Album of the Day: R.E.M. - Reckoning

Reckoning (1984)

After the mostly happy, mellow sounds of Murmur, R.E.M. took a darker approach to their second album.  Sadder, melancholy songs about longing and regret and tragedy make quite a few appearances here.  The mixing of the album also changed, as the producer attempt to capture their live show sound, where there is more emphasis on the instruments and less on the voices.  To some, this change is a large improvement, while for others, it's just a natural progression to a more professional sound.

1) Harborcoat - 3/5
Here's another generic R.E.M. song that wouldn't have seemed out of place on Murmur and, like a handful of the others on this album, was performed in early concerts alongside the Murmur setlists.  It has some fun jangly hooks and lyrics, but I wouldn't count it among the best of the best.

2) 7 Chinese Bros. - 3/5
I actually conflate this song with "Harborcoat" a lot as I feel the exact same way towards it.  I may give it the slight advantage for referencing the classic "7 Chinese Bros." story and it seems to include a bit more... feelings.

3) So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry) - 4/5
I guess it's fitting that this song follows the previous two, as it maintains the water imagery and heartache that the first two seemed to be alluding to.  Of course, this has the classic "I'm sorry" line that many a young R.E.M. fan could empathize with as they look over their life.  Almost like a pre-"Everybody Hurts" but more fun.

4) Pretty Persuasion - 4/5
Another old R.E.M. song that lasted long throughout their careers, with an anti-consumerism bent to boot, "Pretty Persuasion" definitely grows on me more and more every time I hear it.  Apparently it was a popular concert song ever since their beginning, so I feel like it would have been fun to experience seeing this one live.

5) Time After Time (Annelise) - 3/5
Water and love and regret.  This is definitely the centerpiece of Reckoning.

6) Second Guessing - 2/5
I feel like I should like this song more...but it doesn't quite feel like it's a fully developed song and it falls more into the filler category.  I guess it's not skippable, but it's not particularly memorable.

7) Letter Never Sent - 2/5
Again, this is just more of the same.  Kudos for sticking to a theme for the album, but not all of them are going to hit as hard as "So. Central Rain" or "Don't Go Back to Rockville."

8) Camera - 5/5
Now this one has a lot more substance to it.  It was written in response to a hometown's friend sudden death and you can really feel the emotion come across.  It might just be the strongest song on the album, both tonally and compositionally.  It's worth all of the setup of the previous songs to make it this far to listen to something so personal and profound.

9) Don't Go Back to Rockville - 5/5
While "Camera" may be the best song here, it's no question that this is the best single for popular radio.  I may be biased, having grown up near Rockville, MD, so this song definitely pops into my head whenever I visit home.  But it just captures that idea of holding on to someone with whom you are feeling disconnected from.  Also, it was the partial melody inspiration for my favorite Weird Al song, "Frank's 2000" TV," so that's nice.

10) Little America - 2/5
Unfortunately, I don't quite feel the same connection to this one as I do the two previous songs.  It feels like a bit of a lackluster ending after that great build up.

Short Film: Left of Reckoning

The songs from the "L side" of the album were accompanied with a short film which partially served as music videos for each song, it's hard to track the whole film down, but the following songs are included: "Harborcoat," "7 Chinese Bros.," "So. Central Rain," "Pretty Persuasion," "Time After Time," and "Second Guessing."  The videos are all very similar, with random footage of the band wandering around a farm.  It's not quite like typical music videos, but it is noteworthy and helps sell the vibes of the first half of the album.

Music Video: "So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)"

A more traditional music video appeared for "So. Central Rain" and so far it's the most polished of the R.E.M. videos.  True to fashion, Stipe insisted on singing live and recording a new vocal track for the video rather than lip sync to the song (though the rest of the band is just miming along).  It's simple, but effectively emotional.

Overall: 3.45/5 - B
While there are a lot of strengths to this second full album, I feel it slightly pales in comparison to Murmur.  That might just be because I prefer the more upbeat tunes of the former, but it also seemed to be a stronger cohesive whole.  This one does a good job of maintaining the same themes throughout, but more of the songs feel like you're just passing time waiting to get to the real gems.  But those are some stand out tracks, making it well worth adding this album to your alt. rock library!