Courtesy of AXS TVThe latest episode of the Dan Rather-hosted AXS TV series The Big Interview reunites two founding members of R.E.M. — singer Michael Stipe and bassist Mike Mills. On the show, which premieres tonight at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, the two musicians discuss the mark being in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band has made on their lives and chat about the musical bond they developed.
In a video preview of the program, Stipe talks about how, as R.E.M.’s frontman, he was able to channel both his shyness and his ego into creating music that had an impact on the group’s fans.
“There’s a self-doubt and insecurity that I carry that I think is really important to the work that I’ve done as an artist…because it keeps the ego kind of tamped down,” Michael explains. “That profound egomaniacal urge to get up and perform and have to make…millions of people happy, to provide them with something that moves them or that gets their attention, is balanced by this profound insecurity. And I think you’ll find that insecurity in most artists.”
Mills, meanwhile, points out that coming into R.E.M. as a trained musician, he was able to help Stipe and guitarist Peter Buck — neither of whom had much music training prior to joining the group — implement their creative ideas.
“Peter…learned [by] playing off records, but he hadn’t learned that many at that point, so I had some ideas that maybe showed him certain pathways to get where he wanted to go,” Mike reveals, while adding, “I think we all helped each other, though.”
Also in the show, Stipe discusses how the early punk scene helped inspire him as a teenager while he developed his passion for music and came to terms with his sexuality.
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