How Does It Feel (To Post About R.E.M.)?
- Thread starter Space Wanderer
- Start date
Dirtbag Auntie
Well-Known Member
But if I’m honest I could continue to live without R.E.M. Live. I haven’t listened to that since Live from the Olympia came out
BjorgenFjorgen
Well-Known Member
For someone who's never really listened to REM, where would you all point them to start?
Bennnnn
Well-Known Member
From the beginning. Like, Murmur is probably my favorite R.E.M. record despite it not quite sounding like what the bulk of their discography sounds like. But it's a great debut, and from there if you just go forward you can see the way they profess into becoming the huge band they were in the 90s.
But, if you don't want to do it that way, a good starter is Document, or maybe Lifes Rich Pageant. Document was the first R.E.M. album I heard. You get a good sense of their style with that one. Though, for an even more pop-friendly version of the band you could just jump to Green or Out Of Time.
Poly-Rythmo
Well-Known Member
That's a hard one. I think in general their earlier stuff (the IRS years) is better. But it could be that Out of Time and Automatic for the People are more accessible. I think the best of they're about to release on vinyl is quite a nice entry point to later REM . But for me and many hardcore fans the earlier stuff is best - I'd even argue to start with Chronic Town, their first EP that predates Murmur as it has a lot of my favourite songs. This looks to be a decent greatest hits of their early years Songs like Cuyahoga, It's The End of The World, and Find The River are some of my favourites.
Poly-Rythmo
Well-Known Member
Fwiw here's a cross post from rank my albums on my favourite REM discs
1. Life's Rich Pageant
2. Automatic For The People
3. New Adventures in Hi-Fi
4. Document
5. Murmur
6. Reckoning
7. Fables Of The Reconstruction
8. Out Of Time
9. Green
10. Up
11. Reveal
12. Monster
13. Accelerate
14. Collapse Into Now
15. Around The Sun
I was kind of surprised to have Out of Time and Green so low but it's just a sign of the quality above them.
AnthonyI
Well-Known Member
While Automatic For the People is probably the safest bet, I wouldn't be afraid of Murmur....love that album
McGlam
Well-Known Member
I guess Collapse Into Now is out of print on vinyl? I wanted to complete my collection and actually have found the later albums to be aging pretty nicely. I noticed on Discogs that prices for Collapse were fairly high. Luckily I found a copy at a small town record store yesterday, not sure exactly how hard it is to come by but I was excited.
i have og everything except the man on the moon vinyl (which was a germany only pressing, i believe). hoping the part truth, part lies... comp gets a pressing eventually for those few songs not on vinyl.
forgot to put in the live/olympia boxes. you’ll just have to trust me i guess.
edit: it appears my life’s rich pageant is missing. hmm.
McGlam
Well-Known Member
Nice! I want to pick up some of the later period OGs, from Monster on. I may just wait for the monster package this year and hopefully NAIHF will be soon after but not sure if they will reissues the post-Berry albums or not.
swamp
Well-Known Member
I have all their official full lengths and live albums/box sets, as well as all the 7” singles and most of their 12” singles. Also have about 40 bootleg albums and a few comps and R.E.M. related releases like soundtracks and cover albums. I used to pick up new stuff all the time but I haven’t came across a bootleg or obscure release in a shop or online that I don’t already own for a while. :-(
Space Wanderer
Well-Known Member
Posting this here in addition to the Pre-Order Thread:
store.remhq.com
Monster 25
25th Anniversary reissue of R.E.M.’s acclaimed ninth album, Monster, remastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound. The mutli-platinum-selling 1994 album includes their hits “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?“, “Strange Currencies” and “Crush With Eyeliner”
store.remhq.com
hlaveta
Well-Known Member
THE SCARY ONE!!!Posting this here in addition to the Pre-Order Thread:
Monster 25
25th Anniversary reissue of R.E.M.’s acclaimed ninth album, Monster, remastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound. The mutli-platinum-selling 1994 album includes their hits “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?“, “Strange Currencies” and “Crush With Eyeliner”
swamp
Well-Known Member
On first listen I like the toned down, vocals upfront feel on the new Kenneth mix. I think the over-production and volume on the guitars on Monster can be hard to digest in large quantities, like eating 12 pieces of heavy, sugary cake in one sitting. I'm excited to listen to the new mix in full.
McGlam
Well-Known Member
Yeah I'm usually wary of remixing an album years later but it sounds subtle enough that it really could make the album a bit more listenable. Totally agree with the cake analogy.