ad info

CNN.com
 MAIN PAGE
 WORLD
 ASIANOW
 U.S.
 LOCAL
 POLITICS
 WEATHER
 BUSINESS
 SPORTS
 TECHNOLOGY
 NATURE
 ENTERTAINMENT
   movies
   music
   tv
 BOOKS
 TRAVEL
 FOOD
 HEALTH
 STYLE
 IN-DEPTH

 custom news
 Headline News brief
 daily almanac
 CNN networks
 CNN programs
 on-air transcripts
 news quiz

  CNN WEB SITES:
CNN Websites
 TIME INC. SITES:
 MORE SERVICES:
 video on demand
 video archive
 audio on demand
 news email services
 free email accounts
 desktop headlines
 pointcast
 pagenet

 DISCUSSION:
 message boards
 chat
 feedback

 SITE GUIDES:
 help
 contents
 search

 FASTER ACCESS:
 europe
 japan

 WEB SERVICES:
Music

For R.E.M., the beat goes on with 'Up'

Web posted on:
Tuesday, November 03, 1998 3:54:58 PM EST

From Correspondent Mark Scheerer

NEW YORK (CNN) -- R.E.M. is maintaining the beat, even after the departure of drummer Bill Berry. The band has released another album, "Up," the first since Berry retired last fall.

Using guest drummers, tape loops, and 20-year-old drum machines, R.E.M. made the album, which lead singer Michael Stipe says is the band's best effort.

"I don't think that we made the next R.E.M. record or the one after that," Stipe says. "I think we actually leap-frogged over the next two records in terms or how far we pushed ourselves. What we got, I think, is something light years ahead of ourselves."

Listen to a clip from R.E.M.'s "Daysleeper"

Audio clip: 131k WAV

(Courtesy Warner Bros. Records)

'Daysleeper' sounds familiar

The first single off the record is "Daysleeper," a mellow tune reminiscent of old-school R.E.M., says guitarist Mike Mills.

"It's the most traditional-sounding, R.E.M.-sounding song on the record, which is of course why the record company picked it," Mills says. "But it's kind of a shame because it's not at all indicative of the album."

Meanwhile, the band is contemplating their careers without Berry, who survived a near-death brain aneurysm in 1995, then left the band a year ago.

Bandmate Peter Buck says Berry's departure forced the band to consider their future together.

"If Bill had quit at the end of the last record, we probably wouldn't have gotten back together," Buck says.

'It's a strong work'

"He simply -- and courageously, I think -- said, 'I've done this and now I'm ready to do something else,'" Stipe says. "And he walked away from, I think, the greatest job in the world."

"He left, he's happy, and that's where I want him to be," says Mills.

Except for TV and benefit appearances like the Tibetan Freedom Concert, R.E.M. will not be touring behind this album.

Buck says the album will have to sell itself.

"If you look at the Top 10 or the Top 20, there's nothing like that in there," he says of "Up." "That said, it's a strong work. And I assume somebody's gonna buy it. Whether it's gonna be really easy to get on the radio, I don't know."

Related stories:
More Music News

Related sites:

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not
endorsed by CNN Interactive.

SEARCH CNN.com
Enter keyword(s)   go    help
  

 

Back to the top
© 2000 Cable News Network. All Rights Reserved.
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.