I bet when you’re Peter Buck you don’t have to care too much about getting publicity on your new album. I mean, he was the guitarist in R.E.M. He knows his album’s gonna reach the people, one way or another. So it’s the reviewer’s job to know that it’s already come out and get on top of things. And, for Scott McCaughey, regardless of whether you’re known as the guy who started Young Fresh Fellows or The Minus Five, or that you were a sideman for R.E.M. and a member of Robyn Hitchcock‘s Venus 3, the word that you’ve started yet another band – called THE NO ONES – with the guy from R.E.M. will get around. Even during a worldwide coronavirus shut down (Volume 3, anyone?). So here we are: it’s already June 2020 and I’m just now getting around to reviewing The Great Lost No Ones Album, which was released in March. Had you heard about it? I had, but I clearly neglected my rock critic duties (hey, I don’t exactly get paid for this!) by waiting so long to tell you what I think about it. It’s almost as if I was trying to do my part, not review it, and let the album completely live up to its name.
The No Ones first got together as early as 2017 and are Buck, McCaughey (as in, the real McCaughey), Frode Strømstad and Arne Kjelsrud Mathisen, and they’ve recorded a powerful pure pop elpee that hearkens back to the days of old when practically all it took to put out a rock album was two guitars, bass, drums and some meaty-ass hooks. The Great Lost No Ones Album has all of that, plus the support of a mighty indie label and a captive (read: largely still home-based) audience. McCaughey’s the lead singer and as you’d expect if you’ve followed him for the last 30+ years, he has a great voice for this kind of music. What might make or break this great No Ones album for you is the degree to which it sounds like an R.E.M. record. (It doesn’t sound like R.E.M.) Those finding this album due to Buck’s membership in that band should consider that he was also a member of The Minus Five and this album is much closer to that vibe. For those of us who have tuned in to McCaughey’s projects since he fronted Seattle’s legendary (Young Fresh) Fellows, this may be the best record since Topsy Turvy. (My review on that classic ’80s indie album is right here.) I really like the single “Straight Into the Bridge” and “Dream Something Else” – the guitars on these songs are rippin’ (not sure who’s playing which parts) and sure to invite repeated listening sessions, whether in your car, your music room or your very own underground lair. Other songs do something similar, like “Sweet Home Mississippi,” “Clementine” or “Gone.” Really, you couldn’t ask for a much more engaging record to get into these days.
The Great Lost No Ones Album is available on both CD and LP, and vinyl lovers will thrill to the killer colored vinyl that’s available on initial orders. Not only is it a real beautiful yellow and purple 12″, but it features unique artwork and comes with a bonus 7″ (same colors in reverse) featuring two songs not on the album (or the CD). That vinyl version may or may not be available at this point – after all, I’m two months behind in reviewing this baby! – so I’d get on over to YepRoc’s web site pronto. I can’t tell you what those bonus tracks sound like (my order hasn’t arrived yet) but I wouldn’t worry. I’m sure they’ll be worthy of extra time on your turntable. – Marsh Gooch
3.5/5 (YepRoc YEP-2718, 2020)
It’s easy for us old school R.E.M. fans to dismiss the post-IRS Records era of the band. Those fabled times were unique in our music experience: Band comes out of nowhere – that is, Athens Georgia – and takes over the college radio airwaves, steadily builds a fanbase with their amazing records and compelling yet elusive videos (you had to look pretty hard to find them at first), and eventually signs to a major label. It’s also easy to say, “they were better before they sold out,” but of course, most of us also realize that R.E.M. didn’t actually do that, since their label switch was on their own terms. Still, I definitely prefer the albums up through Document over the Green-and-on elpees. I certainly didn’t stop buying their albums, though, but aside from Automatic for the People, I’d rate the post-1988 albums lower than those before that.
But one thing is sure: R.E.M. weren’t even close to finished having something to say when the ink on the Warner Bros. Records contract had dried.
It’s already been 25 years since R.E.M. put out their last great album, Automatic for the People. This anniversary sees the release of a few different configurations to choose from (as is the custom these days), including a 3CD/BD deluxe set, a 2CD version and what I’m primarily concerned with here, an all-analog remaster on vinyl. This 180 gram audiophile pressing comes in your basic LP cover (faithful to the original release), with a printed inner sleeve and digital download voucher card. Mastered by industry vet Stephen Marcussen* at Precision Mastering, this vinyl is pretty quiet (as in, in between songs and in quiet moments) and has a very rich sound.
Also present is “Everybody Hurts,” which feels a little syrupy but really works when the drums kick in and the orchestra just goes for it. I think “Man on the Moon” is still one of their greatest songs, and was so well regarded that it was used for the title and soundtrack of the film about comedian Andy Kaufman. In all, R.E.M. achieved something pretty daunting with Automatic for the People; it sold over 18 million copies worldwide, so clearly this was something much bigger than anything Murmur hinted at.
NuDisc 