R.E.M. have released a special edition five track ‘Radio Free Europe’ EP to mark the 75th anniversary of the first broadcast Radio Free Europe, the American broadcaster out of New York into Europe to balance the propaganda of communism.
(Ironically, Europe should create a Radio Free America to counter all of the Trump propaganda bullshit).
But I digress…
May 3 is World Press Freedom Day. R.E.M. has released two never before heard mixes of ‘Radio Free Europe’, a 2025 Jacknife Lee remix and a 1981 Mitch Easter remix ‘Radio Free Dub’.
A limited-edition 10-inch orange-vinyl pressing–available for pre-order now exclusively via the REMHQ store and independent record stores–lands September 12. Proceeds from all vinyl sales will go to RFE/RL, an editorially independent nonpartisan and nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation.
The EP, overseen by Easter, opens with a 2025 remix by Lee who produced the band’s final two studio LPs. Completing the package are Easter’s original 1981 recordings: the Hib-Tone single mix of “Radio Free Europe,” its flipside, “Sitting Still, the “Wh. Tornado” demo, and “Radio Free Dub”.
‘Radio Free Europe’ was the debut single for R.E.M. The song was released on 8 July, 1981 with the b-side ‘Sitting Still. A re-recorded version was again released as a single in 1983.
Track List:
Radio Side:
1. Radio Free Europe 2025 (Jacknife Lee Remix)*
2. Radio Free Dub (Mitch Easter 1981 Remix)*
Liberty Side:
1. Radio Free Europe (Original Hib-Tone Single)
2. Sitting Still (Original Hib-Tone Single)
3. Wh. Tornado (From Cassette Set)**
*Never-before released
**First time on digital and vinyl
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