R.E.M. Murmur (Deluxe Edition)

[djcraig]

http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/alb ... dium=email

"Twenty-five years later, the album that invented "alternative rock" still sounds great: anthemic on a bedroom scale, danceable but not robotic, experimental without being oblique. And Michael Stipe's nasal muezzin-croon pulses with brooding emotion even when the lyrics are unintelligible. The bonus disc captures a 1983 Toronto club gig that strips Murmur's sound bare. It's sloppy but thrilling, with outbursts of Stipe's unhinged vibrato and a perfect cover of "There She Goes Again," by the Velvet Underground — patron saints of a sound that R.E.M. developed into something bigger and longer-lived than anyone would've guessed."




<a href="http://www.djcraig.net/los_angeles_dj">DJ Craig</a>

[bigwavedave]

Possibly my all time favorite album. Just listened to the entire two disc reissue. The remaster sounds excellent to my ears, and the live show is a fun listen. Recommended!

[Barmy]

Is the Chronic Town E.P. on this? That was their last good record.

[Surly]

There's a hidden track on CD2, but you have to go to track 1 and then hold the rewind button. It's a radio commercial for the album.

I'm not 100% happy with the remastering (everything sounds like it's at the same level), but overall it's a nice package, and I hope they do "Reckoning" in a similar manner.

"Words like conviction can turn into a sentence"

[bigwavedave]

Napes on the Chronic Town Barmy...that was good for a chuckle BTW. It is true that if they had stopped making records after that one we could've avoided a few of the more annoying Michael Stipe moments that were to follow. However, I was an early fan, so...

Surly, I would also love to see a similar treatment for Reckoning, hopefully with the June 1984 "Source Radio Show" concert on disc two.