Accelerate (R.E.M. album)

Accelerate
Studio album by R.E.M.
Released March 31, 2008 (2008-03-31)
Recorded 2007, Armoury Studios, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Grouse Lodge Studios, County Westmeath, Ireland; and Seney-Stonewall Chapel, Athens, Georgia, United States; additional recording in Olympia Theatre, Dublin, Ireland and Mike Mills' home in Athens, Georgia
Genre Alternative rock, punk rock[1]
Length 34:39
Label Warner Bros.
Producer Jacknife Lee and R.E.M.
R.E.M. chronology
R.E.M. Live
(2007)R.E.M. Live2007		 Accelerate
(2008)		 Live from London
(2008)Live from London2008
Singles from Accelerate
  1. "Supernatural Superserious"
    Released: February 25, 2008
  2. "Hollow Man"
    Released: June 2, 2008
  3. "Man-Sized Wreath"
    Released: August 11, 2008
  4. "Until the Day Is Done"
    Released: November 14, 2008

Accelerate is the fourteenth studio album by American alternative rock band R.E.M., released on March 31, 2008 in Europe, and on April 1 in North America. Produced with Jacknife Lee, Accelerate was intended as a departure from the 2004 album Around the Sun.[2] R.E.M. previewed several of the album's tracks during a five-night residency at the Olympia Theatre in Dublin, Republic of Ireland, and recorded the album in a nine-week schedule.

The album received a warm reception from music critics, earning a 79/100 rating on Metacritic. Reviewers often complimented the aggressive, purposeful sound of the songs, with Q magazine critic Keith Cameron stating that "Accelerate is the sound of a band having enjoyed a good word with themselves—and us."

Background and recording

R.E.M.'s previous record Around the Sun (2004) only sold 240,000 copies in the U.S. and was poorly received by critics.[3] The band members later expressed displeasure with the album. Guitarist Peter Buck told Q, "I personally hated it. [Quickly] No, hated is too hard. I hated the fact that it wasn't as good as it should've been." Buck admitted the band felt pressure to subsequently make a better record; he told Q, "Even Michael [Stipe] was going, 'Y'know, if we make another bad record, it's over.' It's like, 'No kidding.'"[4]

Buck and bassist Mike Mills began working on instrumental demos in winter 2007, assisted by touring members Bill Rieflin and Scott McCaughey. The music they wrote was faster and more aggressive than other material they had written in years.[5] Mills suggested the band work out its new songs in a live setting before recording them, as it had done in its early years.[5] Between June 30 and July 5, 2007, R.E.M. played a five-night series of shows at the Olympia Theatre, Dublin, Ireland. In this series of shows—dubbed "working rehearsals" by the band, many songs on Accelerate were debuted, with many of them still as works in progress.[6] These performances would later be released as Live at The Olympia in 2009.

At the urging of The Edge of U2, R.E.M. chose to record the album with producer Jacknife Lee.[7] Following the Olympia Theatre residency, R.E.M. scheduled three-week recording sessions in three different cities in order to keep its focus. The tight recording schedule prevented Stipe from spending too much time working on his lyrics and vocal parts. Stipe told Spin, "I work really well under pressure, and the guys know that all too well... So the pace forced me to kind of spit stuff out."[5] The group mixed the album in a London studio in ten days. Regarding the recording process, Stipe said, "We spent less time making this record than we have in 20 years".[8]

Music

R.E.M. was reluctant to pin down the style of their new album so as not to create wayward expectations.[9] The new material featured in the Dublin concerts demonstrated a much more stripped-down, guitar-driven sound than was featured on the band's recent releases, and Mike Mills has indicated that these shows give a good indication of the band's direction. Stipe said his lyrics on Accelerate are inspired by the contemporary state of the nation, saying, "When the empire is going down the toilet, it's easy to write great, angry songs."[5]

Promotion

On January 1, 2008, R.E.M. launched the website NinetyNights.com, on which a new short clip from Accelerate was posted daily until the album's release.[10] In February, R.E.M. launched the website supernaturalsuperserious.com with eleven videos to promote the album. A week later, R.E.M. launched remaccelerate.com, a web page for promoting and aggregating news about the album itself.

In late March 2008, the band released Accelerate as a digital web streams on iLike six days prior to the American release of its physical album in April. Michael Stipe said R.E.M. wanted to experiment with its distribution system, citing the change in the music industry since the release of Around the Sun.[11] A deluxe edition of the album was released in addition to the standard edition; it includes a DVD featuring filmmaker Vincent Moon's film 6 Days, which includes behind-the-scenes footage and performances of various songs on the album. Two B-side tracks, "Red Head Walking" and "Airliner," are included as bonus tracks, along with a 64-page booklet. The vinyl version consists of two 12 inch discs each running at 45 RPM, and contains the full album on CD.

A brief tour, the last of the group's tenure, took place in 2008. It covered Europe, North America, and Latin America.[12]

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[13]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[14]
The A.V. ClubB+[15]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[16]
The Guardian[17]
Mojo[18]
NME8/10[19]
Pitchfork6.7/10[20]
Q[21]
Rolling Stone[22]
Spin[23]

Accelerate was the band's highest-charting release since 1996's New Adventures in Hi-Fi. It debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of 115,000 copies,[24] went on to sell over 353,000 copies in the U.S. and became the band's eighth album to top the British album charts.[25] "Supernatural Superserious" was released as the album's first single. The second single "Hollow Man", was released in June 2008, with "Man-Sized Wreath" following in August. According to Billboard, Accelerate stayed 18 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart.[26]

Accelerate has been generally well received by critics, receiving a score of 79 out of 100 on Metacritic.[13] Rolling Stone gave the album four out of five stars, with critic David Fricke praising the group's aggressive sound, writing, "Stipe has not sounded this viscerally engaged in his singing and poetically lethal in his writing since the twilight of the Reagan administration."[22] NME reviewer Alan Woodhouse, similarly applauding the group's return to their previous sound, gave Accelerate an eight out of ten rating, and concluded, "Accelerate is by some considerable distance R.E.M.'s best and most cohesive album since [former drummer] Bill Berry left, and crucially echoes a time when they made their best music, if not necessarily their biggest-selling."[19] Q reviewer Keith Cameron wrote that unlike Around the Sun, "Accelerate is the sound of a band having enjoyed a good word with themselves — and us." Cameron described the album's first three songs as "powerful as the first half of 1986's Lifes Rich Pageant," but commented that the album suffers through a "midway dip that afflicts even the best R.E.M. album."[21]

Time reviewer Josh Tyrangiel praised guitarist Buck's "resurgence" and "propulsive riffs," but also wrote, "R.E.M.'s 14th album never quite generates the moody atmospherics of their first 10; it's a little hard to lose yourself in something that doesn't pause long enough for you to get lost."[27] Uncut gave the album three out of five stars. Reviewer John Mulvey stated, "Accelerate is a simple, pragmatic record built on an uncomfortable truth: sometimes, even the best bands have to retrace their steps, if only to remind themselves what they're really good at."[28]

Accolades

In 2009, Consequence of Sound ranked the album at number 37 in its list of the top 100 albums of the decade,[29] and Under the Radar ranked it at number 193 in its list of the "Top 200 Albums of the 2000s."[30] In 2010, the Kitsap Sun placed it at number 73 in its list of the "Top 101 Albums of the 2000s."[30] It also appeared in at least 24 professional lists of the best albums of 2008.[30]

Track listing

All songs written by Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe, except where noted.

  1. "Living Well Is the Best Revenge" – 3:11
  2. "Man-Sized Wreath" – 2:32
  3. "Supernatural Superserious" – 3:23
  4. "Hollow Man" – 2:39
  5. "Houston" – 2:05
  6. "Accelerate" – 3:33
  7. "Until the Day Is Done" – 4:08
  8. "Mr. Richards" – 3:46
  9. "Sing for the Submarine" – 4:50
  10. "Horse to Water" – 2:18
  11. "I'm Gonna DJ" – 2:07

Bonus tracks

  1. "Red Head Walking" (Calvin Johnson) – 2:11
  2. "Airliner" (Buck, Mills, Stipe, and Scott McCaughey) – 2:21
  3. "Horse to Water" (Live from Athens) – 2:17
  4. "Living Well Is the Best Revenge" (Live from Athens) – 3:12
  5. "Until the Day Is Done" (Live from Athens) – 4:06
  6. "Supernatural Superserious" (Live from Athens) – 3:25

These bonus tracks were available in digital form from online retailers. The first two are also B-sides to the "Supernatural Superserious" single and the last was only released in the iTunes Store with pre-order copies of the album.

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2008) Peak
position
Australian ARIA Albums Chart[31] 13
Austrian Albums Chart[32] 2
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders)[33] 1
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia)[34] 13
Canadian Albums Chart[35] 1
Danish Albums Chart[36] 1
Dutch Albums Chart[37] 2
Finnish Albums Chart[38] 10
French SNEP Albums Chart[39] 17
German Media Control Albums Chart[40] 2
Italian Albums Chart[41] 2
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart[42] 29
New Zealand Albums Chart[43] 5
Norwegian VG-lista Albums Chart[44] 1
Portuguese Albums Chart[45] 27
Spanish Albums Chart[46] 52
Swedish Albums Chart[47] 7
Swiss Albums Chart[48] 1
UK Albums Chart[49] 1
US Billboard 200[35][A] 2

Year-end charts

Chart (2008) Position
Austrian Albums Chart[50] 54
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders)[51] 43
Dutch Albums Chart[52] 63
French Albums Chart[53] 190
German Albums Chart[54] 39
Italian Albums Chart[55] 29
Swiss Albums Chart[56] 34
UK Albums Chart[57] 113
US Billboard 200[58] 127

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[60] Gold 10,000*
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[61] Gold 15,000[62]
Germany (BVMI)[63] Gold 100,000^
Ireland (IRMA)[64] Gold 7,500^
Norway (IFPI Norway)[65] Platinum 30,000*
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[66] Platinum 30,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[67] Gold 100,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

Notes

  1. ↑ De Sylvia, Dave (May 17, 2008). "Review: R.E.M. – Accelerate". Sputnikmusic.
  2. ↑ Kelly, Rose. "R.E.M. Impress Fans, U2, Debuting Guitar-Heavy New Tracks In Dublin". RollingStone.com. July 2, 2007. September 25, 2007.
  3. ↑ McLean, Craig. "R.E.M. reborn". Telegraph.co.uk. March 8, 2008. Retrieved on March 28, 2008.
  4. ↑ Doyle, Tom. "R.E.M.: The Q Interview". Q. April 2008.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Azerrad, Michael. "R.E.born". Spin. April 2008.
  6. ↑ Cohen, Jonathan. "R.E.M. Prepares To 'Accelerate'". Billboard.com. January 2, 2008. Retrieved on March 28, 2008.
  7. ↑ Inman, Davis (May 26, 2011). "U2 And R.E.M. Engineer Talks Universal Audio Gear". American Songwriter. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
  8. ↑ MacInnes, Paul. "Hey, critics: get ready to step on REM's Accelerator in April". Guardian.co.uk. January 2, 2008. Retrieved on January 5, 2008.
  9. ↑ Graff, Gary. R.E.M. Reluctant To Pin Down New Album Direction". Billboard.com. August 31, 2007. September 25, 2007.
  10. ↑ Cashmere, Paul. "R.E.M. To Start 90 Night Countdown To New Album". Undercover.com.au. December 22, 2007. Retrieved on March 28, 2008.
  11. ↑ Letkemann, Jessica. "R.E.M. Launching New Album On iLike". Billboard.com. March 10, 2008. Retrieved on March 28, 2008.
  12. ↑ "R.E.M. Accelerate Tour – Total Production". tpimagazine.com. Archived from the original on June 28, 2010. Retrieved January 3, 2011.
  13. 1 2 "Reviews for Accelerate by R.E.M.". Metacritic. Archived from the original on March 29, 2008. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  14. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Accelerate – R.E.M.". AllMusic. Retrieved August 31, 2015.
  15. ↑ Phipps, Keith (March 31, 2008). "R.E.M.: Accelerate". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  16. ↑ Willman, Chris (April 4, 2008). "Accelerate". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  17. ↑ Petridis, Alexis (March 21, 2008). "REM, Accelerate". The Guardian. Retrieved August 31, 2015.
  18. ↑ "R.E.M.: Accelerate". Mojo (173): 98. April 2008.
  19. 1 2 Woodhouse, Alan (March 28, 2008). "REM – Accelerate". NME. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  20. ↑ Klein, Joshua (March 31, 2008). "R.E.M.: Accelerate". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  21. 1 2 Cameron, Keith (April 2008). "R.E.M.: Accelerate". Q (261): 99.
  22. 1 2 Fricke, David (April 3, 2008). "Accelerate". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  23. ↑ Modell, Josh (March 2008). "Racing Against Time". Spin. 24 (3): 95. Archived from the original on January 4, 2010. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  24. ↑ Hasty, Katie. "Strait Speeds Past R.E.M. To Debut At No. 1". Billboard.com. April 9, 2008. Retrieved on April 10, 2008.
  25. ↑ Sexton, Paul. "R.E.M. Earns Eighth U.K. No. 1 Album". Billboard.com. April 7, 2008. Retrieved on April 10, 2008.
  26. ↑ "Billboard 200 chart history- Accelerate". Archived from the original on October 11, 2014. Retrieved July 20, 2009.
  27. ↑ Tyrangiel, Josh (March 27, 2008). "R.E.M.: Finding Their Religion". Time. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  28. ↑ Mulvey, John. "R.E.M. – Accelerate". Uncut. Archived from the original on May 11, 2008. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  29. ↑ Zerbe, Jeremy (2009-11-17). "CoS Top of the Decade: The Albums". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
  30. 1 2 3 "Accelerate". Acclaimed Music. 2008-12-23. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
  31. ↑ "australian-charts.com R.E.M. – Accelerate". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original (ASP) on November 8, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  32. ↑ "austriancharts.at R.E.M. – Accelerate". Hung Medien (in German). Archived from the original (ASP) on September 20, 2011. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  33. ↑ "ultratop.be R.E.M. – Accelerate" (ASP). Hung Medien (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  34. ↑ "ultratop.be R.E.M. – Accelerate" (ASP). Hung Medien (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  35. 1 2 "allmusic ((( Accelerate > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". allmusic.com. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  36. ↑ "danishcharts.com R.E.M. – Accelerate". danishcharts.com. Archived from the original (ASP) on October 17, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  37. ↑ "dutchcharts.nl R.E.M. – Accelerate". Hung Medien. MegaCharts. Archived from the original (ASP) on March 29, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  38. ↑ "finnishcharts.com R.E.M. – Accelerate". Hung Medien. Archived from the original (ASP) on November 13, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  39. ↑ "lescharts.com R.E.M. – Accelerate" (ASP). Hung Medien (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  40. ↑ "Album Search: R.E.M. – Accelerate" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  41. ↑ "italiancharts.com R.E.M. – Accelerate". Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Archived from the original (ASP) on October 17, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  42. ↑ "Highest position and charting weeks of Accelerate by R.E.M.". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  43. ↑ "charts.org.nz R.E.M. – Accelerate". Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Archived from the original (ASP) on March 7, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  44. ↑ "norwegiancharts.com R.E.M. – Accelerate". Hung Medien. VG-lista. Archived from the original (ASP) on November 12, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  45. ↑ "portuguesecharts.com R.E.M. – Accelerate". Hung Medien. Archived from the original (ASP) on October 17, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  46. ↑ "R.E.M. – Accelerate". spanishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original (ASP) on October 17, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  47. ↑ "swedishcharts.com R.E.M. – Accelerate" (ASP) (in Swedish). Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  48. ↑ "R.E.M. – Accelerate – hitparade.ch". Hung Medien (in German). Swiss Music Charts. Archived from the original (ASP) on August 1, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  49. ↑ "Chart Stats – R.E.M. – Accelerate" (PHP). UK Albums Chart. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  50. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Jahreshitparade 2008". Hung Medien. Archived from the original on October 11, 2011. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  51. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 2008". Ultratop (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  52. ↑ "JAAROVERZICHTEN – ALBUM 2008". Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  53. ↑ "Classement Albums – année 2008" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on December 4, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  54. ↑ Archived January 18, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.
  55. ↑ "Hit Parade Italia – Gli album più venduti del 2008" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  56. ↑ "Hitparade.ch – Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2008". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  57. ↑ "The Official UK Albums Chart – Year-End – 2008" (PDF). Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  58. ↑ "Billboard.BIZ – Year-end Charts – Billboard 200 – 2008". billboard.biz. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  59. ↑ "Accelerate - R.E.M. - Billboard.com".
  60. ↑ "Austrian album certifications – R.E.M. – Accelerate" (in German). IFPI Austria. Enter R.E.M. in the field Interpret. Enter Accelerate in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
  61. ↑ "Danish album certifications – R.E.M. – Accelerate". IFPI Denmark. Click on næste to go to page if certification from official website
  62. ↑ "Album Top–40: Uge 36 – 2008" (ASP). Hitlisten (in Danish). IFPI Denmark. Retrieved February 17, 2012.
  63. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (R.E.M.; 'Accelerate')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  64. ↑ "Irish album certifications – R.E.M. – Accelerate". Irish Recorded Music Association.
  65. ↑ "Norwegian album certifications – R.E.M. – Accelerate" (in Norwegian). IFPI Norway.
  66. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (R.E.M.; 'Accelerate')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  67. ↑ "British album certifications – R.E.M. – Accelerate". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Accelerate in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search
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