The Oscar-nominated actor and indie rock stalwart brought their REM cover band to San Francisco on February 18th. After spending 2024 covering REM’s Murmur on tour, Shannon (who was nominated for best supporting actor Oscars for Revolutionary Road and Nocturnal Animals, and also played superman nemesis General Zod) and Narducy (who’s played with indie rock luminaries like Bob Mould, Superchunk, Robert Pollard, and Liz Phair) decided to hit the road again, this time covering REM’s third record, Fables of the Reconstruction. Their all-star band also includes Superchunk/Mountain Goats drummer Jon Wurster, Wilco’s John Stirratt on bass, guitarist Dag Juhlin and keyboardist Vijay Tellis-Nayak.
After tearing through Fables, the band played a second set of REM covers that spanned the groups entire discography, including “World Leader Pretend,” “South Central Rain,” “Romance,” and “Daysleeper.” The band also covered two songs that REM themselves covered, Wire’s “Strange” and “Crazy” by Pylon. The 29-song setlist closed out with a cover of Aerosmith’s “Toys in the Attic,” with the band joined by opener Dave Hill.
