Automatic For The People

I would say I like REM but struggle to listen to a full album of theirs. This has a strong start and finish but a lot of shit in the middle. A good 3 I would say

A wholly decent album and I value REM's contribution to rock. So no arguments from me about why it's here. I like the blend of instruments; the propensity for a minor key. But I did find that it dragged a bit more than I remembered. The songs can be a bit one-level in terms of energy, and I think Out of Time is a better album. Favourite song is Man On The Moon.

Found this quite bland and a few songs did the musical heavy lifting. None of it was unpleasant and perfectly reasonable background music for the most part. But I do like the general “sound” and it has a clear style. So a bit of a mixed review, could have been more compelling but enough in there to have not found it a bad way to spend 48 minutes.

There are some big tunes here and there is no denying that this is an influential album. It's just a bit dull. It's middle of the road music that my dad would listen to in the car on his way to a holiday cottage in Devon.

1. Genialny bas, fajny break z wejściem gitary, współgra dobrze z echami w tle 2. Zalatuje szantami ale w przyjemny sposób, można zaśpiewać przy ognisku, bardzo dobry Ignoreland zalatuje aerosmithem Reszta bardzo REMowa.

I respect REM way more than I like their music. The hits are fine, and this album has some solid material to offer, but it's never resonated with me the way it did with a lot of Gen Xers in the era before the indie boom.

Remarkably Enduring Meanderment.

Ok. Not my favorite REM but some decent stuff on there.

Full of absolute corkers, album prodded along fine otherwise.

Helt ok

Not bad but I can't get used to the lead singers voice Fav songs Drive, the sidewinder sleeps tonight, ignoreland and man on the moon

the majority of songs doesn’t progress or evolve throughout their duration whatsoever. only the last quarter of the album have some diversity inside the songs

I like R.E.M., but this is not one of my favorites. Don't like the opening track or Everybody Hurts. Man on the Moon is the best.

Another in the long line of albums that are fine, but somewhat boring outside the singles.

Wow, a two day streak I'm not giving an album a 1 or 2. It's a miracle!! I like REM, I really like some of their stuff. And some is meh. This album has a balance of that, I'd say 3.33, so it gets rounded down to a 3. The good, I wasn't real familiar with Drive, and I liked it.

Ill try to make more of an effort this time. For someone who hasn't listened to every R.E.M album before this or was a die hard fan during their prime, I'm probably not going to truly grasp how influential this album was. It was 1992, I was six years old, after all, busy rocking out to the Chipmunks' version of "Ice Ice Baby." Yet, even without that nostalgia, there's a lot to appreciate about this album. For a record that's melancholic almost all the way through, it's doesn't pull you down. It's musically layered and introspctive. It also happens to be packed with hit singles. Songs I eventually grew to know and love. So yah, I guess it's an alright album.

Revolutionary! Who'd a thought to sing about pop culture? Man on the moon lyrics are so unique. Everybody hurts is sad and comforting at the same time. There's definite juicy layers to this pop music.

It sounded kind of exactly like I expected. Some standout songs I hadn't heard before.

Enjoyable but I only really liked the few songs I already knew.

spoko tej

Songs are fine, but I'm not a fan of Stipe's voice.

There's a few catchy moments. I can appreciate its historic value, but I'm not looking to replay it. Maybe that's what I need for it to grow on me better. Time will tell. 2.7/5

Not bad. But a bit boring closer to the end.

Some big hits on there. Cant imagine listening to this as a teenager like Dave Rymer from the Library

good

Very 90s. Like the sidewinder song the best

Solid pop/rock album that is easy to listen to. Interesting arrangements and production details. Drive, man on the moon, everybody hurts and nightswimming are sweet memorable songs. And yet, this music still seems to lack some spice that gives it another layer for my taste.

Eh. Good songwriting, instrumentation, and arrangements. I found it kinda boring but I can't say that its a bad album. Also something about Michael Stipes voice rubs me the wrong way. I can see why people love it, but it didn't make me a fan

undeniably lovely and masterful music making, but not my jam

-I have heard some REM before, first song on album (drive) is slow but a good intro song. A little repetitive for my taste but not too shabby. -Pretty repetitive for a whole album, the hits off of it (man on the moon, everybody hurts) I’ve heard before and have liked. -Fine album musically I appreciate the different instruments and routes taken for each song, but overall for me, a meh listening experience outside of a few gems. Strong finish. I probably won’t listen to front to back again anytime soon, but I still appreciate it.

Roadtrip music by a band that thinks it's too cool to make roadtrip music.

REM and I have never really “clicked”. I’ve listened to nearly their full catalogue and I would put this one mid-way through with the earlier releases ranking higher.

Nightswimming ++

It was an album that felt like a folktale, telling a story however to me most of tge songs weren’t something I would listen to again, a lil slow however the beats and vocals were nice espcially on everybody hurts

Fairly boring until the last 3 songs which are really good. A bit samey and uninspiring on the whole.

While Automatic for the People was major in its reach and hugely influential during the genre’s heyday - especially in my own mid-90s “alt phase” - R.E.M. always felt like the adult in the room. There was this one older guy in high school who wore more billowing garments - often leaving his button up unbuttoned - and always danced in the in the rain without wearing shoes. He loved R.E.M. I, however, connected more with the energy of grunge / angst / punk acts at the time. Not that I dismissed it, but rather I’d never really ‘listened’ from start to finish, and after doing so, I did catch a few melodies looping in my head days later - a sign of its staying power. At times, the monotone melodic lean made me drift, but tracks like Sweetness Follows and the sly vocal delivery of Star Me Kitten are really beautiful. Everybody Hurts … who doesn’t get moved by that? And Man on the Moon may have been overplayed, but it’s still a classic.

R.E.M has kinda always been there, occupying the margins of my awareness by virtue of some hit alternative radio singles or iconic music videos in the late 80s and most of the 90s. Although they had origins in popular 80s college rock, by the 90s they began to sound like a distinctly American band; an Americana band even. There's a rootsy folkiness to their arrangements, themes, and instrumentation that somehow had them occupying a more alternative category despite the constant gold certifications. They have always been a little too dark and artful for straight pop music charting, although their alt-pop crossover appeal was clear based on their broader commercial success and accolades. I think I owned Out of Time on CD at one point a few years prior to this release, (because of a girl, without a doubt), but by the time this album came out I had moved on. This record seems to represent a maturation of their sound they began with Out Of Time. (I always think any time a rock band brings in orchestral strings to an arrangement, this is the point when they are getting way more serious about shit). Michael Stipe's vocals have often felt just a little too nasally falsetto—and Mike Mills' backups a little too wholesomely Beach Boys sweet—for my taste. But when R.E.M. does it right they really tap into something. I tend to connect more with their songs that are shot through with a measure of angst or melancholy. "Sweetness Follows," in all its cinematic wideness is a perfect example of this. "Drive" as well, invites us into an experience that is gonna probably be a little fraught. As sincere and sweet as "Everybody Hurts" may have come across at the time, the years have not been kind. It sounds treacly now; almost parodistically so. Right up there with Wilson-Phillips' "Hold On." What desperate shit was going on in the 90s, y'all? We were about to hit the millennium, ffs. "Man on The Moon" earns all the radio play it got. I remember hearing "Nightswimming"—maybe a live version—incessantly on the in-store play at Tower Records when I worked there and finding it irritating as hell, probably due to the constant repetition and inability to skip it. I had completely forgotten that "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight", with its catchy earworm chorus refrain, even existed until this listen. I haven't voluntarily listened to R.E.M. in decades. Overall, I can listen to them pretty easily if they're on somewhere, as long as it's not "Shiny Happy People." Probably deserving of 3.5 stars, but since there's no 1/2 star option, I'm rounding down. As soon as "Ignoreland" came on, though, it triggered some sort of memory. My super goth friend in high school had a punk chick visiting her, who was into all the most edgy dark punk AF stuff. She had an out-of-towner cool factor that kinda captivated us in the suburbs as exotic and somehow more, I dunno "real". One of her favorite bands was R.E.M., however, despite being covered in spiked leather and patches coding her as this outsider underground firebrand. I remember being puzzled at the contrast between the aesthetic she presented, and this particular favorite band of hers, (although I think some part of me recognized it too, as I had kinda the same thing going on in different ways). In those teenage days it wasn't cool to like popular stuff. Sigh. Anyway, one of my other memories of that chick is she was the first girl to ever have just ripped a full-port fart in front me with zero shame. She just laughed. She may have also been on drugs. I think this record was playing when that happened.

It's nice to be reminded that not all music from the "alternative music" era of the early 90s sucked. 3/5.

Expected this to be lousy but it was ok

Not too much to say here. Its good but nothing too spectacular for my tastes. Man on the moon is great. Same with everybody hurts but I think everyone likes those songs. Also very fond of the instrumental after everybody hurts, new Orleans instrumental 1. Very good. Probably my favorite. Just solid new wavy pop rock with an i think Irish tinge. Whatever they are the accent its neat. All around enjoyable without being mind blowing

Ok

Never really been sure how I feel about these guys. I've always found that, on the musical side at least, they lacked distinct personality, despite their undeniable influence. I do ike Michael Stipe's vocals and lyrics here; they're melodic, diverse, and quite impressive on songs like 'The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite'. While lyrically enigmatic at times, a song like 'Ignoreland' has a deep, cutting message. The only song on this album that I'd been previously familiar with was 'Everybody Hurts', and, sorry, it's all too simplistic, one-note, and overplayed for me to like here. Though again, Stipe's the undeniable highlight of the song. 'Man on the Moon', on the other hand, is an absolute banger, the best song on here in almost every way. The following 'Nightswimming' was also nice, feeling like a chill boat ride under a full moon with this quaint, and sort of hypnotic, piano driving the whole thing. So yeah, I was pretty lukewarm on this whole thing. The songs I find just way too long, and the production too clean and samey. But I'm sure there's something I missed, so I'll put a pin in this one for now.

A very solid album and an essential part of the early 1990s. Unfortunately, it’s REM’s ‘Joshua Tree’ - where commercial considerations appear to (at times) be more of a concern than remaining true to themselves. But this is a niggle - filled with solid material (‘Nightswimming’ is my personal favourite), this album should be owned and listened to. And then you should go and listen to ‘Life’s Rich Pageant,’ ‘Fables of the Reconstruction,’ ‘Reckoning,’ and ‘Murmur.’

i'm gonna crash out

Kos og finfin papparock. Var jo et par av hitsa her også!

Boring but ok. Couple acceptable tracks

wallpaper music but like 3 decent ones

I generally find REM tedious. But for whatever reason, this listen wasn't bad. Right mood for it, maybe? 3.5*

Decent.

A pleasant enough listen. A pretty understated album. Good opener, pretty weak closer. Bit bad. 3/5

7/10

Leider ziemlich langweilig. Kannte REM nur von den Hits und habe mir mehr versprochen. Stattdessen bekomme ich 50 Minuten recht generische Rock musik ohne große Abwechslung. Habe mehr erwartet ist aber immernoch ganz ok 3/5

181/1089 - After listening to a few of their albums, I think R.E.M. is an above average band. Nothing stood out to me very much but I'm willing to relisten at some point in the future.

Alt Rock with a unique and refreshing voice

REM is an underrated band I think.

An alright album, not my favorite but a fine listen throughout. 5.25/10 (2.625/5)

lolz

Classic Rock but aged very well. Everybody hurts is just a banger of a rock ballad

they jangly

This album really encapsulates how I feel about R.E.M. - some good or even great singles, mostly forgettable album tracks. They released this like 2 seconds after the huge success of their previous album Out of Time, which featured Losing My Religion. They were just that kinda band - constantly recording and releasing material, which must have been great if you were a superfan. Off the bat, Drive is considered one of their masterpieces, but I don’t like it. It’s dreary, repetitive, and it sounds like What It’s Like by Everlast. Yes I know that song came after. (The best thing about Drive is Adam Scott’s very detailed story about it on R U Listening to R.E.M. RE: ME. He appeared as an extra in the music video before he was famous, but could never find himself in it until he talked about it on the podcast and a listener found him.) The second track, Try Not to Breathe, is a rare R.E.M. album track I really like. It has a nice melody that belies its dark/sad lyrical theme. The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite is not for me, but then they pull out a classic, Everybody Hurts. I wouldn’t say it’s my favourite R.E.M. song, but it’s undeniably a good song. Also, the lyrics are simple in a good way, which is a welcome change from Michael Stipe’s often oblique wordsmithing. It’s gospel-tinged in a way that could have gone cheesy, but they landed on universal and life-affirming. Then this album goes into a lull of quite a few songs until we get to another classic. A quick note about one of the songs in the lull, Monty Got a Raw Deal - I don’t like the song, but I do appreciate that it’s a tribute to Montgomery Clift. I had a whole Monty phase and have watched a lot of his movies. But The Clash wrote a better song about him - The Right Profile. Anyway, just when I’m about to fall asleep they drop another classic, Man on the Moon. I keep thinking I like this song more than I do, because the chorus is really good. But the verses are kind of throwaway. Nightswimming is ok and Find the River is a good closer but by this point I’m exhausted by this slow, sombre album. If I were to choose a word to describe R.E.M., it would be “dense.” They have endless material and their songs are heavy with meaning but also kinda drag you down (especially on this album). But just when you’re about to get sucked under they pull you back up with a sparkling pop single. There’s a lot, I don’t like it all, but usually they have something to keep me interested.

This was definitely an improvement on Document, but I still feel underwhelmed by this band. R.E.M. are supposed to be this iconic alternative rock band... but outside of the hits, it just sounds like hipster soft rock. It's almost like this band is for people who are too afraid to listen to punk or anything remotely abrasive, but also don't want to be seen as a mainstream and basic. That's not them, they're alternative and intellectual... and that's where R.E.M. swoops in to save the day and give them exactly what they need to feel cultured and respectable, alternative lefty pop rock and with a hug. I guess... good for them? But it's just not for me. Side note: It's strange. There really is no edge here that i can find. Not much musically interesting for me to hold onto. Perhaps it's in the lyrics (i'm guessing leftist politics)? But that would take more listens and reading that i'm just not willing to do for this band. Positives: The production does a lot to soften Michael Stipe's voice, which was a big sticking point for me on Document. I hated his voice on that album. I actually like his voice on this record. It works. I love Man on the Moon. Might be my all time favourite R.E.M. song. It's catchy, specific... a very interesting pop song. And it inspired that solid Andy Kaufman Jim Carrey movie. The one where Jim lost his mind going method. Kinda seemed like he was just being a dick though, but still a good movie. Everybody Hurts is okay. A little cheesy, but in the right mood it hits. I enjoyed New Orleans Instrumental No.1... probably the most interesting song musically on the whole album. I wish there was more stuff like this. I really enjoyed Nightswimming. Outside of Man on the moon, it's probably my favourite song on this album. I kind of wish it was the closer. Find the River is a solid track (actually kind of felt like a Neil Young track), but I'd swap the 2 in the track list to end on Nightswimming. When i put this album on in the background while working, it was very pleasant. A good vibe. Negatives: When I played it in headphones and it was my soul focused, I found myself bored outside of the songs listed above. I found a majority of the songs pretty bland. There aren't any bad songs, just a lot of middle of the road alternative pop rock. So i guess this album is better the less you pay attention to it? Eeeek. Ultimately, I want to give this a 2.5, but i'll round up to 3 because it deserves more than documents and Man on the moon is a banger.

I expected to like it more

i wish i liked it more sorry

Grew on me as I listened. A little anemic in general, but “night swimming” and “find the river” were nice surprises

Decent

It was a fun time, but it could have been more memorable. Probably gonna grow on me later though

More like automatic for the threeple

A lot of meh.

encore un nouveau album pour moi

If you belieeeeeve

Outside of the hits, not very good.

Not bad. Can see why it’s on the list. Best songs: drive, man on the moon.

Kind of low key melodies

Oh, brother. First we had Nirvana and now we have R.E.M. I can finally close the sordid chapter of my early music listening years. When I first started out listening to music it took an inordinate amount of time for me to come across bands I liked. Because of this I, rather hastily, pinned myself as a fan of Nirvana and R.E.M. to use as a point of discussion. The problem being that the total number of songs I listened to between both artists was a solid ~3. There were so many bad conversations I had throughout that period to the point where I never wanted to revisit either band when I finally found music I enjoyed. With Nirvana's main discography under my belt, I guess it's time to give R.E.M. a listen. The sound of this album is quite pleasing when it's good. The acoustic guitars are nice and make for a dreamy atmosphere when paired with the reverberating backing instruments of the album. This is the strongest aspect of the album. It's precisely because of this strength that the first stretch doesn't hook me. Tracks like Try Not to Breathe and The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite are much too lively for me, though after Everybody Hurts the album mellows out in a nice way. Speaking of which, Everybody Hurts is good. I hate being jumpscared by songs I recognise and this was one of those situations - the intro of the song doesn't sound anything like it's iconic chorus. Everybody Hurts' lyrics are surprisingly quite minimal and sparse for such a mature instrumental, though I admit it's part of the charm. Instrumentally, the song has a lot of good musical flourishes, especially the deep, free-flowing strings that hang over the piece. The organ isn't half-bad, either. I say this as someone who feels an extreme antipathy towards the instrument. After this, the album branches out into the stuff that I enjoy more. Sweetness Follows is a very melancholic piece, though it easily has the best lyrics on the album and is paired with a very nice instrumental. Again, the organ is a nice inclusion and in this case is thematically appropriate. So is the spacy atmosphere and warm acoustic guitar. Monty Got a Raw Deal is good - some very solid songwriting. I also enjoy the accordion or whatever instrument is in the background. It works well with the more conventional instruments of the album. Man on the Moon is another good cut and one I'm certain I've heard before. The backing vocals are effective and I enjoy how the subdued verses contrast with the more lively chorus. It's placement in the album is also good, working well as a late-album track. Overall the album is a mix between tracks I care and don't care for, though the good stuff wins me over enough to where this album is deserving of three stars. May as well enrich my musical know-how by reading the book. A change in style and tone for the band. That's the long and short of it, really, Granted, I can't fault this inclusion. It's massively acclaimed and massively successful. A solid inductee into the list.

A bit more melancholic than the last REM album. Pleasant and chill throughout, though I did miss the upbeat energy I usually associate with them. For a band I really don’t know much by, they have a very unique sound. Which is weird because they feel very middle of the road in terms of their era and genres, but something about them is just distinct. Maybe if it was raining out when j listened this would be a 4.

the thing about R.E.M. is that their good songs are really good, and then everything else is just... kinda on the album. Man on the Moon, Everybody Hurts, and Monty Got A Raw Deal really boost this album. but otherwise... its fine

Sounds exactly what you would expect an R.E.M. album to sound like, except just a little more depressed. Was a decent listen with a couple well-known songs but those are probably the only ones I would seek out again.

R.E.M. is so hard for me to like. My dad liked R.E.M. growing up. Not listening to them, but playing and singing their songs. Every big event we hosted he would eventually pull out the guitar and everyone would gather around to hear him play Jimmy Buffet, John Denver, and R.E.M.. I grew up listening to a lot of the songs on this album, but my dad's version of them. I loved them and they always remind me of him. That being said, I really don't like the original R.E.M. version of them. They just sound wrong because I'm so used to my dad's version. I've tried to break through this barrier, but I just can't get over it. I don't think I'll ever enjoy listening to R.E.M.

2.5

Fun, summery, a bit too much of the same, but cohesive in that same way

Just ok. This album didn't resonate with me. A couple of good songs "Drive" being one of them but overall just ok.

buddy was writing songs for his discord kitten in 1992

Ok

REM always a vibe, going into it only knowing man on the moon I figured I would enjoy it and the album delivered 6.8/10

R.E.M. has never held my attention on the whole - They had several songs that I find endearing, but the majority of their work just does not entertain.

Platonic ideal of a 90s soft rock album

This was a pretty good album, not one that I. Normally think of when I think of R.E.M. but it was good

Solid album. Not my usual sort of listen but very good. I liked ‘Man on the Moon.’

okay, not bad

I really liked Sweetness Follows. The album is good, very chill 90s alt rock. I don't really know what genre R.E.M. is, to be honest. But they're iconic of the era. I can see why, but I can't exactly say why. They have this approachability, catchiness without crossing into pop. Melancholy, but not sad sound.

I remember seeing the jewel case for this album always just laying around my house as I grew up, but never hearing it play. Man on the Moon and Everybody Hurts and Nightswimming are undoubtedly the my favorite parts of the album, and really the songwriting is a strong suit through the whole album. However, outside the hits, the rest of a album was a bit of a chore to get through, but damn do they play the keys well.

Pretty decent, I really liked the songs I recognized but the others were mediocre.

This was okay, didn't really pull me in but wasn't bad either. "Nightswimming" was a highlight. Unlikely to revisit, but fine.

Good start, an interesting Album that I wouldn’t have heard otherwise. A bit too melancholic for my taste though

quite impressed by few first songs but the second part of an album doesn't grow on me yet

Favorites: Drive, The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite, Man On The Moon I appreciate R.E.M. a lot for being a band that mixes the really cool jam band style of rock with a more gritty edge. While I don’t think on the whole this album is for me still, there’s quite a few tracks on here I adore, especially Drive.

Solid album, but not something I'll be itching to revisit.

Pretty OK.

Quiet songs, hard ones too, i like it

Some legendary songs on this, but perhaps Michael Stipe’s maudlin angstiness hasn’t aged all that well.

not a big REM guy. some songs were ok, others were boring and redundant.

Would go 3.5 here. Not quite a 4. They never reached the high of Murmur again

Carino, ma anche qui niente slancio

Not for me but I can respect it

3, first time listening, favourite song: everybody hurts

feel-good, dad-rock album with vocals thoroughly hitting the mark. dulcet tones with a healthy mix of higher energy. a classic, but nothing i'm writing home about. standout tracks: new orleans instrumental no. 1; star me kitten.

Great more R.E.M, next please

Boring and sad. Give us a smile pussy cat. The song about the Jamaicans wasn't bad tho

Pretty unremarkable album, nothing memorable and certainly nothing gained

I'm not a huge R.E.M. fan. All was pretty bland to me. I like "Man On The Moon" but the rest of the album is just meh

Nothing bad, but nothing outstanding

I really want to like REM. And to a certain extent I do. But not sure this album is the masterpiece they say it is.

This came at a perfect time because I was just wondering if REM was actually not that good and if it was just my family who liked them when I was growing up. Turns out they ARE pretty good, they're popular outside my family, and really its just not my cup of tea

Good easy listening but doesn’t blow my mind in any way

Much cooler than I thought it’d be but not really vibing with it. Makes me sleepy.

Started out not weak, but I started to appreciate the songs more in the 2nd half

I think I had a little too high expectations for this one since I absolutely love the song 'loosing my religion'. The album However is quite mid

I appreciate good songwriting and production but REM bores me to death.

Great vocal performance.Nice rwcording and mixes. Some interesting melodies. Somewhat predictable harmonic decisions and got a little samey sometimes. There were a couple of good songs that stood out

I really wanted to like this but I was kinda bored.

Like the hits are ok, REM are just boring to me

2.5

Didn't love it so I didn't finish the album.

Started off well and has some highlights (Everybody Hurts, Ignoreland), but gets slow and kind of boring towards the end.

Was an interesting album. I don't think anything in particular stood out

I like R.E.M. a lot and have ever since I first heard "Radio Free Europe" on WXRT in 1983. I have mixed feelings about this album though. One one hand I dislike "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite" and "Man On The Moon" so much that I rarely listen to the rest of the album. On the other hand it has "Nightswimming" which is gorgeous and probably my favorite song of theirs. Everything else is somewhere in the middle, which is fine. And that's my review of this album - It's fine.

Fine. Some nostalgic songs on there, but there’s quite a few sub-par tracks on there. Haven’t sought out any REM album to listen to again, perhaps this is why.

Its a decent album, never been a big fan of the hits so listening to the full album I'm happy to say theres a lot more there musically. Not really for me but doesn't offend and some good songs on there.

R.E.M. all sounds the same to me. Man On The Moon and Everybody Hurts are iconic, but the rest is just background music. I think this is era-music. You had to be there otherwise it’s just something for commercials and the grocery store.

Some pretty good highlights on this album which cemented R.E.M into 90s rock. 'Try Not To Breathe' and 'Ignoreland' are the best outside of the massive singles, though there is nothing too much to add on top of those. This band mostly does one thing well, but at least repeated 10 times across an album. Best Tracks: - Try Not To Breathe - Ignoreland - Man On The Moon Worst Tracks: - The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite Rating: 6/10

idk irgendwie gibts nix zu sagen

Hab was anderes errwartet

I’m curious

3/5 some good song particulaly nightswimming but mostly forgettable

It was fine.

Sad album

Not really for me. A little to melancholy. Well done, but I won't come back to it.

Truly the unbuttered toast of music. Maybe even untoasted toast. I'm sorry Michael Stipe, I do not like your voice.

It has some bangers. But I can’t say I like the whole album.

A bit too simplistic and low-energy for my taste, but overall all the songs sound nice. Can’t say anything bad about them; I'm just not particularly thrilled. 7/10

Would give a 3.5 but can’t figure out how. I rock with it it’s just not music I’d listen to on a daily basis

Can’t decide if I like the repetitive flow of the album or not—though does have a “nostalgic” feel. Get the impression this would be good road trip music where you’re not rly listening to the lyrics and your mind is just wandering. (+)Try not to Breathe +Find The River +New Orleans Instrumental +Sweetness Follows (-)Man on the Moon (-)Everybody Hurts (Heard this one too much in commercials or skits growing up to not sound like nails on a chalk board to me)

I like but not love wish there was a 3.5 very high 3

I was a bit disappointed. I think the album is fine, but it lacks that forward momentum that made their earlier album Murmur feel so infectious to me. + The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight, Man on the Moon

Sounds like REM

Really enjoyed this one. R.E.M. is one of those bands I know I like but haven't spent enough time with. Between the hit songs on this were equally good tracks. Definitely coming back to this one.

The classics are good. But overall I don't think I really liked the style

Good album, even though the chorus to The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight is annoying af. Drive is dope. Everybody Hurts will tear your heart out. New Orleans instr. is cool. As is Man on the Moon. 1001 album worthy: Yes - 64/118

Gen x sad boi.

Some of them were familiar bangers. that is all

Heard the name. Not very familiar with that band. Nice vocal. Run of the mill rock & roll. Good album.

An undoubtedly beautiful album, but just not my thing

I know everybody hurts; but who hurt R.E.M? Beautiful album.

Good album, great production, although a bit too mellow for my tastes. 70/100

woke up this moooorning

default Pop Rock album

Great album, heavy atmosphere with penetrating songs, happy and sad at the same time

Acceptable album

1st listen: - drive; idk why I'm getting such midnight oil vibes lmao. But def a classic rock/western kind of vibe? Also a little Pink Floyd and Pearl Jam for some reason, also a band I can't remember rn but I'm getting the influence so heavily. Not much I liked lyric wise, just kinda there. Maybe didn't get the message straight away?? Also lowkey don't like the sound of songs like this one lmao. - try not to breathe; a little cranberries for some reason??? More lyrically descriptive, like it a little more, but still not vibing to it tbh haha. - sidewinder sleeps tn; like the beat more. Lyric wise I'm not liking how direct it is??? It's kinda stream of thought, which is great!! But I personally don't like how it's employed most of the time. - everybody hurts; meme classic. it's giving very church vibes??? Like hallelujah or smth lmao. It's a comforting song, but a little superficial for me (but I actually love how direct it is; I can see it actually comforting someone going through stuff, just not my type of comforting). Pretty nice arrangements by the middle with the acoustic and electric strings.

This feels like an album I'll have to listen to a couple of times to appreciate properly. It's not bad but it doesn't really click with me either.

Pleasant enough album. I like Man On The Moon, but everything else doesn't move me.

I never have been a big fan of REM so naturally my rating will be lowered. But after listening to the entire album I must admit it is well done, so that improves its rating. My favorites are Everybody Hurts and Find the River. Bottom line = three stars.

Another R.E.M. album in fairly quick succession for me here and yeah I like them. They're all fairly the same? If I didn't know any songs on this one, I wouldn't really be able to differentiate it much from Murmur. Okay, this one maybe has a bit more melody and Stipe's voice is a bit more elevated at times, but it's still a 3. A high 3 though

'Oh I need something to fly over my grave again'; 'A candy bar, a falling star, or a reading from Doctor Seuss'; 'The movies had that movie thing / But nonsense has a welcome ring.' While I still think Murmur is R.E.M.'s most remarkable statement, I by no means disparage their more pop orientated albums released during the early nineties. But I do think this record is slightly overrated. Even comparing it to the album released just after this one - Monster - I prefer the pop ballad 'Strange Currencies,' one of the all-time R.E.M. singles, to the ubiquitous 'Everybody Hurts.' Tho a band's most lauded album is not necessarily their best, it is self-important to prefer only the deep cuts. Yet, besides 'Nightswimming,' this is ordinary.

This list loves REM, but I’m pretty meh on them.

I didn't care for this album. I just don't like R.E.M. But I respect R.E.M. Most of the songs on this album are hits. My favorite song was "Nightswimming". I did not know that I didn't care for R.E.M. before listening to this album.

Ohne die nervige Stimme wäre es vielleicht ein Viersternealbum geworden

Lacks the edge and energy of REM at their best, it’s giving alt-goes-grunge in the worst way.

Yeah more REM. Totally average rock with the occasional decent song.

Like R.E.M but quickly get sick of his voice. Some great songs but 50 min is too long for me !

Wasn’t bad, not my favorite

I have a lot of respect for R.E.M. but unfortunately their music has never really connected with me, save for a few songs on each albums. On this one it's Nightswimming and Find the River, which are both beautiful and evocative.

Good title. My mind really goes on "automatic" when listening to this band. Pretty good anyhow.

Automatic for the People is one of those albums I want to like more than I actually do. I get why people love it — it’s moody, introspective, and full of emotion — but I’ve just never been able to get into R.E.M. There are definitely some solid songs here, and I respect the craftsmanship, but it doesn’t do much for me personally. Just not my vibe. Favorite Song: Man on the Moon

I am not the biggest fan of R.E.M. and I prefer them in the 80s over thus. Still a few undeniable hits. 3.5 stars

3.5

I love Everybody Hurts so much Edit Apr 22 2026: 4 --> 3

Classic 90s

-1 star for man on the moon, i hate that song.

7/10 Bonito álbum de canciones acústicas que pecan por momentos de aburridas.

Pretty good. There a couple of classics on there. Had not heard most of the songs.

Somber start to the day, but still a very good album.

Liking it more than I thought I would. I’ve never loved this band but I know all the songs are decent. To me the sound is a little to stiff and plodding. Nightswimming is great.

Man on the mon

This era of R.E.M. is what I was used to hearing on the radio as a kid, and to be honest, I didn’t really like them, especially that “Man on the Moon” track. Now that I’ve been listening to a lot more R.E.M. recently, and knowing their roots as a Jangle Pop band, I’ve gained more appreciation for this album. While it will never be at the top of my list for R.E.M., it’s a good album to play when you want something a little more mellow and chill. It leans more towards acoustic guitars with softer electric guitars and includes a good share of piano tracks. If I had judged this album 25 to 30 years ago, it would have rated a one. Now, with a more mature appreciation for music, I’d give it a three, maybe 3.5. Just maybe!

3 estrelas e olhe lá

1. Everybody hurts 2. Man on the moon 3. Nightswimming

REM, it turns out, is just a band whose album cuts do nothing for me. Gimme a greatest hits comp and I'm good.

i can appreciate the talent on display but this band bores me to tears

Uhhhhhhhh it's aight I guess but R.E.M kinda blows outside of a vacuum

This album is politically active & eerily prescient. REM foresees the growing corruption of politics into warring factions weaponizing misinformation and the cynicism & disdain for political engagement that results. It may also (unwittingly?) encourage the anti-intellectual nihilism (“If you believe they put a man on the moon”) that started in the Reagan 80’s & came to define American politics in the 2010’s. If Murmur suffers from REM not yet having found its purpose, Automatic for the People suffers from the opposite — its delivery is a bit too “on the nose” and earnest. The lyrics are all audible, and in some cases, there is no effort to be poetic. This is a moment where an edgy band lost its musical edge for a moment. There is inspired music here, though. If you Believe is *such* a great song! A solid album that people should hear for its insightful political commentary — but not “great” as an album.

No mal disco, pero los REM me dan mucha flojera. Lo siento, lo he intentado mil veces y nada más no. Tres estrellas por Everybody hurts.

Fine! My biggest takeaway was learning that they did the hurt song

Ctrl + F "R.E.M", Ctrl + C, Ctrl + V

A nostalgic and shimmery sound that left me waiting at the crossroads of what this album could have been. One thing to note is that four songs on this record were already saved in my library. However, it had been some time since my last listen so my ears came into this fresh. I felt as if the majority of the songs failed to take that next step forward. At times the lyrics and harmonies seemed goofy and repetitive. “Nightswimming” did a good job of encapsulating a sense of farewell to a world that REM had built. REM are legends but this record didn’t quite stick with me as much as I wanted it to. Favorites: Try Not To Breathe, Everybody Hurts, and Nightswimming

Something never fully clicks for me with R.E.M. The are an undeniably a tight band and the instrumentation is frequently interesting (shout out John Paul Jones for getting in the mix on string arrangements). Stipe's vocals and writing can shine on some songs ("Nightswimming") but there's not a big pull to come back to the full album. Maybe that's because almost all the songs are slow tempo...similar to when we were in the Leonard Cohen/Tom Waits albums...in order to really love those albums I think you either have to 1) be there when the album comes out or 2) have some connection to really sit with the album and explore the songs. Sadly....this album got a listen while i clicked away in Google Sheets and didn't crack me that way. Everybody hurts.

The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite in a great song, which has me wondering what the differece is between that song and the rest of the album. I chose Drive as a comp. Sidewinder... - Interesting progression that keeps you guessing. - Soulful - Its a bop - the snare is driving things - rythym guitar playing the off-beat - Stipes delivering the vocals with conviction - His vocal delivery is also adding to the overall rythm of the song, occasionally aligning to the driving organ. - Somewhat vague but song about loss - Perfect bridge Drive (fucking awful song) - Downer finger picking minor chords - Lame halfway spoken word lyrics (echo to pick them up a bit) - Boring predictable chord changes - When it does resolve to an upbeat "chorus" it immediately fades back into nothing - Could be the theme music to True Detective - Extremely vague meaning In my review of Murmur I noted that the drums and bass combo were key to the REM sound, and this album is a departure from that, with the exception of The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite. I think you can make a downer, minor chord, finger picking, predictable song but something needs to carry it. Most times it's really compelling lyrics or maybe a couple of chord changes that throw you. R.E.M were making an effort to move away from their alt rock sound and get more serious and introspective with this record, but in the case of Drive, and most of the other songs, it didn't work. Everybody Hurts and Nightswimming are hits, and at one point in my life I liked them so I need to give them credit for those. Frank and I played in a HS band and at some point added Everybody Hurts, a terrible decision I'm blaming on our temp keyboard player Pat, though I could very well be the culprit.

R.E.M. is mij wel bekend en heeft erg leuke liedjes. Ik vind dit album toch wel heel erg rustig met een paar saaie nummers. Maar verder prima artiesten.

Sounds like it was made in its time. Vocals are very recognizable, yet songs end up being somewhat forgettable. Classics "Everybody Hurts" and "Man On The Moon" remain the most prominent outliers. 6/10

Fine. Ok.

i think i just dont like rem

Even the happy songs are gloomy.

Man on the moon is the only good song on this album. REM sucks.

Not really feeling ready to write this but ugh it’s fine. The music is quality, conveying emotions and moods through interesting instrumentals and arrangements (strings added in nicely). Melodic basslines add nice accents to the music. They do lots of things subtlety, and plenty in your face as well: Very clear vocals in thr mix, making the thoughtful lyrics and memorable hooks really pop. An alt rock band who wants to convey deep emotions with pop hooks and sophisticated artistry. But it still doesn’t totally grip me.

3 stars.

Not bad. Probably not something I’d revisit though

I wasn't as impressed with this album as I thought I'd be

5/1001 Automatic For The People is a boring and at times uninspired album with a lot of songs just kinda blending together to create a sense of nothingness. When it shines, it shines bright though with obvious rock radio classics like Everybody Hurts and Man On The Moon. But again the rest of the album is made up of inferior versions of basically the same songs. The only songs who really manages to escape the pitfalls of the others are The Sidewinders Sleeps Tonight and Ignoreland by mixing up the pretty basic formula of the rest of the album with interesting vocal melodies or added distortion. 2,5/5 I relistened to it, and though most of my original thoughts still hold true, the rest of the album isn’t as bad as I initially thought, so I numbed it half a rating up. 3/5

This era of R.E.M. is what I was used to hearing on the radio as a kid, and to be honest, I didn’t really like them, especially that “Man on the Moon” track. Now that I’ve been listening to a lot more R.E.M. recently, and knowing their roots as a Jangle Pop band, I’ve gained more appreciation for this album. While it will never be at the top of my list for R.E.M., it’s a good album to play when you want something a little more mellow and chill. It leans more towards acoustic guitars with softer electric guitars and includes a good share of piano tracks. If I had judged this album 25 to 30 years ago, it would have rated a one. Now, with a more mature appreciation for music, I’d give it a three, maybe 3.5. Just maybe!

2.5/5

This album's first four songs are the strongest, I think; the rest of the album is a bit more uneven, but still listenable. This isn't my favorite REM album, but still pretty good. Everybody Hurts/New Orleans Instrumental/Sweetness Follows give Eels vibes to me (I know the Eels came later, but still).

Not huge on R.E.M. but "Everybody Hurts" was really great.

I know this artist. I know maybe 1 or 2 tracks never really heard a full album of theirs. I definitely know this first track. Think I may sit and listen to the whole album, very interested in these guys. Was not aware, 'everybody hurts', was on this album.

Loaded

Nice voice, nice guitar work. Sounds almost Celtic. Not singable or danceable. Everybody Hurts gets the most airplay. A bit too plaintive for my tastes but if I was sad, this might be just the ticket. 3.5/5

Hmm... OK. So REM is one of my all time favorite bands. B U T !!! REM also has, in my opinion, two "eras." They had somewhere around the 80's era, and then as we got into the 90's... a somewhat different era... the problem is that I LOVE almost their entire catalog from that early period and it remains among my most beloved go to music. It is raw and open and feels like a small night club at some ski area somewhere. Cosy and intimate. And then somewhere in the early 90's, definitely by this album, they started to sound ... "overproduced" and commercially viable somehow. I can still sense them underneath, especially in certain songs, but that wonderful kind of "here for the love" vibe more or less went away. Honestly, in a nut shell, they lost something as they hit it big.

Great album, strong 3.

3 because I detest Nightswimming and Man on the moon both.

Automatic for the People is the eighth studio album by R.E.M., originally released in 1992. REM take so much inspiration from post-punk that I legit only found out recently that they're American. Wild world. I think they do a great job at blending post-punk with alternative rock. This album of course has the iconic "Everybody Hurts" which I'm not a big fan of. However, most of the other songs were solid. There seems to be a lot of introspective themes on this album, which I dig. And the production is great. Probably not my favorite REM, but very solid.

Everybody Hurts is a great song

Quite liked this, close to a 4 but not quite. Will probably listen again.

Sehr nices brutalistischs sowjet union ahghuchts Album Cover, da hani richtig bock uf es biz Kommunismus! ich bin mer grad chli banausig vorcho, dass R.E.M. 18 millione monthly listeners hend und die 460. meistglossti Band uf spotify, da ich sie nebe ihrne bekanntischte Lieder nonie aktiv wahrgnoh han. E Band also, woni paar lieder immer widermal durs Lebe ghört han, mich aber nie so küzlet het, dasi unbedingt han müsse usefinde vo wem das Lied isch. Und so het sichs für mich au dur das Album durezoge. Finds sehr idylisch alles aber sogar für de Softy-Timon isch das Album zu Soft. Album vode 80er und 90er jahr miteme brutalistische Cover münd eifach chli meh tschäddere und innegrätsche! 'Ignoreland' gaht scho meh i die richtig. Darum gits nur drü ganz sanfti Küss uf em Lenin sini pollierti Glaze

H.A.L.L.O Ich bin biz ideelos fürs review hüt. Mondays. Guuts album? 2 schöni tracks süsch durchschnittlich. Wür sege es guets D.R.E.I puntos

au wenni nie extrem viel R.E.M gloset han hetts doch lustigerwis en platz ih mim hertz gfunde als chind bini en rise fan vom lied "drive" gsi und au so lieder wie "everybody hurts" hend scho en vibe natürlich isches au sehr es vibigs album zum ih dinnere couch surf sleeping nook irgendwo ih de outskirts vo den haag uf de abighimmel zluege während sich de liminali dutch landscape de horizont entlangzieht und du dini ustusch täg namal vorem innere aug entlangzieh lahsch aber was macht das ezt uf de global scale for beeing fun - ich würd sege es trois rois mit potential uf eh quattro stagioni wommer aber alli chässorte zemmemischt anstatt dases separat sind en guete

According to Spotify, I listened to the US version of this album. Whether that makes a huge difference, I couldn’t say. This album… exists. It’s never boring, but it also never truly grabs me. Michael Stipe’s vocals are fantastic, and the overall sound is pleasant enough, but it just doesn’t leave much of an impression. It’s an album I wouldn’t mind hearing again, but I doubt I’d actively seek it out. Standout Track: Man on the Moon Score: 3/5

Saved from the 2* whimsical mire of Stipes incessant whine by the beautiful uplifting everybody hurts. Otherwise this served as a reminder to why I detested REM as a young man. Musically I find it uninteresting, vocally I find it jarring.

reminds me of the 90's

It's pretty good, but I've always found REM to be too slow. I think I probably would have really liked this in another life.

Strong start, very slow and a bit sleepy though the middle, picked it up again for the finish. Man On The Moon (best cut) got some play on 90s radio. Everybody Hurts gets you on the 1001 list. R.E.M has better (2.8*s) from both.

R.E.M. has a unique sound that I'm fine with but I know a ton of people who just don't like them. $100 that it's Stipe's voice alone that's so polarizing, but I think his arching, nasally sound is actually the band's best instrument (and it's certainly on display here.) Overall, this is a solid album, lags a little in the center and don't love "Man on the Moon" but a few really good hits. R.E.M. is somehow traditional alternative that also managed to feel modern. I dig this slower, more melancholic set from them. Ends with a strong finish, really interesting lyrics and meaning behind "Find the River". 3.45 ginger, lemon, indigo.

Very nice, slightly softer side of R.E.M. on this album. 2 hits and the rest good support. Not a bad track here and just solid all around. Love to see that JPJ provided string arrangements which unsurprisingly enhanced the project. Stipe got a knack for producing a unique sound that has carried through the decades as his own and continues to age nicely...3.4.

Ultimately not interesting, but REM was not something I had decided to explore more previously. The post-punk influence seems obvious now but I had missed it before. Their earlier work seems like it may be more pace after a very cursory listen. Radio free Europe seems overhyped but pilgrimage and laughing are very solid.

Eh

This is a very good record. They took the 70s acoustic rock/folk thing and made it more interesting. Also the vocals suit the songs very well.

This was better than I expected, I have never thought much about R.E.M but now I feel like I need to reconsider. I really liked 'Drive' and 'Everybody hurts'. I would say this deserves a 3.5/5 rating.

3.5

It was alright, an easy listen

i really like the song without Michael Stipe

I like it, i don't LOVE it, but it has some great songs on it

mid - some tunes tho

Dramatic. Suspenseful. There were moments I really enjoyed, but also lacklustre moments without much going on. Highlights: Try Not To Breathe The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite Monty Got A Raw Deal

Classic

This was a rather pleasant album!

There really isn't much that I can say about this album that already hasn't been said, except that it isn't Chronic Town, which is by far my favorite REM album.

REMin kuuloista folk alt rokkia. Kevyttä soundia. Everybody Hurts tällä. Parhaat: Drive, Find The River

STARK 3! solid album!!

it's giving "music playing in the background of the dive bar where you're having a conversation with a drunk stranger twice your age," and not in an entirely bad way. some songs are stronger than others, but overall it fades a bit into the background for me

Not a big fan of the jangly rock/pop sound in which R.E.M usually dabble, but here there are some gorgeous melancholic touches that I really liked. Drive, Everybody Hurts, Sweetness Follows, Nightswimming and Find The River are some really beautiful songs. Michael Stipe sings very clearly with just the right amount of emotional intensity. But there are bad songs too. Songs that spoil the tone of the record. Ignoreland and some other forgettable tracks. Still, all in all, a pretty decent listen.

outdated but famous songs were nice

Kinda like bob Dylan the music and the lyrics are cool but sometimes the guys voice annoys me. And I can’t stop picturing that bald guy singing the songs. Man on the moon is a cool song, I really liked that movie. Never listened to much rem but didn’t mind this and would probably listen again. Solid 3

Few stand outs songs, but the rest felt repetitive and hard to distinguish between them.

Probably just in a bad mood but felt saccharine (if that's the right word) yet also just a bit depressing? The production and Micheal Stipes' voice grate a bit. Man On The Moon and Nightswimming are still good though.

This was ok. Easy listening, but overall nothing that stood out too much. Can't help but feel like R.E.M. would have benefited by a singer with more presence. 'Sweetness Follows' was my favorite track.

It was a chill rock album i think. Not really my style.

Ist für viele sicher ein Meisterwerk. Und ich kenne die Hälfte der Songs aus dem Radio. Laufen dort schon seit Jahrzehnten. Keine Ahnung was mich stört. Die Stimme?

Good sounding album with some really good tracks but overall feels like its missing something to bring me back to listen to it again.

Night swimming and Man on the Moon are the standouts here. A nice sound but nothing insane. 3.5

This is now I think the third REM album I’ve gotten on this list. One more and I may have to give up this endeavor. I realize they are popular, my for the life of me, I can’t see why. This album, for al it’s praise, is just as intolerable as their others. I’ve couldn’t stand them in the 80s and nothing has changed my mind yet. Michael Stipe’s warbling and whining is more grating than the proverbial nails on a chalkboard. I had hoped I didn’t like the band because I couldn’t pay attention through his voice. But then they had the dmoet boring Uber

First listen. Decent.

That was alright

Well recorded but REM isn't really for me

Really great!

A little greater than adequate. I recognize/respect the influence. But this is an album I may never be in the “mood” for. Ie. depressed

i feel like i would have enjoyed this album much more if i were an angsty teen in the 90’s. it was not completely intolerable, but that’s kind of a low bar to be setting for an album that’s supposed to be a must-listen. not a low rating because some of the lyrics and musical themes were interesting, but after a minute i started dissociating from it. the theme was past its prime and so is this album imo

Always kind of forget what these guys sound like. Good stuff.

5/10

6.5/10

I liked Man On The Moon, but little else

Pleasant to have on, nothing stood out to me though. Maybe on another day I'd appreciate it more, but felt like a solid 3.

going off these a bit by this point, liked the earlier stuff more like a big old pretentious nob. still ok

Not bad. Some good songs. I like it, but it's not life changing.

I’ve always looked at Green as the dividing line between REM 1.0 and REM 2.0, with Green showing elements of both. This album falls fully into the REM 2.0 era, and I’m not a huge fan. Feels like they are actually writing songs for the radio and for MTV and not for themselves and the fans. 3.0 (boosted because they’re REM)

OK REM. Hits you know, nice tunes... yawn

3.5 REM is a band I always have wished I was more into. Unfortunately, I just really like them, don’t love them. There’s some songs of their’s I adore, and mean a ton to me, but overall, I respect what they do; it’s just not my favorite.

it was ok

Kind of bland, but easy enough to listen to

I have tried, like really tried, to enjoy this band as much as other people seem to (and, to be frank - the makers of this list. Is every album on here?). But I just can't. The hits are good, but the rest are just okay. Best I can do is 'like.' 3/5

Everybody Hurts // Man On The Moon // 2.5/5

Really solid album that made me appreciate REM more.

Everybody Hurts is one of the worst musical crimes ever committed. And this is by no means my favorite REM album. But it's a solid effort. 3.1

Honestly, and this kinda sucks...but closer to a 2

I dont really understand why rem is so popular, if the album didnt get better as it went along i wouldve put two stars. Theyre really deserving of their name cause all they do is put me to sleep.

decent songs gets a little slow and drags in parts

Odd second REM album choice.

I'll say the same about Automatic For The People as I did Green when we had REM three weeks ago, they're not my think beyond a certain point, they're fine, Stipe is the star of the show and creates the atmosphere with his voice and the lyrics over some relatively unambitious compositions. Green was a low 3, this gets a high 3 because of Everybody Hurts and the last two tracks; Nightswimming and Find the River are both excellent and elevate a record I maybe expected more from but didn't enjoy as much as I hoped.

It this supposed to be cheesy? Because, if I'm being perfectly honest, this is just repetitive chord progressions and bizarre lyrics. It's a guilty pleasure album, but it's not even something that I take pleasure in.

The hits are good, the rest is pretty boring.

Really close to a 2

Forgettable

More of a 3.5. Good instrumentation and typically eccentric lyrics, but just a bit too easy listening for my liking.

it’s been a few days since listening to this and i don’t really remember it, i think i had the exact same experience as i had with the previous r.e.m. album i listened to. didn’t have a bad time listening but nothing stood out to me.

It was a cozy album, easy to listen to. I would listen to the whole album again.

++: Everybody Hurts +: Try Not to Breathe, The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite, New Orleans Instrumental No. 1, Sweetness Follows, Monty Got a Raw Deal, Ignoreland, Star Me Kitten, Nightswimming +-: Drive, Find the River -: Man on the Moon 6,4/10

Appropriately named band for this album. Actually easily put my kids to sleep in ride. There are a couple ok ones on here though but definitely to slow for my taste. Man on the Moon and Everybody Hurts gets a three though.

I never realized how “Irish folk”-y REM was. Not bad.

Waar REM in de 80s bekend stond om z'n aanstekelijke jangle pop, opgeladen met punk energie, tekent dit album wel echt een kentering in de band's benadering van indie muziek. Uptempo en quirky akkoordenschema's worden veelal vervangen door kalmere en romantischere geluiden, wat de muziek doet transformeren in indie ballads, als je het zo mag noemen. En waar ze wel dichterbij hun rock roots blijven, hangt het resultaat meer richting de art rock van Radiohead, bijvoorbeeld. Zoals in de opener 'Drive'. Een goede mood setter, maar die Western-achtige sfeer krijgt geen vervolg op het album waardoor het achteraf helaas een beetje een vreemde eend in de bijt was. De timide aanpak, en het ontbreken van een pakkende atmosfeer zoals die in 'Drive' levert vooral in het middenstuk een gebrek aan spanning op. Lackluster mag je het noemen. 'The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite' heeft nog wel die 80s energie die ik toch wel erg mis, maar het houdt niet over. Vreemd genoeg is het dan wel het trio dat de plaat concludeert, bestaande uit nummers die symbool staan voor het nieuwe imago van de band, die voor mij de plaat 'redden'. Waar het voor een groot deel van het album ontbreekt aan fantasie, zijn de laatste drie nummers een prachtige toegift. 7/10 Highlights: Man On The Moon Nightswimming Find The River

This is my first album of 1001. I've listened to R.E.M. before, but I've never sat down with this LP. MY familiarity was limited to Chronic Town & Murmur, plus 'Losing My Religion', all of which I enjoyed to some degree. Even at it's best, I think my enjoyment of most R.E.M.'s material is an indifference towards Michael Stipe, and generally finding the group's style a bit uninteresting. I suppose the benefit of R.E.M.'s earliest moments was that you could credit them with some serious forward thinking - there's something of the air of 90s alternative that they'd captured far in advance. So, on first listen I can't say I care too much for this record. I mean, this is 1992 we're talking, and the world of rock music had changed drastically in the decade since R.E.M.'s prescient debut. At its worst, you've got songs like 'Star Me Kitten' which sounds like the band trying to pull some c. 1977 Genesis shtick, and 'Everybody Hurts' which is about as corny a quasi-adult contempory alt. ballad you can get. 'Drive' is a pretty solid song, as is 'Sidewinder...' (Thanks to John Paul Jones? I'm not sure), but even a song like 'Man on the Moon' which seems to capture the attention of many a fan doesn't really do a whole lot for me. I'm not sure what to say about it. I think what's happened here is a combination of things: I liked early R.E.M., but I wasn't particularly enthused about them or attached to that sound. Given some time, they'd matured, but the basic building blocks of what they were remain the same. That's something to rejoice in if you're a fan of the band, no doubt, but as I said before, Stipe doesn't really do much for me (and this record seems to place him front and centre even more than before), and I'm left without much to enjoy here. I'm open to the idea of some of these songs growing on me (this is a competent and talented band, no doubt, and Stipe isn't a poor songwriter) but, if I'm honest, this feels a bit too overproduced for it to be my moment of revelation with R.E.M. The next time I come back to them, I think I'll make it one of their first five LPs.

I want to rate it higher. And I took another day to listen. But it just didn't catch me.

I simultaneously like and dislike REM. It's really song by song. This album is somewhat weak. I found Ignoreland to be imagination-less. Which is strange because I think I can hear the John Paul Jones in that intro, but then the song just wanders into an area, or space, where it does not get my attention at all. I found it easy to just ... not think about it, or be aware of it. I wish I could think of a good word for that place. Anyway, they followed that up with Star Me Kitten, which also was a low point. Unfortunately the hits were the high points here. The deeper cuts seemed fairly benign. I don't think this album is as good as the previous two, but we'll find out when they pop up on this list (I'm assuming they're on it.)

I never been a big fan of R.E.M but somehow "Automatic For The People" and "New Adventures in Hi-Fi" has made in into my CD-collection. I have listened to both albums a good deal and I still find them good.