Why Sloan's bassist is touring Europe with an R.E.M. tribute band fronted by a Hollywood actor

Why Sloan's bassist is touring Europe with an R.E.M. tribute band fronted by a Hollywood actor

'I'm a little bit nervous about it, but I think it's going to be really fun,' says Chris Murphy

When Sloan bassist and frontman Chris Murphy was asked whether he wanted to tour the United Kingdom and Ireland as part of an R.E.M. tribute band fronted by acclaimed actor Michael Shannon, one thing in particular was strongly appealing.

"I haven't been to the U.K. professionally in a while and I've never been to Ireland, so this goes to Ireland and I'm a Murphy, so I should be going to Ireland at some point," he said.

While Murphy has spent most of his career playing original songs with Sloan such as Money City Maniacs and The Rest of My Life that are a part of Canadiana, this gig requires learning around two hours of note-for-note music by an American rock institution — and there will be just one rehearsal ahead of the tour.

"I'm a little bit nervous about it, but I think it's going to be really fun," said Murphy.

And although Murphy has toured in groups such as Trans-Canada Highwaymen playing Canadian classics from the 1960s and 1970s, the level of preparation for this job is not the same.

Murphy, who was mostly raised in Halifax but now lives in Toronto, mainly plays drums live in Trans-Canada Highwaymen.

"I can kind of fake any of that stuff," he said.

The upcoming R.E.M. tribute shows are billed as Michael Shannon & Jason Narducy And Friends. The group's regular bassist, John Stirratt, is unavailable because he's touring with his regular band, Wilco.

Murphy got the call because he's friends with Narducy, as well as the group's drummer, Jon Wurster. Murphy calls them kindred spirits.

"They're just kind of like indie rock stalwarts playing with all kinds of different people and they're both really cool and I'm looking forward to hanging out with them," he said.

The upcoming tour will see the group play R.E.M.'s 1986 album, Lifes Rich Pageant, as well as other songs from the R.E.M. catalog.

Shannon has been nominated for two Academy Awards in the best supporting actor category for his work in Revolutionary Road and Nocturnal Animals, but he's been playing concerts with Narducy for more than a decade. They have played albums by artists such as Neil Young, Bob Dylan and The Smiths.

"After a successful show in July 2023 at Chicago's Metro honoring the 40th anniversary of R.E.M.'s Murmur, which included a guest appearance from R.E.M.'s own Mike Mills, what was initially planned as a one-off performance evolved into the pair's first-ever tour," said a press release announcing the current tour.

And last year, the four members of R.E.M., who rarely play shows together, joined Shannon and Narducy on stage.

"I feel like it's kind of a stamp of approval from R.E.M., kind of a sanctioned act," said Murphy.

He said R.E.M.'s decision to split its income equally among its four members served as a "signpost" to Sloan for how to do business as a band and called the group "untouchably cool."

The fact he'll be playing R.E.M. music is kind of ironic. He said his Sloan bandmate, Jay Ferguson, is a huge R.E.M. fan, and he felt sheepish telling him. Conveniently enough, Ferguson will be in London when the show plays there.

"Jay is kind of rolling his eyes that I got to do this gig," said Murphy. "So my joke is that Jay is going to be doing a U2 cover band that goes to Athens, Georgia, to counter my R.E.M cover band that's going to Dublin, Ireland."

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Richard Woodbury is a journalist with CBC Nova Scotia. He can be reached at richard.woodbury@cbc.ca.