In a recent interview with Billboard, Mike Mills talked about his legendary 1998 R.E.M album ‘Up’ and shared his hidden gem on the album. According to Mills, who says that ‘Up’ is a strange album and that the band found itself with this album, the hidden treasure is ‘You’re In The Air.’ Mills continues:
”Well, I always say that I love all my children equally. But ‘You’re In The Air’ it’s kind of a hidden gem on that record. It was really difficult to finish; it was one of the last two songs we finished. That and ‘Falls to Climb’ were the two last songs we did. I really like ‘Sad Professor’ I think that has some of my favorite lyrics of Michael’s. You know, ‘Up’ is just a bizarre record. It goes from place to place and it’s really just an interesting sound of a band finding itself again. I don’t really listen for favorites, but those are a couple that I really like.”
Up’s 25th Anniversary Special Album Released On November 10
‘Up,’ which was released in 1998 and adorned with unusual electronic infrastructures, is on the market again with a special edition for its 25th year. The band released this album with a different content than the previous reissues of ‘Monster’ and ‘New Adventure.’ Because there are no new demos or studio releases on this album. Mills had this to say about this set on the album, which includes a live set from 1999 as new:
“Because the record was so different because the band was so different, we just decided not to make it the usual collection of demos and missed directions and things that turned into other things.”
The Winds Of Change For R.E.M., ‘Up’
1999’s ‘Up’ marked a change in sound for R.E.M., and electronic infrastructures formed the main architecture of this change. Mills summarizes this change as follows:
”You never want to repeat yourself as a band. Just creatively, it’s a lot more fun to try new things. We had never really gone in the direction of electronics – not that we were going to make a Kraftwerk record or anything like that, but we were just gonna try a slightly different approach. We were already moving that way, and then we just embraced it fully. We were very fortunate to have Pat McCarthy producing, who is very conversant with keyboards and drum machines and things like that.”
On the other hand, with 1999’s ‘Up,’ R.E.M. underwent a line-up change, and the band entered the studio for the first time without drummer Bill Berry. The group now had to go on its way with three people. Mills also draws attention to this change that took place at that time and says:
“We had to negotiate the new band dynamic of being a three-piece, which was not easy for any of us. It wasn’t easy for Pat either. We were fortunate to have him around, both because of his knowledge of working with keyboards and machines and that sort of thing, but also his ability to help us navigate these new waters of behaving as a three-piece.”
With The Re-Release of Up, The R.E.M Legend Is Back In Memory
R.E.M., who returned to the market with the new version of ‘Up,’ which includes a new live performance set, refreshes the memories with this album. Instead of touring or making a new album with new songs, the band is going down this path. Mills describes this new project and how he feels:
”It’s a nice way to keep the band in the public consciousness. Whether we’re still relevant or not is up to the listener to decide. But I do appreciate that there is still interest. It is fun to maintain yourselves as a band entity even without new material. It’s exciting to still be a part of culture in whatever degree you have. The fact that the people who make The Bear like to play our songs on ‘The Bear,’ that’s very exciting and very rewarding. And it feels good that our music has lasted long enough for a new generation of people to care about it.”
R.E.M. fans don’t want to forget the band and are waiting for new projects to remember.
