Rod Stewart - Every Picture Tells A Story
Rod the Mod finds his solo footing, headed for stardom, with the Faces in his wake.
6:00 AM GMT 22/06/2011
Features Disc of the day
R.E.M.
Monster
(Warner, 1994)
Athens four-piece unleash their inner beast.
Its scuzzy, fuzzy guitars may be a world away from the AOR safe-haven most people now associate with R.E.M., but while Monster is certainly the most underrated album in the band's canon, it's also the most visceral, a deliberately conceived antidote to the sublime, subdued Automatic For The People, a slap in the face for those still mooning over Everybody Hurts. The closest Monster comes to looking back to its world-conquering predecessor is Strange Currencies, a tale of obsessive love told from a stalker's pov. The fabulous Tongue, sung by Stipe in a sad falsetto, is the album's only other soft spot, though the cheap sex of its lyrics ("Call my name / Here I come / Your last ditch lay / Will I never learn?") jars with its sweet melody, toying with its seeming innocence.
Elsewhere, the guitars and amps, delay and distortion pedals, are in full force. This is the problem for the album's detractors, at odds with its murky, sludgy, raw, creepy edge and the band's desire to "rock". But that coarseness is its very strength, propelling with fury, fervour and frustration the wistful white noise despondency of Let Me In (a haunting paean to the recently departed Kurt Cobain), the bitterness of Bang And Blame, the jagged energy of What's The Frequency, Kenneth?, the hapless, hopeless lust of Crush With Eyeliner, the snarling confusion of I Took Your Name. So crank it up, close your eyes and let the dirt soak into every pore. Then crank it up again.
Mischa Pearlman
Posted by Ross_Bennett at 6:00 AM GMT 25/05/2010
Further Listening
R.E.M. - New Adventures In Hi-Fi (Warner, 1996)
Sonic Youth - Goo (Geffen, 1990)
Iggy Pop - Lust For Life (Virgin, 1977)
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Causa Sui - Summer Sessions Vol 1-3
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6:00 AM GMT 12/05/2011
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Comments
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Fables Of The Reconstruction Of The Fables was darker and grungier, yup. I haven't heard all of Monster, but What's The Frequency, Kenneth? is REM by numbers and so forgetable as to be a calling card to muddled 'street cred' 'comeback' this album appears to be, based on Youtube-able track selection..
Posted by scorpiomoon at 11:39 AM GMT 25/05/2010 Report Abuse
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I stopped reading your ridiculous post after "I haven't heard all of Monster".
Posted by AcidCasual at 7:03 PM GMT 25/05/2010 Report Abuse
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"I haven't heard all of Monster". Really? Tell us more. Not!Monster may not be one of R.E.M.'s very best albums, but it is a good one, and it doesn't sound much at all like any of their other recordings. It's grimy, sexy, energetic, and fun. "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" is excellent (the guy calling it "forgettable" is crazy), as are several other tracks on the album, including "Crush With Eyeliner," "I Took Your Name," "Star 69," "Bang and Blame," and "Strange Currencies." It's good stuff.
Posted by whichonespink at 12:58 AM GMT 26/05/2010 Report Abuse
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"Fables of the Reconstruction" is one of my favorites by R.E.M. "Monster" was probably their last rock albums and is okay, yes I've heard it all the way through. It's the one you will see the most copies of in used record stores.
Posted by Bewlay at 6:55 PM GMT 26/05/2010 Report Abuse
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Yes, Monster is the R.E.M. disc most found in used record stores, but part of the reason is because it was bought by many of the same people who puchased R.E.M.'s two previous CDs, Out of Time and Automatic for the People. Monster was wildly different than both of those albums, so it freaked out many in the crowd who were looking for more songs along the lines of "Shiny Happy People" and "Everybody Hurts". I like Monster, though not as much as their best '80s stuff (Murmur, Pageant, Fables) or their best '90s material (Automatic, New Adventures in Hi-Fi). That said, it's still a CD I listen to more than 15 after I bought it.
Posted by Ramona at 3:33 PM GMT 28/05/2010 Report Abuse
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