I got into R.E.M. a while back when my then roommate told me to listen to Automatic For The People. I liked it and then moved to other good albums such as Murmur, Reckoning, Life’s Rich Pageant, etc. But I found their work from the last decade or so somewhat lackluster. It was missing the spark from their early work. When I heard that they were making a new album, I was apprehensive - could R.E.M. possibly turn things around?
Turns out, they could. Not only that, but they also show that they can still rock. Hard. The new album, Accelerate, gets off on a strong note with the raw and angry “Living Well’s The Best Revenge”. The one thing you’ll notice right from the start is Peter Buck’s loud guitar work is back. That, combined with Mike Mills’ meaty basslines and Michael Stipe’s vocals give this album a tremendous amount of energy. Don’t forget that these guys have been around for 25 years and are called the “grandfathers of alternate rock” for a reason.
“Mansized Wreath” continues the good work of the album opener and has some typical Michael Stipe “wow” moments. My personal favorite, “Supernatural Superserious” comes up third and immediately brings back memories of early R.E.M. Some reviewers said that this is typical song that the band could write in their sleep - but that doesn’t stop it from being good. After the weird experimentation on the last few albums, it’s great to hear R.E.M.’s old sound back.
The album is given a sense of balance with the slower tracks “Hollow Man”, “Houston”, “Until The Day is Done”, and “Sing For The Submarine.” The title track is again, quite excellent in my opinion and the lyrics seem indicative of R.E.M. as a band: I’ve got to follow another direction/Accelerate. The album might seem to slow down with all these slower tracks but it ends just as ferociously as it began, with “Horse to Water” and “I’m Gonna DJ” proving to be great closers. The latter will remind fans of “End of The World As We Know It” with its lyrics about the world coming to an end.
The production on this album is raw, not clean. I think this was intentional. A clean production would’ve taken some of the energy out of this recording. The jangly guitars sound great and Mike Mills’ backing vocals are back! I also love the drumming on this album - it adds to the overall energy (sorry for overusing this word). I was initially skeptical about going to see them live in June, but this album has me excited. R.E.M. have shown that they’re still in the game and are not going anywhere. I highly recommend this album!
Rating: 4/5
Video for Supernatural Superserious:
