When it comes to choosing your favourite R.E.M. record, there are many versions of the Athens, Georgia alt-rock heroes to choose from. You could go for the jangly college-rock of their early days or the jaunty expansive anthems of the late 80s, the moody country-fied twangs of Automatic For The People or the experimental grooves of the late 90s? So many R.E.M.s to pick from. In an interview with this writer in 2021, frontman Michael Stipe said that his favourite from the group who released 17 studio albums before calling it a day in 2011 was one that marked the end of an era because it was the last to feature drummer and co-founder Bill Berry.
“I never thought of R.E.M. as a “rock band” – I’m going to put that in parentheses,” said Stipe. “I never thought of myself as a rock person. I always felt like I was a punk rocker who was immersing myself into some post-new wave something and through just presenting ourselves as who we were helping to radically spearhead and alter what pop music was going to become from where, certainly from where it was.”
