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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?

seola30
loomisjohnson
1,943 posts
 

@roxy54 @bdp24 i fully concur that the byrds had great material through notorious byrd brothers (i like clarence white, too, but i don't think they were writing many memorable songs by that time). for my money, tho, their vocal sound  was fully formed on the debut, and their best material was far-and-away gene clark's (first two records + eight miles high). likewise the ramones had great stuff through "road to ruin," but i was never grabbed by the more polished (albeit better-played) poppier stuff that followed.

as for the cars and candy o, it's a good record and "dangerous type" and "all i can do" are classics but i it always sounded a little bit like a slightly muted xerox of the first record, which is wall-to-wall hits.

larsman's avatar
larsman
1,935 posts
 

@roxy54 + 1

mksun
465 posts
 

@mikeydred I forgot to mention the “Chronic Town” EP which ranks amongst their greatest releases. It’s definitely worth hunting down the “Dead Letter Office” CD which contains “Chronic Town” in its entirety along with interesting unreleased tracks and outtakes from their early years. “Life’s Rich Pagent” and “Document” are also great. I was fortunate enough to see R.E.M. in concert in 1986 and experience their greatest material live.

timintexas
18 posts
 

I was a light-weight fan for sure. My favorite song is the one always dumped on. "Shiny Happy People".  Such a perfectly absurd song. With Kate Peirson's vocals, it just sorta knocked it out of the park. 

A great little piece of 90's exuberance! And the video...***chuckling***

rick_n's avatar
rick_n
208 posts
 

Sad to see how this thread deteriorated from the OP's premise.  Music means so much to so many, It warms my heart to hear that REM made a connection to you that helped you through hard times.  That is what the best of music is about. Be your own man and ignore the flamers who are bashing the band that was important to you.  Ignore the crap responses telling you what to listen to.  Instead keep listening to what connects to you, who cares about what others thought was important when prop planes ruled the skies and hi-fi was recorded on 8 track mixers????  Back to your question, IMO, REM was the real deal.  My opinion matters not, but when you're listening to music how it makes you feel is everything.

Cheers and best wishes

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