Rise

Format

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  9362457402CD  £5.00

Label

Warner Bros.

R.E.M.

Monster

MONSTER has nothing in common with the elegant mannered sounds REM has been producing since GREEN While you can discern allusions to hard rock icons from Neil Young and Mott The Hoople through Television and Nirvana MONSTER is neither a faddist grunge album nor a laundry list of influencesbut certain subliminal references seem to spark REM's muse inspiring a dozen powerhouse songs The classic REM sound is churned through a meat grinder and served up raw and bleeding on MONSTER From the opening power chords of 'What's The Frequency Kenneth' through the desperate raga rock of 'You' Peter Buck is the hero of MONSTER Buck's pealing rhythm guitar and bassist Mike Mills' melodic counterpoint are mixed front and centre so that vocalist Michael Stipe has to shout to be heardimagine a typical PA arena mix Meanwhile the enigmatic Stipe experiments with a variety of new vocal guises He plays a haughty rock star on the prowl with a droll Bowie delivery on 'Crush With Eyeliner' while unveiling a Gabriel falsetto on 'I Don't Sleep I Dream' Southern soul mannerisms on 'Tongue' and Jaggerish menace on 'I Took Your Name' But the best thing about MONSTER is that in their quest not to repeat themselves to push the envelope on their performance styleto change their soundREM has dipped back into their roots and emerged with a truly classic rock album