R.E.M.
Biography
In 1980 four fellows, interested in post-punk - Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Bill Berry met in a Southern town of Athens and decided to form a band. After trying such truely punk names as Twisted Kytes, Negro Wives and Cans Of Piss, they stopped at the name of R.E.M., which they found at random in a dictionary. In the summer of 1981 the first single, Radio Free Europe, was released in the amount of 1000 copies. Those copies got to the right hands, and soon R.E.M. singed to I.R.S. Records. The debut record Chronic Town successfully anticipated the first full-length Murmur in 1983. It was well received by critics and Rolling Stone magazine even called Murmur the rock album of the year. 1984 was lighted by Reckoning with the major hit So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry). Soon after the release R.E.M. were known in American rock circles for their constant touring, hard work and Stipe's vocal identity - he sang in a rather mumbling way so that the lyrics were partly incomprehensive. By 1985 R.E.M. became the underground icon.
read more
Reviews
Collapse Into Now2011
R.E.M. recorded their fifteenth studio record after getting out of a prolonged song-writing crisis. Their new effort Collapse Into Now tells of their intensions to go far ahead
Accelerate2008
R.E.M.'s new album is leading this band out from a long period of stagnation. Accelerate is both a back-to-the-roots journey and demonstration of huge artistic strength. So, if you thought that they would never be the same you were obviously mistaken
Live2007
Live presents the recording of R.E.M.'s performance in Dublin on February 27, 2005 filmed by director Blue Leach and comprises the twenty seven years of the band's career which has seen mostly ups than downs and also contains one brand new song
