Strange Currencies
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"Strange Currencies" is a song by American rock band
R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American alternative rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the fir ...
It was included on their ninth studio album, ''
Monster A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes Anxiety, terror ...
'' (1994), and was released as the album's fourth
single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...
on April 18, 1995, by
Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...
. The song reached number nine on the UK Singles Chart and peaked at number 47 in the United States. Like "
Everybody Hurts "Everybody Hurts" is a song by American rock band R.E.M. from their eighth studio album, '' Automatic for the People'' (1992), and released as a single in April 1993 by Warner Bros. Records. It was written by the band and produced by them with ...
" on R.E.M.'s previous album, it has a
time signature A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates th ...
of . The song's music video was directed by
Mark Romanek Mark Lee Romanek (; born September 18, 1959) is an American film, music video and commercial director and photographer. He is best known for directing the films ''One Hour Photo'' (2002) and ''Never Let Me Go (2010 film), Never Let Me Go'' (2010) ...
.


Composition

Stipe has said that the song is about "when somebody actually thinks that, through words, they're going to be able to convince somebody that they are their one and only." The song almost did not make it on the album due to its rhythmic similarities to "
Everybody Hurts "Everybody Hurts" is a song by American rock band R.E.M. from their eighth studio album, '' Automatic for the People'' (1992), and released as a single in April 1993 by Warner Bros. Records. It was written by the band and produced by them with ...
." Yet
Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe was born in Metro Atlanta in January 1960. Due to his father's militar ...
's melody, the band felt, was too good to pass over, so the original rhythm was slightly reworked.


Critical reception

Steve Baltin from ''
Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...
'' named "Strange Currencies" "maybe the sweetest song" from the ''
Monster A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes Anxiety, terror ...
'' album. He explained, "There's a simple longing, mixed with reassuring, in the way
Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe was born in Metro Atlanta in January 1960. Due to his father's militar ...
sings "''I tripped and fell/did I fall/what I want to feel I want to feel it now''." A sparse but lovely melody accompanies Stipe's tour de force. ..Of course it will be a smash at the usual outlets, it's R.E.M.; but look for this one to break out at
Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...
and maybe even at Adult/Contemporary." Chuck Campbell from ''
Knoxville News Sentinel The ''Knoxville News Sentinel'', also known as ''Knox News'', is a daily newspaper in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, owned by the Gannett Company. History The newspaper was formed in 1926 from the merger of two competing newspapers: '' ...
'' said it's the song "with perhaps the most enduring appeal" on the album, declaring it as "a languid track on which Stipe explores the enigma of a would-be lover with alternating fits of determination and vulnerability." Jennifer Nine from ''
Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...
'' complimented it as "buoyant". Another ''Melody Maker'' editor,
Andrew Mueller Andrew Mueller is an Australian-born, London-based journalist and author. He is a contributing editor at ''Monocle'', and also regularly writes for ''The Independent'', ''The Independent on Sunday'', ''The Financial Times'', ''Esquire'', ''The ...
, wrote that it "puts the accompaniment to "
Everybody Hurts "Everybody Hurts" is a song by American rock band R.E.M. from their eighth studio album, '' Automatic for the People'' (1992), and released as a single in April 1993 by Warner Bros. Records. It was written by the band and produced by them with ...
" through a cheap and brutal amplifier and replaces universal balm with the self-abasing heroics of the unrequited admirer. "''Fool might be my middle name''", he sings, gloriously, uselessly besotted, "''I tripped and I fell...you will be mine''". Ah, the pathos, the hopeless deluded joy of it all. Lovely." Barbara Ellen from ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'' said, "Like
Morrissey Steven Patrick Morrissey ( ; born 22 May 1959), known :wikt:mononym, mononymously as Morrissey, is an English singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 198 ...
, Michael Stipe is an expert on the agonies of obsessive, unrequited love. ..The lyrics of "Strange Currencies" are among his most deceptively simple and potent yet, encapsulating all the need, hope and dread of a painful, secret crush".
Roy Wilkinson Roy Wilkinson is a British music journalist and band manager. As a journalist he is best known for his work in '' Sounds'', '' Select'' and '' Q'', but has contributed to various other publications. Considered an authority on the Pixies, he a ...
from '' Select'' noted how Stipe "wanting ''to turn you on''". Howard Hampton from ''
Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...
'' felt it's better than its "tearjerking predecessor", "Everybody Hurts", describing it as a "tremulous, pledging-my-soul" track.


Music video

The accompanying music video for "Strange Currencies", directed by
Mark Romanek Mark Lee Romanek (; born September 18, 1959) is an American film, music video and commercial director and photographer. He is best known for directing the films ''One Hour Photo'' (2002) and ''Never Let Me Go (2010 film), Never Let Me Go'' (2010) ...
, was shot on the first anniversary of the death of
Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe was born in Metro Atlanta in January 1960. Due to his father's militar ...
's close friend
River Phoenix River Jude Phoenix (; August 23, 1970 – October 31, 1993) was an American actor. He was known as a teen actor before taking on leading roles in critically acclaimed films and becoming one of the most preeminent talents of his generation. Pho ...
and features Phoenix's last girlfriend, actress
Samantha Mathis Samantha Mathis (born May 12, 1970) is an American actress and trade union leader who served as the Vice President, Actors/Performers of SAG-AFTRA from 2015 to 2019. The daughter of actress Bibi Besch, Mathis made her film debut in '' Pump Up ...
. It also features an early performance by actor and model
Norman Reedus Norman Mark Reedus (born January 6, 1970) is an American actor. He made his acting debut in the 1990s, starring in the role of Murphy MacManus in ', followed by supporting roles in successful box office films ''8MM,'' '' Blade II'', and ''Amer ...
. It is in black and white, and shows the band playing in an industrial area. The images of the band are interspersed with other shots, some of which, such as a child playing with a dead bird, suggest urban decay. A second music video for a remix that incorporates live footage from ''
Road Movie A road movie is a film genre, genre of film in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the the ...
'' and the second season of '' The Bear'' was released on June 27, 2023. A lyric video for the ''Monster'' 25th anniversary remix was published on July 20, 2023.


Live performances

"Strange Currencies" was played live frequently throughout the ''Monster'' tour but was not performed live again until 2003, when the song would then only appear on and off throughout various set lists until their final tour in 2008.


Track listings

* US CD and cassette single, UK 7-inch and cassette single # "Strange Currencies" (album version) – 3:52 # "Strange Currencies" (instrumental version) – 3:52 * UK maxi-CD and 12-inch single, UK and Australian CD single # "Strange Currencies" – 3:52 # "
Drive Drive or The Drive may refer to: Motoring * Driving, the act of controlling a vehicle * Road trip, a journey on roads Roadways Roadways called "drives" may include: * Driveway, a private road for local access to structures, abbreviated "drive" * ...
" (live) – 4:17 (4:10 in UK) # " Funtime" (live) – 2:16 (2:20 in UK) # "
Radio Free Europe Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a media organization broadcasting news and analyses in 27 languages to 23 countries across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. Headquartered in Prague since 1995, RFE/RL ...
" (live) – 4:43 Note: All live tracks were recorded at the
40 Watt Club The 40 Watt Club is a music venue in Athens, Georgia. Along with CBGB, the Whisky a Go Go, and selected others, it was instrumental in launching American punk rock and new wave music. The 40 Watt Club was the primary performance space for numero ...
in Athens, Georgia, on November 19, 1992. The performance, a benefit for
Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by a group of Environmental movement, environmental activists. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth to nurture life in all its biod ...
, was recorded on a solar-powered mobile studio. *2023 digital edition, released to coincide with the second season of '' The Bear'' #"Strange Currencies" (25th anniversary remix by
Scott Litt Scott Warren Litt (born March 10, 1954) is an American record producer who mostly works with artists in the alternative rock genre and is best known for producing six R.E.M. albums in the late 1980s and early to mid-1990s during the band's most ...
) – 3:52 #"Strange Currencies" – 3:52 #"Strange Currencies" (Live version from ''
Road Movie A road movie is a film genre, genre of film in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the the ...
'') – 4:13


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Release history


References


External links


Video clip at REMhq.com
{{Authority control 1995 singles American soul songs Music videos directed by Mark Romanek R.E.M. songs Songs written by Bill Berry Songs written by Peter Buck Songs written by Mike Mills Songs written by Michael Stipe Warner Records singles 1994 songs Song recordings produced by Scott Litt Song recordings produced by Michael Stipe Song recordings produced by Peter Buck Song recordings produced by Bill Berry Song recordings produced by Mike Mills