It’s natural to turn to art to help us process (or escape) the world around us. So when the planet is being actively preyed upon by a time-halting pandemic, of course we’re going to turn to the films and music that perfectly capture our current, horrific state of affairs. Case in point: American rock mainstay R.E.M. is witnessing a resurgence in the popularity of its 1987 hit, “It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)“ as the tune reenters the iTunes charts. As of right now, the song sits at No. 43—that’s 29 spots higher than where it was on Friday when Deadline originally reported the phenomenon.
During its heyday, “It’s The End Of The World As We Know It” peaked at No. 69 on Billboard’s Hot 100. Today, it garners more downloads than Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy,” Lizzo’s “Good As Hell,” and former One Directioner Niall Horan, who just released a brand new album last Friday. We imagine that we will see more instances of this, where our time sequestered in our homes will lead to old classics resurfacing, especially those relating to the apocalypse. Oh god, does this mean that we’re going to have to endure a roaring comeback of Bon Jovi’s “Blaze Of Glory?”
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LEONARD BERNSTEIN!Edit: the “it’s time I had some time alone” refrain is a little on the nose
đ¶…And I feel fine đ¶For now…
iâm more in the Mitchell and Webb frame of mind, as this came into my thoughts.
Stephen Kingâs The Stand should be trending too.
This is a misanthropeâs finest hour.Â
Iâd say thatâs enough of an R.E.M. hook to warrant a new episode of RU Talkinâ R.E.M. RE: Me?
đ¶ space monkey mafia…đ¶Oops, wrong song.
Cool-itâs Armageddon mixed tape time!Iâll start!âIt’s Catching Up” NoMeansNoÂ
8 1/2 Minutes –Â The Dismemberment Plan
Awesome: I’ll add that.
Breathing – Kate Bush
This past Saturday night I went to New Orderâs final Australia concert which was acknowledge as one of the last mass gatherings in the country because of the virus stuff.Right after they finished their encore with Love Will Tear us Apart, the band left the stage, the lights came up and the speakers burst forth with the chorus of End of the World as we know it on loop and the crowd went absolutely apeshit. They loved it.
âtheir encoreâThatâs when you know things must be really bad.
Itâs pretty standard for New Order. Iâve seen them twice and their standard encore on both tours always ended with Love will Tear us Apart as the last track. This time they also did Transmission.
I was riffing on their old reputation of hating encores, to the point of writing Blue Monday with such extensive sequencing that they could leave the stage early.
AKA the Gen-X âWe Didnât Start the Fire.â
I made a remix since this song because itâs been stuck in my head since everything shut down. Itâs Trump singing it (which is fitting)!https://youtu.be/RI1zxyxH53I I thought this might be a funny addition to this article. Happy quarantining!