R.E.M.'s Murmur (33 1/3)

When it was released in 1983, R.E.M.'s first album, Murmur, immediately became one of my favorites. Sounding (and looking) completely unlike anything else at the time, the songs spoke to me even when I wasn't sure exactly what Michael Stipe was singing.After reading this excellent book from the always excellent 33-1/3 series, I'm beginning to understand that maybe that was the point.The book is much more than just a lengthy 'review' of the album; it also provides insightful background on the group and an intelligent examination of theories on songwriting, performing and recording. I listen to Murmur now with an increased sense of understanding and connection. This book is highly recommended for anyone, and absolutely esssential for the R.E.M. fan.

The first thing to know about the 33 1/3 series is that since each book is written by a different author, they will each have its own tone, style, and in some cases, format. For example, the book about Radiohead's OK Computer is a dry analysis of the music theory behind the album, while the book for PJ Harvey's Rid of Me is actually short fiction. So it's important you read the description and reviews of each carefully before purchasing.The Murmur installment, written by J. Niimi from the band Ashtray Boy, is broken into four sections. The first section gives a brief history of the band leading up to Murmur (not extensive since Murmur was their first full-length album) and including the recording of that album. We are given a basic history here: good, but nothing most diehards REM fans don't already know. Right away, Niimi shows us his penchant for detail by, for example, listing all the gear the band used in the recording of the album. I found this information only mildly interesting, but could forgive it knowing he's a musician. Of most importance here are the interviews with Mitch Easter and Don Dixon, the record's producers. Most of the insight shared here was interesting and will probably be new for most readers.Next, we are taken through a song-by-song analysis of the album and this is where Niimi's obsession to detail bears the most fruit. He describes virtually every note of every song on the album. He goes into so much detail that I needed to go back and listen to the album to glean even a fraction of his insight, which was the first time I had to do that for any of the other 33 1/3 books. I didn't mind this though, as listening to it while I read enhanced the experience, and Niimi's work enlightened me on many technical flourishes I would have never noticed otherwise.Chapter Three begins with a wonderful section in which Niimi nicely evokes the times (early 80's) and taps into his and my own nostalgia. (To me, there are two important things any installment in 33 1/3 must do: enlighten and tap into my inner child, i.e. make me nostalgic) This section really got to me (Niimi is my age so I had similar experience as he did. The best part of this was his discussion of the suburban shopping mall and the inadequacies of cassettes- we are the cassette generation.) and, following on the heels of the previous analysis, I found myself in a great groove with this book. He was connecting with me.Then Niimi flubs it. He begins the first of many digressions in this chapter with his discussion of the album cover, which in and of itself was fine- it is a great album cover and its uniqueness in 1983 cannot be overstated. But Niimi's foray into the term `Gothic' and into other inconsequential things like reverb, left me cold.Then there's Chapter Four and the question that has been dogging this album since 1983: What do the lyrics mean? After ragging on people who try to understand the lyrics, he then begins an examination in an attempt to better understand the lyrics. After many more digressions into things like the origins of the word `chorus' and philosophical musings about the `distance' of the listener to the singer and the existence or lack thereof of a singer (??.... I understand he's being metaphorical, but come on.) I was left with glazed eyes. After 35 plus pages of this rambling, a quote by Peter Buck is more enlightening than anything Niimi has written on the topic thus far: their `tactic' was to "short-circuit the whole idea that literal language is what things are, because literal language is just code for what happens." This explanation makes sense to me, and I wondered why Niimi didn't just show us this quote to begin with, expand a little, and then move on. I suppose he had 125 pages to fill.Though I found this book disappointing, there was still some good stuff here. Niimi really nails the times and this album's alien-ness in it. His love of music is obvious, and he shows off his knowledge for our benefit in his song-by-song analysis. And though I felt it was marred by his tendency to lose focus, I think anyone who loves this album should give this book a try. Just be prepared for some heavy reading.

The books in this series occasionally veer off-topic and focus too much on the author's life and times. This book remains focused on Murmur with just enough of the author's background to provide context. Recommended.

Great read about band and album with plenty of detail

I appreciated the historical context the author provided for the album. The techniques used to create the sound of the album was wonderfully illustrated. As was the discussing the lyric techniques used by Michael Stipe. I understand the abstract nature of the lyrics makes the author reluctant to put a "stake in the ground" as to their meaning, but at minimum I would have preferred a deeper exploration of potential meanings of the lyrics as opposed to the prolonged discussion of what the album meant to the author. I found it hard to connect or care about his personal experience; especially in light I wanted to better understand the album from the band's perspective.

Well researched

Just a real grind to get through. Interesting anecdotes and quotes about the writing & recording of the record. Unfortunately, the parts that don't involve either quotes or anecdotes are a swirl of gauzy, over-intellectualizing 'analysis' of everything from the cover art work, to Stipe's undecipherable lyrics, to paradigm shifts of whatever. It's particularly maddening, because at one point the author criticizes an academic, whose writings on Murmur/R.E.M., were deemed too conceptual and over-analyzed. If only that criticism had been taken to heart, this would have been an enjoyable read.

A intriguing and quirky book about an intriguing and quirky album. The story behind "Radio Free Europe" and how the album came to be is a great read. I have two of the 331/3 series (this and Exile on Main Street) and plan on getting more.