Customer Reviews

Road Movie [VHS]

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

No where on this page is a tracklisting for the concert, so here goes:
01. intro
02. I Took Your Name
03. What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
04. Crush With Eyeliner
05. Undertow
06. The Wake-Up Bomb
07. Revolution
08. Losing My Religion
09. Binky The Doormat
10. Orange Crush
11. Strange Currencies
12. Tongue
13. Man On The Moon
14. Country Feedback
15. Find The River
16. The One I Love
17. Star 69
18. Let Me In
19. Everybody Hurts
20. It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
21. closing credits

This is taken from a 3 night stand in Atlanta at the end of the Monster tour in '95. It features a good cross section of R.E.M.s songs. The video has a 'live' feel to it. It's not an overblown production like the Rolling Stones concerts have become (and I'm a big Stones fan). The DVD features sharp images and good sound plus you can skip directly to your favorite songs without having to fast forward thru a tape.

The only faults I find with it is that it's strictly a song-by-song affair with no shots of any type of interaction with the audience (between song banter etc.) and emphasizes a few too many 'singing head' shots. The band seemed to be a little tired after a trying tour (at least on the night I saw them) and it shows at times, but overall it's a good performance.

This DVD shows concert footage from the end of REM's "Monster" tour and the performance was very high energy and up-tempo throughout. I've been following the band since their first album, but haven't caught them live since the "Green" tour. I was definitely not disappointed by this loose and raucous performance. Michael Stipe's stage presence is as strong as ever, and Mike Mills looks like he's having the time of his life throughout the performance.

After reading some other reviews of this DVD I was a little hesitant to buy this disc. However, the comments about the low production quality and terrible sound are completely unjustified. Obviously, this concert footage was shot with several different types of film and edited to look "raw". If you're expecting a crystal clear picture with "studio recorded" sound, then you shouldn't be buying this concert disc. However, if you want a great look at what it would have been like to be upfront at the end of REM's "Monster" tour, you'll be immensely satisfied. This is one of the best DVD's I own.

Sometime in 1997 most of this concert was played on Australian TV. I wasn't really an REM fan at the time but being 17 and a nascent music lover I decided to have a look. Well, it knocked me out and introduced me to what is now my favourite band in the world. I must have watched the video I taped from TV a 100 times.

A friend of mine saw them on the Monster tour and said that apart from three songs they performed they were rubbish on the night- this disc however captures them at a peak. Every performance is great, and while the video and audio aren't great- remember this was recorded in the pre-DVD darkages of 1995- just about every song leaps off the screen due to the triple threat of great songs, great musicians and fantastic stage-presence/showmanship!

Peter's solo in 'Country Feedback' is one of my favourite moments in music; other highlights on this disc being Michael during that same solo, crouching and cradling his microphone stand, Mike kicking over his stool at the organ in the 'loud bit' of Everybody Hurts while the veil falls down and Stipe's deadpan introductions to 'Man on the Moon' and 'Binky the Doormat'. Of course it's great to see Bill there up the back and even on bass for a song or two- this was the last major tour with him in the band.

There have been better recorded and better edited concert films but I've never seen one that rocked as hard where it should or made me feel so much in the more poignant bits.

I finally saw REM live two weeks ago and to have them open with the same song this film opens with ('I Took Your Name', a fairly seldom-played song these days) was nothing short of incredible- without this film I wouldn't have been there. One of the great concert films.

The "Monster" album remains controversial for many REM fans but in my book it remains my favorite album of REM. This DVD captures REM at the end of the "Monster" tour, and the band is in peak form.

The "Road Movie" DVD (94 min.) is a faithful transfer of the original VHS movie, without any extras or bonus features, but with a noticably better sound quality. The song selection features most of the "Monster" albums tracks (8 of the 20 songs), and then some additional similar-sounding songs that would eventually end up on REM's next album ("Untertow", "Binky the Doormat" and "Wake-Up Bomb"). The sound is of course electric guitar-heavy and distorted, and if that is not your favorite REM sound, this DVD is not for you, although there are several more "traditional" REM songs such as "Losing My Religion", "Everybody Hurts" and "Man on the Moon". Peter Buck, not Michael Stipe, is the star of this movie (and it's hard to outshine Stipe), just watch him for example on "Star 69" and "Let Me In", wow.

In all, a great concert movie, with outstanding audio quality, and with REM at its peak. But that's just my opinion.

I would love to give this disk zero stars, or 1/2 a star if I could. I love all of my REM CD's, so I have to warn other REM fans that this DVD is aweful. The audio is a far cry form REM CD's or great sounding DVD concerts like the Rolling Stones, Bridge to Babylon, or the Bee Gee's, One night Only. These are two awesome sounding DVD's.

The monstor tour was REM's first since the Green album tour so it was the first oppurtunity we got to see them as a big time act. Unfortanetely I was unable to see the them live on the monstor tour, but this comes as close as I will ever get. The concert footage is amazing. It gives you an up and close view of the band performing at its best. The sound and picture quality are great. It makes me wish that I had been there.

I love REM live and as for presenting that aspect of the band, it is great. It provides a real "you are there" feeling, especially on the DVD. The video quality is what should be expected from a beta sp recording and the audio quality is great.

What I would like on this DVD is special features, mostly the documentary Rough Cut. I hope REM continues to produce DVD's though. They are due next year for another video compliation from Tongue to the last from Up.

This is a great summary of the monster tour. Very nice sound and pictures. You could wish for some more interaction with the crowd by the band though. END

I have purchased both Tourfilm and Road Movie as my interest in R.E.M. has renewed since seeing them in concert in Detroit last Fall. Road Movie is definitely getting overly criticized, and I believe that this is occurring for one reason: many folks prefer the old R.E.M. and do not like the Monster album, upon which much of Road Movie is concentrated. I, myself, delayed buying Road Movie for several months because of this criticism. The sound on this DVD is NOT bad or distorted. The sound on this DVD reflects the R.E.M. sound of the Monster era. They are a great band because their sound changes with each album. I believe they are the greatest American band ever. They are not the greatest rock and roll band ever because calling them a rock and roll band is way too limiting on them. They are much more than that! I would suggest to anyone with an interest in this DVD that they play Monster ALOT before they watch it. I did not like Monster for a long time, but I finally gave it a chance by listening to it all the way through in the car several times. Eventually, I was hooked by the passion. Listen especially to the song "Let Me In" several times. The song, at first, sounds like a distorted mess, but then the intensity of the thing just blows you away. I also believe the concert footage is very well done. It gave me a sense of the concert experience much more than did Tourfilm, where the cameras seemed more distant from the stage. In summation, do not avoid this DVD. Buy Tourfilm and Road Movie. I also look forward to buying "Perfect Square" when it comes out next week. I only regret that "Driver 8" is not on ANY of their live DVD's. That is a HUGE oversight!