REM’s ‘UP’: Music to fall
in love both with and to

By Johnathan Borsodi
Editor, Arts & Entertainment

REM’s latest effort, “UP”, is already being hailed as their greatest album yet. While I cannot call “UP” a truly great album, I will certainly admit that it is one of the most beautiful albums that this band has ever produced. Indeed, one would have to hearken back to “Life’s Rich Pageant” to most closely capture the same sense of poetry in the lyrics. On their last tour, drummer Bill Berry suffered a brain aneurysm and shortly thereafter, decided to quit the band. This left many wondering what remaining members Peter Buck, Mike Mills, and Michael Stipe would do: the band had recently signed an $80 million, five-album contract with Warner Brothers (incidentally, the largest recording contract to date). There was talk of getting a new drummer; however, it was decided that not having a drummer would afford the band the

“UP.” The simple, yet elegant, title
of REM’s 11th full length release.

opportunity to explore new soundscapes. I think you will be most impressed with their discoveries... “UP” is REM doing what it does best: ballads. And not just any ballads, but love ballads. Before you run screaming, think back to the beauty of ‘The One I Love’ (“Document No. 5”) - and that was, at best, an anti-love song. What is striking about these love songs, though, is the tenderness with which Stipe sings them. Too much emotion is put into the words to be faked. Also striking due to its uncharacteristic nature are the general coherency of the lyrics. Stipe’s lyric writing could at best be said to be esoteric and at worst - well, I’ll quote my mother (a wonderful lady, don’t get me wrong), “This just doesn’t make sense.” This isn’t to say that all of the lyrics are not still esoteric. In ‘Falls to Climb,’ Stipe sings “I’ll be pounce pony / phoney maroney / pony before the cart.” The intriguing thing about these lyrics are what they follow: rather blatant references to sex. I’d be extremely interested in knowing exactly what a ‘pounce pony’ does...and where do I get one? In ‘At My Most Beautiful,’ Stipe relates the emotions that are elicited by the one he loves. “I’ve found a way / to make you smile / I read bad poetry / into your machine / I save your messages / just to hear your voice.” All is not well with Stipe’s love life, however. In ‘I’m Not Over You,’ he croons, “I feel great. I lied to save your feelings. Truth convened, my head smashed through the ceiling. I lost an arm, no one harmed, you diplomatically alarmed. I sulked away to lick my thin skin. I’m not over you. I’m not over you. I’m not over you.” Musically, “UP” follows more in the vein of “Adventures in Hi-Fi.” This is not to say that UP is more of the same; rather, it picks up where ‘E-bow the Letter’ and ‘Be Mine’ left off. In the absence of Berry, a drum machine was used, with ‘Hope’ being the album’s success story. Mellotron is used, along with various other keyboard instruments, such as harpsichord. Strings are used often as well. I do not understand why REM chose to release ‘Daysleeper’ as the first single when they had a song such as ‘Hope.’ This song has already become one of my favorites, with its infectious organ countermelodies and coherent (ha!) lyrics. The song is a portrait of a quest for an ever-elusive meaning, looking to religion, science, and Friday nights. This is an excellent album. For all the ‘fans’ that left after “Monster, this album should bring you back into the fold that is REM. It gets an A+.