Title: An probing, feeling album that lives up to its name
Product review: What is truly fascinating about REM is the conspicuous variation between their recent albums. The group made no attempt to disguise the strange turn they took with Monster, living up to its title with brash, triumphant guitars that are at times overbearing, but always effective. New Adventures is a similarly unorthodox album for REM, replacing the smooth, escapist longing of their previous works with a tone that is at once gritty and curious. Songs like "Low Desert," "Binky the Doormat" and "So Fast So Numb" convey an oddly fresh road-trip sound reminiscent of the Rolling Stones or Bob Dylan. In tracks such as "How the West was Won...," and the album's best, "E-Bow the Letter," REM offers a dark, deeply contemplative tone which resonates with maturity and wisdom. "Electrolyte," the album's final track, with simplicity and sensibility initiates an entirely new adventure for REM: "i'm not scared - i'm outta here."You lead, we'll follow.
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