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There are better R.E.M. albums, but Lifes Rich Pageant is one of my favorites. For me, it sat at the precipice of R.E.M’s catalogue — not as shiny and happy as Out of Time, but not quite as “seminal” as say, Murmur. When the record was released, it was a quite a success for the band. It was their first album to go gold and another step up the ladder that would eventually take them to international acclaim. Still, Lifes Rich Pageant (no apostrophe) was “college rock” at its finest, arty and left-of center, tackling subjects like the environment at a time when most people could care less.
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Like your favorite bar band, we occasionally take requests. This one goes out to Benjamin Sutton at The L Magazine.

Wilco’sYankee Hotel Foxtrot is kind of the OK Computer of the alt-country set. The ambitious record is sprawling and adventurous — and everyone except Wilco’s record label agreed that the album was an instant classic. If alt-country is a genre, then Jeff Tweedy and company way transcended it. And the general public rewarded them for it — the album went gold, far surpassing anyone’s expectations.
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Leeds’ The Wedding Present recently wrapped up a North American tour to celebrate the 21st anniversary of Bizarro, their first full-length for RCA (released in October of 1989). Full of fast, jangly, mostly three-chord progressions — it laid a dynamic and melodic foundation that David Gedge would perfect on the masterpiece that is 1991’s Seamonsters. Recorded in under ten days with Steve Albini, Seamonsters’ success within indie circles allowed the band to then experiment with their release format. In 1992, they put out a series of impressive 7″ singles rather presumptuously titled, The Hit Parade. From Wikipedia:
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The way I see it, you may as well get the icons out of the way right at the beginning. And this album is chock full of icons. From Peter Saville‘s minimalist package design to the frontman Ian Curtis’ enigmatic presence, Joy Division’s debut album Unknown Pleasures pretty much has it going on. And let’s face it, is there anything cooler than the white illustration on the front? Take that, mix in the single “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” and the whole thing kind of exists in a haze of unapproachable cool.
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I know that Robert Mapplethorpe‘s famous portrait of a young Patti Smith is the star of this show, but I love how the understated Helvetica Condensed complements the beauty and simplicity of the photo and the raw and glorious music that made this debut such a seminal classic.
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