Will Leitch, writing for the Washington Post, has an in-depth story on how R.E.M. quietly quit.

At the height of its popularity, R.E.M. regularly played before more than 100,000 fans. It was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. But because the band is so self-effacing and because it has resisted nearly every temptation to do the sort of nostalgia maneuvers that keep retired rock acts in the public mind, if you weren’t around to listen to R.E.M. during its prime, it’s quite possible you’ve never heard of it. The band has, essentially, disappeared from American culture.

I’m glad I grew up when R.E.M. was an active band. They never were my favorite, but they are inexorably linked to my teenage years.