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."
Hollow Man
R.E.M. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Echoes fall on me
I took the priceless night for complicated mess
Persuading things I didn't mean and don't believe
[Chorus]
Believe in me
Believe in nothing
And make me something
I've become the hollow man, I
I've become the hollow man I see
Oh, I see this echoing
You have placed your trust in me
I went upside down
I emptied up the room
Thirty seconds left
I can't believe you held your ground
[Chorus]
I'm overwhelmed
I'm on repeat
I'm emptied out
I'm incomplete
You trusted me
I want to show you
I don't want to be the hollow man
[Chorus]
I see
"Hollow Man" is a song that talks about feeling lost and empty, and the struggle to find oneself. The opening lines suggest that the singer is trapped in his own thoughts, and surrounded by echoes, indicating a sense of confusion and uncertainty. The following lines reveal that he has taken the beauty of the night for granted and made a mess of it by saying and doing things that were not true to himself. The chorus expresses the singer's desire to be believed in, to become something significant, rather than remaining hollow.
The second verse shows that the singer has betrayed someone's trust and is disappointed in himself for doing so. He feels like he has lost his balance and emptied out the room, signifying a sense of shame and guilt. However, the third and final verse describes the singer's ambition to change his ways and prove himself worthy of trust once again. He wants to show the person who trusted him that he has a genuine desire to be better and not just remain an empty shell.
Overall, "Hollow Man" seems to be a song about self-discovery and personal growth, acknowledging one's flaws and striving to overcome them. It also touches on the theme of trust and the importance of being true to oneself and others.
Line by Line Meaning
I've been lost inside my head
I'm having difficulty finding my way because my thoughts are clouding my judgement.
Echoes fall on me
I'm constantly being met with reminders of my past mistakes and failures.
I took the priceless night for complicated mess
I didn't fully appreciate the value of a special moment and caused unnecessary difficulties.
Persuading things I didn't mean and don't believe
I said or did things that didn't align with my true beliefs and values just to please others.
Believe in me
I want to be trusted and loved by others.
Believe in nothing
I don't even believe in myself and don't want to burden others with my inadequacies.
Corner me
I feel trapped and powerless in my current situation.
And make me something
I want someone to guide and help me become a better version of myself.
I've become the hollow man, I
I've lost my sense of self and feel empty inside.
Oh, I see this echoing
I'm constantly reminded of my past mistakes and failures which amplifies my feelings of emptiness.
You have placed your trust in me
Someone has trusted and believed in me, but I feel unworthy of their trust.
I went upside down
I made a mistake or poor decision that has flipped my world upside down.
I emptied up the room
I've drained the energy and positivity from my surroundings.
Thirty seconds left
Time is running out and I feel overwhelmed with the pressure to succeed.
I can't believe you held your ground
Despite my mistakes and failures, someone has remained steadfast and supportive of me.
I'm overwhelmed
I'm feeling completely swamped and helpless.
I'm on repeat
My thoughts and behaviours are stuck in a cyclical pattern that I can't break free from.
I'm emptied out
I feel like I have nothing left to give and have become completely depleted.
I'm incomplete
I feel like I'm missing a piece of myself and can't function properly without it.
You trusted me
Someone has had faith in me, but I feel like I'm letting them down.
I want to show you
I'm determined to prove myself and show that I am worthy of the trust placed in me.
I don't want to be the hollow man
I don't want to feel empty and devoid of purpose anymore.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: PETER BUCK, MIKE MILLS, MICHAEL STIPE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@stephenleonard5722
Their final two albums rank right up there with any of their best output from 80s or 90s
@nathanduin6093
Thank you. You are entirely correct.
@teenagewarhead
Nope. I'll choose Moral Kiosk & World Leader Pretend over anything 2000ish.
@michealdoyle4318
Hi agree but why didnt the sell .no pop song or hit single???
@stephenleonard5722
@@teenagewarhead pope
@blackbeltjones2903
Accelerate is incredible
@andrearuggia9314
My favourite track of the final years! Beautiful!
@rallabhandiprabhakar4750
one of the best obscure songs of REM
@thecynic9232
Saw R.E.M. on this tour. One of that the best shows ever. Every song is unique and perfect.
@aginghipster
This is the best late era post Berry R.E.M. song.