R.E.M.'s enigmatic frontman Michael Stipe has revealed the incident that caused his fear of the outdoors

Sharon Van Etten is, according to Pitchfork, working on recording the followup to Epic with The National’s Aaron Dessner. That’s good news. The album sessions have to fit in between her tour for Epic, which included a stop at the Bowery Ballroom Saturday night. There she dedicated a cover of R.E.M.’s “Stra...

The third taste of Collapse Into Now arrives via “Oh My Heart.” The gentle, echoing ballad (of sorts) debuted at NPR along with some words about the song from Michael Stipe. The production reminds me of (R.E.M. fans) the Walkmen. Read Stipe’s thoughts before you listen:It’s a very quiet and very meditative...

Our second taste of Collapse Into Now is an immediate download from iTunes if you pre-order. Whereas “Discoverer“’s ringing electric riff reminded me of “Finest Worksong,” the gentler, acoustic tones of “It Happened Today” recall “Texarkana.” Eddie Vedder a...

Our second taste of Collapse Into Now is an immediate download from iTunes if you pre-order. Whereas “Discoverer“’s ringing electric riff reminded me of “Finest Worksong,” the gentler, acoustic tones of “It Happened Today” recall “Texarkana.” Eddie Vedder a...