And I Feel Fine ... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-87 / When the Light Is Mine ... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-87 Video Collection DVD

And I Feel Fine ... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-87 / When the Light Is Mine ... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-87 Video Collection DVD
Label: Capitol / I.R.S.
Rated: NONE
WorkNameSort: And I Feel Fine ... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-87 / When the Light Is Mine ... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-87 Video Collection DVD
Had R.E.M. remained a cult band, they'd be fondly remembered as an obscure and quirky psychedelic folk-rock group from an era of questionable musical values. But they exploded onto the big stage and the bright lights bleached their alluring shadows, making them the biggest cult band around. Suddenly you could understand what Michael Stipe was singing, and it wasn't nearly as interesting as what you'd imagined. By the time their records sounded powerful enough to match their cultural presence, they had exponentially fewer songs worth committing to tape. The two-CD set documents the pre-explosion era, with both the chiming, jangling songs that made their reputation and the requisite inclusion of an equal number of negligible demos, remixes and outtakes. The DVD features videos, overly serious interviews that are cringeworthy in their retro-pomposity, and unplugged performances that make you wonder how drummer Bill Berry managed to stay awake and why no one ever threw a pie in the face of Michael Stipe. The videos document the lead singer's transformation from pretentious wallflower creep to pretentious showman creep, neither of whom seemed capable of locating 'focusâ?� on the video camera.