This is a feel good song.

Great, great song.

beelzebubba wrote:
Yeah, definetly you....

beelzebubba wrote:
Its you....

I love this song - one of my top 3 REM faves, easy. This is also my favorite REM album.

Is it me, or do many of their songs post-"Life's Rich Pageant" start to sound alike?

Yawn...this song brings me back to sleep! Can something be more boring?

Wasn't Electrolite a hit in the 60s or 70s? Can anybody tell me who originally recorded this song and when? Drives me crazy I can't pinpoint it.

The past few weeks I've 'rebonded' with this album. This song is now pretty close to the top of my REM list...

Lovely song.

=; REM still rocks =;

Shoot! I was having a good dream there, and then these fatuous, self-important boobs had to come on! :(

8)

I can't care les what people thinks, I consider this a great song regardless of what year or album it came from.

this is so nice. very sweet violin sound. I think i need to pull this CD out again.

So play some real REM -- like "Wolves, Lower." Jeez.

Back off haters... I busy grovin' here...

charlesryder wrote:

Funny cause I think their songs tend to get old on repeated listenings, because sure, they can craft really fine pieces of music; they just don't know how to put it all together. The songs end up too long for the amount of content and tend to repeat parts far too many times to the point of annoyance. Usually it's the chorus or the outro/ending, but sometimes the band returns to the verse after you're ready and prepared for the song to end.

I'm not saying REM is a bad band by any means, because hell, I own their latest greatest hits comp and Automatic for the People, which is certainly one of my all-time favs. I just wish they wouldn't annoyingly stretch their songs out. If I want to hear the song again, I'll rewind back and play it again; I don't need to hear the whole song twice-over in the same track.

They do have some perfect songs though, like "Nightswimming."

Pretty song. This was never one of my favorite REM albums, but like all their work it tends to grow on you with repeated listenings.

timc wrote:
OK... guess I was confusing REM with Metalica (This is the first and last time you'll ever see THAT sentence).

Idunno. I've really tried hard to like the post-Green stuff, but never really could. Don't know what it is, exactly. They were like a totally different band to me. Maybe if I wasn't in the middle of teenage angst-land when I first got into them so deeply I would be able to appreciate the later stuff for what it is. It's definitely good, but just doesn't touch me the way Fables or Pageant did/does.

Cyclehawk wrote:

I don't know about how inconsistent it is. Some tracks are certainly stronger than others, but overall a good album. Regardless, this song is one of my favorites by REM

This is one of several excellent tracks on this somewhat inconsistent and overlooked album. Thanks for including it.

This is from "New Adventures In Hi-Fi" 1996. This was the difficult follow-up to "Monster", which was in turn the difficult follow-up to "Automatic For The People."

I agree with most here that it deserves a chance to be evaluated alongside "Automatic" and "Out Of Time" as among their best. What I've always loved about REM is the fact the one never knows what is coming next. This is the secret of longevity. Keep surprising people.

"Adventures" can also be called "the great experiment" because it was mostly recorded on the road during soundchecks and live performances (although with significant studio overdubs, don't let anyone tell you otherwise!) It gives it an edgy, raw feel that the heavier material demands. Songs like "Leave" and "Wake Up Bomb" demand that level of hysteria that only comes with recording during a tour in which your band is slowly coming apart at the seams. But it also suits the more delicate stuff like "Electrolite", here given a slightly grating quality by the out of tune piano and Stipe's raw vocal - a perfect juxtaposition.

Sad that they only chose two cuts from this album for the Best Of - this song and "E-Bow the Letter". Why not "Binky The Doormat" or "New Test Leper"? I would buy a Best Of with either of those songs on it!

Anyway, I seem to have written more than I meant too! But, er, yeah, great song!

I think what happened was REM grew as we did through the eighties, as they became more popular many of thier original fans became less interested. They picked up a lot of new fans after "Out of Time" and "Automatic for the People". I know people that bought those albums because of the radio hits, then they put out "Monster" an album any casual fan would have considered rather hitless. "New Adventures In Hi-Fi" which the song Electrolite comes from was next. This album was recorded partly on the road during the Monster tour using live tracks, soundcheck recordings, some studio overdubs and some studio recordings. This album was an attempt to capture the feeling of the live REM experience but with all new material. Just saw these guys live again this past summer and they were amazing and I'm glad I never lost interest in them.

sergeant_x wrote:

Are we all agreed then???

I can't believe that!!

I don't know why I ever lost interest in these guys. I was a big fan in the eighties. This new stuff is sounding awful good though....hmm how new is this?
sorry, I live under a rock.

Even I must admit a damn fine song from an American band....apart from the ELO bit two-thirds through.....

What a great song :)