Rudiecantfail’s Weblog

I have yet to figure out how some bands last for a lifetime. The fact that some not only continue to make music together, but also still enjoy doing it is hard to understand. R.E.M. is one of these bands. Almost 30 years together and 14 albums later, R.E.M. is still going strong. Not only are they still around, but they are still relevant and seemingly on top of the world. They had a recent headlining appearance at Florida’s Langerado Festival, they are about to start a small U.S. tour this summer, and their new album Accelerate has garnished the band some of its best reviews in years. Who would have thought that this small Athens band would not only make it, but would have lasted this long?

R.E.M. began in Athens, GA in 1980. They released their first single “Radio Free Europe” in 1981 for a small independent label called Hib-Tone. In 1982 they signed I.R.S. Records, the label with which they would remain until they reached mainstream success with “The One I Love” in 1987. In the time they were “underground,” they were easily one of the most important bands in the country –at least in hindsight. Audiences may not have known it then, but R.E.M. was at the forefront of alternative music. They were not only at the forefront of it, though, they pretty much created it. They bridged the gap between the punk rock of the late 70s and the pop of the early 80s and molded it into a sound all their own. It is easy to look back and see what they were doing then and recognize trends that they helped shape, although audiences might not have known it at the time. All the right bands were listening to R.E.M. and so they started something big.

Throughout their career R.E.M. has always sounded like them. Michael Stipe’s  voice and lyric style, Peter Bucks guitar work which was equal parts the Smiths and the Byrds, Mike Mill’s melodic bass and trademark back up vocals, and Bill Berry’s unique, often propulsive drumming molded perfectly together to sound like no one else. Over the years their sound has matured and changed, but for the most part nothing has changed. Bill Berry left in 97 but the split was amicable and he still remains close to the band and even collaborates with them at times. in the end, “Radio Free Europe” sounds nothing like “All the way to Reno,” and that is the most remarkable thing. They have never pigeonholed themselves and have always done things on their own terms. They may have had a miss with Around the Sun, but that’s okay. They pulled it off again with Accelerate.

The first song I remember hearing from R.E.M. was “Man on the Moon” and I have loved their music ever since. I have recently begun to get back into them, and more than ever. In recent history I have never been more excited than to hear “Supernatural Superserious” played on the radio. Not only was I reminded that R.E.M. is still relevant, I was reminded that the radio can play some good music every now and then. Somehow R.E.M. has stayed relevant and important almost 30 years after they came together. Heres to one of the best bands in world. Probably the best if you get right down to it…