R.E.M. - Fables of the Reconstruction 25th Anniversary Edition CD Review

STREAM: R.E.M. - "Throw Those Trolls Away" aka "When I Was Young"

"Legacy" and "anniversary" edition releases seem to be the latest cash-in effort from the major labels and I've found these discs, in general, to be either spot-on or rubbish (with very little middle ground). Unfortunately, the reissue of R.E.M.'s third disc, Fables of the Reconstruction, falls into this later category. This two disc set includes a remastered version of Fables of the Reconstruction along with a second disc which contains fourteen tracks recorded at an Athens rehearsal in February 1985 prior to the band's heading off to England to record Fables.

R.E.M. always seemed to attract both the record collectors and the tapers as they released numerous non-LP b-sides and were still playing a number of eclectic cover tunes in concert so there is a lot of material that could have been included on this release. At a minimum, I would have expected the non-LP singles ("Crazy" (Pylon Cover), "Burning Hell", "Bandwagon" and "Driver 8" (live)) that were on the 90's IRS reissue of Fables to be used to flesh out the 40 minute studio disc. Unfortunately, Disc One has no bonus tracks.

The Athens rehearsals on Disc Two are interesting but non-essential and incomplete. The fourteen tracks cover all eleven tracks from Fables plus "Bandwagon", "Hyena" and "Throw Those Trolls Away" (which was originally known as "When I Was Young" and later morphed into "I Believe"). While played at a bit slower tempo, these rehearsal versions aren't radically different from the final LP versions. Where I get a bit grumpy is that the original rehearsal was seventeen tracks and "Just A Touch", "Theme from Two Steps Onward" and "Burning Hell" aren't included on Disc 2.

For the long-time fan looking to upgrade from their vinyl version of Fables of the Reconstruction, this might be an interesting (yet somewhat expensive) option. I don't see this appealing to the casual fan...if you have been in a cave for the last 25 years and haven't heard this disc, go chase down the IRS reissue which you can probably find cheap in a used CD shop.

Links:
R.E.M.

Twisted Sister Release 25th Anniversary Edition of Stay Hungry/CD Signing at J&R Music World on June 30th

STREAM: Twisted Sister - "30" (first new recording in over 10 years)

The 25th Anniversary Edition of Stay Hungry comes out on June 30th and the band is doing an in-store signings at J&R Music World on Tuesday afternoon and Looney Tunes on Tuesday night. This new 2-CD set contains a remastered version of Stay Hungry, 17 unreleased demos and outtakes from the Stay Hungry era and one newly recorded song ("30").

Here is the track list for the disc of outtakes and demos:
1. Death From Above
2. Prime Motivator
3. We're Not Gonna Take It (Early Demo)
4. Death Run
5. This One's For You
6. S.M.F. (Early Demo)
7. We're Coming On
8. Call My Name
9. Burn In Hell (Early Demo)
10. Pay The Price
11. What's Love Without You
12. Our Voice Will Be Heard
13. You Got To Fight
14. The Price (Early Demo)
15. Stay Hungry (Early Demo)
16. Kmet Radio Spot
17. 30 (New Recording)
18. Lollipop Guild (Hidden Track)

Vintage Vinyl is advertising that if you pre-order the set, you will also get a limited edition DVD of Twisted Sister's 1984 concert in San Bernadino (which originally aired on MTV in the 80's).



The signing at J&R takes place at 12:30PM and the signing at Looney Tunes starts at 7:30PM.

Twisted Sister are playing some of the summer festivals but nothing in the local area. Outside of this CD signing, the only other local appearance is going to be on Live! With Regis and Kelly on July 16th. It is probably too late to get studio tickets for the taping but...for anyone who wants to give it a try:

TO REQUEST TICKETS VIA MAIL
Please send a postcard or regular sized envelope with your name, address, phone number, email address and the date(s) you would be able to attend to the following address. Be sure to include additional back-up dates so we can work to accommodate your request.

"Live with Regis and Kelly" Tickets
Ansonia Station
P.O. Box 230-777
New York, NY 10023-0777