R.E.M.
United Center
Chicago, Illinois
June 6, 2008
Source: Audio Technica AT-899 omnis => Edirol R-09
Transfer: R-09 => WAV => Magix Audio Cleaning Lab => WAV => FLAC (level 8)
Location: Beside stage, Left side (~6 rows up)
Track listing:
Disc one (53:11):
(1) Band entrance (0:32)
(2) Living Well Is The Best Entrance (3:22)
(3) These Days (3:36)
(4) Begin The Begin (3:35)
(5) What's The Frequency, Kenneth? (4:01)
(6) Pilgrimage (4:04)
(7) Banter (0:51)
(8) Hollow Man (3:02)
(9) Animal (3:59)
(10) Man-Sized Wreath (2:42)
(11) Intro (0:55)
(12) Ignoreland (5:02)
(13) The Great Beyond (4:00)
(14) The Great Beyond (reprise) (0:51)
(15) Accelerate (4:09)
(16) Houston (2:06)
(17) Michael story (1:55)
(18) Electrolite (4:19)
Disc two (64:29):
(1) The One I Love (3:48)
(2) The Final Straw (4:31)
(3) Find The River (4:36)
(4) Let Me In (3:43)
(5) Walk Unafraid (3:54)
(6) Orange Crush (3:44)
(7) Horse To Water (2:15)
(8) Bad Day (4:35)
(9) I'm Gonna DJ (2:05)
(10) Encore break (3:58)
(11) Supernatural Superserious (4:31)
(12) Pretty Persuasion (3:58)
(13) Barack Obama endorsement (2:26)
(14) Losing My Religion (5:04)
(15) Fall On Me (3:12) *
(16) Banter (2:37)
(17) Man on the Moon (5:26)
* w/Johnny Marr
Checksum file is included.
Comments:
One would only know that R.E.M. was a week into their new tour because of the number of blown intros (3); otherwise, the band was a well-oiled machine that ran through a great setlist at a rapid pace. This show was without a doubt the best R.E.M. performance in Chicago since 1986. The setlist was a great mix of new material, old "hits," and obscure tracks; the band was leaping around and enjoying themselves, and the sound (where I was next to the stage, anyway) was perfect. This show well exceeded my expectations and the below-sellout crowd (the 300 level was half-empty) seemed to agree. An amazing show.
I was side stage under the left stack in a great recording spot. (Apparently it is also a good place for drunken idiots to congregate; there were many nearby.) Aside from Whistling Guy, a 50-something gray-haired Harley-shirt-wearing guy in front of me who impressed his 25-year-old girlfriend with his whistling skills BETWEEN EVERY SONG, the audience is a non-factor. You'll get tired of hearing Whistling Guy after every song, but it's not ear-shattering and almost never interferes with the music.
The mix was perfect; I think this is the best audience recording I've made at the United Center. There is none of the airplane-hangar reverb one often gets there, and the high end was crystal-clear.
Mp3 samples are attached.
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Notes:
-Setlist highlights Pilgrimage (2)
-MS botches second verse of Man Sized Wreat "But it's no big deal, half of you didn't even notice".
-Before Great Beyond MS notes it's the second song so far that they haven't played yet on the tour [altough the song was played on the promo leg] "Except in rehearsal this afternoon and it really sucked then, so we'll see how this goes". After the song he jokes "should we do that again? That was pretty good". The band obliges and they do the end of the song again.
-MS talks about Mulholland Drive before Electrolite
-Bad Day is aborted and restarted
-After Pretty Persuasion MS notes that Chicago has always been good to them. He details the unique location of his dressing room and thanks Chicago for providing Obama.
Grade: C
-Boomy