Is R.E.M. underrated by new music nerds?
I've been in a R.E.M. phase in late 2018, they kept me going through the toughest period of my life. A lot of their stuff especially in their incredible 1987-1996 run means a lot to me and have been pivotal in growing my music taste but emotion aside I think quality-wise they were one of the greatest rock band of all time, if not one the best band. I actually think this is not a hot take.
What I think is an interesting thing to discuss is how R.E.M. are relevant to new audiences of my age (I'm 20 btw) like all the music nerds that grew on the Internet (RYM or /mucore) or the music channels or profiles on YouTube and Instagram that review or examine music.
I think that in this demographic area R.E.M. are underrated or more specifically they are put inside the categories of "Gen X bands" like U2 or similar. And i think it's a shame because they have one the best musical palettes of all time provided by really skilled musicians and an incredible and eclectic vocalist and songwriter like Michael Stipe. A band that even when they became globally famous they managed to stay coherent to their sound (until at least the early 90s) and political ethic. Their material should get more recognition among younger audiences like mine considering the huge influence they had on a lot of artist.
What do you think?
Well now for a contrarian opinion. Last night, I had an 80s'-90's ROON radio stream kicked off by "NIGHT TIME" by Killing Joke. REM came up on this stream and I was just thinking how good they were and that I need to go back and listen again to some of their great albums. Especially now that I have some gear that works perfectly for my ears. BTW - in my 80's binge last night, I got stuck on Killing Joke's catalog and "MIND BOMB" by The The. On headphones that MIND BOMB is something else. |
If you want to impress a young person, play he or she a Rockabilly song. Try "The Train Kept A-Rollin’", for instance. Jeff Beck got The Yardbirds to record their pretty good version of the song (the first one I heard), but in pales in comparison to the version by The Johnny Burnette Rock ’n’ Roll Trio, which is absolutely incendiary! The original is a 1951 Jump Blues by Tiny Bradshaw, also very cool. And then there is the embarrassing version by, ugh, Aerosmith. By-the-way, the lead guitar playing on Burnette’s version is in dispute. The Trio’s Paul Burlinson is credited with the part, but some think it is actually that of Nashville studio guitarist Grady Martin. It didn’t matter to Beck: he loved the playing of both. Another by-the-way: If you like the playing of Jeff Beck (and who doesn’t?), do yourself a huge favour and get some albums by Danny Gatton. Gatton’s Rockabilly (and Jazz, and Blues) playing is far hotter than that of Beck. IMO, as always, but every advanced guitarist I’ve played with also feels (or felt, if RIP) that way. THE guitarist’s guitarist. |
I think we should stay away from stating what is good, better best. I happen to particularly like three bands from the 1980s: U2, R.E.M., and The Smiths. In answer to the original poster's question, I agree that the last two are less well known than U2, certainly in part because they haven't been active for a long time. |
@bdp24, I agree, you're too old for them. R.E.M. was a great band. A big shout out to Don Dixon and Mitch Easter as producers on the first few albums. The band evolved and lost early fans and gained many more new fans, but if anything, they kept it real. Well as real as being wealthy, traveling around the world in private jets while playing rock and roll to screaming fans can be real. They might not have been greatest instrumentalists, but the were solid all around, particularly the drummer. |
rem was fantastic, but (like the byrds, the cars and the ramones) they hit their artistic peak right out of the gate w/chronic town and murmur--for me everything that came after marked a gradual, but noticeable decline--i rarely listen to anything after document. i also agree that the more they mumbled the lyrics the better they were. |
