In the decade since drummer Bill Berry left, R.E.M.'s recordings have had their moments, but rarely have they quickened the pulse. To remedy that, the band turned to hot British producer Jacknife Lee, fresh off success with U2 and Snow Patrol. But to Lee's credit, ''Accelerate'' -- which drops Tuesday -- gives the impression of not being produced at all. Refreshingly immediate and unfussy, it simply sounds like R.E.M. being R.E.M.

Mike Mills' thin tenor is intertwining with Michael Stipe's rich baritone again, and songs are built around Peter Buck's inventive guitar patterns and Mills' bouncy, melodic bass lines, rather than keyboards and drum loops. On drums, the hard-hitting Bill Rieflin makes clear that he's a better fit for the band than the initial Berry replacement, Joey Waronker.

Best of all, they sound like a band, not three guys piecing songs together via e-mail for a lucrative contractual obligation.

R.E.M. roars out of the box with the pedal to the metal. The initial trio of rockers kicks off with ''Living Well's the Best Revenge,'' a torrent of Stipe verbiage revealing itself in snatches through the exhilarating clamor. But Stipe's attitude -- ''I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore,'' basically -- comes through loud and clear.

The band cuts back the volume for ''Hollow Man,'' which starts with Stipe's confessional lyrics over piano, and then erupts into an anthemic chorus.

Stipe spells out his political concerns later, most

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bluntly on ''Houston,'' a blink-and-its-over vignette about the plight of Hurricane Katrina evacuees. ''Until the Day Is Done'' is another moving, politically tinged standout.

With 11 songs in 35 minutes, the album harks back to the LP era; R.E.M. buries the two non-grabbers, ''Mr. Richards'' and ''Sing for the Submarine,'' on what would have been Side 2. But the album finishes strong with ''Horse to Water,'' a stomper, and ''I'm Gonna DJ,'' on which Stipe echoes Athens, Ga.'s second-most-famous musical export, the B-52s.

There's still life in these guys yet.