I don't know if anyone's reading this.
I had high hopes for both bands when they first came out.
REM foundered due to inaccessible vocals and incomprehensible lyrices; their melodies, too, started sounding alike. I saw them once, four rows from the stage and i believe I may have been spat upon by Micheal Stipe as he sang. Not a very glorious night at all.
I liked the first HCP hit. But their followup stuff foundered on excessive weirdness.
Let's face it: to be successful you have to be presentable in some degree.