Accelerate (R.E.M. album)
| Accelerate | ||||
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| Studio album by R.E.M. | ||||
| Released | March 31, 2008 | |||
| Recorded | 2007, Armoury Studios, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Grouse Lodge Studios, County Westmeath, Ireland; and Seney-Stonewall Chapel, Athens, Georgia, United States; additional recording in Olympia Theatre, Dublin, Ireland and Mike Mills' home in Athens, Georgia | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, punk rock | |||
| Length | 34:39 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Producer | Jacknife Lee and R.E.M. | |||
| R.E.M. chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Accelerate | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 79/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| The A.V. Club | B+ |
| Entertainment Weekly | A− |
| The Guardian | |
| Mojo | |
| NME | 8/10 |
| Pitchfork Media | 6.7/10 |
| Q | |
| Rolling Stone | |
| Spin |  |
Accelerate is the fourteenth studio album by American alternative rock band R.E.M., released on March 31, 2008 in Europe, and on April 1 in North America. Produced with Jacknife Lee, Accelerate was intended as a departure from the 2004 album Around the Sun. R.E.M. previewed several of the album's tracks during a five-night residency at the Olympia Theatre in Dublin, Republic of Ireland, and recorded the album in a nine-week schedule.
The album received a warm reception from music critics, earning a 79/100 rating on Metacritic. Reviewers often complimented the aggressive, purposeful sound of the songs, with Q magazine critic Keith Cameron stating that "Accelerate is the sound of a band having enjoyed a good word with themselves—and us."
R.E.M.'s previous record Around the Sun (2004) only sold 240,000 copies in the U.S. and was poorly received by critics. The band members later expressed displeasure with the album. Guitarist Peter Buck told Q, "I personally hated it. [Quickly] No, hated is too hard. I hated the fact that it wasn't as good as it should've been." Buck admitted the band felt pressure to subsequently make a better record; he told Q, "Even Michael [Stipe] was going, 'Y'know, if we make another bad record, it's over.' It's like, 'No kidding.'"
Buck and bassist Mike Mills began working on instrumental demos in winter 2007, assisted by touring members Bill Rieflin and Scott McCaughey. The music they wrote was faster and more aggressive than other material they had written in years. Mills suggested the band work out its new songs in a live setting before recording them, as it had done in its early years. Between June 30 and July 5, 2007, R.E.M. played a five-night series of shows at the Olympia Theatre, Dublin, Ireland. In this series of shows—dubbed "working rehearsals" by the band, many songs on Accelerate were debuted, with many of them still as works in progress. These performances would later be released as Live at The Olympia in 2009.
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