R.E.M. - REMTV (2014) [6DVD Box Set]

From their earliest days as a band, the members of R.E.M. always had a Keen sense of how they wanted to be perceived visually, even when it sometimes seemed as if they didn’t want to be seen at all. The cover of their independently released 1981 single. “Radio Free Europe.” featured an impossibly blurry image that, typically, did not include the four band members: singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. Photographs of the band, even “portraits,” freguently found none of the four looking directly at the camera. This all was part of a conscious visual presentation that found its sonic equivalent in the title of the band’s groundbreaking - and now classic - debut album in 1983: Murmur. You had to listen hard to understand what R.E.M. was saying, and you had to look hard to find them.
R.E.M.'s distinctive visual aesthetic derived from a number of different sources. One was the band’s hometown. Athens. GA. the home of the University of Georgia. UGA is an enormous school, the main campus of the Georgia state university system, a football powerhouse and a college legendary throughout the Southeast as a party school. Stipe was a student at UGA’s School of Art and. in particular, a protege of James Herbert, a renowned painter and experimental filmmaker who would go on to direct early films featuring the band and create notable videos throughout the group’s career. The UGA art school was a bohemian hotbed, in part due to the influence of visionary professors like Herbert, but also because the students there were determined to define themselves in opposition to the ruthlessly mainstream college culture epitomized by UGA’s fraternity and sorority system and the school’s beloved football team, the Georgia Bulldogs. As an art student, the last thing you would want to produce was any work that seemed conformist or conventional. So when R.E.M. recorded its first independent single and Peter Buck told Michael that, since he was an art student, he should oversee the band’s art. Buck undoubtedly knew that Michael would not come up with a standard-issue band portrait.
And that was just fine with him, and Mills and Berry as well. Buck worked in the local used record store in Athens, and he was the sort of enthusiastic music fan who would flip through the bins - these were the days of vynil albums, remember — and pull out records that intrigued him because they had cool covers. Anything that was evocative, offbeat or just plain weird was apt to catch his eye. Mills and Berry, who had been high school buddies in Macon. GA. and come to UGA together, were also well aware of the idiosyncratic art scene that was flourishing in Athens and the anything-goes imperative that it encouraged among the bands, like The B-52’s and Pylon, that had already emerged from it. So Stipe’s aesthetic of indirectness, his willingness to hold back and let viewers find their own way into R.E.M.’s art work, created precisely the sort of unfixed image that the band felt most comfortable with.
That visual strategy perfectly paralleled R.E.M.’s early sound. Perhaps the word most often used to describe the band’s music in its early days was "enigmatic." Stipe’s lyrics were invariably said to be “indecipherable." As with the imagery surrounding the band, listeners were meant to discover their own meanings in the group’s songs. Stipe’s singing intentionally emphasized the sound of his words, not their meaning. The band had planned it that way. "We don’t clarify things.” Buck once said about R.E.M.'s songs. “When we first started. Michael and I used to say how much we hated most rock & roll lyrics.
We had this idea that what we'd do is take cliches, sayings, lines from old blues songs, phrases you hear all the time, and skew them and twist them and meld them together so that you’d be getting these things that have always been evocative, but that were skewed just enough to throw you off and make you think in a different way. It seemed like a really pretentious thing to do. but that concept does work its way in.”
Stipe agreed. "One of the things Peter always says about videos is that he hates them because they're so passive." he said in 1984. “It’s all handed to you - you just sit and watch them. I think a lot of music is that way. too. The idea is there and it’s very clear-cut: you don't have to think about it at all. If you had to think about it some or come up with your own idea of it. the song might have more personal meaning for you.” Buck’s term for videos at the time was "image fascism." Indeed, despite his love for visual imagery of all sorts. Stipe himself had significant reservations about videos in R.E.M.’s early days. For one thing, he hated to lip-sync, a standard technigue when filming to a recorded track. That’s one of the reasons why Stipe is not shown "singing" in many of R.E.M.'s early videos.
Those questions about videos came up because virtually simultaneous with R.E.M.’s emergence on the national music scene was the launch of MTV. Indeed, R.E.M. released its first single in July of 1981, and MTV broadcast its first video (The Buggies’ “Video Killed The Radio Star”) shortly afterwards on August 1st. Initially, however, MTV and R.E.M. hardly seemed suited to each other. Like so many revolutionary ideas, the very notion of a 24-hour music channel at first seemed like a patent absurdity. What could possibly be more boring? Desperate to fill its airwaves and establish itself in viewers’ homes, MTV primarily turned to acts who were eager to make videos that were instantly appealing and entertaining in obvious ways. Many of those artists were from England, loved to dress up in garish outfits and had attention-grabbing haircuts. They were sometimes fun and some of them were terrific, but they were light years away from anything R.E.M. was interested in doing. Commercial radio rarely played R.E.M. Given how left-of-center R.E.M.’s early videos were, how likely was it that they would ever gain significant exposure on MTV?
But as time went on, R.E.M. and MTV began to move closer together. With each successive album, the members of R.E.M. grew more confident and seemed increasingly to understand that they could broaden their audience on their own terms, that they could push the boundaries of what radio and MTV could handle without sacrificing any of their principles. Similarly, MTV began to see that it had exerted an influence on culture that extended far beyond showing clever videos. As the Eighties progressed and then yielded to the Nineties, the visual culture that we all currently live in was fully taking shape, driven for the most part by the momentum of MTV. MTV’s impact was pervasive - both ubiquitous and undeniable. Not just music - as if that weren’t enough - but fashion, movies, advertising, mainstream television, literature and even politics all were decisively influenced by the look, feel, content and style of MTV.
In ways that no other medium had ever done so successfully, MTV demonstrated an ability to evolve that was simply breathtaking. It also displayed an uncanny ability to take the most pointed criticisms hurled at it and incorporate them into the network’s programming, all without breaking stride. So you accused MTV of helpinq to create the blockbuster culture of the Eighties in which only artists capable of selling millions of records were deemed worthy of airtime? Well, perhaps you’d be interested in The Cutting Edge (which was sponsored by R.E.M.’s label, I.R.S. Records) or 120 Minutes, shows that gave important exposure to some of the edgiest and most daring artists of the day, including R.E.M.
Maybe you believed that MTV debased live performance by creating a culture in which fans attending a concert would be disappointed if they didn’t witness the sort of sensational, eye-popping visuals that they routinely encountered in videos? In that case, you might enjoy Unplugged, an intimate concert show that MTV pioneered in which the paramount virtues were musicianship, songwriting and the ability to convey your music to a small, discerning audience without the help of any tricks or effects. R.E.M. performed wonderfully on Unplugged two times, distinguishing themselves as one of the rare groups capable of both breaking boundaries as video artists and performing with true musicianly skill.
Finally, did you fear that MTV was creating a generation of passive consumers who could be easily manipulated by the powers that be? Really nothing to worry about there either. MTV’s news department revolutionized political campaign coverage, and initiatives like “Rock The Vote” and “Vote For Change” (once again, with R.E.M. energetically involved in both) educated and inspired millions of young people to take a harder look at the world around them and to work to make that world a better place.
By the time Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” announced a changing of the generational guard in music in 1991, R.E.M. and MTV were perfectly aligned in the Zeitgeist. Bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam began to dominate MTV’s programming, and those bands and others like them revered R.E.M. as a formative influence. (Watching Eddie Vedder induct R.E.M. into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007 should give some sense of his deep admiration for the band.) In addition, R.E.M. was just entering its period of greatest commercial might. Out Of Time (1991) and Automatic For The People (1992) each sold more than ten million copies worldwide, and Monster (1994) sold more than four million copies in the United States alone. Because R.E.M. didn’t tour in support of either Out Of Time or Automatic For The People and did relatively few interviews as well, the band’s videos were their eissential means of reaching their audience. Characteristically they made those videos count. R.E.M. won in six categories at the 1991 Video Music Awards, and each time he went up to accept one of the band's prizes. Michael Stipe wore a t-shirt bearing a slogan (“Rainforest," “Wear a Condom,” “Alternative Energy Now," among others) for effective political messaging. It was a perfect MTV moment.
R.E.M. was in the process of building a massive global audience, and MTV had simultaneously become one of the world’s most recognizable global brands. MTV Networks, which along with MTV also included VH1, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central, has more than a hundred channels around the world, and R E.M. has appeared on many of them, blending the foreign and the familiar into a partnership that was advantageous for everyone - the band. MTV and the audience.
Consequently, until R E M dramatically disbanded in 2011. the group and MTV essentially moved in tandem, and the entire story, beginning to end. is chronicled in this six-DVD set. REMTV. The blending of their names in that title reflects how inextricable their history eventually became. That point is eloquently brought home in the nearly two-hour documentary. R E.M By MTV. that constitutes the heart of this superb collection of live performances, awards show highlights and television appearances. Because it draws exclusively on archival events, R.E.M. By MTV traces the progress of R E M. and MTV in real time, which makes that progress feel as exciting and immediate as it did as it was happening. All the energy and momentum of both the band and the channel come roaring through. You feel that sense of a continual present tense that MTV was masterful at conveying, and only the viewer - you. that is - provides a retrospective viewpoint. If you want to know or remember what those days were like, this is exactly what they were like.
Without guestion, R.E.M.’s history could be told from many different vantages, and MTV, too, had an impact that was much larger than any individual band could encompass. Taken together, however, the stories of R E M and MTV intertwine in revealing, amusing, surprising and entertaining ways. So much of what’s important about the past thirty-five years in music can be gleaned from REMTV - and, no doubt, so much about the sources of what will become important in the future can be found in here as well.

Anthony DeCurtis

Tracklist DVD1:

UNPLUGGED 1991 (04/10/91)
Half A World Away
Disturbance at the Heron House
Radio Song
Low
Perfect Circle
Fall on Me
Belong
Love is All Around
Its The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Losing My Religion
Pop Song 89
Endgame

OUTTAKES 1991
Fretless
Swan Swan H
Rotary Eleven
Get Up
World Leader Pretend

UNPLUGGED 2001 (05/21/01)
All The Way To Reno (You’re Gonna Be A Star)
Electrolite
At My Most Beautiful
Daysleeper
So. Central Rain (I’m Sorry)
Losing My Religion
Country Feedback
Cuyahoga
Imitation of Life
Find the River

OUTTAKES 2001
The One I Love
Disappear
Beat a Drum
I’ve Been High
I’ll Take the Rain
Sad Professor
The Great Beyond


Tracklist DVD2:

VH1 STORYTELLERS (10/23/98)
Electrolite
Daysleeper
Losing My Religion
Perfect Circle
Sad Professor
Fall On Me
I’m Not Over You
The Apologist
Man On The Moon

STORYTELLERS – OUTTAKES
New Test Leper
Parakeet
(Don’t Go Back To) Rockville
Suspicion
Walk Unafraid
At My Most Beautiful

THE CUTTING EDGE (06/14/84)
(Don’t Go Back To) Rockville
Driver 8
Wendell Gee
Smokin’ In The Boys Room
Time After Time (Annelise)
Driver 8

LIVEWIRE (10/30/83)
So. Central Rain (I’m Sorry)
Carnival of Sorts (Box Cars)

MTV 10th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL (11/10/91)
Featuring members of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
Losing My Religion

VIDEO MUSIC AWARDS 1993 (09/02/93)
Including Brian Harris and Duane Saetveit
Everybody Hurts
Drive

VIDEO MUSIC AWARDS 1995 (09/07/95)
The Wake-Up Bomb

EUROPEAN MUSIC AWARDS 1998 (11/12/98)
Daysleeper

EUROPEAN MUSIC AWARDS 2001 (11/08/01)
Imitation Of Life

ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME INDUCTION 2007 (03/12/07)
Begin The Begin
Gardening At Night
Man On The Moon

THE COLBERT REPORT (04/02/08)
Supernatural Superserious


Tracklist DVD3:

R.E.M. IN DALLAS (09/19/95)
I Took Your Name
What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?
Crush With Eyeliner

R.E.M. UPLINK AT BOWERY BALLROOM (10/28/98)
Losing My Religion
Lotus
Daysleeper
E-Bow The Letter
The Apologist
So. Central Rain (I’m Sorry)
Walk Unafraid
Man On The Moon
Radio Free Europe

LIVE IN COLOGNE (05/12/01)
All The Way To Reno (You’re Gonna Be A Star)
The Lifting
Imitation Of Life
The One I Love
She Just Wants To Be
Walk Unafraid
Losing My Religion
Man On The Moon
Its The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)

LIVE IN COLOGNE OUTTAKES
What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?
Cuyahoga
Electrolite
I’ve Been High
Find The River
I’ll Take The Rain
At My Most Beautiful
So. Central Rain (I’m Sorry)


Tracklist DVD4:

R.E.M. AT THE TABERNACLE, LONDON (03/02/99)
Losing My Religion
Daysleeper
Walk Unafraid
Man On The Moon
What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?
Its The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)

MTV SONIC MILAN (05/02/01)
Losing My Religion
The Great Beyond
What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?
Daysleeper
All The Way To Reno (You’re Gonna Be A Star)
The Lifting
I’ll Take The Rain
I’ve Been High
Man On The Moon
She Just Wants To Be
Imitation Of Life

ROCK AM RING (06/03/05)
What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?
Leaving New York
Imitation Of Life
Electron Blue
Man On The Moon

ROCK AM RING OUTTAKES
I Took Your Name
Bad Day
Drive
The Outsiders
Leave
Me In Honey
Wanderlust
Everybody Hurts
Electrolite
Orange Crush
The One I Love
Walk Unafraid
Losing My Religion
Imitation Of Life
The Great Beyond
Animal
I’m Gonna DJ


Tracklist DVD5:

LIVE AT ROLLING STONE, MILAN (03/18/08)
Living Well Is The Best Revenge
Drive
Accelerate
Hollow Man
Electrolite
Houston
Supernatural Superserious
Bad Day
Losing My Religion
I’m Gonna DJ
Horse To Water
Imitation Of Life
Until The Day Is Done
Man On The Moon

LIVE AT OXEGEN FESTIVAL (07/12/08)
What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?
Drive
It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Man-Sized Wreath
I’m Gonna DJ
Supernatural Superserious
Man On The Moon

R.E.M. IN ATHENS, GREECE (10/05/08)
Living Well Is The Best Revenge
What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?
Drive
Man-Sized Wreath
Bad Day
Electrolite
(Don’t Go Back To) Rockville
The Great Beyond
The One I Love
Losing My Religion
Let Me In
Orange Crush
Imitation Of Life
Supernatural Superserious
Man On The Moon


Tracklist DVD6:

R.E.M. BY MTV
Opening
I.R.S./Chronic Town/Murmur
Reckoning
Fables of the Reconstruction
Lifes Rich Pageant
Document

DELETED SCENES
Peter
Politics
Golf
The Hornblower Affair
The Year 2000













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