The Big Mates discuss modern rock music, digital promotion, tiny umbrellas, and Accelerate by R.E.M.

Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue their deep dive into the career and discography of R.E.M. by starting their analysis of the band's fourteenth studio album, released in 2008. They talk about the writing and recording process, the context surrounding the songs, and offer up analysis, opinions, and thoughts from three differing perspectives on music, from being deeply into analysis and music, to not caring for art or critique, and everything in between.

They discuss how the band reacted to the perceived failure of Around the Sun, the rules and restrictions put in place for recording their "back to basics" album, and how they changed their approach to the artistic process.

They explore the overarching themes of the album, compare it to the rest of the musical landscape at the time, and dig in to some the novel ways that R.E.M. promoted the record.

How did the band react to Around the Sun? What's the coolest nickname? What is a man-sized wreath? Find out on this episode of What Is Music?

Our next episode is out on Monday February 10th and will continue our analysis of Accelerate!

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