R.E.M.'s debut EP Chronic Town is being given a 40th anniversary re-release in August.
Originally released on August 24, 1982, the five-track EP followed the Athens, Georgia band's debut single, Radio Free Europe: the re-release, set to emerge on August 19 via I.R.S./UMe, will be available on CD, picture disc, and cassette, and will feature liner notes from producer Mitch Easter.
“One might fancifully say that Chronic Town was the sound of an expedition, ready for anything, setting forth,” says Easter. “If Radio Free Europe was a signpost, the Chronic Town EP was the atlas.”
Last year, R.E.M. vocalist Michael Stipe re-affirmed that the group's 2011 split was permanent.
He told All Of It: “We will never reunite. We decided when we split up that that would just be really tacky and probably money-grabbing, which might be the impetus for a lot of bands to get back together. We don’t really need that, and I’m really happy that we just have the legacy of the 32 years of work that we have.”
