Monster (R.E.M. album)
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| Monster | |||||
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| Studio album by R.E.M. | |||||
| Released | September 26, 1994 | ||||
| Recorded | April 1994-July 1994 Ocean Way Recording, Los Angeles; Criteria Recording Studios, Miami; Crossover Soundstage, Atlanta; Kingsway Studio, New Orleans | ||||
| Genre | Alternative rock | ||||
| Length | 49:15 | ||||
| Label | Warner Bros. | ||||
| Producer | Scott Litt, R.E.M. | ||||
| Professional reviews | |||||
| R.E.M. chronology | |||||
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| Singles from Monster | |||||
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Monster is the ninth album by the American band R.E.M., their fourth major label release for Warner Bros., released in 1994 (see 1994 in music). It is one of their most guitar-heavy albums to date, with glam/70s rock and grunge influences. It is also very multi-layered, with references to projected images, both in the media and in personal identity, particularly in terms of sexuality.
Contents |
[edit] Details
Monster became a multi-platinum seller, and received critical acclaim by most critics, reaching #1 worldwide. There were several hits from the album, particularly "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?," "Strange Currencies," and "Bang and Blame."
The song "Let Me In" was written for Kurt Cobain, who died shortly after the sessions for Monster started. Michael Stipe said that the lyrics of the song were basically what he would tell Kurt over the phone. [1] The song was recorded on Kurt Cobain's Jag-Stang.
"King of Comedy" is a heavily processed, electronic-sounding track; Peter Buck called it a "Leonard Cohen rip-off."[1] It had started out as a song called "Yes I Am Fucking with You".
The caption in the liner notes reading "For River" is a dedication to late actor River Phoenix, a friend of Michael Stipe's, who died of a drug overdose of cocaine and heroin on October 31, 1993.
In 2005, Warner Bros. issued an expanded two-disc edition of Monster which includes a CD, a DVD-Audio disc containing a 5.1-channel surround sound mix of the album done by Elliot Scheiner, and the original CD booklet with expanded liner notes. The CD (as with all in this series) is not remastered.
[edit] Track listing
All songs written by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe. [2]
- "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" – 4:00
sample - "Crush with Eyeliner" – 4:39
- "King of Comedy" – 3:40
- "I Don't Sleep, I Dream" – 3:27
- "Star 69" – 3:07
- "Strange Currencies" – 3:52
- "Tongue" – 4:13
- "Bang and Blame" – 5:30
- "I Took Your Name" – 4:02
- "Let Me In" – 3:28
- "Circus Envy" – 4:15
- "You" – 4:54
[edit] Personnel
- Bill Berry – drums, bass, vocals
- Peter Buck – guitar, Farfisa organ
- Mike Mills – bass, piano, organ, guitar, vocals
- Michael Stipe – vocals
[edit] Additional personnel
- Ané Diaz - backing vocals on 8
- Lynda Stipe - backing vocals on 8
- Lou Barlow - backing vocals on 8
- Rain Phoenix - backing vocals on 8
- Sally Dworsky - backing vocals on 3 8
- Thurston Moore – backing vocals on 2
[edit] Technical personnel
- Scott Litt – producer
- R.E.M. – producer
- Pat McCarthy – engineer
- Jeff DeMorris – second engineer (Ocean Way)
- Mark Gruber – second engineer (Criteria)
- David Colvin – second engineer (Crossover)
- Mark Howard – engineer (Kingsway)
- Victor Janacua – second engineer (Ocean Way)
- Stephen Marcussen – mastering engineer (Precision Mastering)
- Mark "Microwave" Mytrowitz – technical assistance
[edit] Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Peak Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Billboard 200 | 1 [3] |
| 1994 | UK Album Chart | 1 [4] |
Single
| Year | Single | Chart | Peak Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" | Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | 24 [5] |
| 1994 | "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 2 [5] |
| 1994 | "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 1 [5] |
| 1994 | "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" | Billboard Hot 100 | 21 [5] |
| 1994 | "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" | UK Singles Chart | 9 [4] |
| 1994 | "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" | Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 10 [5] |
| 1994 | "Bang and Blame" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 3 [5] |
| 1994 | "Bang and Blame" | UK Singles Chart | 15 [4] |
| 1994 | "Bang and Blame" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 1 [5] |
| 1995 | "Bang and Blame" | Billboard Hot 100 | 19 [5] |
| 1995 | "Bang and Blame" | Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 13 [5] |
| 1995 | "Crush with Eyeliner" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 20 [5] |
| 1995 | "Crush with Eyeliner" | UK Singles Chart | 23 [4] |
| 1995 | "Crush with Eyeliner" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 33 [5] |
| 1995 | "Star 69" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 15 [5] |
| 1995 | "Star 69" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 8 [5] |
| 1995 | "Strange Currencies" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 8 [5] |
| 1995 | "Strange Currencies" | UK Singles Chart | 9 [4] |
| 1995 | "Strange Currencies" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 14 [5] |
| 1995 | "Strange Currencies" | Billboard Hot 100 | 47 [5] |
| 1995 | "Strange Currencies" | Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 30 [5] |
| 1995 | "Tongue" | UK Singles Chart | 13 [4] |
[edit] Certifications
| Organization | Level | Date |
|---|---|---|
| BPI – UK | Silver | September 1, 1994 [6] |
| BPI – UK | Gold | September 1, 1994 [6] |
| BPI – UK | Platinum | October 1, 1994 [6] |
| BPI – UK | 2 X Platinum | December 1, 1994 [6] |
| CRIA – Canada | Gold | December 4, 1994 [7] |
| CRIA – Canada | Platinum | December 4, 1994 [7] |
| CRIA – Canada | 2 X Platinum | December 4, 1994 [7] |
| CRIA – Canada | 3 X Platinum | December 4, 1994 [7] |
| RIAA – U.S. | Gold | December 6, 1994 [8] |
| RIAA – U.S. | Platinum | December 6, 1994 [8] |
| RIAA – U.S. | 2 X Platinum | December 6, 1994 [8] |
| RIAA – U.S. | 3 X Platinum | March 22, 1995 [8] |
| CRIA – Canada | 4 X Platinum | May 12, 1995 [7] |
| BPI – UK | 3 X Platinum | July 1, 1995 [6] |
| RIAA – U.S. | 4 X Platinum | August 10, 1995 [8] |
| CRIA – Canada | 6 X Platinum | September 29, 2003 [7] |
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b Black, Johnny (2004). Reveal: The Story of R.E.M.. Milwaukee, WI: Backbeat Books. ISBN 0879307765.
- ^ R.E.M. Monster (Warner Bros. Records, 1994).
- ^ allmusic (((Monster > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums))). Retrieved on 2006-03-07.
- ^ a b c d e f UK Top 40 Hit Database. Retrieved on 2008-05-29.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q allmusic (((Monster > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles))). Retrieved on 2006-03-07.
- ^ a b c d e BPI Certified Awards. Retrieved on 2006-03-07.
- ^ a b c d e f CRIA Certifications. Retrieved on 2008-05-29.
- ^ a b c d e RIAA Gold and Platinum. Retrieved on 2006-03-07.
| Preceded by From the Cradle by Eric Clapton |
Billboard 200 number-one album October 15 - October 28, 1994 |
Succeeded by Murder Was the Case (soundtrack) by Various artists |
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