Harborcoat

Harborcoat was another song that wasn't on my original list of songs to cover but, as the ideas for songs to cover dried up and my infatuation with Peter Buck's use of the Rickenbacker 360 blossomed, it became an obvious choice.

For me Harborcoat is an excellent showcase for what each member of the band brings to the music. Aside from Peter Buck's complex guitar picking we have another beautifully lively bass part from Mike Mills, as independent from Peter's guitar as his vocal melody is to Stipe's lead vocal. Then there are Bill Berry's drums which power their way through the song with intricate changes to the hi hat during the verse which further adds personality to the song.

It's not a bold rock classic like Summer Of 69 but a delicate little art-rock song from a quietly confident young band full of tiny musical details that add to its character, like the way Mike drops one of the bass notes an octave in the chorus during one of its repetitions, and the organised chaos of the middle 8 with some random harmonica from Stipe and some chaotic string scratching from Peter while all the time held together by Bill and Mike's steady rhythm section.