Customer Reviews

Up

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When REM signed it's monumental $80 million contract, executives at Warner Brothers were probably hoping for more Losing My Religions and Man on the Moons for years to come. These songs were huge singles for the band but don't expect any hits off Up!

The first post Bill Berry album finds the (now) trio in an experimental mood. From the first hypnotic synthesizer tones of Airportman to the subdued ballad closer Falls to Climb, Up is a maudlin, slow paced effort. It also contains some of the most ambitious music this amazing band has made to date.

Only Daysleeper (the already failed single) and Lotus recall earlier work by the band. The driving Bill Berry beat has been replaced by drum machines and occasional real drums. Outstanding tracks include the Beach Boys tribute "At my most beautiful", the driving Hope (to the tune of Leonard Cohen's Susanne) and the almost positive "Walk Unafraid".

One final warning. Unless you are prepared to sit down and spend some time absorbing this album, don't expect it to grab you by the neck like Out of Time. However if you do love this band and appreciate their past uncommercial efforts, you will find a cornocopia of amazing music on Up.

Difficult for casual fans to get their heads around, UP is a very rewarding listening experience for those willing to forget about the "old REM" and open themselves up to something new. The departure of Bill Berry seems to have thrown the band into a bit of a tail-spin , but this collection of songs are some of the best REM have ever recorded. There are only two songs on this cd I don't like ( I don't even know what they are called, I always skip them ) but 12 out of 14 songs is a pretty good average in my opinion. The first 5 or 6 songs are simply brilliant. And Sad Professor is THE SADDEST SONG ever written. Period. A radical departure for REM, "UP" barely went gold in the US, if I'm not mistaken, where their commercial clout has been decreasing for about a decade. They continue to be critics' darlings, however, like they always have been. And I suppose that's enough for them. They will probably never make another album as straightforwardly "pop" and as commercially succesful as Out of Time , but I'm not sure I'd want them to.

Reviewers are all over the map here. And I think I know why: This disc is hard to peg, doesn't necessarily grab you on the first listen, and is such a radical change of pace for REM.

But if you really LISTEN to this all the way thru and pay attention to the lyrics, backbeat, and subtle genius of the musicianship, you will learn what many already know: It is another REM masterpiece.

Most bands don't take the chances that REM does. It would be so easy for them to crank out radio-friendly jangle pop that they essentially wrote the book on. But this a band that believes you have to take risks to grow artistically. We should all be grateful they have this integrity.

So take 55 minutes out of your busy day, turn off the idiot box, stop multitasking, grab something cool to drink, and do something seriously lacking in our current culture: Listen.

Well, I'll actually try and write a review for someone trying to decide whether to purchase R.E.M.'s latest record. I figure you fall into 1 of 2 categories: 1)You're not a big R.E.M. fan and want to see what the band's like or 2)You've liked several R.E.M. albums and are thinking about getting this one, too. If you're not an R.E.M. fan and want to get a taste of the band, this probably isn't the album to get--you'd probably get a better feel for them on Document or Automatic For the People or New Adventures in Hi-Fi. If you are a R.E.M. fan, realize that Up is another deviation from R.E.M.--just because you liked Out of Time certainly doesn't guarentee that you'll like Up. Yet I still recommend this album as one of their most rewarding. The mood is similar to that of "Country Feedback", "E-Bow the Letter", and "Sweetness Follows" (some of their best songs). If you truly like this album the first time you listen to it, you are strange indeed. But it gets better and better with each listening, and "Airpotman", "Suspicion", "Hope", "Diminished", "Parakeet", and "Falls to Climb" flow into, out of, and of each other. The best word for this album: rewarding.

This album, at least among my circle of acquaintances, was loudly denounced as R.E.M.'s worst work ever. Some lamented the bygone days of "Murmur" or even "Out of Time". Some said that they gave R.E.M. a second chance after the muddled "Monster" but that now they had given up. I alone held forth on the greatness of this album and was summarily ignored, so I bring my opinons to Amazon instead.

No, this isn't your older brother's R.E.M.; nor is it even your R.E.M. of a few years ago. They seem to have followed a musical evolution that seems quite logical from a distance: they began as cult college-radio favorites, then emerged into the mainstream and swam there for a while. But that grew old, and to completely befuddle their top-40 audience and test which fans were loyal they created a "Monster". Anyone who was left hanging on after such a radical departure from their typical sound was treated to an awkward, adolescent-souding transition album, the "mid-life crisis" in R.E.M.'s career. Now they have emerged quieter, older, wiser--and undeniably, hauntingly GOOD. Each of these songs is as unassuming yet unique as a paper snowflake, and they have the same fragile beauty. "Hope" borrows the tune of Leonard Cohen's "Suzanne", a masterpiece in itself, and reinvents it as an allegory-filled, bouncing piece of prophecy as simultaneously serious and lighthearted as "It's the End of the World As We Know It." "The Sad Professor" draws a character sketch almost cinematic in its precision. The lone single "Daysleeper" is deceptively poppy and catchy, but the lyrics' message of blue-collar sympathy for those on the night shift is meant for an entirely different audience. And who doesn't sympathize with the eyelash-counting moment described in "At My Most Beautiful"?

R.E.M. has entered the wise golden years of their career, and the proof is in this underrated album. Buy it, and play it as you're falling asleep next to someone you love. This album understands moments like that, and is devoted almost entirely to praising them.

I guess Radiohead had a better PR guy. For all the stir they caused with Kid A, mainly dropping the usual rock setup for the possibilities of textured synths and layered effects, you'd almost never know that REM had done the same thing just as well the previous year. After losing drummer Bill Berry the others were left with some space to fill, and they took the opportunity to try all kinds of things they probably wouldn't have thought of before.

There are some touches of vintage REM, but the main direction they're looking here is forward. "At My Most Beautiful" is another sweet piano ballad in the tradition of "Nightswimming" or "Electrolite." "Sad Professor" and "Falls to Climb" hearken back to the shimmering pop of Automatic For The People; "Daysleeper" is the kind of classic acoustic hook that they've done so well through their whole career. But that's where the resemblance to any of their back catalogue ends. The rest of the disc steps into more unexpected territory, from tasty electronic effects to dark fierce grooves in a veritable world of subtle sonics.

Texture plays a bigger role than ever. A couple offerings ("Airportman," "Parakeet") aren't songs quite so much as abstract tone poems, and even the straightforward tracks are spiced up with all kinds of little touches (headphones help a lot). "Hope" seems like just a simple repetitive melody with a rambling Stipe lyric, but there are so many sounds, effects and intrumental interjections coming and going on the fringes that there's literally never the same thing going on from one ten-second stretch to the next. "The Apologist" is hypnotic with a haze of filtered vocals and fuzzy guitars backing things up.. topped off with something sounding almost like a sitar. "Walk Unafraid" even rocks out a little, although in a pretty dark and almost menacing manner.

Not quite everything succeeds. The slow-paced "Suspicion" and "Parakeet" are dragged down by too much monotony, and even "Airportman" for all its subtle tricks can still end up as a right-mood-only song. (The fact that it's the first thing the unsuspecting listener hears probably doesn't help much either.) Maybe Up isn't as accomplished as its gorgeous successor Reveal or as strong & polished as Automatic, which is still the best starting point for the two dozen people on the planet who don't know the band yet. But it still gets played regularly at my desk five years onward, and giving it at least four stars seems more than fair. Give it more attention than your average alt-rock disc and you'll find a whole lot to listen to. Then go back to Kid A and you've got yourself a good pair of bookends.

The best material from Up is truly a departure from REM's previous work. 'Suspicion' and 'Diminished', spare vibe-laden ballads, are delicate and subtle without being dull. Some songs ('The Apologist', 'Walk Unafraid') are effectively propelled by throbbing, intermittent instrumentation (guitars I think).

Up does suffer from a common malady of the CD age: lack of brevity. Only about 35-40 of the 65 minutes of Up is compelling. Some of the ambient songs are fragile and understated to the point of blandness ('You're in the Air'). REM resorts to formulaic songs too often: 'Daysleeper' is a generic orchestral ballad that seems to have been added to bolster commerical appeal. 'Lotus' is a rocker that falls flat (though it's excellent live). Other material is slight, serving only to add space ('I'm not over you'). Stipe's lyrics are generally interesting and often more directly personal than ever before ('At My Most Beautiful'). Some lines seem annoyingly idiosyncratic. 'The tectonic dispatcher shifts to smooth the ocean floor' from 'Parakeet' seems unrelated to the rest of the song. Though generally an interesting songwriter, Stipe occasionally succumbs to such indulgences.

Up seems to represent a crossroads for REM. Though they try a few new things, much of the dabblings seem tentative and uncertain. Up indicates that REM is still capable of making compelling, inventive music if they are willing to make a more complete departure from the past. Still, REM deserve accolades as one of the few remaining popular artists who seem willing to take chances.

As much as i love this album, i'm not that surprised by some of the negative reviews i've read here. This album is so sublime, it will be a few more years until people realize that this is one of REM's best albums, and one of the most original albums of the 90's. I cant help but connect this album to Radiohead's OK Computer for some reason, i keep them next to each other on my shelf, just because they seem like siblings, bound together by their mood and overall depth. In comparison to REM's past albums, the music here is certainly different as far as the instruments used in composing the songs, but any true fan of the band knows that the real measure of an REM song lies in the empassioned lyrics, and the quality of their soul stirring compositions. In my opinion, UP excells in all ways possible. This album proves without a doubt that REM are still one of the best bands around. This is the album U2 wish they could have made when they hopped on the trendy electronica bandwagon. Instead of trying to adopt a sound that didnt come to them naturally, they chose to employ certain aspects of the electronic revolution that embellish the songs with just the right touch, instead of sticking things in just for the sake of keeping up with todays sound. The song "Hope" is a perect example of how they used this method to create a beatiful layering of sounds, as the song begins rather simply, then eventually builds into a lush swarm of interlocking keyboard melodies and samples. The fact that REM can use these tools so proficiently, even though they are still relatively new to the medium is a testament to their genuine ability as song writers.They could have been using garbage cans and beer bottles and still have created something worthwhile. There are many standouts on this album including "Sad Professor", "At My Most Beatiful", "The Apoligist"...etc. but the last song,"Falls to Climb", is probably one of the most heartfelt, harrowing songs i've everheard. When i first heard it, it seemed kind of tacked on to the end, but upon really listening to it( a definite headphones required album if there ever was one) it totally blew me away. The lyrics show Stipe at his absolute best, and the music has an ethereal quality that washes over me, and lastly, the snare drum that comes in at the end....i don't know how to explain it,but it gives the song and the album a kind of perfect sendoff ,the subtlety of it's effect on the song can be easily overlooked. Think of "Sweetness Follows" and triple the emotion, awesome. The fact that this album did not do too well makes me sad, because albums like this deserve recognition, and the less recognition they get, the less likely we are to hear music with as much depth and emotion as UP. Hopefully , R.E.M. will ignore this and continue on being the best band in the world.

R.E.M. are a band that, to me, do two things: they're are never afraid to take a step out of the ordinary (walking unafraid!), and are releasing albums that promise to be something different to the others. In every one of their albums they shock me with their creativity, and on Up, they may be at their peak!

As soon as the humming and chimes of Airportman soothe your ears, you know this is going to be something different. It is a shame that Bill Berry, the bands drummer, left the band. But this cd is evidence that R.E.M. will never lose their way.

After the interesting introduction comes Lotus, which blew me out of the water the first time I heard it. It is just... bizarre. But the good sort :) This hissing, heavy track is one of the best on the cd. The Apologist, Hope and Parakeet are also quirky little numbers that are like nothing R.E.M. have ever attempted before, but still are pleasing to the ears! Walk Unafraid is a creepy little classic!

This cd does have it's weaker moments. Falls To Climb is a disappointing closer to the cd, and tracks like You're In The Air and Suspicion are a little too weak to grab me. At My Most Beautiful also fails to lasso me, despite the touching lyrics.

One of the best tracks on the cd is the popular Daysleeper, a dreamy little song that makes you feel in another state of mind. Just don't listen to it too early in the morning :) And the best track, Why Not Smile...

Wow.

This song is just... incredible. I mean, INCREDIBLE. Such a sweet, touching song, starting off quiet, and ending in heavy guitar. It's just... amazing. That one song is more than enough reason to buy this cd.

In summation... Up is one of their weaker cds, due to a few misses. But it's quirkyness and beauty makes it a keeper. It may not be R.E.M. of the 80's, but we all gotta grow up sometime, and try something new :)

This album has been unfairly maligned. Up is possibly my favorite REM album. You simply cannot expect a band that has endured for so many years to keep making the same kind of music. And so REM has done an orchestrated album, but a thoroughly modern one-- mixing electronica with classical instruments. The sonic craftsmanship here is sublime, almost like an electronic Pet Sounds. (In fact, "At My Most Beautiful" is the band's tribute to Brian Wilson.) Listen with headphones for sounds you didn't hear on your stereo. Guitars, keyboards, and strings come in and out, and drums come and go. On top of that, the melodies float along, and Stipe's lyrics can be intriguing. Nothing is expected. REM is still putting its heart and soul into creating albums, and they're not afraid to move into new territory.