When your eyes first flick over the listings for In Time you start thinking where is Shiny Happy People? How can they do a greatest hits without it? In Time (is it me or was it marketed as just in time?) covers 1998 – 2003, years which have produced some of the best work from R.E.M.
Though it is a kind of pick and choose relationship with your CD player for the tracks you like, there is no short supply of quality music with the line-up including man on the moon, losing my religion and sidewinder sleeps tonight.
Stickyness it fairly good although it should be for a greatest hits album and so the score isn’t going that high. As well as the obvious hits of course there are plenty of sticky songs though perhaps not to such an extent with Orange Crush, All the Way to Reno being two of the most notable of these.
At first glance, In Time looks like it will have a small following of hardcore R.E.M. fans. But with the band having such a wide following (we are talking teenagers who hate anything that isn’t hard rock or above to my parents) and a great blend of music keeping the album rolling, I think this album is going to be one to remember. |
Title: In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003