R.E.M.’s Peter Buck reveals why they broke up

It’s been nearly five years since R.E.M. dropped the bombshell that they were breaking up. Now R.E.M.’s Peter Buck has revealed what lead to this decision in a tell-all interview with Rolling Stone.

“We were in Bergen, Norway. I really like Bergen. I wanted to see the town. I had four hours off. Instead, we had a three-hour band meeting. I was really pissed off,” Buck said. “We were talking about adding some shows to the tour. It was a lot of money, but I didn’t want to go. I won’t say where it was. I looked at them and said, ‘If this is our last tour, I don’t want to end with two half-full shows in a state you couldn’t pay me to set foot in.’ And they went, ‘OK.'”

R.E.M. played what would be their final concert in Mexico City on November 18, 2008.

“And I went, ‘This is kind of sad'” Buck recalled. “And Michael [Stipe] goes, ‘Yeah, a little. We’re probably never going to play these songs again.’ And I went, ‘You might be right.'”

However, it wasn’t until R.E.M. entered the studio to record their final album, Collapse Into Now that they decided to end the band for good.

“We got together, and Michael said, ‘I think you guys will understand. I need to be away from this for a long time.’ And I said, ‘How about forever?’ Michael looked at Mike [Mills], and Mike said, ‘Sounds right to me.’ That’s how it was decided.”

Since their split five years ago, Buck has released two solo albums, Mills has played with various artists including Joseph Arthur, and Stipe has remained out of the spotlight for the most part.