Collapse Into Now
R.E.M./Athens, L.L.C.

Now approaching the 30th anniversary of the release of their first single, "Radio Free Europe," R.E.M. has released their 15th full-length recording project, "Collapse into Now."

Recent efforts have emphasized one aspect of the band's signature sounds — "Out of Time" ('91) and ""Automatic for the People" ('92) were acoustic pop, "Up" ('98) and "Reveal" ('01) expressed the moody balladic sides of singer Michael Stipe, while 08's "Accelerate" followed the path of '94's great high-energy guitar rocker "Monster." But here they seem willing to mix up all that makes R.E.M. such a great band into one bold, beautiful mess.

Like many artists with the skills, commitment and creative/commercial connection required to make a durable contribution and continue to work as artists in this increasingly trendy, "young person's game," R.E.M. is best loved for their earlier works. Of course their big mainstream hits came in the early 90's as the band single-handedly brought the mandolin to alternative rock radio on their signature hit, "Losing My Religion."

Still, many of us with longer memories, will remember those earliest works of the '80's when the band was exploring the outer limits of pop/rock guitar bands, influenced by punk, poetry and no illusions.

Those great earliest albums saw a mumbling Michael Stipe grow into a singer with a voice that matters, as the band plumbed roots music to create something vital and current. Some of those most memorable songs – "(Don't Go Back to) Rockville" "Driver 8" and "Fall On Me" – can be found on the "best of" collection of their early years on I.R.S. Records, "Eponymous," and those tones, those sounds and poetic sensibilities still echo through the songs here.

For bands with staying-power, no matter how far afield they run from what their fans expect, the challenge is to strike that precarious balance between giving music listeners the "new thing" they desire, without straying so far off that they cannot follow.

R.E.M.'s earliest experiments and bolder creative efforts over the years have earned them a fan base willing to go along for the journey, to see what new horizons the band's muse will suggest. Still, they seem to want to bring it all together here, on this their last contractual album with their long time label, Warner Bros. Records.

If there still was a thing called alt/rock radio, if there were still a Music Television, I can imagine many of these songs connecting with a larger audience, but I downloaded this disc from a zip file, and have listened to it on my computer, most of the time with headphones, are there still hit songs outside of the world of Gaga and the Bieber, these days? I really don't know.

"Collapes into Now," a title suggested by Patti Smith, begins with a Peter Buck's echoing guitar sound on "Discoverer," a song of reflection and a commitment to find new possibilities and not be limited in the past — the heart of the meaning in the disc's name. "All The Best" continues in that familiar propulsive vein, where they want to "show the kids that we're doing fine," even if Stipe sings "It's just like me to overstay my welcome."

"Uberlin" follows with a fun umlaut over the "U," and a return to acoustic sounds and Buck's mandolin. Back and forth, up and down, R.E.M. is free here to mix and match, to plumb the best of its past, and to expand possibilities. "Collapse into Now" is both a summary of R.E.M.'s winning templates, and an expressive effort of the band living in the present.

"Oh My Heart," mixes acoustic instruments with a horn section backing and a lush orchestrated sound, announcing a commitment to sing, speak from one's honest emotions. "It Happened Today," another echo of the "we're living in the moment" theme, includes a backing howl from Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder, but it's Buck's chiming guitars and mandolins, along with the soulful harmony lead of Mike Mills that marks this as vintage R.E.M.

Track for track, "Collapse into Now" continues to deliver. "Walk It Back" finds Stipe in more pensive, piano ballad brooding mode, but the disc's tracking places it between two bouncier tracks, "Mine Smell Like Honey, " and the fun Dr. Suess like poetry of "Alligator_Aviator_Autopilot_Antimatter" – with its overdriven electric rock hooks and fun sing-along on the "you've got a lot to learn" lyric. And who hasn't wanted to rhyme alligator with agitator and elevator?

But there are no throw-away songs, even as the disc reaches its end. "That Someone Is You" is a catchy pop/rocker, that proves Stipe still knows how to have fun with a pop song. "Me, Marlon Brando, Marlon Brando and I" returns to the acoustics even as Stipe wonders what the future holds, how our heroes fared over time, and what that says of us. In the end, though, Stipe, joined again by Patti Smith on the closing "Blue," admits that he longs to be thought of as a poet, as an artful presence.

Obviously, if you've been listening and playing along at home, this latest installment from R.E.M. is certainly the best all-around effort from the band in the last 15 years, although the hard core rock fans will no doubt still hold "Accelerate" in higher regard. To these ears, "Collapse into Now" provides a keen synthesis of R.E.M.'s diverse sounds into a complete and concrete whole.

I'm out of space here, if you want to read my review of Radiohead's latest, "The King of Limbs" follow this link to my blog.


The Rev. Brian Q. Newcomb is Senior Minister at David's UCC in Kettering, Ohio, and a long-time music critic published in Billboard, CCM Magazine, Paste, The Riverfront Times and St. Louis Post-Dispatch, among others. Additional content from Brian is available in his Quincessentials blog at myUCC.