Customer Reviews
Deccelerate? - By: A fan, 08 Jun 2008 
It is blindingly obvious from the opening track that REM have revived their sound of yester- year. Peter Buck has also finallly returned after sounding like he had been on vaccation during 'Around the Sun'. Although it should excite many fans of their earlier 'jingly- jangly' output, it just doesn't seem to work on this particular album. Maybe its because REM as a group have lost their vitality but whatever the cause, there is something definitely lacking.
In order to sum up this album, it is comprised of roughly half- an album's worth of tracks that are reallly worth listening to- living wells the best revenge, mansize wreath, horse to water. However tracks such as hollow man & supernatural superserious (cue silly- sounding title) are just plain average, where as I'm gonna DJ is probably the worst song in REM's canon- I heard this 'live' last year & thought it was utterly ghastly then. Houston sounds like the older cousin of final straw & sees Michael Stipe getting back on his soap box once again. I have never reallly succumbed to REM's political songs- I just feel that politics & music have never been a good combination. But why do musicians & actors alike feel the need to start preaching to everyone about their 'political views'? REM should just stick to the music & stop rubbing shoulders with the likes of Barack Obama.
I would not go as far as describing this album as rubbish & for those who bought & indeed listened to 'Around the Sun'- this is far better effort. On the positive side, this album is not as long as 'Up' or as over- produced as either 'Reveal' or 'Around the Sun' (it clocks in at a mere 35 minutes). But on the downside, it sounds like a band who have tried to revisit their early work & well failed to sound as enlightened as on those early recordings.
All in alll, this album is a slight let down for those who have been waitng for something to reallly hit them between the eyes & even more so after the exceedingly long wait.
Go and DJ then...hollow men - By: Cliford Peter Clarke, 09 Apr 2008 
Why can't I be bothered with REM anymore? It's not even being bothered, as I thought it was when I heard their last album 'around the sun' & decided that what you don't hear can't upset you, so I gave it to a mate who I didn't like very much & pretended that I'd never heard it. Up until that point REM were always my favourite band. Then I heard music like The Flaming Lips & The Libertines. & REM were disloged to about 20th place amongst my favourites. But, being a sentimental person, when I heard they had a new single, I convinced myself that nothing could be as bad as the rap song on their last album so what did i have to loose? Anyways, Supernatural Seriousness was a great song & I was so excited to get this album it drove me nuts. Now I have it, & it does...drive me nuts. What a shame, it's like watching Granny pass away reallly, But more like Granny when she's gone a bit mental & when you visit her in the old folks home & she's had numerous sherrys & rambles about her youth, missing the point of what was great about being young, misremembering things & feelings & generallly embarresing herself & you'll do anything to get away. Well that's definately the feeling i get when I listen to REM's new albums. I mean 'Theyve returned to their old sound!' scream the old fans, (or the fans who always pretended they knew them & just reggurgetated the reviews on amazon) But seriously you alll miss the point of life the universe & everything. As you get older you change! & REM reallly knew this a few years ago. For a band who's late 90's to early 00's records were absolutely tearjerkingly astonishing, how do you then calll for the 'ultimate' cop out, & revive the sound you practised 10, 20 years ago? It'll clearly never be as good, because you have changed as a person & don't feel like that anymore. How many more suffixes of 'ness' can Michael Stipe squeeze into an album? How many more tunes less bland piano riffs such as the one on 'Hollow man' can Mike Mills sheepishly suggest to Peter Buck? Who incedently i believe is the reason for REM's decline, it's clear he was the genious & i BET that he doesn't contribute at alll anymore, hence the heartless amatuer songs bashed out on this record, while Peter Buck is guesting in every band & television interview going. 'It's a new day today & the coffee is strong' preaches Stipe, imitating a Willie Nelson/Pavorotti narative that also mentions 'the government' or something else original like that. However, nothing gets as bad as 'I'm Gonna DJ', which is so embarresing I can't listen to it. A new time low for a band lost & bored with life, but too egocentric to admit it. A barbaric anihilation of alll their dignity, vitality & most importantly, their 13 album genious past. It's sad to admit it, but REM ended after Reveal, an album I'll always cherish...I hope, but I'm starting to doubt it after hearing Michael talk of trendy things such as 'playlists' & 'vinyl' & bellowing with Mike 'At the end of the World!' assuming that audiences like concieted & clever references to their past. Although judging by the other reviews here, people do. It seems the next stage for REM, after a few more albums like this one, reallly is 'DJ'ing at a seedy nightclub.
I beg you boys, just stop now please.
accelerate to the future - By: Ms. C. Jones, 06 Apr 2008 
well since this is rem's first album in 4 years i was very nervous of what sound they would be giving out. lets say there was never any disappointment apart from the fact its a very short album at approx 34 minutes.
stipe & co have gone back to their roots, imagine the depth of automatic with the rock of new adventures & monster & you come up with accelerate. i have played this album non stop since buying, its very raw & addictive. the summer festivals & tour will be amazing! 'supernatural superserious' was a fine first choice in single form, im hoping the daysleeper feeling 'houston' will be the next choice of single. Accelerate also has crowd pleaser 'im gonna dj' as the last track, its been around for a while now & im glad its finallly got an official release. i bought this version of the album as im a sheer rem addict, plus the bonus dvd has two b-side songs.
REM - back up to speed - By: Mr. Shy, 05 Apr 2008 
Accelerate, the album, is the best 34 minutes of REM since (insert your favourite previous album here). For me, that's the best since New Adventures in Hi-Fi. Living Well Is The Best Revenge, Accelerate, Man Sized Wreath, I'm Gonna DJ have alll captured my imagination, & this album I can listen to without skipping - although Sing For The Submarine may change that after a few more listens... Basicallly, as many other reviewers have said, the album's great. I'd probably give it 5*
But not this special edition package. The main bonus feature is the documentary - well, I watched it once & I won't again. It takes an interesting subject (the live rehearsals in Dublin & the sessions for the album) & makes them tedious & dull. Although people who enjoyed the Succumbs video way back when may enjoy the artsy imagery, & it doesn't come as a huge surprise to find that in an REM package. Perhaps a couple of live songs from those reheasals or something would have improved the package. Or, like the recent CD+DVD re-releases of the Warner back catalogue, they could have had a 5:1 master of the album on the DVD.
And the booklet is just an oversized lyric sheet, nothing more interesting. And unlike the Automatic, or Out of Time special editions, the packaging isn't particularly special, as it's just a DVD box.
There are also two other songs, but you might as well buy the single of Supernatural Superserious (which I think is actuallly one of the less interesting songs on the album) in addition to the album & then it'll still fit on your CD shelves. Or, buy the deluxe version from iTunes which comes with three live versions of the album's tracks as well as these b-sides.
To sum up? Well, buy Accelerate. You'll probably like it, especiallly if you have missed the other side of REM, the side that appears at their live gigs, over the last few records. But perhaps don't buy this version - just get the core music.
SUPER MIDDLE AGED ROCK. - By: Paul McColm., 31 Mar 2008 Accelerate has been hyped as a return to form by a long out of sorts REM,and on some levels, although flawed, it does address some of the problems the band have experienced since the departure of Bill Berry.
Sounding like a "Life's Rich Pagaent" played by super rich,middle aged musicians,Accelerate is a fine collection of new songs from a once essential band, & songs like the opening trio of "Living Well is the Best Revenge","Man Sized Wreath" & single "Supernatural Superserious" show REM in a passionate & businesslike light.This time they have something to prove[and tickets to sell],and REM have come out fighting.This approach is generallly successful on Accelerate & proves that REM still have some fire in their collective bellies.The upcoming tour should be very interesting indeed if the band continue in this vein.
For this album at least, REM have given their massive fan base the album it has craved.Hooks, riffs, & choruses are plentiful,its just that REM have such a massive history, any album like this will be compared to the bands previous work. The crux of the matter being, that they have been so damn good in the past they are in an almost impossible creative position.Still at least they have tried & maybe the current political situation around the world has galvanised the band, because in reality, they have not sounded this full on for two decades.The fact that this album was recorded quickly after some live preview shows, gives Accelerate an urgency that is most welcome.
The d.v.d. has an interesting film "6 Days" about the development of Accelerate[with some fine black & white live clips from the aforementioned rehearsal shows],but reallly adds little to the enjoyment of the album,[crappily packaged in a standard dvd case], hinting that a full live show would have been preferable to this vaguely "arty" offering.There are 2 extra tracks [b'sides!], tagged on to the dvd as well.The mutated surf instrumental, "Airliner",and the psych influenced gem "Red Head Walking".Both would have graced most REM albums,but would be out of place in the guitar bombardment of Accelerate
Whilst REM have limped through the last decade, on Accelerate they have at last broken into a sweat,and another album in this positive vein would see the band entering their fourth decade in far better musical shape than when they entered their third!
