R.E.M. live from Austin

Several NPR stations simulcast R.E.M.'s appearance at Stubbs BBQ in Austin as part of South by Southwest Wednesday night. You can listen to a stream of the performance here. They play almost all of Accelerate (out April 1), and the stuff sounds good, rocking, like a real return to form. All the early reviews comparing the new stuff to the vintage 1986/87 sound of the band (think "The One I Love," "Begin the Begin," or "These Days") are pretty dead on. It appears that keyboardist Ken Stringfellow (formerly of the Posies) is not touring with the band this go-round, meaning most of those goopy songs from Reveal and Around the Sun either can't be performed or will have to be radically reworked.

R.E.M. also taped an episode of Austin City Limits, scheduled to air in May. They tour the US with Modest Mouse and the National in May and June.