R.E.M. Announce ‘New Adventures in Hi-Fi’ 25th-Anniversary Set
R.E.M. have announced a 25th-anniversary reissue of their 10th album, New Adventures in Hi-Fi. The set arrives on Oct. 29.
The two-CD and one Blu-ray collection includes a newly remastered version of the album, a disc of B-sides and live recordings and a previously unreleased outdoor projection film that was shown on buildings in 1996 to promote the album’s original release.
A 52-page hardcover book is also included and will feature rare archival photos, new liner notes and "reflections" from all four band members, as well as from Patti Smith, Radiohead's Thom Yorke and producer Scott Litt.
The first single from the upcoming set, "Leave (Alternate Version)," can be heard below.
New Adventures in Hi-Fi was released in September 1996 and marked the end of an era for the band. It was the last record to include original drummer Bill Berry, who left the following year. Crafted during a time band members consider the peak of their career, much of New Adventures in Hi-Fi was written and recorded on the road during R.E.M.'s 1995 Monster tour.
“We wanted to make a record about being on the road without singing about being on the road,” bassist Mike Mills explains in the liner notes. “The idea was that the feeling of being on the road would come through in the sound and feel of the record itself.”
Even though New Adventures in Hi-Fi reached No. 2, it wasn't as commercially successful as the band's other '90s albums, but it remains a favorite among fans.
“Most records, you go in the studio and you just do ’em," guitarist Peter Buck notes. "And years later all you really remember is vaguely where you stayed, and the songs and the recording process. But this one I remember every bit of it. It was an experience. It was fucking tough, but we made a record. And it was as challenging as anything I’ve ever done.”
You can see the track listing for the reissue below.
R.E.M., 'New Adventures in Hi-Fi: 25th Anniversary Edition' Track Listing
Disc One: Remastered
1. "How the West Was Won and Where It Got Us"
2. "The Wake-up Bomb"
3. "New Test Leper"
4. "Undertow"
5. "E-Bow the Letter
6. "Leave"
7. "Departure"
8. "Bittersweet Me"
9. "Be Mine"
10. "Binky the Doormat"
11. "Zither"
12. "So Fast, So Numb"
13. "Low Desert"
14. "Electrolite"
Produced by Scott Litt & R.E.M
Disc Two: B-sides & Rarities
1. "Tricycle" (Instrumental)
2. "Departure" (Live Rome Soundcheck / Rome, Italy / 2/22/1995)
3. "Wall of Death"
4. "Undertow" (Live / Atlanta, GA / 11/18/1995)
5. "Wichita Lineman" (Live / Houston, TX / 9/15/1995)
6. "New Test Leper" (Live Acoustic / Seattle, WA / 4/19/1996)
7. "The Wake-Up Bomb" (Live / Atlanta, GA / 10/4/1995)
8. "Binky the Doormat" (Live / Atlanta, GA / 11/18/1995)
9. "King of Comedy" (808 State Remix)
10. "Be Mine" (Mike on Bus version)
11. "Love Is All Around"
12. "Sponge"
13. "Leave" (Alternate Version)
Disc Three: Blu-ray
1. E.M. Outdoor Projections – Saturday Sept 7, 1996 – 5 cities (64:56)
2. New Adventures in Hi-Fi EPK – previously unreleased 30 min version (29:13)
3. New Adventures in Hi-Fi 5.1 Audio
4. New Adventures in Hi-Fi – Hi-Resolution Audio
5. "E-Bow the Letter" (Music Video)
6. "Bittersweet Me" (Music Video)
7. "Electrolite" (Music Video)
8. "How the West Was Won and Where It Got Us" (Music Video)
9. "New Test Leper" (Music Video)