It's the end of the world as R.E.M. fans know it. On Wednesday, the seminal alternative rockers announced that they "have decided to call it a day as a band." The news comes as a surprise, since the band has been together since 1980 -- and released their 15th studio album, Collapse Into Now, just six months ago.
"A wise man once said--'the skill in attending a party is knowing when it's time to leave,'" lead singer Michael Stipe, 51, writes on the R.E.M. website. "We built something extraordinary together. We did this thing. And now we're going to walk away from it.
"I hope our fans realize this wasn't an easy decision," he continues, "but all things must end, and we wanted to do it right, to do it our way."
Bassist Mike Mills, 52, adds that the band realized it was time to split up while working on Collapse Into Now, which looks to be their final album.
"We realized that these songs seemed to draw a natural line under the last 31 years of our working together," writes Mills. "We have always been a band in the truest sense of the word. Brothers who truly love, and respect, each other. We feel kind of like pioneers in this--there's no disharmony here, no falling-outs, no lawyers squaring-off. We've made this decision together, amicably and with each other's best interests at heart. The time just feels right."
Guitarist Peter Buck, 54, reiterates that the decision to break up was made with no ill will between band members, writing, "Mike, Michael, Bill (Berry), Bertis (Downs), and I walk away as great friends." (Berry, the group's original drummer, retired in 1997 to become a farmer; Downs was the band's manager.)
It's certainly an accomplishment for a band to break up on good terms, when so many groups have split up due to hostility or tragedy. And R.E.M. has had a good run, to say the least: They practically created the alternative rock sound of the late '80s and early '90s, had 10 albums in the Billboard Top 10, were signed to one of the most expensive recording contracts in history, and earned a place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Singles like "Losing My Religion" and "Everybody Hurts" are likely to be on iPods from now until the end of time. And then there's Automatic for the People, widely considered to be one of the greatest albums of all time. Not bad for a couple of University of Georgia drop-outs.
We wouldn't rule out a reunion tour down the line; after all, the guys still seem to like each other. But for now, it's okay to be sad. As a wise man once sang: sometimes, everybody cries.
Source: http://www.ivillage.com/rem-breaks-after-31-years/1-a-384776
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