Following a short tour in 2024 celebrating the 40th-anniversary release of Murmur by REM, actor Michael Shannon and indie rock stalwart Jason Narducy (Bob Mould, Superchunk) are back at it with an 18-show tour which sees them play the entirety of REM’s 1985 album, Fables of the Reconstruction. Their band includes Jon Wurster (Superchunk, Mountain Goats, Bob Mould) on drums, John Stirratt (Wilco) on bass, Dag Juhlin (Poi Dog Pondering) on guitar and Vijay Tellis-Nayak on keyboards. No strangers to the concept, Shannon and Narducy have done similar shows covering albums by Lou Reed, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, T. Rex, The Modern Lovers and The Smiths. Tonight at the Fillmore in San Francisco, Shannon, Narducy, and band amble onto the stage looking relaxed and eager. With no welcoming banter, Narducy hits the discordant and chiming three-note opening riff of “Feeling Gravity’s Pull” and we’re off, with the muscular rhythm section keeping the dirge-like pace anchored beneath Shannon’s vocals. Tellis-Nayak’s swirling keyboards meld seamlessly with the surrealist lyrics “It’s a Man Ray kind of sky/I’ll show what I can do with it”, and Narducy’s harmony singing is the cherry on top of this opening concoction.
“Maps and Legends” follows at the same chugging pace and highlights how well Shannon and Jason recreate the Michael Stipe/Mike Mills vocal dynamic, but it’s not until “Driver 8” that the band achieves lift-off. Suddenly it’s 1985 again and there’s another great Peter Buck riff to fall in love with. Juhlin’s Rickenbacker intertwines perfectly with Narducy’s Fender Telecaster to recreate the ringing, electric pulse of joy that runs through this song. It’s a favorite from Fables, notoriously looked upon as the “difficult” third release. “Life And How To Live It” follows and bounces along at a furious pace, with Shannon throwing shapes back and forth across the stage. Juhlin again punctuates the performance with his chiming Rickenbacker and the audience loves every arpeggio he throws at them.
“Old Man Kensey”, the last song on side one of the original record, starts with Siratt’s melancholy bass riff and revisits the surreal atmosphere of “Gravity”. Tonight the tune misses the murky atmosphere that producer Joe Boyd helped create for the recording, but all is forgiven when the scratchy, funky guitar riff of “Can’t Get There From Here” leaps from the speakers. One of the first REM videos shown on MTV, “Can’t Get There”‘s infectious rhythm gets the crowd jumping and propels Shannon across the stage like a pinball.
“Green Grow The Rushes”, by comparison, is pastoral and reflective with a Byrds-influenced guitar figure that sits beautifully underneath the aching melody. Kohoutek sees Shannon stretch his falsetto over the jangle of Narducy’s guitar for a faithful rendering of this mid-paced number until “Auctioneer” kicks up the energy, with Shannon riding Narducy’s insistent riff like a roller coaster. The audience loves it, however, all good records must come to an end, and so “Good Advices” and “Wendell Gee” close out the proceedings, gently bringing the first part of the show to a finish, highlighted by Narducy’s subtle banjo plucking. A cover of The Velvet Underground‘s “Femme Fatale” follows and then the band leaves the stage.
Upon returning, Shannon chastises those fans who cite Reckoning as a “weak” REM album, calling them “freakazoids” and then, with the editorializing finished, he leads the band into “Romance” from the Eponomous LP. Following that left-field choice, an unhinged cover of Wire‘s “Strange” erupts from the stage, and the raucous vibe continues with “1,000,000” from REM’s initial EP Chronic Town, morphing tonight into a highly charged power pop treat. “World Leader” is next, with Shannon bringing a snare drum to the front of the stage for random whacking. “Bandwagon” offers a quick plunge into the goofier side of the band and then “Sitting Still”, possibly the best performance of the night, sees the band rip into the guts of this highlight from Murmer. A cover of Pylon‘s “Crazy” is moody and finely delivered, and then Shannon, announcing a tour next year covering the album Life’s Rich Pageant, leads the band into “Cuyahuga”, which sounds splendid this evening and whets the appetite for the said tour.
Does Shannon sound like Michael Stipe? Sometimes eerily so, other times it could be any talented uber-fan belting out these songs. The secret sauce is the rhythm section of Stirratt and Wurster, as they continually ground the arpeggiated flights of Juhlin and Narducy who, in turn, allow breathing space for Shannon’s vocals. The band have clearly been riding a loose vibe this evening and it’s easy to see how much fun they are having, especially when Shannon starts mugging with Narducy like school kids. “Little America” and “Second Guessing” are the two barn burners that close out the show until they return to deliver a lilting acoustic version of “South Central Rain”. “Wind Out” and a cover of Aerosmith‘s “Toys In The Attic” finally bring the evening to an end. It’s been a wildly fun and upbeat show tonight, a heartfelt homage to the elusive energy of one of Indy rock’s formative bands.
