Michael Stipe has unveiled his solo debut, “Your Capricious Soul,” to coincide with the Oct. 7 Global Rebellion climate justice protests organized by Extinction Rebellion.
The gently pulsing song clocks in at a little more than three minutes and is accompanied by a video from filmmaker Sam Taylor-Johnson.
Stipe, famed as the frontman for Athens-bred R.E.M., is donating all earnings from sales and licensing of the song for the next 365 days to Extinction Rebellion to “help aid their work of non-violent protest of government inaction to the climate emergency.”
The download is 77 cents (any higher donations are also accepted) and available at www.michaelstipe.com. The purchase comes with the video, lyric sheet, poster image, Extinction Rebellion stencil and animated portrait gif. A free download option for the song is also available.
Stipe explained his reasoning for the timing of his new material:
"I took a long break from music, and I wanted to jump back in. I love "Your Capricious Soul" - it's my first solo work. I want to add my voice to this exciting shift in consciousness. Extinction Rebellion gave me the incentive to push the release and not wait. Our relationship to the environment has been a lifelong concern and I now feel hopeful—optimistic, even. I believe we can bring the kind of change needed to improve our beautiful planet Earth, our standing and our place on it."
Last month, the other members of R.E.M. – Mike Mills, Bill Berry and Peter Buck – reunited at the Fox "Revival" concert to benefit the Fox Theatre Institute. Mills was also recently in Atlanta to perform "A Night of Georgia Music" with Chuck Leavell and Robert McDuffie.
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