R.E.M. - I’ve Been High (live at The Bridge School)
So I dive into a pool, so cool and deep
Rafa’s running through post-Bill Berry R.E.M. at One Week // One Band this week and just now he covered what is possibly my favourite post-Up song of theirs.
At their best, the songs of R.E.M.’s synth period are detailed musical worlds to get lost in, and that’s true even of subtler, quiet songs like “I’ve Been High.”
Nestled between two of Reveal’s grander productions is this gem, a quiet number that imagines an alternative 1980s where R.E.M. were synthpop balladeers in the mold of Eurythmics.
The first verse is a masterpiece of restraint, with aquatic synths and simple drum programming providing most of the backing for a superbly modulated vocal by Stipe, but modem-like squiggles and occasional piercing guitar notes add tension and variety as the track grows. In a way, “I’ve Been High” owes as much of its success to studio wizardry as do showier tracks like “All The Way To Reno.” It could have easily been 80s balladeering treacle—the Olympia version, sadly, sort of is—but the varied synth tones and subtly increasing tension of the recording add color and drama to what reveals itself to be a gorgeous ballad. (via)
I would agree with the comments made on the Olympia version, but I’ve always been incredibly fond of the rendition they performed at one of Neil Young’s Bridge School benefit concerts (similarly: the song performed live on A&E); I think it very gorgeously shows that the track’s slow-burning grandeur does indeed work outside of its original synth-setting.
The light, sometimes it washes over me
