R.E.M. - Collapse Into Now
R.E.M.'s Mike Mills describes the band's 15th studio album Collapse Into Now (March 8) quite simply as "very personal, very human." The reinvigorated trio of Mills, Michael Stipe and Peter Buck have come out rocking in the past few years, pretty much leaving their more mellow, acoustic side in the dust while getting the adrenalin flowing, thanks in large part to noted producer Jacknife Lee (Kings of Leon) who helmed the punchy, perfectly titled 2008 album Accelerate. Their bristling 2009 Live at the Olympia album added further fuel with stark and striking versions of past hits and album tracks, Lee telling the band to "relearn" their songs to get to the essence of who they are as a band. That bold attitude is in good supply on the new Collapse, with a SPIN review heralding a band "refreshed and refueled for a new alt-rock reckoning."
"With Accelerate we were trying to make a point by making the songs as short and as fast as possible," observes Mills. "So we wanted this new one to be more expansive. We wanted to put more variety into it and not limit ourselves to any one type of song. There are some really slow, beautiful songs; there are some nice, mid-tempo ones; and then there are three or four rockers." Kicked off by the grand-scale anthem "Discoverer", Collapse Into Now practically breathes with confidence and purpose, the reflections of a band again finding their assured creative footing. Not afraid to once again explore their more sensitive side, songs like the folksy, classic-sounding "Uberlin" are given space alongside the hard charging "Mine Smell Like Honey". "It Happened Today" features Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder on guest vocals and Patti Smith appears on the album-closer "Blue."
R.E.M. - "Oh My Heart" (from the album Collapse Into Now)
R.E.M. - "It Happened Today" (from the album Collapse Into You)
Direct Current
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