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| Accelerate (digipack) | 
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| List Price: £11.99
Buy New: £5.68
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (based on 53 reviews)
Sales Rank: 30
Category: Music
Artist: Rem
Publisher: Wea
Studio: Wea
Manufacturer: Wea
Label: Wea
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 418620
UPC: 093624988588
EAN: 0093624988588
ASIN: B0013BNY2Q
Release Date: March 31, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | Living Well Is The Best Revenge | | • | Man Sized Wreath | | • | Supernatural Superserious | | • | Hollow Man | | • | Houston | | • | Accelerate | | • | Until The Day Is Done | | • | Mr Richards | | • | Sing For The Submarine | | • | Horse To Water | | • | I'm Gonna DJ |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
At this stage in a band's career a Mojo front cover would seem more likely than actually getting their old mojo back. And at 14 albums young, REM's longevity had been taken as a byword for pale compliance--in spite of a melodic obedience, last album Around the Sun lacked the emotional vigour of their key works and was presumed by many to be no more than a footnote in their decline. Here then is where they break all the rules. Accelerate is exceptionally loyal to its title and marks a hefty return to their Document-era heyday, when their Byrdsian post-punk was beefed up to suit the arenas they were then beginning to fill. There's even a new "end of the world" song to back up that assertion--the excitable Stooges/B52s love-in "I'm Gonna DJ" ("Death is pretty final/I'm collecting vinyl/I'm gonna DJ at the end of the world!"). Michael Stipe's voice splinters scattered emotional punctuation, Mike Mills is as ever REM's secret weapon, drilling out bass-lines like rapid CPR and achieving more with a single backing vocal than many lead singers manage over a whole album, while Peter Buck deals out memorable guitar twists a-go-go evoking amongst others The Who, The Small Faces and Neil Young. To summon a cliche, this really does sound like a band--and a band half their age at that--playing live in a room, packed full of all the fire and nuances needed to feel at home in a club or the stadiums they now more regularly inhabit. --James Berry
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| Customer Reviews: Read 48 more reviews...
 Garbage! May 13, 2008
I have to agree with the minority here. I believed the hype and bought this album hoping for a return to the well produced and memorable sound of vintage REM. How disappointed I was. All this album does is continue the dull, droning non-melodic sound of a band who took the corporate dollar and invested it in mediocrity. These days I tend to give a band two chances - two boring releases in a row and that's it for me! For some reason, with REM I kept giving them another chance as I honestly cannot think of a single song they have written since 1994 that I would want to listen to. Accelerate is no exception. To compare it to Monster is a joke. It's nothing like. At least Monster sounded like fun. This one sounds like they're trying too hard. And failing! The production is appalling. Producer Jacknife Lee and mastering Engineer John Davis apply the same 'talents' to this as they did to Snow Patrol's Eyes Open - they smash the levels up to maximum resulting in a mashed up mess of distortion where dynamic range is non-existent. No wonder CDs get such a bad press - it's not the format that's the problem, it's the people using the software. Unlistenable, ear piercing noise designed for the hearing-challenged, quality-free MP3 generation.
For sure, this was the last REM album I will buy. The only REM music I will buy in the future are remasters of the IRS years if these ever happen.
A sad time for music and anyone who likes good sound. Accelerate is just another example of the lo-fi trash that passes for music these days.
Good album spoiled by atrocious mastering. May 9, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This album is not as good as it could be. Like most other reviewers I agree this is the best REM album for some time. However, my beef is with the mastering. I can only listen to about three songs in a row due to the sonic bludgeoning that this CD inflicts on me. It really is physically tiring to be subjected to a virtually constant volume level on every song. Like others I'm frustrated at how this recording has been mastered. Every song is the same volume, every part of every song is the same volume, every guitar part is the same volume, thrashy guitar chords and guitar arpeggios are the same volume. Can't we have some light and shade? This is particulary draining to listen to. The whole recordings been turned into some sort of liquidised sonic mush where there's no lumpy bits and everything's the one gloopy texture. No doubt guitar/drum/bass etc parts were compressed when they were recorded, compressed further when they were mixed, and then the whole mix was probably compressed. .. leading to a unpleasant listening experience.
It would be better if the songs were allowed to breathe and not suffocated. Please let's have some music recorded with natural dynamics instead of squashing everything.
Most of the songs are great by the way...
 The old REM are back! May 2, 2008
After a change of style over the last few years, REM have come back with a real corker. I am really enjoying this album and it grows on me each time I play it. A fabulous first track 'Living well is the best revenge', I just love the lyrics, it really gets the album off to a flying start. You ideally need to sit in a quiet room to recover once the album has finished. Brilliant!
Solid Effort April 30, 2008
I've recently bought a number of albums based largely on hype and lead singles - Foals, Wombats, Vampire Weekend, Guillemots - and been sadly disappointed by them all. Just as I was about to give up hope and dig out some of last years favourites such as Ian Brown and The Maccabees I went for one last throw of the dice by buying this on a whim, despite never being a big fan.
Blown away I wasn't but I was pleasantly surprised and wanted to hear more. After repeat listenings I now rate this very highly.
It gets off to a thumping start with 4 quality songs, including the brilliant single Supernatural Superserious.
I found that the three slower tracks were the definetely the weakest on the album (Houston, Sing For The Submarine and Until The Day Is Done - this reminded me of a Take That song!!).
Thankfully the end of the album follows a similar mould to the start including the bouncy "Mr Richards" and the thunderous last track "I'm Gonna DJ.
All in all not perfect - a bit short and a couple of weak tracks - but a very enjoyable listen that will get many repeat listenings..
 Decelerate - A more apt title methinks April 26, 2008
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
I made the mistake of rushing out and buying this album on the day of release (as I used to with all R.E.M. albums). Turned out not to be such a smart move.
When Monster was released in 1994, it received a pummelling from the press and it seems that fans thought similarly, as sales were, to say the least, disappointing, certainly in the eyes of Warner Brothers, their record company who had just shelled out a record-breaking $80 million for the band's signatures on a new contract.
Now 14 years later, we get Monster part 2. Recorded way too loud with the sound ludicrously compressed. What on earth happened to the subtlety that was once R.E.M? Even Around the Sun, with all its faults, had a few high points. Peter Buck's guitar now just runs riot over most of the songs. To be fair, it is not without its merits, but after 4 years, these 11 tracks are all they can come up with? The R.E.M. I like to remember brought a certain elegance to their songs and often with an acoustic sensitivity. That has all but disappeared. I'm certain that I will be criticised for not 'moving on' with the band. Maybe, but they're not the band I used to love. I will be approaching their next release with a lot more caution.
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