User:Elephantranges/sandbox

User:Elephantranges/sandbox2 User:Elephantranges/sandbox3 User:Elephantranges/sandbox4 User:Elephantranges/sandboxarchive User:Elephantranges/sandbox1draft

Reveal
Studio album by R.E.M.
Released	May 14, 2001
Studio	The Warehouse (Vancouver) John Keane (Athens) Dalkey Lodge (Dublin) Windmill Lane (Dublin) The Hit Factory / Criteria (Miami)
Genre	Rock electronic
Length	53:43
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Pat McCarthy R.E.M.
R.E.M. chronology
Man on the Moon (1999) Reveal (2001) r.e.m.IX (2002)
Singles from Reveal
"Imitation of Life" Released: April 16, 2001 "All the Way to Reno (You're Gonna Be a Star)" Released: July 23, 2001 "I'll Take the Rain" Released: November 19, 2001

Reveal is the twelfth studio album by American rock band R.E.M. It was released on May 14, 2001 through Warner Bros. Records and was the second of three albums by the band to be produced with Pat McCarthy. The band recorded the album in various locations, including in Dublin, Miami, Vancouver, and their hometown of Athens, Georgia. The album saw R.E.M. continue to experiment with electronic music as they had on their previous album Up (1998), utilizing keyboards and drum machines, while also retaining elements of their earlier sound.

Reveal was a critical and commercial success. The album reached the top 10 in the US while topping the charts in the UK and throughout mainland Europe. Three singles were released—"Imitation of Life", "All the Way to Reno (You're Gonna Be a Star)", and "I'll Take the Rain"—with the former reaching the top 10 throughout Europe. Reviews were positive, with many highlighting the album's melodic nature and combination of R.E.M.'s classic sound with electronic elements.

Background

In 1998, R.E.M. released their eleventh studio album and first without drummer Bill Berry, Up. While not as commercially successful as previous albums, it still sold well and spawned the hit singles "Daysleeper" and "At My Most Beautiful". The recording of Up was a troubled process, due in no small part to Berry's absence, and the band almost disbanded as a result. Stipe has said of the album's mixing process: "when we were mixing Up, we decided that it was all over. That record broke up the group." After mixing for Up had completed, manager Bertis Downs organized a week-long meeting in Idaho in an effort to keep the band intact. Described as a "self-administered group therapy session" in Reveal: The Story of R.E.M. by Johnny Black, the band recognized the changes and struggles caused by Berry's absence and their reaction to his departure, while also deciding they wanted to continue as a band. Stipe has stated that at the time, he had, "for the first time, [been] forced to imagine life without R.E.M. and it was terrifying. As we talked, I think each of us realized just how much the band meant to us."

Upon release, Up divided critics, attracting both praise and criticism for its change in sound and experimental material. At the time of its release, the band's popularity had been shifting; Up sold faster and in comparatively better numbers in many European nations compared to the US. The band originally intended not to tour in promotion of the album, instead focusing on promoting through television performances. These included appearances on Later... with Jools Holland, VH1 Storytellers, and Sesame Street, while the band also performed a live set for the sitcom Party of Five. However, they changed their minds and in February of 1999 announced 45-show-long-tour of Europe and America. In April and May 1999, R.E.M. composed the soundtrack for Man on the Moon, which included the single "The Great Beyond", which would become their biggest UK hit, peaking at number three. Ken Stringfellow and Joey Waronker joined as permanent touring members at the time of the Up tour, alongside McCaughey who had performed live with the band since the Monster tour. Touring commenced from June through September 1999, which included a performance at the Glastonbury Festival. The band found the tour to be much less stressful than their previous trek supporting Monster (1994), while Stipe later credited the performances with "affirm[ing] our [the band's] confidence in wanting to work with each other and wanting to keep on doing this."

Writing and recording

In February 2000, R.E.M. began rehearsals at West Clayton Street in Athens in preparation for a new album, with further rehearsals occurring in March at Royaltone Studios in Hollywood. The band began recording the basic tracks for the record in May, choosing Vancouver for the location due to its proximity to Seattle, where both guitarist Peter Buck and collaborator Scott McCaughey lived.

General

Band were joined by others for rehearsals*

• The band started work on Reveal with rehearsals at West Clayton Street in Athens in February 2000.
• Further rehearsals in March at Royaltone Studios in Hollywood.
• Recording basic tracks started in Vancouver in May, then after a brief recording period in Athens, the band worked in Dublin for most of the summer.
• Vancoucer was chosen for its proximity to Seattle, where Buck and Scott McCaughey lived.
• Stipe wanted to work outside the US, as he felt the album was "more at home away from home." Also wanted to avoid writer's block, which had plagued him during the writing of Up.
• The band laid down the tracks for more than 20 songs in Vancouver. Some were "embryonic" while others were "fully-realized". Album described by Stipe as a continuation of Up.
• Buck left for Seattle in June, left Stipe to complete lyrics.
• Band reformed in July to continue working on the album at West Clayton Street.
• Bulk of the album was completed at Dalkey Lodge in Eire between August and October with Pat McCarthy returning as producer.
• Stipe travelled to alleviate writer's block, which he has credited with helping him complete "Disappear" and "All the Way to Reno (You're Gonna Be a Star)".
• String parts arranged by Johnny Tate were recorded on October 3-4, 2000 at Windmill Lane in Dublin; final recording sessions occurred after at John Keane Studios in Athens.
• Mixing began at Hit Factory in Miami on 10/31.
• After recording completed, Stipe compared the process favorably to that of Up, calling it "remarkably happy" and stating the band had "become acclimated to new conditions and potentials." McCaughey enjoyed recording in Vancouver for its relaxed environment and studio atmosphere.
• The band made an effort to use synthesizers to create sounds which possibly "hadn't been heard before" and which were not made with the natural patches built into the synthesizers.
• The band was particularly enthusiastic about Ken Stringfellow's contributions, as he explained: "The more off into my own personal vision of the deep end, the more they liked it. All sorts of messed up crazy distorted things run through pedals, they were loving that."
• Peter Buck's demos utilized fully-fledged drum parts programmed with drum machines, which caused Joey Waronker to focus on "what not to play" or how to contribute to the programmed parts which were already their own parts.
• Waronker also noticed a difference in mood from the Up sessions. As opposed to Up, which was more pieced-together, Stipe created lyrical and melodic ideas as the material was being developed. McCaughey noted that since Stipe already had some of the lyrics while songs were being recorded, the band would track with his vocals, which he credited with having the Reveal sessions feel more like a "real band" as opposed to those for Up.

Individual songs

• "Imitation of Life" had developed from a demo created in 1999 which has been variously referred to as "Fake Trumpet Chorus" or simply "Trumpet Chorus".
• Its "fake trumpets" were replaced by the string section heard on the final version.
• The band tried a variety of tempos and instrumental palettes before settling on the acoustic guitar-centric arrangement of the final version. Original tempo was much slower.
• "Chorus and the Ring" was recorded in a single take and developed from an improptu jam. Mills had not yet heard the song at the time of recording, and so Buck led him through the chords as it was being recorded and his bassline was improvised.
• Buck wrote "Saturn Return" on piano, at the end of a demo session. Part of the recording was pieced from a demo the band recorded in Athens in February 2000, and was combined with effects which were looped and played backwards.
• Some of the synth parts on "I've Been High" were originally intended for "Imitation of Life"; these were replaced on the latter song by a keyboard solo by Stringfellow. Buck would frequently bring tapes to his Seattle home and record overdubs by night.
• "The Lifting" was recorded as a live take with Mills, McCaughey, Stringfellow, and Jamie Candiloro all on keyboards.
• The band recorded a track entitled "Fascinating", which was removed from the record at the last moment. While Mills described the track as "very beautiful", the band felt its inclusion made the album "too long" as well as "too slow in the middle."
• Buck also felt the song would have "worked perfectly" on the record, but the band made a conscious choice to not release another album with a length of 64-65 minutes.
• "Fascinating" was later covered by the duo Fischerspooner in 2009, while the R.E.M. version has also been leaked through the Internet.
• Another song entitled "Free Form Jazz Jam" was also cut from the album.
• Mills cited "Beat a Drum" as an example of the benefits of using a producer; McCarthy instructed Mills to write a bridge for the song, when he heard Mills' bridge, he encouraged Mills to switch the bridge and chorus.
• The first track to be recorded for the album was "She Just Wants to Be", during the May 2000 sessions in Vancouver.
• "Disappear" evolved from a demo entitled "Underwater Acoustic".
• Other working titles included "32 Chord Song" ("Summer Turns to High") and "Jimmy Webb on Mars" ("All the Way to Reno").

Composition

• Album is generally regarded as happier and more upbeat than Up. Also described as "lush" and a return to more melodic material.
• In a review of the album for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine called Reveal a "conscious return to [R.E.M.'s] classic sound", comparing it to U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000).
• Upbeat sound combined with more somber elements and a darker undercurrent. Partially defined by a "weathered take on lost innocence."
• Described by Fletcher as consisting of "mid-paced songs that could easily pass as ballads, full of ethereal sound effects."
• Michael Stipe's "agenda" when writing material was to "be really melodic", while Stringfellow's contributions were intended to provide a more dissonant, experimental counterpoint to this.
• Ryan Leas of Stereogum describes Reveal as an album of "sad beach songs". He states it "play[s] with electronic and synth textures... all glowing, sunburnt, flickering." Compared to the "anxious" feel of Up.

• Calls it a "deeply Californian work" with elements of psychedelia.
• "Big Stipe melodies" are intertwined with a "gorgeous, lush, aqueous sound unlike anything they did before or since."

• Buck described its sound as "warm and layered and analogue" while also having "a distance and breath to it that's modern and complete and liberating... like a beautiful vacuum."
• Buckley states that while it shares the slower pace of Up, Reveal is, by comparison, "more rounded, more confident, and less novel."
• Stringfellow notes lyrical themes of "personal transformation" as well as "rising, not just from adversity, but your own boundaries and limitations, the little pitfalls and weaknesses that hold you back."
• Mills stated, "some of these songs are actually very sparse, but they have some beautiful sounds within the sparseness."
• Stipe intended Reveal to be a "summer record", which Fletcher notes is displayed in song titles such as "I'll Take the Rain", "Beachball", and "Summer Turns to High".
• Stipe also has a more laid-back, relaxed singing style on the album.
• Worked to make a cohesive record, one that was "cohesive from beginning to end" and "you can put it on and leave it on, that there wasn't one song or two songs that stood out or made you want to change the record."
• Multiple Beach Boys tributes ("Beat a Drum", "Summer Turns to High", "Beachball")
• Mills – supposed to "sound like summer"

The Lifting

• Buckley: references psychic and spiritual healing programs, themes of self-improvement and self-help.

• Compares "mantric" drum figure to "Tomorrow Never Knows" by the Beatles.
• Original arrangement of song was deemed too similar to that of "All the Way to Reno", so the band sought to create a "funkier" version.

• Buck uses an E-Bow on guitar solo.
• Song is a prequel to "Daysleeper", featuring the same character.

I've Been High

• Buckley: Song is "solemn, stately and emotional". Similarly to "The Lifting", it contains "subtle dance textures and beats" beneath Stipe's vocal.
• Stringfellow considers song to be the "masterwork" of the record, as he felt it "push[ed] the boundary of what defines [R.E.M.] musically."
• Black: One of the album's "gorgeously atmospheric ballads".

All the Way to Reno

• Stipe writes from the point of view of a character which Buckley describes as "an aspirant female on the road to fame". Combines "lush" sound with "echoes of old-style R.E.M. rootsiness".
• Evolved from a demo entitled "Glockenspiel". One of R.E.M.'s "most lush and blatantly commercial pieces of work", according to Black.
• Buck cited the song as another example of a track whose creation was spurred by his purchase of a new instrument.
• One of Mills' favorite basslines; first thing he played when hearing Buck's guitar parts.
• Music intended as a "sick tribute" to songwriter Jimmy Webb. Buck cites the use of six-string bass guitar and "semi-rococo chord changes". Lyrics are "ironic".

She Just Wants to Be

• In the "classic R.E.M. tradition" according to Buckley.
• Begins with "organic" instrumentation such as acoustic guitar, and ends with "computer-driven synth strings" which are intertwined with traditional orchestration.
• Mills spoke positively about the song's string arrangements; he felt that the mix of real and synthesized strings helped alleviate their "saccharine nature".
• Of the subject matter, Buck simply stated the song was about "a person – someone I think we've met."

Disappear

• The song took inspiration from Stipe's trip to Israel.
• Black compares the beginning of the song to the band's 1986 track "Swan Swan H".
• Buck calls it a song about "self-effacement".
• Radiohead's then-recent album Kid A (2000) contained a song entitled "How to Disappear Completely"; Stipe, nervous about possibly being seen as taking the idea, called Thom Yorke asking him his thoughts. Yorke assured Stipe that "Disappear" was his song and that lines from "How to Disappear Completely" were from Stipe: "I stole some lines from something you told me, so if you take anything from me, it's OK."
• Stipe attended rave, fan asked what he was doing there, Stipe responded "I came to disappear", spawning the song.
• Verses contain "Nick Cave-style tension".

Saturn Return

• Buckley considers to be the album's "oddest" track, as well as "the creepiest R.E.M. track ever cut."
• During the demo session which spawned the song, Buck encouraged the other musicians to find "the weirdest sound on [their] instrument that [they could] possibly imagine."
• Ken Stringfellow contributed a guitar part which he has compared to the style of Sonic Youth, while also attempting a homage to what he described as Buck's own "primitivist" style.
• Lindsay Zoladz of The New York Times has described the lyrical content as a "character study of a late-shift convenience store employee, who climbs to the building’s roof and has an awakening while staring at the night sky."
• Saalman - "bleak piano ballad"

Beat a Drum

• Buckley feels this is the only other likely single choice on the album (though it was not released as a single), crediting its "beautiful" melody by Mills.

• Considers the lines "Beat a drum for me, like a butterfly wing / Tropical storm across the ocean" to be a reference to chaos theory and the butterfly effect.

• Black compares instrumentation to Beach Boys.
• Annie Jo Baker of PopMatters compares the guitar work on the verses to that of the Kinks.
• Austin Saalman considers it to be "the band's warmest song to date".

Imitation of Life

• Buckley states "would not have been out of place on Out of Time" and "may be the most recognizably R.E.M.-sounding track on the album." A "superbly catchy song" with "trademark sweet strings".

• Buckley compares its "aggressive wall of acoustic guitar" to George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" (1970) and R.E.M.'s own "Talk About the Passion" (1984).
• Lyrics contain a "cameo of teenage discomfort, that state of being desperate to impress, yet self-conscious and clumsy."

• Mills has stated the song was almost removed from Reveal for being "too R.E.M.", but the band were discouraged from removing it.
• Title comes from the Douglas Sirk film of the same name. No band members have seen the movie, according to Buck.

• Title was "perfect metaphor for adolesence."
• Chord progression in the verses shares similarities with the band's earlier song "Driver 8" (1985).

Summer Turns to High

• Fletcher and Black: Song is a Beach Boys pastiche.
• "Heat-hazed melancholy"
• Buck was unsure at first of showing the song to the rest of the band due to having "so many chords". Working title was "32-Chord Song". Originally performed in ⁶
  ₈ with an "Irish feel", with acoustic guitars and accordions. Stipe liked the song but found it to be too busy, so it was re-arranged to consist of just drums, bass, and a single keyboard with Stipe's vocal melody, which "pushed it completely out to left field."
• Baker says it "combines '60s and '80s sounds and recondenses them as turn-of-the-millennium indie."

Chorus and the Ring

• John Everhart - Stipe's tribute to Cobain and Burroughs

• Dark lyrics contrast "Celtic folk stomp"

I'll Take the Rain

• Jordan Potter of Far Out describes as "humble offering with an acoustic structure deftly adorned with orchestral strings and Ken Stringfellow’s keys."
• Baker feels the song "pairs self-empowering but melancholic lyrics with optimistic instrumentation and vocals."
• Stipe says this song is the "odd one out" on the album, being the only "winter song" on an otherwise summer-themed album.

• He wanted to "write a lyric that matched the tone of the music", while also creating a song which "balance[d] all [the] sunniness" of the rest of Reveal.

Beachball

• Contains live strings in the verses and synth strings in chorus.
• Far Out says the song "borrow[s] from the surf rockers’ trademark sound of bright chords and sentimental vocal harmonies."
• "Baroque pop"
• Saalman - contains "jingling bells, the weeping strings, [and] a chorus of horns"; compared to the Beach Boys' "Caroline, No" and "I'm Waiting for the Day"
• Orignal lyric was about drug dealing on the streets of Vancouver.

• Changed to be, according to Buck, about "these people having fun at the beach." An "expression of joy."

Release and promotion

• At the time of release, the band emphasized the happier atmosphere when creating the album as opposed to their previous few releases.
• Stipe declared the album to be his favorite at the time of release, he has continued to name it and New Adventures in Hi-Fi among his favorite R.E.M. albums.
• Downs suggested the title Reveal, coming from the lyric "have I missed the big reveal?" in "I've Been High".
• Mills stated it was "more focused than the last album [Up] because we didn't have an ongoing crisis to contend with as we made it. We were free to concentrate on having fun. We produced a great album."

Singles

• "Imitation of Life" was released as the album's first single in April 2001.

• Sent to radio in March 2001.
• Chosen for its "'classic R.E.M.' qualities"
• Reached number six in the UK, becoming their second consecutive top 10 hit.
• First number one hit in Japan.
• Its Garth Jennings-directed music video consists of a 20-second looped clip of an elaborate pool party, played both forwards and backwards. Band recorded the video in Calabasas, California on February 28, 2001.
• However, stalled at number 83 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold only 15,000 copies. More successful on Adult Alternative Songs chart, where it topped the chart for three weeks.

• "All the Way to Reno" chosen as album's second single, released on July 23.

• Video filmed at Bishop Ford High School in Brooklyn, New York.

• Directed by Michael Moore.
• Crew and camera operation consisted of high school students.

• Single was moderately successful, reaching number 24 on the UK Singles Chart and number 8 on the US Adult Alternative Songs chart.

• "I'll Take the Rain" released as album's third single on November 19.

• Peaked at number 44 in UK.

Album

• Released on May 14, 2001.

• Entered the UK charts at number one.

• Did the same in Italy, Austria, Ireland, Norway, and Switzerland.

• Reached number six in the US, their lowest peak since Green (1988).
• Certified Gold by the RIAA on June 20, 2001 for US sales in excess of 500,000 copies.

• Sold over four million copies worldwide.

Promotion

• Chose not to tour in support of the album.
• Traveled to Los Angeles in June to record voiceovers for The Simpsons.
• Performed "All the Way to Reno" on Top of the Pops in August.

Critical reception

• Received praise from Bono, lead vocalist of rock band U2: "Reveal is extraordinary. I know it's extraordinary because I felt ill when I heard it. It's a very beautiful, awe-inspiring record."

Reviews

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	76/100
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
NME
Pitchfork	5.0/10
PopMatters	9/10
Q
Rolling Stone
The Village Voice	B–

• On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, Reveal has received an average score of 76, indicating "generally positive reviews."

Band opinions

• The members of R.E.M. have spoken highly of Reveal since its release.
• In a 2023 interview with Vulture, Mills selected it as the R.E.M. album most deserving of a reapprasial, calling it a "hidden gem" and describing it as "not a rock record per se, but it's a beautiful-music record."
• Stipe continues to rank Reveal, alongside New Adventures in Hi-Fi (1996), among his favorite R.E.M. albums.
• Some time after release, Buck stated he found Reveal to be "equal to Automatic [for the People]".
• At the time, Stipe also felt the album had "proven to ourselves that as a trio we can be a successful creative unit."

Track listing

All songs written by Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe.

Chorus side

1. "The Lifting" – 4:39
2. "I've Been High" – 3:25
3. "All the Way to Reno (You're Gonna Be a Star)" – 4:43
4. "She Just Wants to Be" – 5:22
5. "Disappear" – 4:11
6. "Saturn Return" – 4:55

Ring side

7. "Beat a Drum" – 4:21
8. "Imitation of Life" – 3:57
9. "Summer Turns to High" – 3:31
10. "Chorus and the Ring" – 4:31
11. "I'll Take the Rain" – 5:51
12. "Beachball" – 4:14

Personnel

R.E.M.

• Peter Buck
• Mike Mills
• Michael Stipe

Additional musicians

• Scott McCaughey
• Ken Stringfellow
• Joey Waronker
• Jamie Candiloro
• John Keane
• Glen Brady
• String arrangements – Johnny Tate, R.E.M.
• Strings – Michael Healy, Pamela Forde, Sunniva Fitzpatrick, Eileen Murphy, Ruth Murphy, Sebastian Petiet, Elizabeth Leonard, Paul O'Hanlon, Jennifer Cassidy, Carol Quigley, Debbie Ellis, Nicola Cleary, Ruth Mann, Michelle Lalor, Elizabeth Dean, Cliona O'Driscoll, Marcus Miller, Peter Crooks, David James, Hillary O'Donovan, Annette Cleary
• Horns – David Martin, Shaun Hooke, Eoin Daly, Fergal O' Ceallachain, David Carmody
• Woodwind – David Agnew
• Horns on "Beachball" – Get the Horn Section

Technical

• Production – Pat McCarthy, R.E.M.
• Recording and mixing – Pat McCarthy, Jamie Candiloro
• Mastering – Bob Ludwig
• Editing – Adam Ayan

References

Sources

• Black, Johnny (2004). Reveal: The Story of R.E.M. Backbeat. ISBN 0-87930-776-5.
• Buckley, David (2002). R.E.M.: Fiction: An Alternative Biography. Virgin. ISBN 1-85227-927-3.
• Fletcher, Tony (2013). Perfect Circle: The Story of R.E.M. Omnibus. ISBN 978-1-78038-698-0.

Notes for me

Background

Notes for me

The next year, the band composed music for the film Man on the Moon, including the single "The Great Beyond" which reached number three in the UK, becoming their highest-charting song there.

• Stipe also worked as executive producer for the film, as he recently had for Being John Malcovich and Velvet Goldmine.
• Less percussion and guitar, more keyboards and electronics.

Keep in mind:

• Up divided critics, some reviews were positive while others were less so.
• Band originally intended not to tour for Up, instead focusing on promoting through television performances. Included appearances on Later... with Jools Holland, VH1 Storytellers, and Sesame Street. They also filmed a performance for the sitcom Party of Five.
• At this time, the band's popularity shifted from the US to Europe; Up sold faster and in comparatively better numbers in many European nations compared to the US.
• However, in February, the band announced a 45-show-long tour of Europe and America. The band had previously agreed against any more extensive world tours, however.
• Band composed the soundtrack for Man on the Moon in April and May 1999, including the song "The Great Beyond", which was released as a single and became their highest-charting song in the UK, where it peaked at number three.
• Band also launched their official website, remhq.com, in June 1999. Toured from June through September of 1999. At last show, band dedicated "Find the River" to Berry, who was present and embraced the band on stage at the end.
• Stipe credited the tour with "affirm[ing] our [the band's] confidence in wanting to work with each other and wanting to keep on doing this."
• Ken Stringfellow and Joey Waronker joined as permanent touring members at the time of the Up tour, alongside McCaughey who had performed live with the band since the Monster tour.
• Tour was much less stressful, less tension than Monster tour.
• Band also performed at the 1999 Glastonbury Festival.