R.E.M.’s Monster at 25

After conquering college radio and signing with a major label in the ‘80s, and asserting their dominance, both artistically and as songwriters in the early ‘90s, Athens, Georgia’s, R.E.M., returned with their loudest, hardest, and most-rocking album, Monster, in late 1994. Both unexpected yet perfectly fitting the time in which it was written and released, this was R.E.M.’s take on, and reflection of, the rise of grunge and alternative rock culture (something they arguably helped create) which celebrated its peak right around the same time. In addition to being the band’s most rock-based album, it is also one of its most experimental, combining elements from various genres, often running them through an early ‘90s rock-production filter, and in some cases, sounding like a different band from one song to the next (not to mention sounding anything but like themselves, compared to previous releases). Grunge and garage rock elements combined with occasional post-punk, early-electronic, and various ‘70s references throughout resulted in a sound the band really only ever captured (or pursued) on this album. Monster was R.E.M’s harder, dirtier compliment to the quieter, more introspective, and often sadder Automatic for the People and Out of Time, much in the same way that U2’s early ‘90s era (including Achtung Baby and Zooropa) was a complete reinvention following the pastoral tones of The Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum in the late ‘80s. In many ways, R.E.M. is one of the closest equivalents to being an American U2 (or maybe U2 are more like an Irish R.E.M.).

The band’s 9^th LP is best-known for the guitar-driven singles, “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?”, “Bang and Blame”, and “Crush With Eyeliner”, but it also features memorable ballads such as “StrangeCurrencies”, the awkwardly comical, “Tongue”, and the haunting elegy, “Let Me In”, written for the late Kurt Cobain on one of his guitars that had been given to R.E.M. by Courtney Love, friend of the band and Cobain’s widow. The music videos created to promote these singles visually matched the songs and the sound of Monster quite well, from the color-drenched strobe nightmare of “Kenneth” to the Spike Jonze-directed video for “Eyeliner” which saw a Japanese rock band standing in for R.E.M. as they ran around the streets of Tokyo. The rarely-seen video for the promo single, “Star 69”, filmed on the same tour stop in Japan, captured a few moments of R.E.M.’s actual concert there. Television appearances on SNL, David Letterman, and the MTV VMAs also helped to promote the album and a large U.S. tour, the band’s first since 1989, delivered the accumulated early ‘90s songs live for the first time while also exposing their audience to opening act, Radiohead, still performing in support of their debut LP, Pablo Honey. Highlights from the tour were captured on the home video, Road Movie, recently remastered and included in a new 25^th anniversary super-deluxe Monster box, available in just a few weeks.

Aside from being the second to last R.E.M. album to feature founding member and drummer, Bill Berry, the band would never again be this guitar-driven, for better or worse, and in 1994, their decision to go this particular direction allowed their music to be featured right next to the grunge and post-grunge greats that were dominating rock and alternative radio simultaneously, even though some of those bands, and some of their fans, might not have even realized how big a role R.E.M. played in building the scene in which they were reveling. Even pop radio featured bits of Monster in the autumn of ’94 and spring of ’95, the last time the band would see widespread mainstream support. While they would continue to release new music for nearly 15 years after this album, much of it also interesting and experimental, the Monster era was the last to connect with listeners and longtime fans on the grander level in which it did. Michael Stipe’s unique and often poetic lyrics seem to stand out even more in retrospect, compared to both his peers and next-gen successors. Bassist, Mike Mills, and guitarist, Peter Buck, continue to contribute their talents to small side projects, but their legacy will always  be rooted to their work with R.E.M., owed in large part to the band’s peak, early ‘90s output, including Monster. While they developed the tone and approach of these songs into 1996’s less-accessible follow up, New Adventures in Hi-Fi, Monster was certainly the beginning of the end of R.E.M.’s classic line-up and original partnership, and today it stands out as one of their very best releases and one of the best, overall, of 1994.

Also celebrating 25 years:
Live-Throwing Copper
Freedy Johnston-This Perfect World
Hootie and The Blowfish-Cracked Rear View
Sponge-Rotting Pinata