R.E.M. - Chronic Town EP (1982)

1) Wolves, Lower; 2) Gardening at Night; 3) Carnival of Sorts (Box Cars); 4) 1,000,000; 5) Stumble

It's lowkey incredible how a humble debut EP can nail down so much of the band's magic already.

Key tracks: "Wolves, Lower", "Gardening at Night"

A solid debut EP can really add to a band’s legacy. Ones that still offer something so unique and exciting that you happily return to them even after the band has been releasing music for decades afterwards, especially so. Viewed from that angle, Chronic Town EP is one hell of a release. It’s a snapshot of a young and hungry band who are still compensating the lack of honed craft with pure energy, but who make it work and create the kind of memorable entrance I imagine got a lot of people very, very interested back in the day.

Most of Chronic Town runs on a single trick: Buck jangles his guitar, Stipe mumbles through lyrics, Mills and Berry provide a formidable rhythmic backbone that not-so-secretly carries the disc. That one trick is all it needs. There’s an exhilarating energy running through the five songs, the quite frankly exciting instrumental parts weaving simple but strong melodies in a manner that merges the urgency of post-punk with the lushness of jangle pop. Stipe is already a commandeering front man, incoherent as he may be here but already exhibiting the mannerisms and range he’s known for. There’s an obvious greenness to the band but it’s far from being an obstacle because so many pieces are already falling in place.

It’s the actual songs, not the sound, that make Chronic Town notable though. Very few debut EPs carry an essential cut in them, but Chronic Town has “Gardening at Night”, the first real R.E.M. classic. It’s where the EP’s formula hits perfection, and the combination of Michael’s higher register, the sharp chiming notes of the guitar and Mills’ steady and sturdy bassline creates an alluring atmosphere and it’s got the strongest set of melodies of the EP scattered consistently through the track. It would absolutely have a place in any R.E.M. retrospective even today, and given it’s become the most enduring track of the EP even in the band’s eyes means I’m not the only one who thinks that way. “Wolves, Lower” and “Carnival of Sorts (Box Cars)” are brilliant accompaniments to it. The former is thick with murky atmosphere until it suddenly bursts into its perky chorus, a sudden gear switch that’s quickly showcases the EPs primary ingredients and makes for a fitting introduction for the band. “Carnival of Sorts” is the other big standout: it’s as close to a rock-out as R.E.M. would get this early on, with a killer hook in its chorus vocal arrangement as Mills and Stipe trade off lines amid the rush of energy. It’s a thrilling swirl of rhythm and melody interweaving.

The flip side of the EP isn’t quite as exciting but it’s still strong enough. “1,000,000” is the weakest of the lot but only because it adds nothing new to the mix: everything it has to offer the band have already showcased in a stronger fashion during the first three songs, and as a result it falls of the wayside somewhat. “Stumble” is arguably the weakest song of the lot, being a structurally monotonous jam that doesn’t quite have enough meat to support its full length, but the band’s talent as instrumentalists really shines here, Mills in particular: the bass parts of “Stumble” are incredible in all their vibrating spring-like glory and them, along with the rest of the instrumental prowess at display, stop “Stumble” from stumbling over. It caps off the EP in a rather solid fashion despite being a bit of an oddball of a song, leading to a finish worthy of the first three songs. And while it’s a decent finish, it’s those opening songs that not only pave the way forward but gets you coming back.

The actually impressive thing is how well they still stand within the bigger picture of R.E.M.’s whole discography: Chronic Town is by no means the curio early days release just for the hardcore fans you’d probably expect, but it’s a relevant thing to check out even now. A lot of the signature magic is already in here.

Rating: 8/10