isn't on it. 
It's on Out of Time.

Ooops! Yeah, that too, good point that Shiny Happy People doesn't ruin Green because... what you said! LOL!

Ha, I imagine your brain was just mixing up Stand with Shiny Happy People. Cause that's the cringe-y song on Green (I actually prefer Shiny Happy People to Stand thanks to Kate Pierson's vocals).

Yes, I prefer Shiny Happy People to Stand as well musically, but that last part of the Stand video where they each jump up and the camera catches them hitting the ground? Michael Stipe's smile at the end?  I know, very superficial but that smile slayed me so Stand has a place in my heart too

Have you all seen this?  Very important to consider what Shiny Happy People did as an anthem for the Monster Community...   And the Kate Pierson muppet is extra awesome!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9G1FhQUnSo

JH6056 said:

Poncier said:

JH6056 said:

Poncier said:

JH6056 said:

Get_Right said:

Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, and Dead Letter Office are my favs. Basically not a huge fan of most releases after Document. Once I heard shiny happy people I stopped taking them seriously.

Oh also, yeah, Shiny Happy People is cringe-y on Green, but that album also has World Leader Pretend, Turn You Inside Out, Hairshirt, and Orange Crush which are all phenomenal songs.

Couple of other things that make Green an awesome album..."I Remember California" and the fact that "Shiny Happy People" isn't on it. 
It's on Out of Time.

Ooops! Yeah, that too, good point that Shiny Happy People doesn't ruin Green because... what you said! LOL!

Ha, I imagine your brain was just mixing up Stand with Shiny Happy People. Cause that's the cringe-y song on Green (I actually prefer Shiny Happy People to Stand thanks to Kate Pierson's vocals).

Yes, I prefer Shiny Happy People to Stand as well musically, but that last part of the Stand video where they each jump up and the camera catches them hitting the ground? Michael Stipe's smile at the end?  I know, very superficial but that smile slayed me so Stand has a place in my heart too

Have you all seen this?  Very important to consider what Shiny Happy People did as an anthem for the Monster Community...   And the Kate Pierson muppet is extra awesome!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9G1FhQUnSo

I never understood that hate for "Shiny Happy People".  Once in a while I'll hear it being played in our local super market.  I'm the happy idiot dancing in the pasta isle!