R.E.M. - The Great Beyond
This might have been the last truly unforgettable song done by R.E.M., and this kinda saddens me. Such is the way of genius, though - nowhere to go but tedium or bedlam, and they went towards the former.
I strenuously disagree with your (and to be fair most peoples') opinion of R.E.M's later albums. (Totally agree that The Great Beyond is awesome tho)
Anyway, here's my essential listening for REM's later stuff:
Saturn Return, Bad Day, Leaving New York, Accelerate, Uberlin, and Mine Smell Like Honey.
Accelerate in particular is brilliant, tense and raw.
Uberlin and Mine Smell Like Honey I include mostly because they've got great music videos. I love that after these many decades music videos remain weird and experimental. Gives me hope for the human race, y'know?
Bad Day taps directly into what made their early pop stuff on Green and Document so great.
Saturn Return headlines the second half of Reveal - the half of the album that is worth listening to.
Leaving New York is a song about moments in transition, moments of uncertainty. It's a song for anyone who has ever moved to a new city, not knowing what to expect. Or moved from an old one, not knowing when they will return.
