R.E.M

New Adventures In Hi-Fi

My New Favorite R.E.M. Album

Review Score:

(10/10)
I'm a relatively new REM fan compared to most people. I bought the In Time Compilation of their hits (the 2 disc one), and realized that I really liked pretty much everything I was hearing. So, I went out and bought Document (still up there on my favorites list) and Automatic for the People (not bad in my opinion). In another spurt of purchases, I bought Monster, Eponymous (to get a hold of their early hits) and NAIHF. This album totally blows me away. Most of the songs are moody in a way, but it's a very good kind of moody. I can listen to it no matter how I feel.

The album's opening track took me awhile to get into, with sparse instrumentation consisting mostly of drums, bass, assorted noises and occasionally atonal piano. But let it get to the chorus, it's absolutely beautiful. Wake-Up Bomb is one of my favorite tracks, a classic distorted guitar / organ rocker. New Test Leper's verses sound like a modern-day emo tune, but the lyrics are very insightful (moreso than emo). EBow The Letter is, in one word, stunning. Leave is one of my favorite REM songs, with a heavy beat and this awesome siren effect throughout. Bittersweet Me is a good rocker as well, and Be Mine is nice pop especially if you know who you want to spend the rest of your life with (then the lyrics will mean something to you). Of the last 5 tracks, Zither (a nice quiet instrumental) and Electrolite (a really interesting, piano and banjo driven tune) are my favorites.

I feel like this album is often overlooked in REM's catalog for Automatic and the earlier hits. Sad to consider that this was their last album with Bill Berry on drums. I still think this record is their best in terms of variety and strength in lyrical and musical writing. Way to go, guys.

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