So why is R.E.M.’s Chronic Town on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
Ah, the old EP conundrum! Chronic Town is a short album at five songs that runs just over 20 minutes, an EP to be sure.
But it’s so good.
Where I finally landed on Chronic Town is that it ranked “higher” on this here best 1,000 albums ever project than a full on eight other R.E.M. albums, ranging from Fables of the Reconstruction(#638) to Up (#287).
If it’s not clear already, R.E.M. remains one of my most favorites bands to this day, and there are times and moments when I’m convinced that they’re my absolute favorite band of all.
I became aware of R.E.M. roughly during my teenage years, with “The One I Love” music video, off of Document (#344). As you might be able to tell from the R.E.M. albums that I’ve already included on the best 1,000 albums ever project and the relative order they’re in, I’m agnostic to the “early R.E.M. is the best R.E.M.” narrative.
In other words, and to paraphrase from Office Space, I celebrate their entire catalog.
Getting back to Chronic Town, all five songs are outstanding, “classic early R.E.M.” if you will, and this EP demanded of me to be given its proper place in this fantastically insane albums project thing.
While Michael Stipe sings in a higher register than he typically does on “Gardening at Night,” it’s one of their best early R.E.M. songs, with its iconic jangle pop sound, slightly mumbly verses, and a compulsively sing-alongable chorus. And Peter Buck’s guitar work here is delightful, Bill Berry’s drums give it a proper post-punk kick, and along with Mike Mills’ bass and backing vocals provide the backbone and infrastructure that make the band hum like a finely oiled machine.
The live version of “Wolves, Lower” on the brilliant Live at the Olympia album brought me to be absolutely obsessed with this song. I love the original Chronic Town version as well – it’s jangle pop bliss.
In a corner garden, wilder, lower wolves
House in order, house in order
House in order, house in order
Down there they’re rounding a posse to ride
Who are these wolves and why are “they” rounding up a posse to ride? Who knows, but it’s super cool.
“Carnival Of Sorts (Boxcars)” has a great post-punk urgency to it, with touches of early Police and U2, but very much with R.E.M.’s wildly original sensibilities.
“1,000,000” has grown on me so much over the years. It shows off Stipe and crew’s remarkable ability to blend exciting rock and gorgeous pop from their earliest stages.
Some stats & info about R.E.M. – Chronic Town
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Rock Music, College Rock, Jangle Pop, Indie Rock
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – 3.5 out of 5 stars
- When was Chronic Town released? 1982
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #273 out of 1,000
R.E.M.’s Chronic Town on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from R.E.M.’s Chronic Town that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
Suspicion yourself, suspicion yourself, don’t get caught.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.