I find it hard to believe that Peter, Mike, and Michael would actually sit down, watch this DVD, and pronounce it fit for human consumption.

As stated in other reviews, this IS virtually unwatchable.

And that's a shame, 'cause it's a wonderful rock show that sounds great, but looks awful.

Seriously, what could they be thinking when they okayed something that just looks like they set a couple of hyperactive kids loose in the production room, told them to push as many buttons as often as possible, and then instructed the camera crew to just fudge with all the bells and whistles on their equipment, and, oh, every once in a while, for a second or two, show something IN FOCUS?

The concept of concert DVD's is a great one, and one that I've invested a lot of time and money in, as far as owning and watching. There are so many lessons to be learned from watching a Jonathan Demme or Martin Scorsese-shot show...watch The Last Waltz or Heart Of Gold to see what I mean. Why some of these directors find it necessary to give us something so muddied, something so out of sync with the original intent (which I would imagine would be a visual souvenir to go with the CD), is beyond me.

UNLESS...the original intent WAS this headache-causing, nausea-inducing mess.

Again, the music is great, performed well, and is a joy to listen to.

Sadly, the DVD drags the package down to the point where, after one aborted attempted viewing, it will probably never see my DVD player again, unless the government recruits me to torture suspected terrorists, in which case I would slip this in, turn the sound down, leave the room, and wait for the impending screamfest.

Three stars out of five for the music alone.

While the performances here are solid, one CD with 17 tracks and a second CD with 5 just doesn't seem like the way to go, at least for those who aren't just going to rip it to their iPods anyway. That second CD is crying out for filling up with...oh, c'mon guys, you're geniuses when you can put your minds to it. A double-live CD packed to the brim with 159 minutes of your best songs would have been legendary. This is merely adequate.

The CDs:

I have listened to the CDs in my car where I could give them my full attention. Overall I'm impressed with the performances. I think the show makes a good case for the quality of the material on R.E.M.'s last studio CD, "Around the Sun". "Around the Sun" was ignored by many critics, and maligned by many fans of the band for being too low-energy. When you hear songs from "Around the Sun" played live however, they are so good it's almost as if the band's earlier material has to live up to the adult perspectives in the songs from "Around the Sun".

I thought the concert was great overall. The only songs I found uninteresting played live actually were a few things written much earlier in the band's career, things you would expect to smoke live, like "Cuyahoga" and "The One I Love". I think the band is more comfortable and energized playing their newer material than rehashing hits from the Bill Berry days.

I'd give the CD 4 and a 1/2 stars for the quality of the performances and for not including too many of the band's old hits.

The DVD:

Years ago I bought an R.E.M. concert video called, I believe, "Tour Film". It was almost unwatchable. A typical song on "Tour Film" had a video spliced together with footage from different shows. When you watch bands play on a show like Austin City Limits (a show I love), you feel like you're onstage with the band, or in the front seats. "Tour Film" made me feel like I was watching a set of disconnected images. I have only watched select tracks from the new "R.E.M. Live" DVD, but I can say the new DVD is more watchable than I remember "Tour Film" being anyway.

(I have a "So You'd Like To..." guide to R.E.M. on Amazon for anyone with an interest)

The 2-disc CD portion of this collection is worth the price alone, however the live DVD was a disappointment. The material on the DVD is a track-for-track carbon copy of the material on the CD's...no problem there, though it would've been nice to have had some bonus material included. The problem with the DVD is that theres a pan or cut on every beat which makes for quite a frenetic viewing experience. Guess thats the latest in cutting edge, artsy film school technique...made me nauseous though.

From the first chord, this live album is amazing (and I have not even looked at the DVD yet). The old hits are passionate and stirring, and the tracks from Around the Sun--an unfairly maligned album in my opinion, with a number of first rate songs--are beautiful. R.E.M. are an amazing studio band, but as this album shows, you really have to hear them live to truly appreciate their greatness.