One Life Album 1: R.E.M. – Automatic for the People

I know what you’re thinking- I was two years old when this came out, what does it mean to me?
The album was a discovery after getting R.E.M.‘s In Time. I’d heard all the singles, but what came next? I put this album on and I was taken away to a whole different world. It felt like some kind of a dream sequence. Every song perfectly placed, every song with something interesting that you don’t pick up on first listen, and songs like “Drive”, “Everybody Hurts” and “Find The River”- songs that are a part of me, have made me what I am today. The album, along with Transatlanticism, has just always BEEN there in my times of need- when I’ve needed to smile, needed to cry, needed to think about things, needed to forget whatever it was I was thinking about. This record doesn’t so much pluck my heartstrings as rip them apart.

It took me a while to dwelve from being just a passing fan to a fantatic of R.E.M.‘s, but the final result was more than worth it.
And that’s why Automatic For The People changed my life, and why R.E.M. are my all-time favourite band.

What this is all about.

Good evening, and welcome to One Life Albums. My name is David, and I’m going to be discussing all of my favourite records. The ones that have shaped my tastes, friendships, breakups, fights, loves, hates, losses…all of it. I got the idea from my forum, FasterLouder.com.au, and I have decided to dedicate a blog to it. This could go on for awhile. Here is the first list of albums I am to look at:

R.E.M.- Automatic For The People (1992)
Death Cab for Cutie- Transatlanticism (2003)
The Vines- Highly Evolved (2002)
Burial- Untrue (2007)
The Beatles- Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
R.E.M.- In Time: The Best Of (2003)
Sufjan Stevens- Illinois (2005)
Nirvana- Nirvana (2002)
The Flaming Lips- Yoshima Battles The Pink Robots (2001)
The Format- Dog Problems (2006)

And here is the second list:

William Shatner- Has Been (2004)
TV On The Radio- Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes (2004)
Battles- Mirrored (2007)
Silverchair- Neon Ballroom (1999)
Silverchair- Diorama (2002)
The Beatles- Rubber Soul (1965)
Bill Hicks- Rant In E Minor (1997)
The Offspring- Americana (1998)
Crowded House- Woodface (2001)
Panic At The Disco- A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out (2005)

You’re probably wondering why for a lot of them. And I don’t blame you.
So they’ll all be explained and written about…over time.

I’m doing year twelve this year, so this may take some time. But I hope to give you all some insight into my life and the music that I love.

So, see you soon, then?