Intro to REVEAL

   Michael Stipe has on numerous occasions referred to this as a 'summer album' and it's hard to argue with that claim, especially as I write this in the cheap seats of a lingering winter. The album is light and airy, which is very distinctly purposeful as the band wanted to challenge the notions of what an R.E.M. song is and sounds like. Peter says the only song in his mind that resembles a traditional R.E.M. track is Imitation of Life, but even in my cursory leap into the album it's clear the group can never get away from how they write and only how they record and produce. I've added the press kit for the album below in which Peter talks about almost jettisoning 'Imitation' and taking away the acoustic guitar on 'I've been High' in order to serve up a completely new sound for ... fans? It's unclear who the album would be for, but needless to say if you're truly a fan of the artist you'll follow them through even the boldest re-workings of their craft.
   Earlier in the blog I threw some shade at AROUND THE SUN as their biggest let down as a band and I'm going to backtrack on that a bit to offer up an intentional let down with REVEAL. It's on this album the band truly doesn't care what you think, Michael is more intent than ever to personalize his lyrics, and Peter and Mike are throwing shit together with a mad scientist wholesale warehouse type of mentality. In fact 'Saturn Return,' according to Peter, is not a song--it's simply a leftover synth from 'Imitation' and a series of drum loops and add ons from other songs--sort of a Frankenstein's Monster track.
   This album came out at a very strange time here in the U.S. Bush II had started and was going terribly, we had just come through a contentious election and after the Lewinsky scandal a rather boring final years of Clinton. There was a malaise surrounding everything around Y2K and it seems to have attached itself to this album and the thoughts of the songwriters. REVEAL was simply an attempt by the band to step back as they did for OOT and AFTP and reveal who they were as musicians at this stage of their career. Michael succeeds in building on the 'Walk Unafraid' promise of his UP lyrics, by claiming the words came easier to him with this album as he has learned to trust his instincts. Which is refreshing in some ways, frustrating in others, however any writer will tell you that confidence is a gift and for some of the clunky turns of phrase, Michael also gifts us with some brilliant lyrical work.
   Measuring this album versus their earlier work is a fools errand, so taken at face value I love many parts of REVEAL. It came out at a time I was questioning my own soul and coming up with scary answers, so retreating into this pastiche version of R.E.M. was comforting--the opening of 'Summer Turns to High' in particular still feels like a cool wave on the hottest day. I also played in a duo that covered 'Imitation' and it wasn't until putting the words in my mouth I realized how good the song is, the production values on the album blend it with the overall soundscape, but the structure is very solid. I used to introduce it as the sequel to 'Losing My Religion' but now I'm not so sure. As I tab through the songs, I expect there to be a lot of chord progression posts and not so much accurate posting in favor of how to play on a solo guitar.
   With all of that said, the album is hard to decipher for the casual fan, but I'm going to try and crack that code. For without REVEAL and ATS there is no ACCELERATE or COLLAPSE, the band have to figure out who they are as a three piece. Because the departure of Bill came after initial plans for UP, I submit that REVEAL is truly the band on its own--they need this / a paperweight, a junk garage, winter rain, honey pot--that is what they're seeking to strip down to, to reveal who they are and what they want to be going forward.