Barely two weeks after announcing their break up, R.E.M. band members have recently learned that one of their fans had a copy of a 1981 demo cassette tape that circulated the clubs and record labels 30 years ago, reports Spinner.
In April 1981, 400 of these tapes were produced and delivered around the New York City area in anticipation of the band’s upcoming visit.
The tape contains two versions of three early R.E.M. tunes: Radio Free Europe, Sitting Still, and White Tornado.
The blog The Power of Independent Trucking, which received the tape, has offered the contents online for download.
On November 15, R.E.M. will release a compilation album, Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage: 1982-2011. The album will be the first to combine songs from both I.R.S. and Warner Bros. labels, as well as three songs from the group’s final studio recordings from post-Collapse into Now sessions.