Reveal is an album that should have been released before REM's last release, Up. It would have been a much more logical progression from New Adventures in Hi-Fi. The group has almost returned to an old form, with lyrical pictures and stories set to music, with Michael Stipe portraying obscure movies ("Imitation of Life"), yearning ("I've Been High"), and themes of summer ("Imitation of Life," "Beachball," "Summer Turns to High," "I'll Take the Rain," and "Beat a Drum").
While the group still misses ex-drummer Bill Berry, hired gun Joey Waronker turns in a creditable performance in keeping Stipe on track. Underrated guitarist Mike Mills shines on several songs, but disappointing to me, almost never sings - Mills' harmonies have been a trademark for years.
Typical of REM, the lyrics here are at times oblique, but the album has that dreamy, almost sleepy feel to it that we've come to expect since Out of Time was released. Some have written that this release is REM's version of Pet Sounds (The Beach Boys). I don't see it - this will not be considered their best, or serve as an influence on very many musicians (unless I'm wrong).
There's something missing here, that I can't put my finger on. I don't know if it's the absence of Berry, or Mills' backup vox, or if the band has realized that anything with their name on it will sell. It falls just short of the standard they set with albums such as Life's Rich Pageant, Document, or Out of Time. That said, it's still a lot better than Monster.
3.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 2001Reviewed by Glenn McCartyIt's somehow comforting that REM is still making quality albums after all these years and all these trials. True, boy bands ran off Billy Corgan last year, but nearly twenty years and one less drummer later, the genre-creators from Athens are still alive and kicking with a refreshingly mature, self-assured album that likely won't outsell any of its trendy, good-looking contemporaries, but is a…The Phantom Tollbooth 2001Reviewed by Megan LenzThere's probably an experimental animal lurking somewhere in R.E.M., but this always innovative band never goes off the deep end in Reveal, their latest album. This album still has old-fashioned things like melodies, choruses, and verses. Stagnant it isn't, though. R.E.M.'s music always seems to float off somewhere, in the best way possible. Their latest collection of songs is a group of…Similar sounding releases
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