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Posts Tagged R.E.M.

Archive

December 15, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

Poem: Self Pitying Hindsight IS 2020

The god-awful small affair that Bowie mentioned seems to have lasted a lifetime –  this year I turned older than Billie Holiday ever did. I’ll never make as many records as Todd Rundgren could in one year. I’d never dare to try. I wrote a book and no one really had a look – or […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 20/20, Billie Holiday, Bowie, Coronavirus, Covid-19, David Bowie, Hindsight, Poem, Poem: Self Pitying Hindsight In 2020, Poem: Self Pitying Hindsight IS 2020, R.E.M., Reflection, Self Pity, Self Pitying Hindsight, Self Pitying Hindsight In 2020, Self Pitying Hindsight IS 2020, Todd Rundgren ·

Archive

May 7, 2019 by Simon Sweetman

Poem: A Bed For The Night In New Plymouth After The R.E.M. Gig  

We drove to New Plymouth to see R.E.M.  It rained the whole way and we had no accommodation booked. We thought we’d just find something when we got there. But everyone else had a similar plan. Or had already planned.  So we drove around the town trying to work out what to do – suddenly […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 2005, A Bed For The Night In New Plymouth After The R.E.M. Gig, Air B'n'B, BnB, Concert, Gig, New Plymouth, Poem, Poem: A Bed For The Night In New Plymouth After The R.E.M. Gig, R.E.M., Rain ·

Archive

November 29, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 465

R.E.M., The One I Love [Single] (1987) I loved R.E.M. from when I first heard them – but that was Green and the albums that followed. It was a while before I found Document and from there went back – well, actually I received Life’s Rich Pageant early on, that was a revelation. But something […]
Posted in Blog, The Vinyl Countdown · Tagged 1987, Document, EP, Green, Life's Rich Pageant, Live, LP, Maps And Legends, R.E.M., Record, Single, The One I Love [Single], The Vinyl Countdown # 465, Vinyl ·

Archive

June 14, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

Poem: Mike The Juggler

Mike The Juggler. I met him in my first year here, I was down for university. He was up for throwing tennis balls about. Full of piss I was, as was usual then, and I marvelled as the man – a throwback to some sort of carnival barker, barking mad perhaps, but hey, who’s to […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Aro Valley, Courtenay Place, Cuba Mall, Juggling, Lambton Quay, Manners Mall, Mike The Juggler, Monster, Poem, Poem: Mike The Juggler, R.E.M., Tennis Balls, Wellington ·

Archive

December 3, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

Pavement: The Greatest Band of the 1990s

The 1990s had several big bands that staked a claim – obviously Nirvana even though they didn’t last longer than half the decade; obviously many people will want to say Pearl Jam because they started in the 1990s and released a few albums across that decade – and carried on from there. And Smashing Pumpkins […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 90s, Alternative, Grunge, Indie, Nineties, Pavement, Pavement: The Greatest Band of the 1990s, R.E.M., The Greatest Band of the 1990s ·

Archive

November 18, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

R.E.M: The Greatest Band of the 1980s

There’s been a few – well – murmurs about R.E.M lately, and Michael Stipe making the noise that he’s ready to make music again. R.E.M’s career was near-perfect really. I honestly believe that. They only made one dud album. A couple that were maybe not necessary; someone could have called their bumper-boat in 2-3 years […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged R.E.M: The Greatest Band of the 1980s, R.E.M., The Greatest Band of the 1980s ·

Archive

November 10, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

Five Songs For Friday: # 2 – The ‘We’ve Been Trumped!’ Edition

My first Friday in a while without Oscar – his first Friday at school. Strange week this week, very strange…lots of cool things happening (I met Robert Forster, new podcast up with Charlotte Yates, got a bit of reading done – tomorrow I’m the MC at one of the LitCrawl events, one showcasing some of […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Aimee Mann, Drive-By Truckers, Five Songs For Friday: # 2, Five Songs For Friday: # 2 – The 'We've Been Trumped!' Edition, R.E.M., Randy Newman, Robert Forster, The 'We've Been Trumped!' Edition ·

Archive

May 10, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

Radiohead: A Moon Shaped Pool

Radiohead A Moon Shaped Pool XL Recordings It’s nearly been to the detriment of the music that every Radiohead album for the last decade has been discussed as much for how it came to be – and how you found out about it – as much as there’s been any discussion of the music. Amazing, […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged A Moon Shaped Pool, Album Review, I MIght Be Wrong, In Rainbows, Jonny Greenwood, Kid A, King of Limbs, Max Richter, Nils Frahm, Olafur Arnalds, R.E.M., Radiohead, Strings, Thom Yorke, XL Recordings ·

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January 14, 2015 by Simon Sweetman

The Close Readers: The Lines Are Open

The Close Readers The Lines Are Open (Independent) The Close Readers is essentially Damien Wilkins; it’s his words, his work, his world – the line-up is flexible, he builds a band to give shape to his songs. Previously Craig Terris all but one-man-banded his way through a couple of Close Readers albums, creating the frame […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Album Review, Andrew Bain, Bandcamp, Bill Manhire, Craig Terris, Damien Wilkins, Group Hug, Luke Buda, New Spirit, R.E.M., The Close Readers, The Go-Betweens, The Lines Are Open, The Phoenix Foundation, Tom Callwood, Writing ·

Archive

October 22, 2014 by Simon Sweetman

Lee Ranaldo and The Dust: Acoustic Dust

Lee Ranaldo and The Dust Acoustic Dust El Segell del Primavera Publishing I’ve said it before and I’ll here say it again – whatever happens with Sonic Youth it’s been pleasing hearing from Lee Ranaldo – still the improvisations and experimentation but he’s knocked out a couple of pretty great records already, song-based records that […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Acoustic Dust, Album Review, Between The Times And The Tides, David Kilgour, Glacial, Last Night On Earth, Lee Ranaldo, Lee Ranaldo and The Dust, R.E.M., Sonic Youth, The Dust ·

Archive

March 3, 2014 by Simon Sweetman

Drive-By Truckers: English Oceans

Drive-By Truckers English Oceans ATO Records To go calling any one album by Drive-By Truckers their finest would be a disservice to a catalogue with no holes, no black marks, no misfires. It’s solid-solid-solid, hints of R.E.M and the band Wilco used to be, traces of filthy blues-rock era Stones and writing that is steeped […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Album Review, Americana, Country, Drive-By Truckers, English Oceans, Levon Helm, Mike Cooley, Neil Young, Patterson Hood, R.E.M., Uncle Tupelo, Wilco ·

Archive

October 1, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

Poem: drunken postcard

hammered the other night on vodka beer chardonnay. heard someone say over the top of r.e.m’s green that I was still in love with her and blahblahblah…you-know-what-I-mean…         fucked off       real bad           when they talk when I’m pissed. most of all I think, (when I overhear shit like that) about the shit I’ve missed??!?!
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged drunken postcard, Green, Poem, R.E.M. ·
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