R.E.M. - Accelerate CD/DVD
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Free Music Notes for Accelerate CD/DVD
Free Music Review: Forget the DVD - Here's a Song By Song Breakdown of ACCELLERATE
Hit: 4 Stars
"Living Well Is The Best Revenge" - A metallic jangle from Peter Buck's guitar followed quickly by a raging full-band assault announces that R.E.M. are back in full-on rock mode. Michael Stipe borderline shouts his words while Mike Mills rocks out with busy, melodic basslines and sings great counterpoint melodies in classic R.E.M. style. *****
"Man-Sized Wreath" - immediately settling into a slightly funky groove, the band swings hard on this heart-felt rejection of the "pageantry of empty gestures." *****
"Supernatural Superserious" - This driving mid-tempo rocker features a crisp power-chord guitar riff and more super-melodic progressions on bass, background vocals and additional guitar. A poignant observation about the growing pains most of us have to endure in our youth. ****
"Hollow Man" - showcases a quiet/loud/quiet dynamic and another solid melody. The title is pretty self-explanatory . . . the "Believe in me, believe in nothing" line at the chorus is unfortunately a bit cliche and less than compelling. But the picked guitar and piano parts on the softer intervals are sublime and Stipe's singing is exquisite. ***
"Houston" - is a moody yet jangling acoustic rocker with pulsing organ and what sounds like a groaning cello (probably a guitar though - ?). The song recalls some of their more brooding downtempo tracks from the 80's. Sung from the viewpoint of a Hurricane Katrina survivor (the most obvious interpretation at least) who struggles to maintain a positive outlook in the face of disaster - and succeeds. *****
"Accelerate" - the lyrics on this forceful rocker and title track are devoid of the hope proffered by the previous song despite what the title alone might suggest. The word itself in this case refers to the increase in speed experienced during a free-fall and the narrator laments that his life is spinning out of control. ****
"Until The Day Is Done" - Even the downtempo tracks like this one recall LIFES RICH PAGEANT, undoubtably one of their best albums ever. This bleak yet gorgeous tune can easily be read as a scathing indictment of the Bush administration. *****
"Mr. Richards" - resembles the sound and feel of certain MONSTER tracks (another one of their best albums, IMHO). Another thinly-veiled attack on President Bush, it's steady, confident and bold. *****
"Sing For The Submarine" - An eerie, spacy track that's also a powerful rock song. It's enigmatic, possibly about escapism or maybe about starting over in a post-apocalypic underwater fantasy. Mysterious and dreamy, I rate this as one of the best tracks on the album. *****
"Horse To Water" - Possibly the hardest rocker in the collection, this one's a quick blast of energy with Stipe singing in defiance of someone who would drag him down (if given the chance). A simple verse/chorus/verse tune, not the best but still quite effective. ***
"I'm Gonna DJ" - This "devil-may-care"-style rock jam ("Death is pretty final/ I'm collecting vinyl/ I'm gonna DJ at the end of the WORLD!!!") sounds like it wants to be the new "It's The End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" but isn't nearly as catchy. It's still fairly enjoyable even though it closes out the album in an abrupt fashion that isn't entirely satisfying. Others will find this to be a fitting finale for the rushed, immediate vibe found on ACCELERATE. ***
Free Music Review: What A Treat!
Hit: 5 Stars
I must disagree with the previous reviewers about this release. The DVD is short, but worth the exrtra few bucks. The footage from the live rehearsal is terrific and the in-studio footage is a hoot. Anyone who could be curmudgeonly over a short film that catches Mike Mills attempting (and failing) over and over to capture the word "water" on tape is just a sourpuss. It's hilarious! And, no offense to anyone who has served in the military, but for the previous reviewer to use a review of anything by REM, who have vocally opposed the Bush adsministration from the outset, to disparage the band is ridiculous. To say that you hate the DVD part of this release because you don't like REM's political views is like saying you hate Metallica's new album because you only listen to flute music from the Andes.Free Music Review: Waste of Money
Hit: 1 Stars
R.E.M. has been my favorite band for years and years, so I automatically plopped down the cash for this "deluxe" version of their newest CD. As the other reviewers have stated, that was a very dumb move! I love the the CD, but this sad excuse for a mini-movie just irks me. I agree that the director was more interested in being high concept or "artistic" than in making something even remotely watchable. It's so dark that you can barely see anything, not that there's much worthwhile on the screen anyway!
In addition, I have to say something about the political content of the film. Look, I've always known that the members of R.E.M. were far more to the left politically than I could ever be, but I was still a fan because I'm listening to their music, not their views. But to hear Peter Buck say on this DVD that he's ashamed to be an American just aggravates me. I spent 20 years serving my country so that some rich rock star can complain about the country that put money in his pocket and is one of the few places in the world where he can voice his opinion? I don't mind if he complains about things he disagrees with, but I'm so sick of people bad-mouthing this great country that we're so fortunate to live in!
Free Music Review: Ger the Extra Tracks from iTunes Instead
Hit: 1 Stars
I should have saved my cash, bought the regular CD and got the extra tracks from iTunes. Would have been cheaper.
The film is just an annoyingly impressionistic and deliberately artsy fartsy POS.
The CD is good to excellent REM, but the DVD extras are not worth the extra cash.
Free Music Review: Disappointing Limited Edition
Hit: 2 Stars
This is the first Limited Edtion that includes a DVD but does not make it the best intro. The video directed by Vincent Moon is so annoying, especially the beginning part where the camera shakes all over the place. It appears to be some sort of avant garde CRAP or some excercise in making something so different so horrible. In addition all of the video is in black and white. Why? I don't know, it does nothing to help the already bad video direction. And lastly the video is very short. REM plays only a handful of songs from the new album.
There are better REM limited edtions, look for them here at bargain basement prices. A very upsetting release for me personally.