Album cover art for R.E.M. Monster on 180g black vinyl, featuring the 25th Anniversary LP edition at ToucanRecords.com
R.E.M.

R.E.M. - Monster [180g Black Vinyl]

SKU: 0888072111486
$25.98

Product Details

  • Artist Collection R.E.M.
  • Genre Collection Alternative
  • Genre / Style Alternative Rock / Pop Rock / Indie Rock
  • UPC 0888072111486
  • Record Label Craft Recordings
  • Edition 25th Anniversary
  • Format LP
  • Disc Quantity 1
  • Vinyl Color Black
  • Vinyl Size 12"
  • Vinyl Weight Heavy, 180g
  • Additional Info Remastered from the original analog master.
  • Release Date 11/1/2019

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Monster hits with louder guitars, a dirtier surface, and a more deliberate sense of disruption than the two R.E.M. albums that came before it. Instead of extending the inward tone of Automatic for the People, the band pushed into glam, distortion, swagger, and blunt repetition, giving the record a harder physical drive from the opening track forward. On vinyl record, it stands as the moment R.E.M. chose tension, volume, and attitude over refinement.

"What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" opens with a sharp riff and immediate attack, "Crush with Eyeliner" leans into a sleazier groove, and "Bang and Blame" turns that same energy into one of the album's biggest hooks. "Strange Currencies" slows the pace without losing the record's mood, "Tongue" shifts into a falsetto-led left turn, and "Star 69" keeps the album moving with clipped force. Those contrasts give Monster more range than its reputation suggests while keeping the band locked into a rougher, louder frame.

Part of what makes Monster work is how committed it is to its own surface and mood. Michael Stipe leans into performance and persona, Peter Buck trades shimmer for crunch, and the band keeps the arrangements focused on impact rather than detail. This 25th Anniversary 180g black vinyl reissue presents the remastered original album in its single-LP format as the standard anniversary edition.

  • Format: 180g Black Vinyl LP
  • Standout tracks: "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?," "Bang and Blame," "Strange Currencies," "Crush with Eyeliner"
  • Pressing details: 25th Anniversary edition, remastered, single LP
  • Genre/style: Alternative Rock, Glam Rock, Pop Rock, Noise Rock
  • UPC: 888072111486

If your entry point is "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?," "Bang and Blame," or "Strange Currencies," this pressing delivers the album in the exact form that made its shift in direction so striking. Monster remains one of the boldest turns in the R.E.M. catalog.


* The Spotify track list may not exactly represent the tracks and audio of this LP edition.

Track List:

Side A:

  1. What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
  2. Crush With Eyeliner
  3. King Of Comedy
  4. I Don't Sleep, I Dream
  5. Star 69
  6. Strange Currencies

Side B:

  1. Tongue
  2. Bang And Blame
  3. I Took Your Name
  4. Let Me In
  5. Circus Envy
  6. You