R.E.M. - Every Day Is Yours To Win

R.E.M. - Every Day Is Yours To Win

 

 

R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention because of Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's unclear vocals. R.E.M. released its first single, "Radio Free Europe", in 1981 on the independent record label Hib-Tone. The single was followed by the Chronic Town EP in 1982, the band's first release on I.R.S. Records. In 1983, the group released its critically acclaimed debut album, Murmur, and built its reputation over the next few years through subsequent releases, constant touring, and the support of college radio. Following years of underground success, R.E.M. achieved a mainstream hit in 1987 with the single "The One I Love". The group signed toWarner Bros. Records in 1988, and began to espouse political and environmental concerns while playing large arenas worldwide.

Review of the album:
therealricko Jun 18 2012

For me, this was one of the albums of 2011 and such a shame that this was their last. I believe R.E.M only ever realeased one bad/mediocre album (Around the Sun) so every time they released an album of late, they risked their legacy. With this record they put a bit of added sheen on that legacy. Great that the band finished on a creative high. It does fade a little in the 3rd quarter of the album but the first half and finish is as strong as any REM record. It really is a pity we won't ever have another R.E.M record but what a back catalogue we have to remember them by.

Personal review:

R.E.M's song "Everyday is yours to win", have a slow rythm. The lyrics are abouts commons things; like a list. I think that; it can symbolizes that the must commons things; can make a heroe, as if the lyrics were giving a glimmer of hope. I think is like a song wich appears to be simple; but in fact it have a huge meaning behind. The tittle is very positive, to supports the people who are listening the song, like saying that they can achieve their dreams.

Video:

The video is like a sequence of mini videos, made by common people. It refers to the lyrics of the song, showing us that everybody can makes special things. It's like an amateur video, and I think it's for the people; can see themselves.

 

 

 

 

 

Two notions illustrated in Sean Penn's movie "Into the wild" (2007)

 
In my opinion this movie deals with two different notions, Myths and heroes and the Idea of progress, telling us the story of a man who decided to break free from the society and his life, and go to Alaska to live like a free person. The idea of progress can be tackle, in a contrary way, because in fact the protagonist is against progress and decided to come back  to a natural state to have a better life. In fact is showing like a regression but it can be a spiritual progress for him  too. The second notion is can be tackle is the notion of myths and heroes because of the myth of  the Good Savage, which explain that living in the state of nature is something good, contrary as the vast majority of people can think. And it can be shows through the protagonist eye, who seems to became some idealistic figure of this myth. 

Post 4: IRack

In my opinion, this video can deals, with two notions: Notion of Progress, and Seats and Forms of Power.
For notion of progress, it is obviously on a critical side, showing how much technology, is improving, but sometimes, this improvement doesn't make sens. It shows us that sometimes, humans can not control technology which they created, because in this video the IRack exploded and Steve Jobs cannot does anything. 
In another side, just  the name of this new "electronic device", shows us that, the video is dealing with the implication of the U.S.A in Iraq, making  war, against terrorism. So, it's a metaphoric image, to display the power of America, in the world, so it deals with the notion of seats and forms of power.
We can conclude saying that, this is a critical video, against to much technological progress which is sometimes unnecessary, and against  too much power of America in the world, like making war in Iraq. 

Post 2 - Videos about technology.

Description :

This video is structured around two main narrative voices and a character illustrating what the voice-over says while a singer often merely repeats what's just been said.

The setting is a christian home and church, so this particular context is very meaningful. We can notice on various occasions that the main character is addicted to high-technology products, mostly smartphones. He is shown as a family man unable to communicate with his wife, exept through texting. He is also shown as a church-goer incapable of attending worship  without all his phones vibrating all the time, marking him look like he's full of the holy spirit.Finally, he is depicted as a computer geek whose life has become extremely complicated instead of having been simplified.

Interpretation : 

Basically, this video means that high technology has become a religion for many people, even christians who are not supposed to be materialistic. Then, in a christian lifestyle, quite a few church goers and believers tend to focus more on materialistic issues rather than spiritual ones. We can add that technology reings supreme for many people who revere it as a God enlightening his followers. The question is, is this a real progress for humankind / humanity ? 

Description : 

Two people are stuck on an elevator in a place that seems litterally empty. The man looks upset. He might be an office worker walking to his job.The woman claims that she is already late, so for her, this is the last straw. At one point, she's about to cry and asks for a phone. In short, they both look hopeless.

Interpretation : 

We can relate this situation to a fairly comon one in real life : getting stuck on an elevator. The difference is that, in this situation, people have the right to panic whereas on an escalator, there is no reason whatsoever to be scared. This video points out the increasing dependence of human beings on technology. If it goes missing, it is as if a crutch had been taken away from, so these two people cannot even walk up the stairs which would be the normal thing to do. We could think  that technological progress makes humans lazy or at least less prone to taking initiatives