Monster

R.E.M. turned up the distortion on Monster after the more acoustic settings of Out of Time and Automatic for the People. Peter Buck's guitar often works in broad, vibrating blocks of sound, while Michael Stipe tries out voices and characters that can feel difficult to pin down.

“What's the Frequency, Kenneth?” makes that change immediate. “Let Me In” brings grief into a dense wash of guitar. The contrast keeps the record from being simply a louder version of the band: its surfaces repeatedly hide more vulnerable material.