10 Bands And Artists Who Pass The Five Album Test
4. R.E.M.
In a remarkable 30 year, 15 album run, R.E.M. only released one genuinely poor record (their 13th, Around The Sun). Their journey took them from college radio upstarts to the biggest band on the planet to rock stalwarts, and an amazing live act right up to the end.
The run that qualifies them for this list, though, takes us back to the start. ‘83’s Murmur highlighted their Byrds/Big Star indebted jangle pop sound with classics like “Shaking Through” and “Sitting Still”, and the follow up, Reckoning, expanded the sound further. “Seven Chinese Brothers” was more of the same, but “So. Central Rain” slowed things down to indie success.
Their remaining three records for IRS diverted through the darkly gothic Fables Of The Reconstruction and bouncy, increasingly polished Lifes Rich Pageant before ending with the crunchy, political Document.
Their major label switch paid dividends, but the band’s penchant for experimentation meant that the consistency never quite hit this level again. They were a band with energy to burn and a bucketload of ideas, all of which were winners.