tisdag 18 Mar 2008, 20:21
Let's see if I can write a decent review…
As you will probably have noticed: the album has leaked onto the internet in it's tolality. The album I'm talking about is the eagerly anticipated 14th R.E.M. studio album Accelerate. It clocks in at just under 35 minutes, which makes it their shortest album in their career. A lot of the songs on the album don't reach the 3-minute-mark.
After what most of their fans (excluding me, but including the band) think is a tragedy, R.E.M. found it appropriate to move in another direction. The premise must have been something like "Let's cut our last album in half and make it twice as fast". A song like Final Straw now comes out as the album opener Living Well Is The Best Revenge. The entire album is very much politically engaged. I personally don't have any problems with that, but maybe you do.
Living Well appears to be the set opener for this tour (two out of two so far) and I can see why. It's loud, and a great opener to the album. It kicks out the "old R.E.M." and makes clear that the 25-year-old rockers from yesteryear are back. This first track also makes very clear that Mike Mills is back on backing vocals this album (BONES) and that Peter has blown the dust of his guitars and is going at it with his "partner in chime" Scott McCaughey. The dropping of Ken Stringfellow is also present: I can't hear any keyboards. Bonus point for working the word nostrils into the chorus.
Man-Sized Wreath continues the guitar-driven sound. "Everybody looking like they just don't care". Not caring seems to be one of the themes of this record.
Supernatural Superserious is the first single, and is rapidly becoming my least favourite track on the record. That may be because I've listened to it a lot more than the other songs, or because the rest is just better. Perfect fit for the first single though. Catchy and I think radio-friendly. I don't listen to the radio, so I have no idea if it's being played. Very recognisable R.E.M..
Hollow Man begins with a sweet piano line, but then becomes much more than the ballad the piano had layed out for it to be. It explored the human mind and how one can deceive himself and become something he wants not to be. Could be a single.
Houston is apparently about something George Bush's mother said after hurricane Katrina. I don't know what she said, so I can't comment on that. I love how this song ends. I heard a lot of people say that they would rather have wanted a 5-minute version of this, but I can live with this. They have chosen not to drag songs out too long, and I think it works well.
Accelerate is, for me, on of the highlights of the album. I think it's very much about the band R.E.M.. "I've got to follow another direction, accelerate". I can see hwy this is the titlesong.
Until The Day Is Done is the one acoustic song on the album, and it adds some sophistication. Seems to be something off Automatic For The People, musically. Stipe voices his concern about modern America, as a lot of the songs do. Never quite as explicit as "Where are we left to carry on?" though. Lovely song.
Mr. Richards, I think, will probably end up being a single. Nice pop song with a guitar driving it forward to give it some drive. Had it been on Around the Sun it would probably have been two minutes longer and acoustic. Is it about Kramer or Dick Cheney? Or about the "Messenger pigeons" out there? "Yes, we know what's going on".
Sing for the Submarine is the longest song on the album with almost 5 minutes. I have been told it's about an actual submarine at the end of the world, but that doesn't matter. What matters is that it's a very weird song, and feel very much like R.E.M.. It references to old songs (most notably Electron Blue, Feeling Gravitys Pull, ITEOTWAWKI(AIFF) and High Speed Train). I think it's one of the best tracks on the album. Maybe it's about some dream.
Horse To Water threatens to "pound the daylight out of you". How cool is that? This has "live", "loud", "fast" and "angry" written all over it.
I'm Gonna DJ works well as an album closer. "Music will provide the light you cannot resist. The woo-hoo-hoo parts in the background are immensly cool. Great singalong and I can't wait to hear this one live.
That last statement goes for the entire album to be honest. Since it's only 35 minutes long there's a big chance that about 9 of the 11 songs will be played live every concert, which still leaves a lot for the oldies. I personally think Ignoreland would work very well in the context of this album.
Already looking forward to the next album.