ACCELERATE: I'M GONNA DJ

  This is the last official song for me to post, the last album track anyway. There's a sense of accomplishment, but as I look back through the work I've done there's a lot to clean up. I've already started with 'Wolves, Lower' and you can tell a marked difference between that post and 'Gardening at Night' for the time being. Next up, I'll tackle the last two sets of new tracks that came out on OLYMPIA and PART LTHG respectively. Then move on to revisit CIN as I threw those tracks out right as the album was released, then pick up Non Album Tracks starting from their earliest live recordings. I've already done 'Narrator' but I think maybe stuff like 'Body Count' will land here through tracks like 'Photograph'.
  This song sums up this album for me, it rocks hard, is a little slight, and is over before I'm good and ready. The RUTalkin' podcast gave this one short shrift, but I love it because it reminds me of the last time I saw them live. They did this track and 'Permanent Vacation' which thrilled the HELL out of me. It's also a nice feel for the end of this thematic album, a world overcrowded and stifling but with a sense that there's always one last celebration--sort of like '1999.' Plus, in coming to the end of this lyrical journey the song perfectly captures Michael at his most impish. A pop star that knows two things: Pop music is ephemeral and that he has imbued his lyrics with more meaning than they'll ever need. I'm convinced this band from the beginning this was supposed to be Velvet Underground redux and along the way they started enjoying being popular.





I'M GONNA DJ
Death is pretty final

I'm collecting vinyl
I'm gonna DJ at the end of the world

‘Cause if heaven does exist
With a kicking play list
I don't wanna miss it at the end of the world

Hey steady steady
Hey steady steady
I don't wanna go until I'm good and ready

It’s on my mind
It’s in my mind
It’s what I found
It’s what I find

It’s on my mind
It’s in my mind
It’s what I found
Oh my my my

But ‘I'll spin my way right through it’
Claims enthusiast Jack Pruitt
As the moths circle the moon
As you’re circling the room

The music could provide the light you cannot resist
You cannot resist
You cannot resist

And the weblogs that get tangled
As you willie and you wangle
In your walk-up in Seattle
Where you fought the nascent battle
You threw the tread and throttle
Let us raise another bottle
Raise another bottle
Raise another bottle

Because death is pretty final

(Final)
I'm collecting vinyl

(Vinyl)
I'm gonna DJ at the end of the world

Hey steady steady
Hey steady steady
I don't wanna go until I'm good and ready

It’s on my mind
It’s in my mind
It’s what I found
It’s what I find

It’s on my mind
It’s in my mind
It’s what I found
Oh my my my

Hey steady steady

(It’s on my mind)
Hey steady steady

(It’s in my mind)
I don't wanna go until I'm good and ready

(It’s what I found)

Hey steady steady

(It’s on my mind)
Hey steady steady

(It’s in my mind)
I don't wanna go until I'm good and ready

(It’s what I found)

The music will provide the light you cannot resist
You cannot resist

(I’m gonna DJ)
You cannot resist

(I’m gonna DJ)

Yeah


   Great song to end on. Super easy, but with some tricks up its sleeve. The verse becomes the chorus becomes the verse, a middle 8, sometimes nothing, some negative strings on the live version, so Buckish it's perfect. I've added some stuff below, like the Intro guitar chord, the Mike Mills Bass walk on the middle 8 (Peter and Scott hang on G). The x's in the verse mean don't play anything! During the verse, Mike plays an A note and if you HAVE to play something that isn't negative chords I suggest the first chord of 'Welcome to the Occupation.' The one finger on the second fret D string. 

I'M GONNA DJ

Intro (Guitar 1)

e|-1--|

B|-0--|

G|-0--|

D|-2--|

A|-0--|

E|-0--|

Intro (Guitar 2)

e|-0---0-0---0-0---0-0----0-0----0-0--0-------------|

B|-0-4-0-0-6-0-0-8-0-0-10-0-0-12-0-0-13b!-----------|

G|-0------------------------------------------------|

D|--------------------------------------------------|

A|--------------------------------------------------|

E|--------------------------------------------------|

Verse

e|-0-x---3--------0---0-|

B|-0-x---3--------0---0-|

G|-6-x---0--------5---7-|

D|-7-x---0--------5---7-|

A|-7-x---2--------3---5-|

E|-5-x---3---x2---0---0-|

2^nd Verse Fill

e|-0--|

B|-3b-|

G|-0--|

D|----|

A|----|

E|----|

Chorus

e|-0-0-----0-0-----0-0---0-0--|

B|-0-0-----0-0-----0-0---0-0--|

G|-7>9-----7>9-----7>9---7-0--|

D|-7>9-----7>9-----7>9---7-7--|

A|-5>7---0-5>7---0-5>7---5-7--|

E|-0-0---0-0-0---0-0-0---0-5--|

Chorus to Middle 8

e|-0-0-----0-0-----0-0---0-0---3--------------|

B|-0-0-----0-0-----0-0---0-0---3--------------|

G|-7>9-----7>9-----7>9---7-4---0--------------|

D|-7>9-----7>9-----7>9---7-4---0--------------|

A|-5>7---0-5>7---0-5>7---5-2---2--(8--10--12)-|

E|-0-0---0-0-0---0-0-0---0-0---3--(6---8--10)-|

Chorus to End

e|-0-0-----0-0-----0-0---0-0---0------0-|

B|-0-0-----0-0-----0-0---0-0---0------0-|

G|-7>9-----7>9-----7>9---7-4---6------8-|

D|-7>9-----7>9-----7>9---7-4---7------9-|

A|-5>7---0-5>7---0-5>7---5-2---7------9-|

E|-0-0---0-0-0---0-0-0---0-0---5------7-|

ACCELERATE: HORSE TO WATER

   The next two songs blend together for me as companion pieces. There's something about the way they use the discordant notes as the two guitars work off each other. It's almost as if Peter and Scott are two parts of the same chord at times which makes for a great sound in a live setting. As album pieces, there is a reflection of the MONSTER and NAIHF years as the band attempts to pen arena sized songs. So ends the album of, 'hey, we can still rock' and the end of the band as a trio. On these last two albums the five musicians here are a band and they get really tight. It's a shame they didn't tour after CIN, but this tour has some solid moments on it. The most surprising thing about this song is how many lyrics there are in relation to its length. R.E.M. are definitely letting the songs dictate how long they are, but maybe they could've dreamed up a couple of Middle 8's here at the end of the album? The lyrics are very combative and are possibly the other version of 'Hollow Man' from a different perspective. Also, I've decided to use the live version below because of how Michael reacts to the sound of Scott echoing water. Cracks me up.
Side note, it's SHOCKING how inaccurate the lyrics are for this album on Google searches--especially considering the lyrics are INCLUDED WITH THE ALBUM. Is there just a bot picking out lyrics, or is this the work of a real person?




HORSE TO WATER

I could have kept my head down
I might have kept my mouth shut
I should have held my own
You lead a horse to water and you watch him drown

You're only as big as your battles
Rattle my cage with your shadow
I'm a bantamweight with a mouth full of feathers
Don't you know that what comes around goes around

I'm not that easy
I am not your horse to water

(water)
I hold my breath I come around round round

Don't darken my doorstep again
You're mixing up lemonade gin-gin
You're mixing up lose with win/win
Lead a horse to water and you watch him drown

You’re stumble on glass top table
Divas chewing chalk on cable
Humvee up a beanstalk fable
I don’t call this entertainment ‘cause Humpty's falling down

I'm not that easy
I am not your horse to water

(water)
I hold my breath I come around round round

Pick a fight launch a buzzy bar brawl
Friday night fuck or fight a pub crawl
Bantamweight with a mouth full of feathers
Don't you know that what comes around goes around

I'm not that easy
I am not your horse to water

(water)
I hold my breath I come around round round

It's not that easy
I am not your horse to water

(water)
I hold my breath I come around round round
It’s going down down down
This run around round round
Is bound to pound the daylights out of you

   This song is pretty easy to play. Just a few chords, but note how much Peter leans on the open B and e string below. I've over emphasized it as he keeps the F# intact, but just barely. There's definitely more doodling than what I've put below by Scott, but it's mostly here.

Verse (Guitar 1)

e|---0---0---0---0-----0--|

B|---0---0---0---0-----0--|

G|---3-----------------8--|

D|---4-----------------9--|

A|---4-----------------9--|

E|-0-2-----------x3----7--|

Verse (Guitar 2)

e|---------------------0--|

B|-2^-----2^----4^-----0--|

G|-----2^--------------8--|

D|---------------------9--|

A|---------------------9--|

E|---------------------7--|

Ending

e|-0---0---0---0---0---0---0--|

B|-0---0---0---0---0---0---0--|

G|-9---8---6---4---3---2---1--|

D|-9---9---7---5---4---3---2--|

A|-7---9---7---5---4---3---2--|

E|-0---7---5---3---2---1---0--|

Ending (Guitar 2)

e|-----------------------------|

B|---------5^--2^--------------|

G|-----------------6^--5^--4^--|

D|-----------------------------|

A|-----------------------------|

E|-----------------------------|

ACCELERATE: SING FOR THE SUBMARINE

   It's entirely possible that this is the first song where Michael is really thinking about legacy leading into their final album. Starting with the 'Auctioneer' style sound and following through with the name dropped older tunes including 'Electron Blue,' 'Feeling Gravitys Pull,' 'ITEOTWAWKI.' and 'High Speed Train' and then placing us in the futuristic world of Blade Runner with the mention of Tyrell's Mechanical Owl he's placing those tracks in a recognizable world. The visualization of which is the city Michael designed as the album art and the feeling of the song is of a distinctly different personality in an artist pulled in two directions. Here's the Michael who oversees all of the art direction of the band, and here's the singer, so the submarine becomes the way to compartmentalize, but also a time capsule for the future. A brilliant song really. And some amazing sounds here for the band, Mike's vocalized harmonies are transcendent, Peter's play on Radiohead is smooth as hell, and let's acknowledge Scott and Bill as the backups here--some very cool and thematic things happening. It's sad that the last two songs don't really build on the idea of this song, but it makes me wonder what comes out of these guys if they spend another month writing.





SING FOR THE SUBMARINE

It feels in dreams that everything’s there for you
The city breathes and pulses
It's fuel electron blue

I knew that you could see right through it
So this is where you give in to the machine
Lift up your voice feel gravitys pull
And drown out the sirens ring

Ohhhh

It's all here where I keep it
It's all in the submarine
It's all a lot less frightening
Than we would’ve had it be
And that's the good news, my darling
It is what it's going to be, so

Sing, sing for the submarine

I tried to explain how it all begins
How it’s all destroyed and built again
I knew that you could not believe me
But now you're here and it's different
How the light shines in your eyes
In every second a century
It's then that I realized
The world as we know it, the high speed train
We'll pick it all up and start again

It's all here where I keep it
It's all in the submarine
It's all a lot less frightening
Than we would’ve had it be
And that's the good news, my darling
It is what it's going to be, so

Sing, sing for the submarine

The city did not collapse in a shudder
The rain it never came
At least my confessions made you laugh
I know it's a little crazed
But these dreams they seem so real to me

It's all here where I keep it
It's all in the submarine
It's all a lot less frightening
Than we would’ve had it be
And that's the good news, my darling
It is what it's going to be, so

Sing, sing for the submarine

And so this is where you trust me
That this is where it begins
It's all a lot less frightening
We’re here in the interim
Tyrell and his mechanical owl
A moth disguised as a leaf

Don't tell me what tomorrow brings
We climb into the hidden machine and
Sing sing sing

Sing sing sing
Sing sing for the submarine

   Some marvelous overlays here, but nothing too fancy. Simply otherworldly. I don't have much more to say except it's a cool mix of Auctioneer and Around The Sun style chords (that is to say, there's a Dm). Love the walkdown at the end of the Chorus.

SING FOR THE SUBMARINE

Verse (Guitar 1)

e|----0------0---|----0----|

B|-----0------0--|-----0---|

G|-4-4--4-4-4----|-3-3-----|

D|-4----4-4------|-4-------|

A|-2----2>3------|-4-------|

E|-----(repeat)--|-2-------|

Verse (Guitar 2)

e|--------------------------------|

B|--------------------------------|

G|-4---5---7---9---4---5---7---5--|

D|-x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x--|

A|-2---3---5---7---2---3---5---3--|

E|-0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0--|

e|---------------------------------|--(repeat)--|

B|---------------------------------|------------|

G|-4---5---7---9---4---5---7---12--|-11---9>11--|

D|-x---x---x---x---x---x---x----x--|--x---x--x--|

A|-2---3---5---7---2---3---5---10--|--9---7>-9--|

E|-0---0---0---0---0---0---0----0--|--0---0--0--|

Chorus (Am-Dm) Guitar 2

e|------------------------------17-12-----------------------------|

B|-13------------10------------------13-13-15h-13--10-------------|

G|-----------------10-10-12h-10----------------------10-10-12h-10-|

D|---10-10-12h-10-------------------------------------------------|

A|----------------------------------------------------------------|

E|----------------------------------------------------------------|

e|-12------------------------------|

B|---13------------10--------------|

G|-------------------10-10-12h-10--|

D|-----10-10-12h-10----------------|

A|---------------------------------|

E|---------------------------------|

Chorus (C-Em) Guitar 2

e|-------------------|

B|-------------------|

G|----12-9-----12-9--|

D|-10-----10-9-------|

A|-------------------|

E|-------------------|

2^nd Verse Fill

e|----------------------------------|

B|-7------7------8-7---5-7---7-5-7--|

G|----------------------------------|

D|----------------------------------|

A|----------------------------------|

E|----------------------------------|

Middle 8 Guitar 1

D|-4-4-9-8-8-12-11-11-12-14-7-4-4-9-8-8-12-11-11-12-14-12-|

A|-x-x-x-x-x--x--x--x--x--x-x-x-x-x-x-x--x--x--x--x--x--x-|

E|-2-2-7-6-6-10--9--9-10-12-5-2-2-7-6-6-10--9--9-10-12-10-|

D|-4-4-9-8-8-12-11-11-12-14-7-9---|

A|-x-x-x-x-x--x--x--x--x--x-x-x---|

E|-2-2-7-6-6-10--9--9-10-12-5-7---|

Middle 8 Guitar 2 (End)

e|--------------9---12-14-13-14---|

B|--------------------------------|

G|-9^-10^-11^---------------------|

D|--------------------------------|

A|--------------------------------|

E|--------------------------------|

End on Am

ACCELERATE: UNTIL THE DAY IS DONE

   I can't unthink of Anderson Cooper riding on a boat with this one. The track was used before the album came out for a series called PLANET IN PERIL on CNN and I think that sort of commercialism is hard for a fan--I'm not sure if the song ever redeemed itself for me. But it's a beautiful song along the lines of 'Find the River' or 'Sweetness Follows.' All the late R.E.M. hallmarks are here, catchy riffs, solid bass line, and anthemic lyrics. In an album that flies by it's a nice respite for what's to come and a strange slowing down after a song called 'Accelerate.' There's nothing much more to say about this except Michael says it's the sister song to 'I Wanted To Be Wrong' and the key to the song is in the Middle 8. Pretty clearly a rebuke of the Bush era and the hawkishness of the whole executive branch in the 2000's.



UNTIL THE DAY IS DONE

The battle’s been lost, the war is not won

An addled republic, a bitter refund

The business first flat earthers licking their wounds

The verdict is dire, the country’s in ruins

Providence blinked facing the sun

And where are we left to carry on

Until the day is done

Until the day is done

So we’ve written our stories to entertain

These notions of glory and bull market gain

The teleprompt flutters, a power surge brings

An easyspeak message falls into routine

Providence blinked facing the sun

And where are we left to carry on

Until the day is done

Until the day is done

A voice whispers ‘son’

The blessed vision comes

What have I done?

What have I done?

So hold tight your babies and your guns

Forgive us our trespasses, father and son

Providence blinked facing the sun

And where are we left to carry on

Until the day is done

Until the day is done

Until the day is done

Until the day is done

   Great song to just lazily pick along to. It kind of feels like Final Straw, but a little less folk and more Buck. I like how he emphasizes the B string in the high part of the pick. There's also a VERY prominent 12 string in the recording that fills out the song if you have one. There's some other flourishes in the background I didn't tab out, but they're easy enough to pick out if you want them. Important note: Peter puts an extra beat in the verse after the first time through, play along with the song to feel it out.

UNTIL THE DAY IS DONE

Intro/Verse

e|-0------0------0---------0>0<0-------0---|

B|-3------3------3---------3>5<3-------3---|

G|-2-0-2h-2-0-2h-2---------2>4<2-------2---|

D|-0------0------0---------0>0<0---2-0-0---|

A|-----------------3---2-0----------3------|

E|----------------------3------------------|

Chorus

e|-5-3-2-x---------x---------x-----------------|

B|-------3--3---3--3--3---3--3--3---3---3------|

G|-------0---0---0-0---0---0-2-2---2---2-------|

D|-------2-2---2---0---------0---0---0---0-----|

A|-------3----3----2-2---2--------0---0--------|

E|-------0---------3----3------------------x3--| 

e|-5-3-2-0--0---0--x---------x--------------|

B|-------2---2---2-3--3---3--3--3---3---3---|

G|-------2-2---2---0---0---0-2-2---2---2----|

D|-------2----2----0---------0---0---0---0--|

A|-------0---------2-2---2--------0---0-----|

E|-------0---------3----3-------------------| 

Middle 8

e|-x-----------x----5-3-2------x---------x---------x--------|

B|-3--3--5-3-5-3--3------------3--3---3--3--3---3--3--3--3--|

G|-0---0-------2---2-----------0---0---0-0---0---0-2---2--2-|

D|-2-2---------0-0-------------2-2---2---0---------2-2--2---|

A|-3---------------------------3----3----2-2---2---0---0----|

E|-0----------------------x2---0---------3----3----0--------|

ACCELERATE: ACCELERATE

   According to my unofficial recollection, I've only pounded one R.E.M. song and that was 'The Wake Up Bomb'--not my favorite. This one is a runner up to my least favorite track and it's hard to place why. Perhaps its because the song is pedestrian in a way I don't expect from the band. When I was in a band we wrote songs like this and we pretty much sucked, in fact this would not have been our best song. Unlike most of Michael's lyrics I can't really get any visuals except for falling, jumping out a window, but not suffering as much as others--I read somewhere a speculation that this was about the falling man on 9/11. I can't get a handle, but Michael once said the ending is cut off before the person can finish the thought ... the last word should be 'control.' One up side is Bill Rieflin on the drums, particularly live, he's going apeshit!




ACCELERATE

Sinking fast, the weights chained to my feet

No time to argue with belief

I'm not alone a thousand others dropping faster than me

What put me here?

Nothing to hold on to

Nowhere to brake

Where is the ripcord, the trapdoor, the key?

Where is the cartoon escape hatch for me?

No time to question the choices I make

I've got to fall in another direction

The last thing I remember is climbing up the stairs

I threw the window open, challenging despair

I don't know what I need

I needed time

I needed to escape

I saw the future turned upside down and hesitate

Where is the ripcord, the trapdoor, the key?

Where is the cartoon escape hatch for me?

No time to question the choices I make

I've got to fall in another direction

Accelerate

The vista I see now is changing

Uncertainty is suffocating

Our hope has never felt so grating

Lit up dim and pounding pulse

To make it go, make it slow down, go

Where is the ripcord, the trapdoor, the key?

Where is the cartoon escape hatch for me?

No time to question the choices I make

I've got to fall in another direction

The city sputters like it's ready to explode

(Accelerate)

Accelerate to make it slow, make it go

(Accelerate)

Accelerate to make it slow, make it go

(Accelerate)

Accelerate

I'm incomplete

I'm incomplete

I'm incomplete

   This song is not un-fun to play, but it gets a little boring. It's all Peter Buck special power chords that are nice and open. Scott McCaughey is doing some nifty doodling, but I didn't really tab all of that, just a couple of things to keep it interesting. Maybe the best thing about this one is that open F# pick and adding it to the chord progression.

ACCELERATE

Intro/Outro

e|------------|

B|-----0----0-|

G|----0----0--|

D|--11---11---|

A|-9----9-----|

E|------------|

Verse

e|-0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0--|

B|-0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0--|

G|-4---4---9---7---4---4---0---0--|

D|-4---4---9---7---4---4---5---5--|

A|-2---2---7---5---2---2---5---5--|

E|-0---0---0---0---0---0---3---3--|

Chorus

e|--0---0--------0---0--|

B|--0---0--------0---0--|

G|-11---7--------0---0--|

D|-11---5--------7---5--|

A|--9---0--------7---5--|

E|--0---0---x3---5---3--|

Chorus (Guitar 2)

e|--0---0---0--------0----0---|

B|--0---0---0--------0----0---|

G|-11---5---7-------14---12---|

D|-11---5---7-------14---12---|

A|--0---0---0--------0----0---|

E|--0---0---0---x3---0----0---|

Final Chorus (Guitar 2)

e|--7--10--------5----7---|

B|--x---x--------x----x---|

G|--9---9--------7----9---|

D|--0---0--------0----0---|

A|------------------------|

E|----------x3------------|