How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Other than Pearl Jam, who else is there?
Post Reply
User avatar
Rangi Guy
Mind Your Tanners
Posts: 9430
Joined: Fri March 22, 2013 7:20 pm
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MistorKitty
Location: 41.1716° S, 174.8248° E

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by Rangi Guy »

just came across this
"I really enjoy sandwiches but the other guys are so good at making sandwiches that I don't make them. Now I make sandwiches."
User avatar
AndySlash
Future Drummer
Posts: 2568
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 2:42 am
Location: Minneapolis

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by AndySlash »

AndySlash wrote:local record store guy told me 'automatic for the people' is getting vinyl reissue. soundstage has them available already. http://www.soundstagedirect.com/rem-aut ... l-lp.shtml

hopefully this pressing doesn't have warble on nightswimming like the late 00's one did.

ok, i picked this up at the shop last night.

NO WARBLE.

as far as i can tell, everything about this new reissue is identical to this: http://www.discogs.com/REM-Automatic-Fo ... ase/736266 the sleeve, the labels, the etchings, on basic inspection it all looks the exact same.

haven't listened to the whole thing yet, just the last half of side b, but it sounded ok, too. didn't immediately impress me like some records can, but it wasn't bad, either. at $20, i'd say if you don't have a copy, this is a reasonable purchase.
ah, copperplate, a font for the truly modern man.
User avatar
southp
AnalLog
Posts: 1454
Joined: Tue January 08, 2013 4:22 pm
Location: Montreal

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by southp »

AndySlash wrote:
AndySlash wrote:local record store guy told me 'automatic for the people' is getting vinyl reissue. soundstage has them available already. http://www.soundstagedirect.com/rem-aut ... l-lp.shtml

hopefully this pressing doesn't have warble on nightswimming like the late 00's one did.

ok, i picked this up at the shop last night.

NO WARBLE.

as far as i can tell, everything about this new reissue is identical to this: http://www.discogs.com/REM-Automatic-Fo ... ase/736266 the sleeve, the labels, the etchings, on basic inspection it all looks the exact same.

haven't listened to the whole thing yet, just the last half of side b, but it sounded ok, too. didn't immediately impress me like some records can, but it wasn't bad, either. at $20, i'd say if you don't have a copy, this is a reasonable purchase.
Are you completely sure it's a reissue? From the 2000's pressing I believe there are some with a warble and some without. Check the UPC/Barcode and that may tell you something if you cross-reference with discogs.
User avatar
AndySlash
Future Drummer
Posts: 2568
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 2:42 am
Location: Minneapolis

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by AndySlash »

southp wrote:
AndySlash wrote:
AndySlash wrote:local record store guy told me 'automatic for the people' is getting vinyl reissue. soundstage has them available already. http://www.soundstagedirect.com/rem-aut ... l-lp.shtml

hopefully this pressing doesn't have warble on nightswimming like the late 00's one did.

ok, i picked this up at the shop last night.

NO WARBLE.

as far as i can tell, everything about this new reissue is identical to this: http://www.discogs.com/REM-Automatic-Fo ... ase/736266 the sleeve, the labels, the etchings, on basic inspection it all looks the exact same.

haven't listened to the whole thing yet, just the last half of side b, but it sounded ok, too. didn't immediately impress me like some records can, but it wasn't bad, either. at $20, i'd say if you don't have a copy, this is a reasonable purchase.
Are you completely sure it's a reissue? From the 2000's pressing I believe there are some with a warble and some without. Check the UPC/Barcode and that may tell you something if you cross-reference with discogs.
should i say a new pressing instead of reissue? after looking at the sleeve and seeing the eu information (mixed with us info) and checking for the warble i had questions for the record store guy. he said it was legit, that it appeared on his warners order list a few weeks ago.

the upc/barcode and everything else i looked at is the exact same as the pressing i linked to above, which was kind of surprising, but also not as another warner reissue (or new pressing) i have from 2008 or so, tom petty's wildflowers, is indistinguishable from the earlier press(es).
ah, copperplate, a font for the truly modern man.
User avatar
southp
AnalLog
Posts: 1454
Joined: Tue January 08, 2013 4:22 pm
Location: Montreal

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by southp »

Yeah, I don't know the semantics but it sounds like there may be a new stamper of the same master or they just started pressing more of the old one (with better quality checks to avoid the Nightswimming problem). The matrix run-out would probably tell you what you need to know - just compare it with your old copy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matrix_number
User avatar
AndySlash
Future Drummer
Posts: 2568
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 2:42 am
Location: Minneapolis

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by AndySlash »

i did compare the matrixes. the new one exactly matches the early euro issue i linked to; it seems pretty clear to me this new one was pressed in europe and, like you said, was done so either with a new stamper or reusing the old one (can't imagine they would do that, though). by all evidence, the late 00s version originated and was pressed in the us.
ah, copperplate, a font for the truly modern man.
User avatar
Rangi Guy
Mind Your Tanners
Posts: 9430
Joined: Fri March 22, 2013 7:20 pm
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MistorKitty
Location: 41.1716° S, 174.8248° E

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by Rangi Guy »

Image
"I really enjoy sandwiches but the other guys are so good at making sandwiches that I don't make them. Now I make sandwiches."
User avatar
vedder316
Broken Tamborine
Posts: 423
Joined: Tue February 26, 2013 10:07 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by vedder316 »

Just spent the last 2-3 weeks with the entire catalog. These guys are so fucking great. wow
User avatar
bada
Looks Like a Cat
Posts: 12504
Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 5:53 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by bada »

I've been listening to the first five albums a lot lately.
User avatar
Norah
Poster of the Year
Posts: 37328
Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 2:04 pm
Location: September 2020 Poster of the Month

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by Norah »

Just caught the REM by MTV doc on palladia. That was pretty enjoyable. I fucking love this band.
User avatar
bada
Looks Like a Cat
Posts: 12504
Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 5:53 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by bada »

If I remember right watching that doc lead to the post above yours.
User avatar
stip
The worst
Posts: 42946
Joined: Thu December 13, 2012 6:31 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by stip »

I bought it but still haven't had the chance to watch it.
User avatar
stip
The worst
Posts: 42946
Joined: Thu December 13, 2012 6:31 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by stip »

chud, have you really started to unpack the post up albums yet?
User avatar
darth_vedder
Misplaced My Sponge
Posts: 6467
Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 9:52 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by darth_vedder »

cutuphalfdead wrote:Just caught the REM by MTV doc on palladia. That was pretty enjoyable. I fucking love this band.
It was a good doc. MTV should get back into the music docs. Did you ever see Beastieography? That was really good too.
User avatar
tragabigzanda
Production Police
Posts: 51634
Joined: Tue September 24, 2013 5:56 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by tragabigzanda »

Last edited by tragabigzanda on Tue January 13, 2026 2:02 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Kevin Davis
tl;dr
Posts: 9312
Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 6:06 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by Kevin Davis »

They're all good, in my opinion.
User avatar
PHATJ
10Club Complaint Department
Posts: 15145
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 2:02 am
Twitter: Tweet this *points to your cans*
Location: Gigatown

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by PHATJ »

The last two REM records are two of my favorites. I love them both.
chewm
Rank This Poster
Posts: 4401
Joined: Fri July 26, 2013 12:34 am
Location: chewm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by chewm »

Reveal and Accelerate are great.
I like them all a lot but Collapse and Around the Sun are my 2 least favorite REM records.
User avatar
stip
The worst
Posts: 42946
Joined: Thu December 13, 2012 6:31 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by stip »

tragabigzanda wrote:
stip wrote:chud, have you really started to unpack the post up albums yet?
I'd be interested to hear more on this, as Up is the last one I bought. I love it, but sort of lost track after that.
I'll write more later as this is a topic near and dear to my heart

Reveal: a wonderful summer sundown record. It's warm, muggy, lush. It has arguably the best first track in the catalog but it's probably the REM album that benefits the most from a start to finish listen. Not a ton of great stand alone songs but the mood elevates each song. Think Up meets Out of Time.

Highlights: the lifting, Saturn returns, imitation of Life, chorus and the ring


Around the sun: not a bad album, but undoubtedly the weakest. The song writing is a bit too on the nose, and the wordplay falls flat a bit too often. The production is sterile in an adult contemporary way and there are a few genuinely not good songs (shocking for them). This album really came alive on tour as the songs got a little dirtier and had room to breathe. A few of the mid tier songs get a lot if play from me these days as they are god car sing a longs. Politically very much an album that wears the early 2000s bush progressive malaise on its sleeve

Highlights: I wanted to be wrong, final straw, leaving New York. But none of these are true greats.


Rotten kids....back later
User avatar
Daniel Bryan
A Return To Form
Posts: 210
Joined: Wed July 09, 2014 7:55 pm

Re: How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us: An REM Thread

Post by Daniel Bryan »

^Yeah, most would probably agree that Around the Sun is the weakest album. I think the band have said as much, too.

In concert, the songs really do change and sound better. I think one of the issues is that they kept going back and messing with it in the studio to the point where they just suffocated the songs. But live, they really do sound wonderful.

Favourites from ATS for me: Electron Blue, The Outsiders, Boy In The Well, Aftermath.

And boy oh boy does Final Straw sound awesome live. That song really comes alive.

The Lifting/I've Been High might be one of my favourite 1-2 punches ever. Collapse Into Now is a fantastic album, and I think it's a perfect final record from the band. Discoverer, Oh My Heart, It Happened Today, Mine Smell Like Honey, Walk It Back, Alligator_Aviator_Autopilot_Antimatter...all absolute gems. The whole record obviously borrows little bits from their previous stuff but instead of feeling repetitive and unoriginal I think it sounds like a fitting summation of their career. A wonderful goodbye.
Post Reply