Monster by R.E.M. (CD, Sep-1994, Warner Bros.)

Monster is R.E.M's "hard rock" moment. After the dark and haunting Automatic For THe People, R.E.M decided to return to being a rock band. Instead of another Green or Document, R.E.M decided to take their jangle pop sound and crank up the volumes on the guitar.

For most part, this is a pretty decent album with a few weak songs, and the tour that was launched was quite successful. Unfortunately, this album received negative comments by critics, and some of the older fans considered it to be a big departure by some of the bands previous works. Despite what others say, this is a pretty good album, but not the best place to start if you want ot get into REM.

The distortion on this album is quite heavy at times. Most of the lyrics are different too, on tracks such as Bang and Blame, Star 69, and Crush WIth Eyeliner. Michael Stipe's vocals are quite different too, and he croons a few times throughout the album, but his voice is a tiny bit weak at times on this album as well.

What's The Frequency Kenneth
After hearing the distorted guitar chords in this song, you can definitely tell that this album is going to be different than what you expected. This song is actually a single, and was pretty popular on MTV. A good way to open the album. 10/10

Crush With Eyeliner
THe catchiest song on this album, and the distortion is quite similar to the previous song and quite catchy too. Thurston Moore from Sonic Youth also contributes to this track. 10/10

King Of Comedy
THis one's pretty different than the previous tracks. It kind of provides a more funky kind of feeling rather than alternative rock feeling. Michael Stipe sing sort of quiet, and the distortion is different. 9/10

I Don't Sleep, I Dream
No distortion on this one but it's pretty melodic. Michael Stipe sings like his usual self on this one, but croons a few times throughout this track. 9/10

Star 69
IMO, the album begins to slip a little. It sounds very punk, unlike anything REM has done before. Unfortunately, Michael Stipe's singing throughout is kind of repetitive, and the lyrics are pretty weak. But this one shows that the band was just trying to have fun, playing loud music. 6/10

Strange Currencies
A decent track, but no distortion on this one. Michael Stipe's singing gets kind of repetitive after a while though. Another average track. 7/10

Tongue
This is an odd track. For most part, there's no guitar, just piano. Michael Stipe signs high pitched throughout the whole track, making it kind of hard to understand what he's singing. Also includes a solo from Peter Buck. 5/10

Bang and Blame
This is where the album starts getting really good again. This song turned out to be as successful as the first two, and it's pretty catchy too. The song ends at 4 minutes, but then it comes back again with Peter Buck playing something similar to Crush With Eyeliner. 10/10

I Took Your Name
Started with Peter Buck playing the same guitar chord throughout the track. Michael Stipe's vocals are similar to Crush With Eyeliner, but not quite as good. 8/10

Let Me In
Starts with Peter Buck playing guitar chords without drums. Many consider this to be a tribute to Kurt Cobain FYI. Yet the lyrics are quite hard to understand. 9/10

Circus Envy
The distortion in this song is extremely heavy making it hard to understand what Michael Stipe is singing. Not a very good track, and gets kind of boring after a while. 5/10

Have Fun...
Amitai Dayan

how can you write something, anything, after an album called "automatic for the people"..!? well, ask r.e.m.! they surprised everyone for one more time going from the earthly melodies of automatic to a rough, garage, post-everything album that sounds fresh--or should i say sounds modern-today (when the majority of the bands with names starting with "the" only dream about..!)

i was 15 years old when i bought this album and it was an ear-opener! you will find addictive, hidden melodies, bold lyrics and precious moments like "let me in" where the guys switch instruments (buck-keyboards, mills-guitar, berry-bass) to pay tribute to the fallen hero of the 90's kurt cobain..

it's not an easy album, like "reveal" or "green" but it has a really dark beauty, contains all the things r.e.m. kept inside for so long that had to burst out.. they consider it "the sex-album" of their career! this one-together with "new adventures in hi-fi" were the last, true masterpieces of this great band that still delivers wonderful music!

I purchased this album right when it came out, way back when. I considered myself an REM fan, and I guess I still do, but this album just didn't do it for me. It sounds like REM in a garage. Some of the grittier songs really shine, like Let Me In. Others just don't work, like the track I Don't Sleep, I Dream.
For the most part, Stipes poetic lyrics have been covered with harsh electric guitars, almost as though they were trying to make up for something missing. Maybe the band knew the songs weren't that great, too.

One of my favorite REM CDs, this disc slams. Unlike some REM albums, Monster has a consistant sound overall, as opposed to seeming like a less-than-fully unified whole. Each song is strong, and each has a similar grinding pulse, making the album a clear, unambiguous unit. That said, as is common in REM tunes, most of the songs have obscure lyric references and take some work to interpret and assimilate. That's often a strong point for REM, and this case is no exception; however, some listeners might have a hard time answering the question "What is *that* song about?" from time to time. Don't let that frighten you off though: Monster stomps!

Monster is one of those albums that stands out as having a truly "unique" sound.
Awesome background music- the distorted sound that runs behind many of the songs has a really nice beat and echo. Really great non-commercial alternative rock album that was popular on its own merits in its day, and still sounds great and modern/cutting edge over a decade later.