R.E.M.: MORE GUESSWORK

“LIFES RICH PAGEANT.” R.E.M. I.R.S.

The title comes from “The Pink Panther.” The producer is John Cougar Mellencamp’s producer, Don Gehman. The drums are louder, the guitars are rawer. And all in all, R.E.M.’s fourth album (plus an EP) is as straightforward a rock ‘n’ roll record as this influential band has ever made.

But these guys are still rock’s most dedicated obscurants. It’s far easier to understand what Michael Stipe is singing, but the lyrics and even the nicely confusing packaging make it clear that R.E.M. still likes to keep you guessing.

The songs on “Lifes Rich Pageant”--no apostrophe, and no explanation--are defiantly elusive combinations of vivid images, portentous aphorisms, tongue-in-cheek asides and odd non sequiturs.

The relentless vagueness would be far more irritating if R.E.M. weren’t able to craft rough, jangly and seemingly offhand folk-derived songs that have emotional depth, musical punch and often timeless melodies.

The melodies are still lovely on “Pageant,” but the balance has shifted away from moodiness toward simple, propulsive folk-pop vigor. The beauty and grace of “Fall on Me” and the drive of “Begin the Begin” are what make “Pageant” one of R.E.M.’s best albums.

At the same time, it’s one of their most problematic: After all, what does it mean that the new album by one of the decade’s most influential American bands is terrific because it has the style and spirit of a record it made five years ago? It’s too early for an easy answer--but R.E.M. has always shied away from easy answers, instead leaving wonderfully intriguing questions hanging in the air.