Rock celebs R.E.M. (1980–2011) from Athens, Georgia
released their 10th album NEW ADVENTURES IN HI-FI
on 9 September 1996, today 30 years ago.
The members of R.E.M. consider the recorded album representative of the band at their peak, and fans generally regard it as the band’s last great record before a perceived artistic decline following drummerBill Berry‘s departure. It has sold around seven million units, and has grown in cult status in the years after its release, with several retrospectives ranking it among the band’s best work.
Mike Mills bassist: “It usually takes a good few years for me to decide where an album
stands in the pantheon of recorded work we’ve done. This one may be third behind Murmur and Automatic for the People.”
AllMusic wrote: “New Adventures in Hi-Fi feels like it was recorded on the road. Not only
are all of Michael Stipe’s lyrics on the album about moving or travel, the sound is ragged and varied, pieced together from tapes recorded at shows, soundtracks, and studios, giving it a loose, careening charm.”
PETER PERRETT – Botanique, Brussels – 17 November 2017
Despite the fact that British legends THE ONLY ONES emerged in the explosive, but quite short era of punk and new wave their characteristic, amplified power guitar pop brilliance
hadn’t much to do with the revolutionary DIY scene at the time. The London band featured bloody good, experienced musicians and with Peter Perrett, their charismatic frontman and singer/songwriter they had a troubled genius who wrote black-pitch stories about death, drugs addiction, and tormented love that hit countless souls. His dark desire for
all sorts of tragic human themes was obviously inspired/caused by his heroin abuse.
His intriguing, melancholic voice matched their dazzling, electrical melodies hauntingly perfect. The band released three albums – Even Serpents Shineis my all time favorite – between 1976-1982 and scored a knockout classic single with ‘Another Girl, Another Planet’ back in 1978…
Enough about last century. Back to the present. Last June, the now 65-year-old Perrett released his first proper solo album ‘How The West Was Won’. Simply the most touching record I heard all year. A highly affecting work of moody passion with several emotional songs about his eternal love for his wife of many years, Zena, but also gripping musings about his turbulent past and striking reflections on his current state of mind. Overall this soul-stirring longplayer is about the one and only essential drug in life: LOVE.
Yesterday the man landed in Brussels. Assisted by a splendiferous 5-piece ‘children‘ band, featuring two of his sons and two cool ladies (electric violin/keys & tambourine/keys), Perrett moved us all intensely with a striking performance for heart and soul. Of course, they played that Only Ones masterstroke but this spellbinding concert was mostly about now, about how Perrett feels today, about ‘How The West Was Won’ and that is something quite special. From amplified lullabies to mind-blowing jams led by brilliant guitarist Jamie Perrett taking the jubilant audience to an ecstatic level. And yes, the veteran’s magnetic voice is still spot on and, most remarkably, he enjoyed every single second of the entire show and looks really like a genuinely happy survivor, still highly capable of enrapturing people, off and on stage. Unlike the late Johnny Thunders once sang ‘You Can’t Put Your
Arms Around a Memory’ I’ll embrace this memorable evening forever…
Here’s the magnificent HOW THE WEST WAS WON in full…
