So, in their first stop since Dubya Day, REM played the Garden last night. A good show, and they played my favorites from the new album (“Boy in the Well,” “High-Speed Train,” “The Outsiders”) But there was obviously a very strange and subdued vibe to the proceedings. Angela McCluskey, the opening act, struck an appropriately funereal tone with a swelling rendition of The The’s “Love is Stronger than Death.” And Stipe, for his part, seemed as staggered as most of the crowd, and barely spoke at all — (not that it much mattered…85% of the people there seemed to be waiting for “Losing My Religion” the whole time anyway.) All in all, I enjoyed last year’s stop more, but obviously those were happier times for both the band and the nation. Setlist below:
| 1. It’s the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine.) | [Just in case you haven’t been keeping up with current events…] |
| 2. Begin the Begin | |
| 3. So Fast, So Numb | |
| 4. Animal | |
| 5. Boy in the Well | “This song takes place in Tennessee.” |
| 6. Welcome to the Occupation | |
| 7.The Outsiders | |
| 8. Get Up! | |
| 9. High-Speed Train | |
| 10. Cuyahoga | “This song takes place in Ohio.” [BOO.] |
| 11. Sweetness Follows | |
| 12. The One I Love | |
| 13. I Wanted to Be Wrong | “This is our State of the Union.” |
| 14. Imitation of Life | “This was a #1 single in Japan.” |
| 15. Final Straw | |
| 16. Losing My Religion | “I don’t know what to say tonight, so I’ve tried to say as little as I could and let the songs speak for themselves. There’s something about a well-constructed pop song…” |
| 17. Walk Unafraid | |
| 18. Life and How to Live It | |
| E1. What’s the Frequency, Kenneth? | |
| E2. Drive | |
| E3. Leaving New York | “This song takes place in NYC.” |
| E4. Electrolite | “This song takes place in LA.” |
| E5. Permanent Vacation (w/ Steve Wynn) | “We’re REM, and this is what we do.” |
| E6. I’m Gonna DJ | |
| E7. Man on the Moon | “This song belongs to you.” |
Once again, I realized too late that you’d probably be there… I was hanging out with Matt Fluxblog before the show, we could’ve made it a big blogger get-together. Ah well. I think you’ve got the only accurate setlist I’ve seen so far.. the “official” Murmurs setlist has got “Welcome To The Occupation” in the wrong spot. I felt much the same way you did — a little disappointing in light of last year’s show, but that one was just so good that it was almost inevitable. I’m “logovisual” on Murmurs if you’re reading the threads there.
Doh…too bad I missed y’all. The band seemed seriously depressed, didn’t they? Ah well, at least they mirrored my own mood. To be honest, I’m not sure if I’d want to hear too much “We still have the power” type stuff from Stipe & co. that night anyway.