Review: Michael Shannon & Jason Narducy and Friends play R.E.M.’s 'Lifes Rich Pageant' at 40 Watt Club

For the past three Februarys, it’s been a treat seeing Michael Shannon & Jason Narducy and Friends pay tribute to R.E.M. at the 40 Watt Club, the indie rock legends’ legendary home base in Athens, Ga.

Even more exciting for an elder millennial like myself is that, as these all-star musicians keep chronologically progressing up the R.E.M. timeline with the albums and songs they honor, they’re finally starting to play “my” R.E.M. Delightful as it’s been to witness faithful performances of Murmur (1983) and Fables of the Reconstruction (1985) the previous two years, plus other works from that era — occasionally accompanied by one, two, or all four members of the iconic Athens group — I have no connection to those LPs beyond preparing for and thoroughly enjoying those shows.

Disappointing as it no doubt is to Gen X and other wise-beyond-their-years listeners, I’m more inclined to the track list from In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988–2003 and (potentially reclaiming some credibility points) the overall sound and style from the albums of that era which — I hope we can agree on this — are distinctly different from those initial records. "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” and "The One I Love" from 1987’s Document herald the coming of the peak R.E.M. sound that revs up even more on Green (1988) with “Stand” and “Orange Crush,” and hits stratospheric levels on Out of Time (1991) and Automatic For the People (1992).

And yet the seeds of that evolution are present in Lifes Rich Pageant (1986), which got the tribute treatment for the 2026 tour, including the now yearly two-day stop at the 40 Watt, Feb. 26-27. The band’s ultimately defining sound is particularly evident on the album-closing cover of the Clique's “Superman,” featuring an almost experimental catchy style that deviates from the quartet’s more free-flowing predecessors.

Accompanied for the second consecutive year by Jon Wurster (drums), John Stirratt (bass), Dag Juhlin (guitar), and Vijay Tellis-Nayak (keyboards) — all of whom were also present in 2024, sans Stirratt — Shannon and Narducy seemed more comfortable than ever. Part of that cool could very well be a result of Michael Stipe and Mike Mills not being in attendance, as they were the past two years, though if the performers have experienced nerves at having the honorees in the VIP side stage and beside them, they’re never shown it.

After a brisk and faithful take on Lifes Rich Pageant, during which R.E.M.’s Bill Berry sat in on drums for “Underneath the Bunker,” the second set looped in creative choices from later albums Up (“Lotus”) and New Adventures In Hi-Fi (“How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us”). Longtime auxiliary member Scott McCaughey helped spice up “Crush with Eyeliner” and “You Are the Everything,” then stepped aside for the evening’s highlight, “The Great Beyond.” Though Stipe would join the band the following Saturday at Brooklyn Steel for this very song, it was all Shannon, Narducy, and Friends that Friday, and they more than did one of R.E.M.’s finest songs justice.

The good times kept rolling in the third and final set, which kicked off with a gorgeous take on “Nightswimming,” performed by the trio of Shannon, his sister Sara McCallom on viola and Tellis-Nayak on keys. However, the subsequent well-meaning inclusions of Athens legends yielded mixed results. 

Early Stipe collaborator Linda Hopper (Magnapop) provided fun energy on “Me in Honey,” though her mic wasn’t turned up enough to clearly hear her vocal harmonies. Meanwhile, the next special guest, Pylon’s Vanessa Hay, struggled to find the right notes, marring such gems as “E-Bow the Letter” as Shannon powered through on lead.

The failed experiment over, the band quickly created far more positive core memories as R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck joined in for a celebratory final run of “So. Central Rain,” “Sitting Still,” “Radio Free Europe,” and “Star 69.” McCaughey squeezed in for the final two selections and the totality of the ensemble made attendees not mind so much that Stipe and Mills were elsewhere. 

Consistent with each prior year’s closing message, Shannon hinted that the tradition would continue — wonderful news for millennial and Gen X fans alike. As controversially stated above, R.E.M.’s catalog only gets better and more familiar from here, and with their ’90s output within reach, even greater times await.

(Photos by Micah Rogers)