Monster (CD + DVD+ A) (Dig)

R.E.M. | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 1, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Rhino
• ASIN: B0006IIPFS
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,318 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #61 in Music > Alternative Rock > Indie & Lo-Fi > Jangle Pop

Track Listings

1. What's the Frequency, Kenneth?

2. Crush with Eyeliner

3. King of Comedy

4. I Don't Sleep, I Dream

5. Star 69

6. Strange Currencies

7. Tongue

8. Bang and Blame

9. I Took Your Name

10. Let Me In

11. Circus Envy

12. You

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Containing The Monster, May 6, 2005

By 

Thomas Magnum (NJ, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Monster (CD + DVD+ A) (Dig) (Audio CD)

On R.E.M.'s previous two albums, Out Of Time & Automatic For The People, the band created quiet classics by employing a wide array of beautiful instruments including mandolins, harpsichords, strings and the like. They did a complete 180 on Monster, which is anything but quiet. The album is steeped in the glam-rock of the 70's and the grunge music of its day. Peter Buck threw away the acoustic stuff, plugged in and turned the volume up to 11. The band shows off their musical aptitude as this album sounds like nothing they've done before or since. "What's The Frequency, Kenneth?" opens the album awash in buzzing guitars and undesciprable Michael Stipe vocals. "Crush With Eyeliner" is a glam-rock classic and sounds like it could be out of the David Bowie songbook. "I Don't Sleep, I Dream" is a pulsating track while "Star 69" is straight ahead, tongue-in-cheek rocker. "Tongue" is probably the band's sexiest song done in a bump and grind style. "Let Me In" is their tribute to the late Kurt Cobain. "Bang And Blame" is the best song on the album, with its synthesized sound and popping guitars. Monster was the band's first album to debut at number one and with it, they continued to push the envelope and shake up their identity.

This album really benefits from the 5.1 audio as the original album is full of buzzing guitars & distortion and the mix makes for a richer sound.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars New Re-Release Package, November 5, 2005

By 

Thomas D. Ryan "American Hit Network" (New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Monster (CD + DVD+ A) (Dig) (Audio CD)

Following the huge success of Automatic For the People, R.E.M. stood on the threshold of being America's most popular band, while most critics continued to hail them as America's best. As usual, though, the band shuns formula, and sets off in a unique direction, providing what now stands as the hardest rocking record in their oeuvre. Effects pedals color almost every track, with unusual sonic treatments effecting not only the guitar work but also the vocals. Instead of sounding mechanical or forced, though, the result is an album that sounds almost organic in its overall style. Hits like "Crush With Eyeliner" and "Bang and Blame" prove the point, relying primarily on traditional three or four-piece instrumentation to support some of Michael Stipe's most provocative lyrics to date. The `jangly' tag that applied to much of the band's previous work (particularly on the earlier I.R.S. recordings) is completely absent here, with hard-hitting chords defining most of the arrangements. Monster might have surprised long-time fans, but it also proved that R.E.M. were not a band to paint themselves into a corner. B+ Tom Ryan