R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by dr… Read Full Bio ↴R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist/backing vocalist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe. One of the first alternative rock bands, R.E.M. was noted for Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style, Stipe's distinctive vocal quality and obscure lyrics, Mills's melodic basslines and backing vocals, and Berry's tight, economical style of drumming.

R.E.M. released its first single—"Radio Free Europe"—in 1981 on the independent record label Hib-Tone. The single was followed by the Chronic Town EP in 1982, the band's first release on I.R.S. Records. In 1983, the group released its critically acclaimed debut album, Murmur, and built its reputation over the next few years through subsequent releases, constant touring, and the support of college radio. Following years of underground success, R.E.M. achieved a mainstream hit in 1987 with the single "The One I Love". The group signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1988, and began to espouse political and environmental concerns while playing large arenas worldwide.

By the early 1990s, when alternative rock began to enter the mainstream, R.E.M. was viewed by subsequent acts such as Nirvana and Pavement as a pioneer of the genre. The band released its two most commercially successful albums, Out of Time (1991) and Automatic for the People (1992), which veered from the band's established sound and catapulted it to international fame. R.E.M.'s 1994 release, Monster, was a return to a more rock-oriented sound, but still continued its run of success. The band began its first tour in six years to support the album; the tour was marred by medical emergencies suffered by three of the band members.

In 1996, R.E.M. re-signed with Warner Bros. for a reported US$80 million, at the time the most expensive recording contract in history. Its 1996 release, New Adventures in Hi-Fi, though critically acclaimed, fared worse commercially than its predecessors. The following year, Bill Berry left the band, while Stipe, Buck, and Mills continued the group as a trio. Through some changes in musical style, the band continued its career into the next decade with mixed critical and commercial success, despite having sold more than 85 million records worldwide and becoming one of the world's best-selling music artists. In 2007, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility. R.E.M. disbanded amicably in September 2011, announcing the split on its website.

In January 1980, Michael Stipe met Peter Buck in Wuxtry Records, the Athens record store where Buck worked. The pair discovered that they shared similar tastes in music, particularly in punk rock and protopunk artists like Patti Smith, Television, and the Velvet Underground. Stipe said, "It turns out that I was buying all the records that [Buck] was saving for himself." Through mutual friend Kathleen O'Brien, Stipe and Buck then met fellow University of Georgia students Mike Mills and Bill Berry, who had played music together since high school and lived together in Georgia. The quartet agreed to collaborate on several songs; Stipe later commented that "there was never any grand plan behind any of it". Their still-unnamed band spent a few months rehearsing in a deconsecrated Episcopal church in Athens, and played its first show on April 5, 1980, supporting the Side Effects at O'Brien's birthday party held in the same church, performing a mix of originals and 1960s and 1970s covers. After considering Twisted Kites, Cans of Piss, and Negro Eyes, the band settled on "R.E.M." (which is an initialism for rapid eye movement, the dream stage of sleep), which Stipe selected at random from a dictionary.

The band members eventually dropped out of school to focus on their developing group. They found a manager in Jefferson Holt, a record store clerk who was so impressed by an R.E.M. performance in his hometown of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, that he moved to Athens. R.E.M.'s success was almost immediate in Athens and surrounding areas; the band drew progressively larger crowds for shows, which caused some resentment in the Athens music scene. Over the next year and a half, R.E.M. toured throughout the Southern United States. Touring was arduous because a touring circuit for alternative rock bands did not then exist. The group toured in an old blue van driven by Holt, and lived on a food allowance of $2 each per day.

R.E.M. was pivotal in the creation and development of the alternative rock genre. AllMusic stated, "R.E.M. mark the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock." In the early 1980s, the musical style of R.E.M. stood in contrast to the post-punk and new wave genres that had preceded it. Music journalist Simon Reynolds noted that the post-punk movement of the late 1970s and early 1980s "had taken whole swaths of music off the menu", particularly that of the 1960s, and that "After postpunk's demystification and New Pop's schematics, it felt liberating to listen to music rooted in mystical awe and blissed-out surrender." Reynolds declared R.E.M., a band that recalled the music of the 1960s with its "plangent guitar chimes and folk-styled vocals" and who "wistfully and abstractly conjured visions and new frontiers for America", one of "the two most important alt-rock bands of the day." With the release of Murmur, R.E.M. had the most impact musically and commercially of the developing alternative genre's early groups, leaving in its wake a number of jangle pop followers.

R.E.M.'s early breakthrough success served as an inspiration for other alternative bands. Spin referred to the "R.E.M. model"—career decisions that R.E.M. made which set guidelines for other underground artists to follow in their own careers. Spin's Charles Aaron wrote that by 1985, "They'd shown how far an underground, punk-inspired rock band could go within the industry without whoring out its artistic integrity in any obvious way. They'd figured out how to buy in, not sellout-in other words, they'd achieved the American Bohemian Dream." Steve Wynn of Dream Syndicate said, "They invented a whole new ballgame for all of the other bands to follow whether it was Sonic Youth or the Replacements or Nirvana or Butthole Surfers. R.E.M. staked the claim. Musically, the bands did different things, but R.E.M. was first to show us you can be big and still be cool." Biographer David Buckley stated that between 1991 and 1994, a period that saw the band sell an estimated 30 million albums, R.E.M. "asserted themselves as rivals to U2 for the title of biggest rock band in the world." Over the course of its career, the band has sold over 85 million records worldwide.

Alternative bands such as Nirvana, Pavement, Radiohead, Coldplay, Pearl Jam (the band's vocalist Eddie Vedder inducted R.E.M. into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame), and Live, have drawn inspiration from R.E.M.'s music. "When I was 15 years old in Richmond, Virginia, they were a very important part of my life," Pavement's Bob Nastanovich said, "as they were for all the members of our band." Pavement's contribution to the No Alternative compilation (1993) was "Unseen Power of the Picket Fence", a song about R.E.M.'s early days. Local H, according to the band's Twitter account, created their name by combining two R.E.M. songs: "Oddfellows Local 151" and "Swan Swan H". Kurt Cobain of Nirvana was a fan of R.E.M., and had unfulfilled plans to collaborate on a musical project with Stipe. Cobain told Rolling Stone in an interview earlier that year, "I don’t know how that band does what they do. God, they’re the greatest. They've dealt with their success like saints, and they keep delivering great music."

During his show at the 40 Watt Club in October 2018, Johnny Marr said: "As a British musician coming out of the indie scene in the early '80s, which I definitely am and am proud to have been, I can't miss this opportunity to acknowledge and pay my respects and honor the guys who put this town on the map for us in England. I'm talking about my comrades in guitar music, R.E.M. The Smiths really respected R.E.M. We had to keep an eye on what those guys were up to. It's an interesting thing for me, as a British musician, and all those guys as British musicians, to come to this place and play for you guys, knowing that it's the roots of Mike Mills and Bill Berry and Michael Stipe and my good friend Peter Buck."

Binky The Doormat
R.E.M. Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

This is horror movie stuff
The muffin is peach, you're "makin" love'
You mean this opera involves handcuffs?
I lay defeated
Yeah, sour milk mouth, horseradish sweet
She's a girl and she's loving me
But distance is my tendency
I am defeated

Have you lost your place? (go away, go away)
I wore my doormat face (go away, go away, go away, go, go, go)
I hung my this or that (go away, go away, go away, go away)
I laid my welcome mat (go away, go away)

If I'm your oyster, where's the war?
You leave me gasping, tattered and torn
I know you can't find a fork
I am just a little acorn
Well, acorns grow to mighty trees
You've got sauce, but you don't have knees
Now look who's asking pretty please
I lay defeated

Have you lost your place? (go away, go away)
I wore my doormat face (go away, go away, go away, go, go, go)
I hung my this or that (go away, go away, go away, go away)
I laid my welcome mat (go away, go away)

Call your bathroom friends around
I will fake a little frown
I will be your little clown
Easily defeated
Yeah, shut the door and open wide
Seconal and astroglide
Fuck with me and traumatize
Don't you see I love your hide?
All the beauty that's trapped inside
Can't you see I love your hide?
Can't you see I love your hide?
Can't you see it?

Have you lost your place? (go away, go away)
I wore my doormat face (go away, go away, go away, go, go, go)
I hung my this or that (go away, go away, go away, go away)
I laid my welcome mat (go away, go away, go away, go, go, go)
I hung my this or that (go away, go away, go away, go away)
I laid my welcome mat (go away, go away, go away, go, go, go)

Go away, go away, go away
Go away, go away, go away

Overall Meaning

"Binky the Doormat" by R.E.M. is a song whose lyrics are confusing and difficult to interpret since it is filled with metaphors, images, and obscure phrases. The song starts with a sense of horror movie elements with the mention of sour milk mouth and horseradish. Later, the song describes a relationship in which the singer is defeated, implying that he is powerless and subordinate to another person. He also acknowledges his tendency to distance himself from others, perhaps due to his own insecurities or because of the challenges in the relationship. The refrain "go away" is repeated several times, indicating a desire for separation from the other person, which is problematic because the singer also expresses his love for them. The song concludes with a sequence of phrases that include sexual allusions and the situation of the singer pleading to be accepted.

The lyrics of the song could be interpreted as a reflection of a troubled relationship between two people, where one holds all the power while the other feels helpless and defeated, yet still in love. The use of metaphoric imagery and obscurity could be seen as a representation of the singer's emotional turmoil and feelings of inadequacy.

Line by Line Meaning

This is horror movie stuff
The situation I am in is very scary and feels like it's straight out of a horror movie.

The muffin is peach, you're 'makin' love'
You are not paying attention to what is important and focusing on trivial things like the flavor of a muffin when you should be focused on the act of making love.

You mean this opera involves handcuffs?
You are surprised that this situation could be so extreme, like something you would find in an opera involving handcuffs.

I lay defeated
I feel powerless and hopeless in this situation.

Yeah, sour milk mouth, horseradish sweet
The taste in my mouth is both sour like spoiled milk and sweet like horseradish, a conflicting and uncomfortable sensation.

She's a girl and she's loving me
Despite the craziness of the situation, there is a girl who loves me and is by my side.

But distance is my tendency
I tend to push people away with emotional distance and isolation, even those who love me.

I am defeated
I feel like I have lost and given up.

Have you lost your place? (go away, go away)
You are getting confused and making no sense, so I need you to leave and give me space.

I wore my doormat face (go away, go away, go away, go, go, go)
I put on a face of submission and weakness to please you, but now I need you to go away.

I hung my this or that (go away, go away, go away, go away)
I have set up everything nicely for you, but it's time for you to leave now.

I laid my welcome mat (go away, go away)
I tried to welcome you into my life, but now I need you to go away.

If I'm your oyster, where's the war?
If I am supposed to be something of value to you, why do you make things so difficult and unpleasant?

You leave me gasping, tattered and torn
You hurt me deeply, leaving me gasping for air and feeling completely broken.

I know you can't find a fork
You are disorganized and chaotic, unable to handle basic things like finding a fork.

I am just a little acorn
I am small and insignificant, just like an acorn.

Well, acorns grow to mighty trees
Even small and insignificant things can grow and become something great.

You've got sauce, but you don't have knees
You talk a big game, but when it comes down to it, you have no backbone or ability to stand up for yourself.

Now look who's asking pretty please
You are now in a position where you need help and are asking me for mercy, despite treating me poorly before.

I lay defeated
Despite this moment of triumph, I still feel defeated and broken.

Call your bathroom friends around
You are calling in people who are equally as unimportant and insignificant as you to this situation.

I will fake a little frown
I will pretend to be upset, even though I am actually just showing you how little your actions affect me.

I will be your little clown
I will do whatever it takes to make you happy and amused, even if it means making a fool of myself.

Easily defeated
I can be beat easily and I give up too quickly.

Yeah, shut the door and open wide
You are manipulating me into doing something I don't want to do by making it sound dirty and secretive.

Seconal and astroglide
You are proposing taking drugs and engaging in risky sexual behavior, things that are dangerous and harmful.

Fuck with me and traumatize
If we do these things, it will ultimately cause me emotional harm and trauma.

Don't you see I love your hide?
Despite everything, I am still in love with you and who you are as a person.

All the beauty that's trapped inside
Despite external appearances, there is a lot of beauty within you that I appreciate and love.

Can't you see I love your hide?
I want you to realize how deeply I care about you and that even when things are difficult, my feelings for you remain the same.

Can't you see it?
Can't you see that I am invested in this and I truly love you?

Go away, go away, go away
I need you to leave me alone and give me space to sort through my emotions and feelings.

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Michael Mills, Michael Stipe

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS

Genre not found

Artist not found

Album not found

Search results not found

Song not found

Most interesting comment from YouTube:

비정한세상

2y↑5

Binky the Doormat
R.E.M.
Produced by Scott Litt & R.E.M.
Album New Adventures In Hi-Fi

[Verse 1]
This is horror movie stuff
The muffin is peach, you're 'making love'
You mean this opera involves handcuffs?
I lay defeated
Yeah, sour milk mouth, horseradish sweet
She's a girl, and she's loving me
But distance is my tendency
I am defeated

[Chorus]
Have you lost your place? (Go away, go away)
I wore my doormat face
I hung my this or that
I laid my welcome mat

[Verse 2]
If I'm your oyster, where's the war?
You leave me gasping, tattered and torn
Oh, I know you can't find a fork
I am just a little acorn
Well, acorns grow to mighty trees
You've got sauce, but you don't have knees
Now look who's asking pretty please
I lay defeated

[Verse 3]
Call your bathroom friends around
I will fake a little frown
I will be your little clown
Easily defeated
Yeah, shut the door and open wide
Seconal and astroglide
Fuck with me and traumatize
Don't you see I love your hide?
All the beauty that's trapped inside
Can't you see I love your hide?
Can't you see I love your hide?
Can't you see it?

All comments from YouTube:

mark b

2y↑14

God, this song's guitar melody is STILL so cool!!
The entire album of New Adventures in Hi-Fi stands the fucking test of time and then some!

Rusty Nail

2y↑6

R.E.M. really held their own against all the alternative music that came out in the '90s. This song in particular showed they could really rock out when they wanted to. I love the grunginess of this album and Monster.

David Bowman

Yes. Monster is one of their greatest albums. It shreds.

Roberio Fernandes silva

2y↑1

REM leva um som de extremo bom gosto. Excita minha veia musical com muita competencia...otimo !!!

J. R. A.

2y↑5

Mikes backing vocals 😍

비정한세상

2y↑5

mark b

2y↑3

Thanks for the lyrics. Never ceases to amaze me how we can go years (and years) loving songs that we barely know the words to. This is one. I knew some words, but now it's like a whole new song.