R.E.M. - Collapse IntoNow

Thu 10th Mar, 2011 in Music Reviews

A decade or so on, it’s safe to say that the departure of Bill Berry from the fold of R.E.M. left the band in a difficult position. Every record since then has had a myriad of stigmas attached to it, with the need for the band to prove something – whether that be the capability to expand their musical pallet (1998’s Up, 2001’s Reveal ) or to prove that they still have the same rock energy that brought en-mass attention to them in the 80s (2008’s Accelerate ). The truth is, none of these albums have been outstandingly poor – aside, maybe, from the mostly phoned-in Around the Sun in 2004. The only thing that have been weighing them down this entire time has been what appears to be the band’s own underlying fear.

With this in mind, it’s interesting to hear Collapse Into Now for the very first time. Their first batch of new material in three years, there’s no clear point to be made. There’s nothing to prove – either to their critics, to their fans or even to themselves. R.E.M. are back to making music for the very sake of making music. It could well be this very reason that, of the four albums the band has released this century, it’s Collapse Into Now that stands as the finest of them.

Without wishing to sound clichéd, Collapse Into Now certainly presents itself as a mixed bag. Having made a gradual return to more of the live-band sound via Accelerate, it’s only natural that a portion of Collapse follows that lead. Now with a new Bill taking care of the drums – that’s Bill Reiflin, formerly of Ministry and still an unofficial member – there’s a few certified rockers, sure to appeal to even the sternest of R.E.M. traditionalists. Mine Smell Like Honey recaptures some college-rock era glory – hell, it could have even been an IRS single – with a charging rhythm section and brisk pacing. Michael Stipe and Mike Mills’ syllabic trade-off during the song’s chorus – “huh-huh-huh-huh-huh-huh-huh-huh-honey” is certain to stick in one’s head, too.

Elsewhere, All the Best is an instant, upbeat rocker, resplendent with vintage guitar jangle from Peter Buck; while the sharp pop of That Someone is You and the head-scratching Alligator Aviator Autopilot Antimatter both reflect the band’s skill behind the craft of driving alternative rock. Hell, they put it on the map – why not add a few more locations?

Even with such strong reflections on their “rock” side, it should be made clear that this is not a rock album. That is by no means detrimental to the music itself, however – if anything, the band’s more vulnerable side makes for some of their finest works since the aforementioned Up. Take Überlin for instance; an understated ballad with steely acoustic guitar as its centrepiece. Stipe sings of escaping from the drudgery of the nine-to-five in that cryptic manner only he can fully execute: “I am flying on a star into a meteor,” he sings at one stage; “I will make it through the night,” he promises at another. Add in Mills, who blends his voice with Stipe for some of their classic harmonies, and you have a truly beautiful song; potentially their finest song for many a year.

Slow shuffles and inroads into alt-country are littered about the tracklist, such as Walk it Back and the folksy stomp of It Happened Today. Perhaps the most important aspect to fans, however, is surely to be the encyclopaedic self-references. It takes but a minute to note opener Discoverer as a homage to Green’s Turn You Inside Out, while Oh My Heart directly nods to Accelerate’s Houston – “If the storm doesn’t kill me/The government will,” Stipe sang then, pre-Obama; while now he sings “The storm didn’t kill me/The government changed.”

The most obvious sequel, however, comes in the form of closing number Blue. This track is the older, wiser cousin of E-Bow the Letter, the band’s collaboration with Patti Smith from the 1996 New Adventures in Hi-Fi record. Smith makes her return here, adding her lush vocals to counterpart Stipe’s cold, invigorated poetry. As the droning guitars swell, the intensity of the song develops to the point of it becoming overwhelming. In all of the band’s post-Berry time, experimenting with sounds and tones, Blue should be regarded as one of the most successful experiments.

R.E.M. are at the stage where they can have a full appreciation and perspective of how far they have come – last year saw the band celebrate its thirtieth anniversary, and even with no plans to tour this album, the band show no signs of slowing down. Perhaps this is why Stipe repeats the phrase “let the 20th century collapse into now” again and again during Blue – this is the sound of R.E.M.’s past, present and future.