R.E.M.: Difference between revisions

Line 1:

[[File:R.E.M..jpg|frame]]

{{quote|"''Take what you see on TV, mix in a guy who's turned 30 and still doesn't have a job, throw in some Uncle Remus stories and add a few flies in amber and you have America.''"|Michael Stipe of R.E.M.}}

R.E.M. was an [[Alternative Rock]] band from Athens, Georgia, the same city from where [[The B-52's]] came a few years before. They were formed in 1980 when University of Georgia student Michael Stipe (vocals) met Peter Buck (guitar), who worked at a record store. They discovered that they shared a similar taste for "art-punk" acts such as [[Television (band)|Television]], [[Patti Smith]], and the [[Velvet Underground]]. This led them to form a band with two other U of G students, Mike Mills (bass) and Bill Berry (drums). Under the name R.E.M., the band recorded the only single ever released on Hib-Tone Records, "Radio Free Europe" b/w "Sitting Still." "Radio Free Europe's" combination of punk attitude and folk-rock guitars influenced by [[Power Pop]] (especially [[Big Star (band)|Big Star]]) pretty much invented a specific form of [[Alternative Rock]] named "jangle pop", and led to them being picked up by I.R.S. Records.

[[R.E.M.]] was an [[Alternative Rock]] band from Athens, Georgia, the same city from where [[The B-52's]] came a few years before. They were formed in 1980 when University of Georgia student Michael Stipe (vocals) met Peter Buck (guitar), who worked at a record store. They discovered that they shared a similar taste for "art-punk" acts such as [[Television (band)|Television]], [[Patti Smith]], and the [[Velvet Underground]]. This led them to form a band with two other U of G students, Mike Mills (bass) and Bill Berry (drums). Under the name R.E.M., the band recorded the only single ever released on Hib-Tone Records, "Radio Free Europe" b/w "Sitting Still." "Radio Free Europe's" combination of punk attitude and folk-rock guitars influenced by [[Power Pop]] (especially [[Big Star (band)|Big Star]]) pretty much invented a specific form of [[Alternative Rock]] named "jangle pop", and led to them being picked up by I.R.S. Records.

The band initially played with a "murky" style -- their early albums were produced so that no one instrument was more or less prominent than any of the others - but starting with ''Lifes Rich Pageant,'' Michael Stipe began enunciating his once-mumbled lyrics more clearly, and Peter Buck's guitar parts became more prominent. Shortly after this, the band, who had previously seen high levels of critical acclaim and a lot of popularity on college radio but never really had a hit, became hugely popular. ''Document'' contained the major hits "The One I Love" and the well-tossed word salad "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)." And the hits kept coming.

Line 22:

* Bill Berry: Drums (1980-1997)

Studio albums:

'''Studio albums:'''

* ''Chronic Town'' EP (1982)

* ''Murmur'' (1983)

Line 39:

Line 40:

* ''Accelerate'' (2008)

* ''Collapse Into Now'' (2011)

⚫

'''Other releases:'''

⚫

Other releases:

* ''Dead Letter Office'' rarities compilation (1987)

* ''Eponymous'' best-of compilation (1988)

Line 49:

* ''Live at the Olympia'' (2009)

* ''Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982-2011'' retrospective best-of compilation (2011)

----

=== R.E.M. is the [[Trope Namer]] for: ===

* [[The End of the World as We Know It]]: Not the origin of the phrase, but certainly the most well-known by far.

* [[Something Something Leonard Bernstein]]: See above.

=== The band also provides examples of: ===

* [[Album Title Drop]]:

** The title to the EP ''Chronic Town'' is found in the song "Carnival of Sorts (Box Cars)".