Ranking 10 Greatest Albums Made Out Of Contractual Obligation
4. R.E.M. - New Adventures In Hi-Fi
The best contractually-obligated albums show no signs of actually being a contractually-obligated album. With most other examples on this list, there are hints around the edges that allude to a rush job, while others are pretty blatant. But listening to R.E.M.'s infectious New Adventures In Hi-Fi, you'd never know the band threw it together while touring for their previous album, Monster.
R.E.M. wasn't looking to escape the clutches of Warner Bros., rather they were looking to cash in on the huge successes of Automatic For the People and Monster, eventually re-upping with the label for a bonkers $80 million (the largest contract in history to that point).
But to get there, the band patched together an album pulled from various soundchecks and rehearsals. The loose structure gives New Adventures a rough-around-the-edges vibe that very much suits melancholy songs like "Be Mine" and "Bittersweet Me", but it also makes peppier tunes such as "Electrolite" feel like you're just listening to some happy dudes putz around in their garage.
It's not often that a slapdash effort brings about a career highlight, but the overall haste and lack of production are actually what make New Adventures In Hi-Fi such an engrossing ride from start to finish.