Mitch Easter, Pt. 1

Mitch Easter could be considered the Godfather of Jangle except he dislikes the term. His production work on the first R.E.M. records and bands such as Game Theory and the Windbreakers helped define the cool sounds of the ’80s. He offered his own indelible songs, including “Every Word Means No,” in his band Let’s Active. A great talker and music-history appreciator, he flashes back to his days as a guitar-loving North Carolina kid who preferred the Move to southern boogie, and he walks us through how he and R.E.M. got that amazing sound.