Written By Jonathan Cohen
June 28, 2022 – 9:00 am
R.E.M. will celebrate the 40th anniversary of its classic, five-song debut EP, Chronic Town, by releasing it as a standalone CD for the first time in the U.S. on Aug. 19 via I.R.S./UMe. Augmented by extensive new liner notes from original producer Mitch Easter, the project will also be available on picture disc vinyl and cassette and can be pre-ordered here.
Chronic Town was recorded in October 1981 at Easter’s Drive-In Studios in Winston-Salem, N.C., a few months after the release of R.E.M.’s debut single, “Radio Free Europe.” The EP introduced R.E.M.’s distinctive early sound to the wider world on staples such as “Gardening at Night,” “Wolves, Lower” and “1,000,000,” setting the stage for the band’s debut full-length, Murmur, in April 1983. READ MORE