R.E.M. - "new adventures in hi-fi"
		album of the day 5/6/03 written by ted
		SCORE: 7/10 (GREAT/INNOVATIVE)
		R.E.M. is one of those bands whose past is very rocky, ranging from politically fueled alt-rock, to love ballads, played country-punk style. And just when it seemed that the band had run out of steam, they realeased their final, true masterstroke, "New Adventures In Hi-Fi". A mix of incredible experimentation ("Leave", "How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us") to boring, but still emotional in a sense, alt-rock ("Be Mine", "Bittersweet Me"), "NAIHF" is a bittersweet R.E.M. swansong. I only call it a swansong as this is the last R.E.M. album with all four members (Bill Berry left shortly after recording this album). Nonetheless, it is still well worth listening to, because of the experimentation, although several songs are fairly forgettable. "Leave" shows R.E.M. at their most avant-garde-ish, and arguably, their most beautiful. It is undoubtedly one of the most epic and magnificent of all R.E.M. songs. "E-Bow The Letter" is also a notable track, with Patti Smith of "Horses" fame dropping down a few vocals. This may be R.E.M. at their most experimental, but unfortunately, they were also quite content with creating several boring, radio-friendly alt-rock songs in the mix. A second "Murmur"? No. But "NAIHF" stands well enough alone even when being compared to the R.E.M. of yore. RECOMMENDED CUTS: "Leave", "How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us"
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