R.E.M.’s 'Chronic Town' and 'Murmur' get the Definitive Sound Series Treatment; 2LP Set available December 10, 2025

Exciting news for fans of Rock and Roll Hall of Famer R.E.M....Robert Kinsler

R.E.M.’s Chronic Town and Murmur Get the Definitive Sound Series Treatment 

 

New Premium Limited Edition Audiophile Series From Interscope-Capitol

Features Iconic Albums using the One Step process 

 

Listen/Watch: Audiophile Roundtable: Producers Easter & Dixon on R.E.M.’s 

Chronic Town & Murmur One Steps here

 

Chronic Town / Murmur 2LP Set Available December 10

 

LOS ANGELES, CA — (November 19, 2025) —Interscope-Capitol Records announces the next installment inits acclaimed Definitive Sound Series (DSS): R.E.M.’s Chronic Town and Murmur, two landmark albums that introduced one of America’s most influential bands and reshaped the sound of modern rock.

 

Praised by NME as “full of immediacy and action and healthy impatience,” ˆthe five-song EP Chronic Town(1982), co-produced by Mitch Easter, helped define ‘80s college rock, introducing the band’s jangling guitars, enigmatic lyrics, and Southern post-punk spark. Its follow up, Murmur (1983), produced by Mitch Easter and Don Dixon, crystalized that sound into a richly textured, atmospheric debut album of lasting influence, earning widespread acclaim, including Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Albums of the 1980s, and its 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

 

Sourced from the original analog master tapes with direct involvement from Easter and Dixon, the 2LP, 180-gram high-definition vinyl set ($124.98) was mastered by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering and pressed at Record Technology, Inc. Presented in a top-quality heavyweight tip-on single pocket jacket, the set is, housed inside a uniquely designed slipcase. Pre-order the releases here. Product available at remhq.com while supplies last.

 

 

Created for collectors and audiophiles, the DSS editions are limited to 3,000 numbered copies per title, each album includes a certificate of authenticity detailing its mastering, plating, and pressing. 

 

Using the state-of-the-art One Step process, which eliminates multiple stamper stages to achieve unmatched depth and clarity, the  series represents “the pinnacle of vinyl craftsmanship,” says Xavier Ramos, EVP D2C and eCommerce Strategy at Interscope/Capitol. “We’re proud to invest in these collectible pieces that reflect our respect for these iconic artists, their groundbreaking music, and the fans whose passion continues to keep these albums as relevant today as when they were first released.”

 

Previous DSS titles include Dr Dre’s The Chronic, A Perfect Circle’s Mer de Noms, and Nat King Cole’s The Christmas Song. All DSS releases will be initially exclusive to Interscope.com and shop.capitolmusic.com.

New Music: The Alarm, Love and Rockets, The Baseball Project, Parallax Project

A marvelous return from the Alarm, a collection of rare recordings from Love and Rockets, and a new album from The Baseball Project are available now.

Artist: The Alarm

Title: Forwards (Twenty First Century Recording Company)

You might like if you enjoy: The Alarm, U2, Big Country, The Poppy Fields

Tell me more: Listening to Mike Peters' genuinely inspired and hopeful songs that soar across the Alarm's wonderful new album Forwards is to be filled with faith that each of us has worth and an inner strength to overcome any challenges that come our way. The anthemic rocker "Another Way" rings true as Peters sings: "Have you heard the news that it's all over/Have you heard them say, there's no way out of here? I don't believe it, there's always another way." Although Peters' first battled lymph cancer in the mid-1990s and more recently beginning in late 2022, the 64-year-old Wales-based artist sounds as amazing as ever. The majority of songs on Forwards were written by Peters in the hospital while he was undergoing chemo and battling cancer. On the gorgeous "Love and Forgiveness" he poignantly sings "I'm a man who's lost control of all that he owns/are you going to give me love and forgiveness?" The propulsive post-punk rocker "Next" reinforces Peters' survival mindset and his palpable joy at embracing life; "All the clocks are set to zero, now's the time to run/I hear the crack of the starting gun and I'm ready for what's next." Other great tracks on the album include the driving title track, the confessional "The Returning," survival-themed "Transition" and fiery "Love Disappearing." Peters (guitar, lead vocals, harmonica), James Stevenson (guitar, backing vocals), Jules Jones Peters (piano, organ, strings, backing vocals) and Smiley (drums, percussion, backing vocals) have created a masterful album that is a welcome and marvelous addition to the Alarm's terrific discography. Information: TheAlarm.com.

Artist: Love and Rockets

Title: My Dark Twin (Beggars Banquet)

You might like if you enjoy: Love and Rockets, Bauhaus, The Cure, Tones on Tail

Tell me more: Since Love and Rockets announced their reunion to perform at the Cruel World Festival in Pasadena on May 20, 2023, there has been renewed interest in the English rock band formed in 1985 by former Bauhaus members Daniel Ash (vocals, guitar, organ), David J (vocals, bass, keyboards) and Kevin Haskins (drums, programming, backing vocals, sound effects). Now lovers of the group's groundbreaking alternative rock can get take a deep dive into the band's rich history via the 2CD set My Dark Twin; the 22-track collection revisits the sessions that gave birth to 1996's Sweet F.A. The title features eight previously unreleased versions and six unreleased songs from the Sweet F.A. sessions. Disc 1's marathon-length run includes the bewitching "The Fever," driving and melodic "That's Progress," dark "Words of a Fool," expansive "Pearl," pedal steel-swept "Shelf Life" and edgy 15-minute closer "U.O. Me." Disc 2 reveals more treasures as evidenced by the ambitious genre-bending "The Glittering Darkness," art rocker "California (Have a Nice Apocalypse)," fiery "Butterfly," lovely rough mix of "Sweet F.A." and heavy electronica sortie "Sweet Lover Hangover." The colorful 16-page booklet has new comments from the band about the recordings and notes from historian Andrew J Brooksbank. Information: www.facebook.com/LoveandRocketspage/. 

Artist: The Baseball Project

Title: Grand Salami Time! (Omnivore Recordings)

You might like if you enjoy: R.E.M., The Dream Syndicate, The Minus 5, Major League Baseball history

Tell me more: The Baseball Project is back with Grand Salami Time!, the aptly-titled supergroup's fourth album. Guitarist Peter Buck (R.E.M.), singer-guitarist-keyboardist Scott McCaughey (The Minus 5), bassist-vocalist Mike Mills (R.E.M.), drummer Linda Pitmon (the Filthy Friends) and guitarist-vocalist Steve Wynn (The Dream Syndicate) have delivered a fun-filled batch of great songs focused on baseball-related heroes and historical moments from America's pastime. My favorite early tracks on the wonderful disc include the wistful "Journeyman," the dreamy indie rocker "New Oh in Town" celebrating the already-legendary talents of Shohei Ohtani, and the dark "Disco Demolition" chronicling the notorious night at Comiskey Park where a riot broke out on the field resulting in the arrest of 37 in July 1979. The momentum continues via the driving "The All or Nothings," acoustic tale of Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez's untimely death at age 24 in 2016 ("That's Living"), and power pop-flavored "Having Fun." The last song on the album, "The Voice of Baseball," fully celebrates broadcaster great Vin Scully. The informative 12-page booklet includes lyrics for the album's 16 songs along with short intros penned by the band shedding insight into each track. Information: OmnivoreRecordings.com.

Robert Kinsler

R.E.M. celebrates the 40th Anniversary of 'Chronic Town'

 Very cool news about this forthcoming R.E.M. release...Robert Kinsler

Available For The First Time As A Standalone CD
via I.R.S. / UMe With Extensive Liner Notes
By Producer MITCH EASTER
Also Available In Picture Disc And Cassette Editions

LOS ANGELES – JUNE 28, 2022 -- Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, R.E.M.’s debut EP CHRONIC TOWN will be released for the first time ever as a standalone CD with extensive liner notes by the original producer Mitch Easter (Let’s Active).  It will be released in three different formats: CD, Picture Disc, and Cassette on August 19, 2022 via I.R.S./UMe and can be preordered here. Featuring such adored classics in the band’s repertoire as “Gardening At Night,” “Wolves, Lower,” and “1,000,000,” the five-song EP, as Rolling Stone noted, “served notice that R.E.M. was an outfit to watch.” As a debut release, R.E.M.’s Chronic Town became an anomaly… a record that didn’t quite fit into the constraints of what was played on the radio.  So instead of trying to fit into a genre, R.E.M. helped create their own: College Rock. The follow-up to their breakthrough single “Radio Free Europe” which was released in 1981, Chronic Town served as the entry point to what would become one of Alternative Rock’s biggest bands.  “One might fancifully say that Chronic Town was the sound of an expedition, ready for anything, setting forth,” says Easter fondly about the EP.  “If R.E.M. ‘Radio Free Europe’ single was a signpost, the Chronic Town EP was the atlas."

R.E.M.  Photo Credit: Sandra Lee Phipps

Introducing their arpeggiated guitar playing, cryptic and often indecipherable lyrics, and radiant choruses that would soon emerge as signatures of the classic R.E.M. sound, Chronic Town is the sound of a restless band, chock-full of ideas, operating on a post-collegiate budget. Charmingly ragged and refreshingly immediate, it established the band indelibly upon impact. “Wolves, Lower” opens the EP with Michael Stipe’s trademark impressionistic and idiosyncratic lyrics, while Mike Mills’ rubbery bass lines and Peter Buck’s jangly Rickenbacker keeps Bill Berry’s unpredictable drumming in check. It’s this combination that would not only fuel the band for subsequent decades but make them equally as dependable as songsmiths. Serving as a template for ‘80s college jangle pop, “Gardening At Night” forged a style that combined heartily strummed rhythm guitars with a meandering bass line that proved to be a solid blueprint for college bands to come. Critically hailed both upon release and in retrospect, Chronic Town heralded “a great band planting their flag in the ground, a historic landmark that portended great things that actually came” (Stereogum). The Stranger praised “everything about the EP, from its gnomic, blue-tinted cover art, to its restlessly discursive music, to the fact that the two sides both had their own titles (‘Chronic Town’ and ‘Poster Torn’), was not only good on its own merits, but an excellent influence in favor of obscurantism and understatement.” Chronic Town’s impact and influence on the future of alternative music is uncontested and described by Magnet Magazine as “essentially a template for the entire indie-rock movement.”

R.E.M. - CHRONIC TOWN     1. Wolves, Lower 2. Gardening At Night 3. Carnival Of Sorts (Boxcars) 4. 1,000,000 5. Stumble

R.E.M. "Wolves, Lower"

New Music: Marshall Crenshaw, The Rave-Ups, Sam Moss

Don't let this trio of terrific releases escape your listen.

Artist: Marshall Crenshaw

Title: #447 (Shiny-Tone)

You might like if you enjoy: Marshall Crenshaw, The Smithereens, Gin Blossoms

Tell me more: In 2020, Marshall Crenshaw launched a series of reissues focused on a handful of his classic albums beginning with the release of his 1996 album Miracle of Science. On Feb. 4, 2022, a deluxe and expanded edition of his 1999 masterwork #447 will be available. This was an ambitious effort featuring Crenshaw on lead vocals, guitar, bass, drums, percussion and vintage keyboards; the album was bolstered by the contributions of Bill Lloyd, Greg Leisz, Andy York and former E. Street Band member David Sancious. Remastered with perfection by engineer Greg Calbi, the new edition of #447 allows listeners to rediscover a parade of outstanding selections including the melodic "Television Light," Americana "Glad Goodbye," jazzy instrumental "Eydie's Tune," power pop gem "T.M.D." and Irresistible "Tell Me All About It" along with two new bonus tracks (the terrific roots rocker "Will of the Wind" and a wistful cover of Gregg Turner's "Santa Fe"). Information: MarshallCrenshaw.com.  

Artist: The Rave-Ups

Title: Tomorrow (Omnivore Recordings)

You might like if you enjoy: The Rave-Ups, The Beat Farmers, Walter Clevenger & The Dairy Kings, The Blasters

Tell me more: Roots rock troupe The Rave Ups are back with the must-hear Tomorrow, the quartet's first new album since 1990. The original Rave-Ups lineup —  singer-songwriter Jimmer Podrasky, guitarist Terry Wilson, bassist Tommy Blatnik and drummer Timothy Jimenez —  have crafted a return that is truly a glorious and uplifting listen; Tomorrow is filled to the brim with explosive rockers and affecting more restrained Americana (notably the beautiful "Roll" and reflective "Cry"). The driving opener "So You Wanna Know The Truth?" and melodic pedal steel-adorned "How Old Am I?" (whose affecting lyrics focus on the relationship between father and son) and shimmering "Coming After Me" are among my early favorites on the 11-track album, while late-disc entries "The Dream of California," blues-flavored "When I Write Your Name" and countrified "Tomorrow" shine just as bright. Information: OmnivoreRecordings.com. 

Artist: Sam Moss

Title: Blues Approved (Schoolkids Records)

You might like if you enjoy: Eric Clapton, Alvin Lee

Tell me more: Singer-songwriter/guitar great Sam Moss' legacy and talent cast a strong and lasting influence on the Winston-Salem, North Carolina music scene during his lifetime and even after his death in 2007. Listening to his so-called "great lost" album titled Blues Approved it's easy to hear why. Although the majority of the tracks on the wonderful album were originally recorded on 4-track analog equipment, their magic and fidelity sound great. These priceless recordings were originally produced by Moss, who would travel from his home in Winston-Salem to nearby Chapel Hill to record with Mitch Easter (who played drums and engineered on the sessions). In 2020, noted producer Chris Stamey discovered an old tape that featured many of the tracks heard on Blues Approved that were recorded in 1977. Although the majority of the selections on Blues Approved are anchored in blues (just listen to “Rooster Blood” and “King of My Hill”), the sounds of Memphis soul, ‘70s classic rock and R&B are artfully incorporated along the way. Kudos to Stamey (along with Easter and Gene Holder) for restoring and enhancing the older source tapes for today’s audiences.  There is a myriad of great originals and covers on Blues Approved, including a tasty British blues-styled take on Mike Bloomfield's "If You See My Baby," the original classic rock-mining "To Those Still at Sea," and “Ain’t That Peculiar” (a buoyant and riveting cover of the Marvin Gaye 1965 classic), the latter with Mike “Wezo” Wesolowski’s harmonica adding to the magic. The crunchy original “Vida Blanche” recalls the might of Bad Company’s best work, with Moss’ fiery rhythm and lead guitar mastery on display.  Moss ventures into psychedelic hard rock territory via the dazzling instrumental “Nightflight Over Berlin.” Among the other far-flung nuggets on the set is a rousing take on the Gerry Goffin and Carole King classic “Pleasant Valley Sunday” and infectious reading of the rare Rolling Stones cut “Who’s Driving Your Plane?” Listening to the album in 2022 is to discover an artist who possessed impressive and stylish talents as a lead singer, songwriter and guitarist. A 16-page booklet really provides a wealth of images and liner notes that tell the full story on Moss and how these tracks were readied for release in 2022. Information: SchoolkidsRecords.com.

Robert Kinsler

Fourth volume of Ken Sharp's "Play On! Power Pop Heroes" set for publication in February 2017

Okay, this is a book I can't wait to read! When you start talking about Crowded House, The Bangles, The Smithereens and Matthew Sweet, you definitely have my attention!

FOURTH VOLUME OF KEN SHARP’S “PLAY ON! POWER POP HEROES” SERIES SET FOR PUBLICATION IN FEBRUARY 2017

“You can’t talk about power pop without getting into a discussion of what it is. I always think about Supreme Court Justice Stewart’s famous comment about pornography here—‘I know it when I see it.’ While not necessarily naughty, power pop does have a funny place in the rock category pantheon. It can’t quite escape being a guilty pleasure for many. I am happy to say I have no guilt whatsoever about my pop, power or otherwise!”

- Mitch Easter, Let’s Active

Whether its Raspberries' naughty testosterone-fueled epic "Go All the Way," most recently prominently featured in Guardians of the Galaxy or Badfinger's "Baby Blue," which scored the climactic final scene in the series finale of “Breaking Bad” or The Knack’s worldwide smash “My Sharona,” power pop is feel-good music whose sonic reverberations continue to make an indelible impact on the culture. In Play On! Power Pop Heroes: Volume Four (Jetfighter/$39.97), the forthcoming installment of a five-volume series slated for release in spring of 2017, Ken Sharp honors the musical innovators who built the genre’s foundation.

Back in '67, in describing their new single "I Can See for Miles," the Who's Pete Townshend coined the term "power pop," not knowing that the genre would come to take its name from his offhand description. "A Hard Days Night"..."You Really Got Me"..."Glad All Over"..."Feel A Whole Lot Better"..."Pictures of Lily"...”Tin Soldier”…"”Open My Eyes”…"Go All the Way"..."No Matter What"..."September Gurls"...”Surrender”…”My Sharona”…”Stacy’s Mom” these classic songs share one common thread: they contain all the ingredients that make up a musical form known as "power pop."

Louis Gutierrez, left, and Michael Querico of The
Three O'Clock performing at Coachella in
April 2013. Photo: Robert Kinsler

From the '60s to present day, power pop music has gone on to mean different things to different people. For some, the term conjures the guitar crunch of Badfinger and Cheap Trick; for some, it's the intricate orchestrated melodicism of the Beach Boys, the Zombies or Jellyfish; while for others it epitomizes the quirky jagged pop tread by acts like Squeeze, XTC and Fountains of Wayne. But the stylistic glue that welds it all together into one thrilling two-to-three-minute musical joyride is a collective reverence for a picture-perfect melody that will take your breath away and a supersonic hook, the size of the Empire State Building, that's near impossible to forget.

The Smithereens in 2011.

Featuring a foreword by Mitch Easter, the 528-page book culls exclusive extended interviews with 17 artists that defined the genre and is profusely illustrated with rare photographs and original handwritten lyrics. 

Track-by track commentary is provided about seminal albums including All Over The Place (The Bangles), Girlfriend (Matthew Sweet), Sixteen Tambourines (The Three O’Clock), Like This (The dB’s), Love Junk (The Pursuit of Happiness), Beat Music (The Spongetones), and Deluxe (Parthenon Huxley) plus select artist commentary about classic recordings from Crowded House, The Smithereens, Teenage Fanclub, Hoodoo Gurus, The Producers, Tommy Keene, Let’s Active, The Go-Go’s, and Michael Penn add to the inside story of this influential genre.

Buyers will receive over tracks of incredible bonus music (over a $ retail value) of rare, unreleased and live music from the dB’s, Redd Kross, The Smithereens, Mitch Easter, The Pursuit of Happiness, Tommy Keene, The Spongetones, Parthenon Huxley. In addition to those artists, there will be out of print and rare tracks from countless other power pop acts spanning the globe.

Play On! Power Pop Heroes: Volume Four is available exclusively from

http://www.goodmusicguy.com/play-on-power-pop-heroes-volume-4/

Matthew Sweet, left, with Robert Kinsler at The
Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, CA, in
August 2008.

Acts featured in Volume Four:

The dB’s

The Producers

Tommy Keene

Let’s Active

The Go-Go’s

The Spongestones

The Bangles

The Three O’Clock

The Smithereens

Crowded House

Hoodoo Gurus

Redd Kross

Matthew Sweet

Teenage Fanclub

The Pursuit of Happiness

Michael Penn

Parthenon Huxley

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ken Sharp is a New York Times best-selling author who has penned more than 19 music books, contributes to a variety of national music magazines, works on music documentaries and has done liner notes for releases by Elvis Presley, Sly and the Family Stone, Janis Joplin, Small Faces, Santana, Cheap Trick, Raspberries, Eric Carmen, KISS, Hall and Oates, Jellyfish, Heart and others. In addition to the Play On! Power Pop Heroes series, his books include Starting Over: The Making of John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Double Fantasy, Elvis: Vegas ‘69, Nothin’ to Lose: the Making of KISS (1972-1975), Elvis Presley: Writing for the King, Sound Explosion: Inside LA’s Studio Factory with the Wrecking Crew, Overnight Sensation: The Story of the Raspberries, Play on!: Power Pop Heroes, Reputation is a Fragile Thing: The Story of Cheap Trick, Kooks, Queen Bitches and Andy Warhol: The Making of David Bowie’s Hunky Dory.

Big Star's 'Third' all-star performance at Alex Theatre, April 27, courtesy Concord Bicycle Music

Wow! Huge news for fans of Big Star coming in today...

CONCORD BICYCLE MUSIC PRESENTS“THANK YOU, FRIENDS”:BIG STAR’S THIRD LIVE AND MOREWITH SPECIAL GUESTS KRONOS QUARTET 

To be filmed for DVD Release
Wednesday, April 27, 2016 at the Alex Theatre 

Performers include members of Wilco, R.E.M., Big Star, Semisonic, Yo La Tengo, The Posies, The HeartbreakersLet’s Active, the dB’s

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Concord Bicycle Music will present a concert of the music of Memphis legends Big Star, performed by an all-star lineup of musicians and guest vocalists. The event, featuring fan favorites such as “In the Street,” “September Gurls” and “Thirteen,” as well as the entire Third album, is to be filmed for Thank You, Friends, a DVD and CD release set for release in 2017 and will take place Wednesday, April 27, 2017 at 8 p.m.sharp, at the Alex Theater, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. Doors are at 7 p.m. 

Jeff Tweedy and Pat Sansone of Wilco, Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo, Robyn Hitchcock, Dan Wilson of Semisonic, Benmont Tench from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Jessica Pratt, Brett Harris, Django Haskins, and Skylar Gudasz are among the guests who will be joined by a full chamber orchestra helmed by the Kronos Quartet, performing scores created directly from the original multitrack tapes from Ardent for this event. Carl Marsh, who wrote the original orchestrations, will conduct.

While the band may not be Big Star per se, the fabled group’s sole surviving original member, Jody Stephens, heads an amazing cast, whose membership includes latter-day Big Star alumni Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer of the Posies, R.E.M’s Mike Mills, Let’s Active’s Mitch Easter, Chris Stamey of the dB’s, and others.

The concert will be filmed by Yes Equals Yes as part of a Concord DVD release, slated for Spring 2017.

Big Star’s third album, Third/Sister Lovers, has long been revered by artists and critics as one of the most influential albums ever produced. Written and recorded when the legendary ’70s band was primarily a studio project consisting of Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens, the third album was never performed in public with the original string and wind orchestrations. That changed in December 2010, when an ace ensemble unearthed the original scores, assembled an orchestra and performed Big Star’s Third at Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro, North Carolina. Stamey notes: “Now, to have Carl Marsh conduct his own original exacting, unearthly orchestrations for the first time—and to have the amazing Kronos Quartet joining all of us in bringing them to life on stage—is a dream come true.”

Much like Nick Drake, the Velvet Underground, or other critically esteemed artists whose work only gained commercial traction long after its initial release, Big Star’s trademark mix of shimmering jangle pop with a side of elliptical melancholia was originally let loose into a world that just wasn’t ready for it. Nonetheless, an underground core of fanatical enthusiasts kept the fire burning. The Replacements famously released “Alex Chilton,” a song that paid tribute to his songwriting genius. R.E.M.’s Peter Buck said, "Big Star served as a Rosetta Stone for a whole generation of musicians." Third is included as one of Rolling Stone magazine’s “500 Greatest Albums of All Time.” Experience this classic of late ’70s power pop through the prism of a one-of-a-kind collective of immensely talented fans of one of the most influential American rock bands ever.

Of very special guests the Kronos Quartet, Los Angeles Times wrote: “Kronos has led and continues to lead what surely must be the longest unending revolution by any ensemble ever in music history.”

Ticket link:http://www.alextheatre.org/event/concord-music-group-presents-thank-you-friends-big-stars-third-live