Category Archives: R.E.M.

More Album Cover Outtakes

Posted on May 14, 2024 by the press music reviews

In the mid-80s, both R.E.M. and Talking Heads had album covers adorned with the singular work of Georgian folk/outsider artist and Baptist preacher, Howard Finster. Howard Finster’s (1916 – 2001) unique paintings depicted inspirational images from his own interpretations of … Continue reading →

Posted in Album Covers, Images, Pavement, R.E.M., Talking Heads | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Didn’t Know It Was A Cover | R.E.M.’s Strange

Posted on September 4, 2023 by the press music reviews

British punk band Wire were at their most direct and economic on their unadulterated masterpiece Pink Flag. The album was one in a holy trinity of inspirations for a then-teenage Michael Stipe, who purchased Horses by Patti Smith, Marquee Moon by Television and Pink Flag by Wire in rapid succession. … Continue reading →

Posted in Didn't Know It Was a Cover, R.E.M., Wire | 6 Comments

Shaking Through | R.E.M. in the 80s

Posted on August 30, 2023 by the press music reviews

This 20-track collection covers the best of the Georgian college rock trailblazers’ slow, shapeshifting ascent toward mainstream success. In the early 1980’s, some bands aimed for chart-topping glamour, trying to take over the music industry with slick hair, flashy makeup, … Continue reading →

Posted in Mixtapes, R.E.M., Wire | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

More Album Cover Outtakes

Posted on August 7, 2023 by the press music reviews

R.E.M. pointedly did not appear on its debut album cover; instead, the enigmatic image gracing Murmur (1983), of a kudzu-covered ravine that has engulfed an abandoned structure beside a train line, speaks more strongly to the music than their own … Continue reading →

Posted in Album Covers, Images, R.E.M. | 10 Comments