michelemichele

Toronto Star
Monday June 23, 2008
R.E.M. abandons 'dead' music videos for disc

Michael Stipe thinks the music video is a "dead medium" -- but the R.E.M. still wants the band's songs to be accompanied by some kind of visuals.

So instead of hiring a top video director to create a clip for their new song "Man-Sized Wreath", they hired Toronto-based ad agency Crush Inc.

And rather than debut the clip on a music network, they took it directly to their fans Thursday night for a sold-out crowd at their concert at Madison Square Garden.

Stipe said it's just the latest way the band is trying to create new methos to connect to its audience. To promote the release of its latest album, Accelerate, the group has stepped up its Internet prsence, starting websites that allowed the audiencce to see the band as it created the songs, and others that gave a chance to take R.E.M. footage and use it in their own video creations.

Though R.E.M. has made some award-winning videeos in the past, including "Losing My Religion" in the early 90s, Stipe said the time of the traditional video has passed.

"It is what it is, and I think anyone who refuses that is an idiot in 2008", he said. "We can all agree as a medium music videos really found their place in the 1990s, (and have been) replaced by the Internet in the 21st century."

"The music video is a dead medium so I didn't want to go to that industry to create a piece," he said.

-- Associated Press

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michelemichele

If you're thinking Yes and No, just vote "No"

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Danimal

I think music video television is dead but myspace and youtube will continue to make the music video viable and return it to a lower budget / actual creativity level that it once inhabited. The larger budget videos will probably be more feature length like that R.Kelly 'Closet' bullshit.

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VKMHVM2

MTV stopped airing music videos and put them on MTV2. Now MTV2 has also stopped airing music videos and they have put them on the digital tier channel MTV Hits. So yes, for all intents and purposes music videos are indeed obsolete. Why bother to make them if you can't get decent promotion out of them?

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michelemichele

It's too early to say what I think isn't it

Dying here

Come on people, taking a break from politics is good for you

omfg 31 hits and only two responses?

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VKMHVM2

The best music video of all time is Guns N' Roses' November Rain. No doubt about it!

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serum114

It's a tough one. I like going up on youtube and checking out videos old and new. I look forward to new Tool videos for instance. As far as record sales goes not sure if it helps or not. I always thought what jam bands are doing was the way to go..... recording live shows and offering them as downloads on the bands web sight.

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brian_wilbanks

I hate music videos.

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Alinea

I think your poll's question is a trick question. Like Danimal points out, music videos are probably getting better play on the net than the old way via tv. Of course, I don't watch tv...I just occasionally listen to music channels (it's like radio with pictures and fun facts - called Music Choice down here). Of course, now I have pandora and my mp3 player...and a tv whose remote doesn't work the volume.

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kaycee

I voted Not Sure. I watch music videos rarely. Once in awhile I might check it out on demand and then watch a bunch in a row, but even as I type this I realize it's been months and months...maybe even a couple of years since I did that.

I saw REM the night before the MSG date mentioned and they were great! Lots of chit chat, but I couldn't understand a lot of what he said. I do know that his Goddaughter was there, but if he mentioned the video thing, I didn't catch it. I'll keep an eye out for whatever they come up with.