Strangely enough, after 10+ years, I haven’t yet reviewed a single R.E.M. album among the 20 or so in my collection (all of their studio LPs, plus some live albums and comps). I guess random selection can make mistakes, so it’s time to fix one of those. For that reason, I chose 1998’s Up. It may not be one of my favorites, but it reminds me of the first time I saw the band live in Athens—not their hometown of Athens, GA, but mine: Athens, Greece. The date was July 23, 1999. The support act, chosen by Stipe and co. themselves, was a Greek folk-rock band called Pyx Lax—hugely popular at the time, although I hadn’t seen them before either. I had my doubts about that choice, but they proved to be a good fit. Could R.E.M. outshine the local heroes? Everyone loved “Losing My Religion,” but their recent albums weren’t all that popular - in particular Up, with its more experimental sound. In the end, there was no contest; the opening trio (“Lotus,” “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?” and “The Wake-Up Bomb”) may not have been anyone's favorite songs, but they were played with such energy that the crowd got carried away. Here’s a description from remtimeline.com: “At the front it was bedlam and although it never got dangerous, a couple of people made their way out of the mosh pit even before R.E.M. had begun the second verse... the crowd continued to replicate the energy displayed by the band... they continue to rock with all the vigour of the so-called ‘youthful’ bands emerging today and then some. Forty thousand Greek fans singing along word for word can’t be far wrong.”
As I said before, Up was never among R.E.M.’s most popular albums. It sold well enough, but that was mostly on the strength of the albums that preceded it. It was a strange time for the band; drummer Bill Berry had just quit, and they chose not to replace him, opting instead to experiment with various analogue synths and drum machines. The end result sounded very contemporary given the popularity of trip hop at the time, but not very R.E.M.—at least until the vocals were added at the very end of the creative process. Peter Buck's guitar, especially, is conspicuous by its (near) absence. “Airportman” is certainly an alienating opener for fans of the band, an understated ambient piece (is the title a nod to Eno’s Music for Airports?). Then “Lotus” comes in to hook listeners back; there may be no guitars, but it’s still an upbeat tune with a strong melody and a hooky chorus. “Suspicion” is a slow elegant piece, while “Hope” picks up the pace again, featuring electronic percussion and new-wavey synth lines, culminating in a noisy outro. “At My Most Beautiful” is an exquisite piano ballad, followed by “The Apologist,” which builds on a hypnotic, quasi-threatening rhythm and endless repetitions of “I’m sorry” that somehow sound less than sincere. “Walk Unafraid” is another relatively upbeat piece with ’80s-style electronic effects and melodic synth lines. “You’re in the Air” is atmospheric and string-laden, while “Why Not Smile” reminds me of their cover of the Velvet Underground’s “Pale Blue Eyes” years earlier. Together with “Suspicion,” “Daysleeper,” and the closing trio (“Diminished,” “Parakeet,” “Falls to Climb”), they could almost make for a trip-hop Automatic for the People. Tempo-wise, at least—only the lyrical “Daysleeper” could effortlessly fit into their 1991 masterpiece. Maybe they could have pushed further in that direction and released a whole album of slow ambient electronica. Or, alternatively, trimmed some of the moodier pieces to create a more sonically balanced record with poppy highs and atmospheric lows. But this was the late ’90s: with CD capacity nearing 80 minutes, anything shorter than an hour would feel like cheating the buying public. In any case, Up didn’t really signal a new direction for the band; if anything, they would rein in their experimental tendencies, releasing poppier, sunnier albums (Reveal, 2001) as well as angrier, punkier ones (Accelerate, 2008). Up remains an outlier in their discography—it almost sounds like a different band with Michael Stipe on guest vocals. Still, it makes for great listening: a few outstanding songs, and no real missteps.
**** for Lotus, Hope, At My Most Beautiful. The Apologist, Walk Unafraid, Why Not Smile, Daysleeper
*** for Airportman, Suspicion, Sad Professor, You're in the Air, Diminished, Parakeet, Falls to Climb
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