There is one song on that album that is problematic and that’s because it was played _too much by everyone_.

A single album ruining both Kate Pierson and KRS-One is a special accomplishment.

If all that album did was introduce a bunch of c&c music factory fans to the B52s and juice the sales of criminal minded it would be worth the price of hearing the Losing My Religion Muzak at the dentists office.

To me it sort of cemented the transition from the B52s of Planet Claire to the B52s of Love Shack. An album of D-grade REM songs with "Roam" playing behind them. Every song on the album would have been improved with Fred Schneider randomly interjecting. Especially "Losing My Religion". "That's me in the spotlight, baby!"

Also: the first REM album where you could really hear how bad Stipe's singing was, and not in that good "anyone can sing along to this and it will still sound like the Flaming Lips" Wayne Coyne way.

I really dislike that album.

I think it suffers from 2 very specific things, the brilliance of automatic and nevermind being released in the same year.

But it has 2 more important things in its favor. It turned me on to REM and the rest of popular music that year. The album holds up better than the hate it receives but in its own era it is an amazing bright spot.

Fine I'll stop messing with you about it.