R.E.M.

[sodascouts]

Have you heard? This incredible band is breaking up!

http://remhq.com/news_story.php?id=1446

So sad! I loved this band!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijZRCIrTgQc&ob=av2e

RIP, R.E.M.

[Freypower]

I loved them for a while. When I was going through my 'down' period with Glenn & the Eagles REM took their place, or so I thought. Losing My Religion, which I still consider their greatest song, became deeply symbolic for me as I thought I was trying to escape the past. Unfortunately, unlike most people I thought Automatic For The People was overrated. Then we saw them on the Monster tour & I have to see it was the worst show by a major band I have ever seen, typified by Michael Stipe reading his own lyrics - the lyrics he wrote - off sheets of paper which he then tossed into the audience. They did make a good comeback with the much underrated Reveal album (there are some really good songs there). I thought they never really made it into the pantheon (I feel the same way about Oasis).

[Windeagle]

NOOO! R.E.M. is... was... one of my top 3 favorite bands. They were the ones I followed when the Eagles faded away in the 80s. I danced myself weak both times I saw them live. I have fond memories of dancing in the mud and the pouring rain with a good friend at one of those shows. I'll miss you guys!

[Koala]

Oh no, I loved them too! One of my favorite songs ever are Everybody Hurts & Losing My Religion another one is Strange Currencies !

[sodascouts]

Here's another song of theirs I love:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=559eWB93jW4&ob=av2e

[WS82Classics]

"Automatic for the People" was released 24 years ago today. While I've never listened to a full REM album(aside from a burned, self-arranged compilation), it did yield many of my favourites from the best band Athens, GA ever churned out(the B-52's are horrid dreck and Widespread Panic are quite over-hyped).

REM is a band that I evolved(or devolved, as the case may be) into liking. You have to be a little bent to truly understand and enjoy the dark, morose nature of most of their songs("Stand" and "Shiny, Happy People" are not characteristic of what the band's all about). For someone who is as moody and depressive as I am, this is not a difficult task.

My top 10 favourite REM songs:

1. Don't Go Back to Rockville(I really identify with this one in a lot of ways)
2. Man on the Moon
3. Radio Free Europe('Murmur' version)
4. New Orleans Instrumental, #1(literally the music from the inside of my own consciousness and soul)
5. Stand
6. It's the End of the World as We Know it
7. Losing My Religion
8. Orange Crush
9. Welcome to the Occupation
10. New Orleans Instrumental, #2

I do want to make a particular note of their instrumentals. When one thinks of rock instrumentals, some of the songs that come to mind are Mason Williams' "Classical Gas," the Beatles' "Flying," the Allman Brothers Band's "Jessica," the Eagles' "Journey of the Sorcerer," and/or Led Zeppelin's "Moby Dick." REM, however, took the specter of the rock instrumental, added in the old rock/malt shop sensibility regarding shortness of a song, and truly sounded out some special notes.

N.O, #1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_ROWcQclk8
N.O, #2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WudJKnEa830
Some fun Organ jamming: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrxkyDM_1rg

[LuvTim]

I really like R.E.M. Saw them in concert, they were terrible. Really awful. So messed up that MS literally fell down, dragging a mike stand with him. So anyway...:roll:

Still, I loved their cd's, and still do today. I don't really tend towards making lists of favorites, but I will say that I can rarely play Losing My Religion without hitting repeat. Lol...

[buffyfan145]

Love R.E.M.!!! :D I think I loved more of their 90s songs since I remember those actually being released but some of their songs are up there in my all-time favorites. I love "Losing my Religion", "Man on the Moon", "Orange Crush", "It's the End of the World as we Know It", "Stand", and "What's the Frequency Kenneth?". I remember a show I used to watch "Covert Affairs" each season would name their episodes titles after songs and their 2nd season was all R.E.M. songs.

[Jonny Come Lately]

I quite like R.E.M. - I think they have some great songs, although I only own one of their albums, this being Automatic for the People. The first song of theirs I heard was Losing My Religion, which I came across about four years ago. I was impressed by it. My favourite song though is Man On The Moon, which I absolutely loved from the first time I heard it. I think the lyrics are great - they always make me smile. The music and vocals are too, I think it's just an all round awesome song.

I'll get my grumble out of the way and say there is one song I've heard by them which I cannot stand at all - I've hated Shiny Happy People ever since I first heard it, and I've mentioned it before on here. Before hearing it I read that it wasn't popular with a lot of 'purist' R.E.M. fans. I soon found out why! I guess it's just way too, erm, shiny and happy for my liking... the very beginning of the song is okay, but it rapidly goes downhill and the chorus actually makes me feel kind of nauseous when I hear it. I honestly can't listen to it to the end. Seriously, I think their impression of a bubblegum pop song was far too convincing. It's possibly my least favourite song by a rock band I actually like.

As for the Automatic album, I like it a lot. I don't think it's a perfect record - I'm not a great fan of Ignoreland and Star Me Kitten, and I think Everybody Hurts is somewhat overrated, but I really like most of the others. I think I tend to prefer the darker and more melancholic side of their work so this album appeals to more than Out Of Time does. I absolutely love the closing sequence of tracks. I've already mentioned my love of Man On The Moon, but put it together with the gorgeous piano and strings of Nightswimming and equally beautiful Find The River and it's extremely special. I can't think of many albums which end with a stronger set of three tracks.