I think it’s just that I trust R.E.M.
They’re allowed to mess with my feelings, to wander about my nervous system, while I, irresponsibly and defenselessly, sit and watch their resonance and suggestion sink into me.
But why? Maybe George Starostin, describing Stipe on Murmur, is right:
“The important thing is the intonation. This guy was in his early twenties or something when they did the album, I guess, yet he already sounds like that wise bearded guru that prefers putting his friendly hand on your shoulder instead of speaking to you from a distant dais. The song may be slower, it may be faster, or merrier, or sadder, it's all the same - Stipe always sounds like he's your long lost friend who's here to tell you all the bad news and all the good news in one go.” (source: Only Solitaire)
By the way, i'm especially knocked about and messed around with by their first ep and their first three full length albums: Chronic Town, Murmur, Reckoning and Fables of the Reconstruction.
But Out of Time, Automatic, Monster, New Adventures and Reveal are almost as good.
2 comments:
For me it was the mysteriousness, that sold me to R.E.M. The bleak recordsleeves. The way there albums were always hard to find, the lyrics which you could never quite follow, the marvellous songtitles, like "Gardening at night" and "World leader pretent".
I never really got into the emotions of the songs. Like something was gently pushing me of. But then I have never been one for emotional subtlity, I prefer Janis Joplin for guidence in that erea. Shout, let it out loud.
:-)
yet the way you express this all seems quite subtle to me. This coming from someone who sees subtility as god's greatest gift to mankind.
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