Rockol exclusive: R.E.M.’s bittersweet year
- by Gianni Sibilla
Bertis Downs is a sort of mythical figure in R.E.M. camp: he was, de facto, the band ’s fith member. He was listed as “advisor” on records, but he worked with the band for 31 years and was R.E.M.‘s manager since the mid-nineties. And he still is, despite the band called it a day on september 21st, 2011, to general surprise.
We caught up with him on the phone on his way from London To Berlin, discussing R.E.M.’s just released reissue of “Document” , the seminal 1987 record. And, of course, his feeling and those of Peter Buck, Michael Stipe and Mike Mills after the disbanding, future releases, unreleased material, digging in the archives...
How does R.E.M. work, now that the band is no longer active? There is a legacy to manage, I guess...
There’s a great body of work, there’s an incredible catalogue. There are things to do, approvals to give everyday: stuff in movies or in compilations. The “Document” reissue, next year we will do a “Green” reissue. It doesn’t have the intensity or the workload of when the band was active, though. It’s definitely a different pace.
September 2012 marks two big anniversaries in R.E.M. history. The first one is the band calling it a day, on september 21 of 2011. What kind of year has been for the R.E.M. camp?
It’s been bittersweet. A little bit happy and a little bit sad. It’s good that the band stopped when they wanted to: they are proud of their career, but they have other things to do that are not confined by being in a band. But it’s also sad. For me, is more happy than sad. When people retire, they say they have more time to spend with their family, and in my case it’s true. I have two wonderful daughters, a teenage and one that’s 9. I’m getting more involved in their education and involved in trying to get a good education for every kid, a real issue right now in America. But I’ve also had more time to look after the band’s legacy without the pressure of a record coming out or a tour about to begin. We’ve been doing this Installments of the week on the band’s website: we’re literally unpacking the boxes and the files and finding incredible stuff we hadn’t even thought of in 20 years. It’s been a good transition and we’re getting used to it.
How is the band feeling about quitting?
We’d had dinners, we made a couple of toasts, sharing good times and memories. It’s been as good as it can be. I was speaking for all of them when I said it’s been bittersweet: all those feelings apply to all of us. Peter’s been putting a lot of energy in Todos Santos a music Festival in Mexico; he has a solo album ready that will come out vinyl only in the next few weeks. Michael’s been doing a lot of art things: he’s always been involved in that world.
Do you see Michael Stipe going back to singing in the future?
That is one of those question I’d put in the “trying to predict the future” category. Who knows. We know he has an amazing voice. We know he’s a great singer. He had an incredible career. What he’s gonna do tomorrow, next week or next year? Who knows! He’s definitely taking a break from singing and pursuing his interests in arts and sculpture.
Mike Mills seems to be quieter one of the three...
I don’t think Mike has been quiet: he’s done things that didn’t get mentioned. He’s been traveling a lot, he’s been working on a couple of musical projects he’s not ready to talk about yet.
Each of the guys is pursuing what he wants to do on a solo basis: they’re all comfortable with that decision and know that it was the right time to take it.
The other anniversary is Semptember 1st, 1987, the day “Document” was published. A 25th Anniversary edition has just been released. When did you decide to do that? Prior or after disbanding?
It was sort of assumed we’d do that reissue. We’ve done reissues of “Murmurs”, “Reckoning”, “Fables” and “Life’s rich pageant”. So we thought: “Why stop?”. It’s a good thing to do to keep the legacy alive and to celebrate. Nobody really decided yet that we’ll do a reissue of “Green” next year, but I think it’ll happen, and then a couple of years later it will be “Out of time”, maybe.
1987 was a big turning point for the band. “Document” was the R.E.M.’s last album for an independent label and “The one I love” was the first single to reach the top 10. What are your memories about that period?
To me it never felt like a turning point. It felt like a continuation of good stuff. I remember some specific things, like the shows we did with 10,000 Maniacs: we were big fans of Natalie Merchant and the band and every night was special. I remember the band was playing bigger places and doing more shows for the “Work tour”. We didn’t do much Europe, tough: no Spain or Italy. Obviously it was crazy, but that were the economics of the time. And the best was yet to come. One big turning point was working with Scott Litt, who produced “Document” and every subsequent R.E.M. record until the mid ‘90s. We had changed producer for every record up until that point. Scott had worked with band we loved like the DBs and he came to work on a song called “Romance” we recorded for a movie sound. We loved him, we loved the results he got, the incredible energy... We worked with him for six albums and almost ten years: so, yes, that was a big turning point. .
The “Document” reissue includes a bonus CD with a live show from Utrecht in 1987. Why did you choose that show and not, say, demos like you did for previous reissues?
Each year we ask ourselves: “Do we have enough stuff of interest like demos and outtakes?”. Some years we have, other years we have great live shows, like that one: it was recorded in a very special place: Utrecht was a college town like Athens, Georgia. We had a very good recording for national radio.
You’ve been probably sorting out R.E.M.’s audio achives. Is there a lot of unreleased material that will see the light some day, maybe in a box set?
Over the years the band has left some unreleased material, sure. Some of those things have been used as b-sides, earlier greatest hits, movies. Songs like “Fascinating” have never been released but have been floating around... There are definitely odds and ends, different takes of songs, different mixes. Who knows what will happen to that stuff someday.
It’s all to be considered: the world changes, the business is changing. Who knows what music we’ll be like in, say, 2020?. What I would say now is: next year, “Green” with a bonus edition - we’ll find some cool extra songs, some artwork, some photos. The year after that: who knows. You have to deal the cards you have in that moment. We’ll see when we get there.