R.E.M. Part 1

Sleep with Rock Stars, the Gen X Sleep Podcast. You deserve a good night's sleep…or whatever.

Relax and unwind while award-winning radio host and podcaster, Sloane Spencer, lulls you with soothing details about bands and musicians beloved by Gen X. Start with a calm meditation to train your brain that it's time to sleep, settle your headspace, and drift off with a low, mellow, sometimes whispering history lesson about the best bands to ever grace your mixed tapes.

This Week

• R.E.M. Berry/Buck/Mills/Stipe founded April 5, 1980 in Athens, Georgia.
• R.E.M. on Wikipedia, the source for this podcast's content. Full credits acknowledgement recorded within the episode.

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Transcript

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 first alternative rock bands, R.E.M. was noted for Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar playing, Stipe's distinctive vocal style, unique stage presence and cryptic lyrics, Mills's melodic bass lines and backing vocals, and Berry's tight, economical drumming. In the early 1990s, other alternative rock acts such as Nirvana, Pixies and Pavement named R.E.M. as a pioneer of the genre. After Berry left in 1997 due to severe health issues, the remaining members continued with mixed critical and commercial success. The band broke up amicably in 2011, having sold more than 90 million albums worldwide and becoming one of the world's best-selling music acts.

The band released their first single, "Radio Free Europe", in 1981 on the independent record label Hib-Tone. It was followed by the Chronic Town EP in 1982, their first release on I.R.S. Records. Over the course of the decade, R.E.M. released acclaimed albums, commencing with their debut Murmur (1983), and continuing yearly with Reckoning (1984), Fables of the Reconstruction (1985), Lifes Rich Pageant (1986), Document (1987) and Green (1988). During their most successful period, they worked with the producer Scott Litt. With constant touring, and the support of college radio following years of underground success, R.E.M. achieved a mainstream hit with the 1987 single "The One I Love". They signed to Warner...

Sleep with Spinal Tap BONUS

Sleep with Rock Stars, the Gen X Sleep Podcast. You deserve a good night's sleep…or whatever.

Relax and unwind while award-winning radio host and podcaster, Sloane Spencer, lulls you with soothing details about bands and musicians beloved by Gen X. Start with a calm meditation to train your brain that it's time to sleep, settle your headspace, and drift off with a low, mellow, sometimes whispering history lesson about the best bands to ever grace your mixed tapes.

This Week: a Special Bonus Episode to Share the Type of Extra Content Our Fan Club Can Experience While Keeping Sleep with Rock Stars Ad-Free.

Spinal Tap, the parody metal band from the GenX cult favorite film, This is Spinal Tap. This episode's source is Wikipedia.

In this bonus episode of "Sleep with Rock Stars," host Sloane Spencer reads from the Wikipedia entry about the fictional band Spinal Tap. The episode blends gentle narration and sleep guidance with a humorous, detailed history of Spinal Tap—covering their origins, evolution, infamous drummer mishaps, real and fictional discography, and cultural impact. Designed to help listeners relax and drift off, the episode offers both entertainment and a soothing bedtime experience for Gen X music fans.

Listen, follow, share, rate, and review!

• Listen anywhere for free
• Let us know which bands you would like to hear on upcoming episodes by commenting on YouTube or select podcast apps
• Share this episode with a friend. This is the #1 way to help our show.
• Join the Fan Club for early access, thank yous, bonus content, and more!

• Host Sloane Spencer introduces the podcast and provides sleep guidance.
• The episode is a bonus sample for fan club supporters.
• Focuses on the fictional band Spinal Tap, created as a parody by American comedians.
• Details the band’s fictional and real history, including their evolution from a beat group to a heavy metal band.
• Discusses the band’s unique style, frequent drummer changes, and comedic tragedies.
• Covers real-life media appearances, albums, and notable performances.
• Lists current and former band members, both fictional and real-life contributors.
• Provides a comprehensive discography, including albums, singles, and unreleased material.
• Closes with credits and a note about the source material.

Learn "How to Sleep with Rock Stars" here.

• [0s] Welcome to Sleep with Rock Stars, the Gen X Sleep podcast... (host: Sloane Spencer)
• [42s] You may find that the more you listen, the more your mind will begin to associate the stories with sleep...
• [77s] You don't need to pay close attention. Instead, let the words wash over you...
• [122s] There's nowhere you need to be. Nothing...

Thank You with Brown Noise

Sleep with Rock Stars, the Gen X Sleep Podcast. You deserve a good night's sleep…or whatever.

Relax and unwind while award-winning radio host and podcaster, Sloane Spencer, lulls you with soothing details about bands and musicians beloved by Gen X. Start with a calm meditation to train your brain that it's time to sleep, settle your headspace, and drift off with a low, mellow, sometimes whispering history lesson about the best bands to ever grace your mixed tapes.

This Week

A quick bonus episode thanking the people who helped bring you Sleep with Rock Stars, with a sample of brown noise as background sound.

Listen, follow, share, rate, and review!

• Listen anywhere for free
• Let us know which bands you would like to hear on upcoming episodes by commenting on YouTube or select podcast apps
• Share this episode with a friend. This is the #1 way to help our show.
• Join the Fan Club for early access, thank yous, bonus content, and more!

Coming 1 July 2025: Episode 1

Can't fall asleep? Join radio host and voice actor Sloane Spencer for a short meditation and a sleepy reading about Gen X's favorite bands and musicians to help you relax and sleep peacefully. The episodes are a low stakes history of great music, presented in a calm, quiet way to lull you to sleep. Turn down your buzzing brain, and drift off to Sleep with Rock Stars. The deep dive gets quieter as the episode rolls.

Here's a simple, one-click link to many places where you can listen for free: Listen to Sleep with Rock Stars

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New episodes release every other Tuesday. Follow now in your podcast app so you never miss a show.

These episodes are not medical intervention, and we have no medical training.

I do have a lifetime of being a terrible insomniac. I created Sleep with Rock Stars to fill the void for Gen X listeners like me, who deserve a good night's sleep. Enjoy upcoming Bonus mini-episodes with short meditations and how to fall asleep. I hope that Sleep with Rock Stars helps fellow sleep deprived GenX'ers zonk out. Worst case scenario, you'll be an expert on why That Band broke up.

If you'd like to suggest musicians or bands for upcoming Sleep with Rock Stars, the Gen X Sleep Podcast episodes, comment on Spotify or YouTube. You deserve a good night's sleep...or whatever.

Transcript

Jun 15, 2025, 2:55 PM

SwRS ThankYou Prelaunch Neg16LUFS BrownNoise FINAL

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(0:00) Thanks for listening to Sleep With Rockstars, the Gen X Sleep Podcast. You deserve a good (0:10) night's sleep, or whatever. I'm the host Sloane Spencer, and like any good Southerner, (0:19) I want to send a number of thank yous to people who helped make this podcast possible with (0:26) their kind but frank...