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Post by matt on Mar 10, 2018 11:13:42 GMT -5
Experience is a very good, if unspectacular and pretty safe U2 album. But so so much better than the predecessor. Not actually much I'd take from Songs of Innocence if I was to mash up the two albums. Sleep Like A Baby Tonight for definite, and, at a push, maybe The Troubles and Every Breaking Wave. After the conceptual mess that was No Line On The Horizon, it struck me how direct the tunes and melodies were at first, and it was certainly instantaneous. But it's actually all so superficial melodically and rubbed off quickly, and lyrically really poor and uninteresting ((ironic considering it's meant to be autobiographical so you'd expect greater intimacy surely?), not to mention the production is woeful with the album being pro-tooled to buggery - everything sounding so fake and contrived (even the standout tune Sleep Like A Baby sounds like a demo scrubbed off with pro-tools). Worst U2 album along with Atomic Bomb. The worst? Not sure as I can barely recall most of the songs on Atomic Bomb which struck me as extremely dull so I can't be bothered to listen to it. Anyway as an aside, and defender of Pop, saw this article on the BBC about seven acclaimed albums nobody listens to anymore, featuring that U2 album (along with, unsurprisingly, Be Here Now). Concerning Discotheque, maybe I'm completely wrong on this but I get the impression that US publications slated that song, compared to European publications that loved it (read Alan McGee in The Guardian saying it was U2's 'greatest song'). Yet Spin Magazine said this about it: " the nadir single of U2's nadir period sums up why the band's mid-to-late-'90s mirror-ball dalliance flopped so hard: They equated electronic music with irony and the dance floor with superficiality." Were the US audiences really less predisposed to dance music, hence why that album and subsequent tour bombed? Was Spin wrong? No doubt the icy cold reception to POP in America had immense ripple effects on U2 for the next 20 years. They went back to safer and safer pop rock to maintain sales and perceived relevance. It worked wonders in 2000 but sadly Atomic, No Line and Innocence came off as a parody band. * I write this as a huge fan of POP by the way. No, I take issue with the assumption that Discotheque is the nadir song and that Pop is general U2’s nadir. Which is complete bullshit in my opinion. I find the US aversion to Pop quite baffling. It’s undoubtedly flawed in being somewhat messy, but still brilliant (I feel very much the same way towards Everything Now by Arcade Fire, I think it’s incredibly misunderstood). |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 29, 2018 5:44:29 GMT -5
I listened to Zooropa again the other day. Man what a great fucking record. I could listen to that album 100 times in a row and never tire of it. You know, from a creative standpoint they were in a much better place back in those days. I often wonder if they had continued on the path of Zooropa and Pop, instead of returning to their "old sound" (which they never really did, by the way) what their output would sound like today?
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Post by World71R on Mar 29, 2018 14:53:29 GMT -5
I listened to Zooropa again the other day. Man what a great fucking record. I could listen to that album 100 times in a row and never tire of it. You know, from a creative standpoint they were in a much better place back in those days. I often wonder if they had continued on the path of Zooropa and Pop, instead of returning to their "old sound" (which they never really did, by the way) what their output would sound like today? With or without Pop being a critical flop, I think we were still going to be getting a similar "back to basics but still somewhat tech-savvy" sound that we got with ATYCLB since there were many tunes on Pop that hinted at the band making more rock-focused songs, but I don't think it would've been as drastic as it ended up being. We certainly wouldn't have gotten songs like Walk On, Beautiful Day, and Stuck in a Moment..., which are all beautiful songs that define the ATYCLB era, but we would've probably gotten songs like Kite, In a Little While, and New York which are all pretty good, and even Elevation. I don't think we would've seen dire attempts to get hits like with I'll Go Crazy, The Miracle, and American Soul, though. Those songs likely would've been shit-canned in a heartbeat in an alternate universe where U2 doesn't have the commercial failure of Pop and gradually goes back to basics.  |
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Post by Beady’s Here Now on Mar 29, 2018 15:03:50 GMT -5
U2 sucks donkey balls. Thanks.
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Post by matt on Mar 29, 2018 18:58:38 GMT -5
I listened to Zooropa again the other day. Man what a great fucking record. I could listen to that album 100 times in a row and never tire of it. You know, from a creative standpoint they were in a much better place back in those days. I often wonder if they had continued on the path of Zooropa and Pop, instead of returning to their "old sound" (which they never really did, by the way) what their output would sound like today? I just wonder what a U2 album would sound like if they didn't overthink the songs and went into the studio for a few months. I frequently go back to the sparse tunes of No Line as the band that U2 should be at this stage of their career. Songs like Moment of Surrender, Cedars of Lebanon and White As Snow are all quite meditative, and maintain that element of spirituality and introspection that U2 do so well. Yes, it's a more grown up U2 but at least they're acting their age on that, and instead of sounding like they're having a midlife crisis (like the other half of that album), they sound wise instead. Like with Zooropa or Unforgettable Fire, they just need to go in there and allow Brian Eno to dictate the rules and not overrule him. An interview in the aftermath of No Line is revealing where Eno is evidently frustrated at the creative process, telling the interviewer they don't recognise their true strengths and moments of inspiration. Eno just couldn't get his head around why they were wasting so many months trying to painstakingly craft hit songs that had no potential at all such as I'll Go Crazy, while songs like Moment of Surrender were mostly conjured up in one day. It's hard to believe that The Unforgettable Fire was recorded in just under three months, while Zooropa's production timeline was similar at just over three months. One thing you could never accuse those albums of is being overthought and overwrought. While we don't expect them to create an album up to those standards when they're all in their mid 50s, working in a similar manner with the guiding hand of Eno might allow them to rediscover their spontaneity and throw off the musical straitjacket they've put themselves in for years now. |
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Post by carlober on Apr 27, 2018 5:11:55 GMT -5
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Post by matt on Sept 10, 2020 12:07:14 GMT -5
U2 to reissue 20th anniversary deluxe edition of All That You Can't Leave Behind. www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-all-that-you-cant-leave-behind-20th-anniversary-box-set-1057243/Actually excited by this. It's a damn good album. U2's last meaningful and essential album, I've always been a big fan of it even if it heralded their return to a more mainstream sound. Regardless of it being musically being less ambitious than anything they did in the 90s, the songs are just really good. Front ended with the anthemic singles, the rest of the album is very understated and beautiful I thought. Bono on top form in particular with his lyrics being more sincere and observant, avoiding the vague Hallmark inspired platitudes of latter albums. A largely quiet, contemplative and calming album, it would have been a perfect last album for them. |
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Post by Lennon2217 on Sept 10, 2020 12:20:42 GMT -5
U2 to reissue 20th anniversary deluxe edition of All That You Can't Leave Behind. www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-all-that-you-cant-leave-behind-20th-anniversary-box-set-1057243/Actually excited by this. It's a damn good album. U2's last meaningful and essential album, I've always been a big fan of it even if it heralded their return to a more mainstream sound. Regardless of it being musically being less ambitious than anything they did in the 90s, the songs are just really good. Front ended with the anthemic singles, the rest of the album is very understated and beautiful I thought. Bono on top form in particular with his lyrics being more sincere and observant, avoiding the vague Hallmark inspired platitudes of latter albums. A largely quiet, contemplative and calming album, it would have been a perfect last album for them. It is an awesome album and exactly the one I wanted from them when it dropped in October 31, 2000. However, it came with one flaw attached to it. As a result of U2’s newly found popularity resurgence after a well received album critically, huge global sales and one of my fav tours of all time, it led to U2 constantly trying to be loved by every single soul on planet earth for a good decade plus. Them wanting to be liked and loved by everyone diluted future songs and albums in my opinion. They quickly became a parody act despite ALWAYS kicking ass live. |
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Post by tiger40 on Sept 10, 2020 13:03:07 GMT -5
I've never been a fan of U2 to be honest. And, the only song I do actually like by them is New Years Day.
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Post by defmaybe00 on Sept 10, 2020 14:36:53 GMT -5
U2 to reissue 20th anniversary deluxe edition of All That You Can't Leave Behind. www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-all-that-you-cant-leave-behind-20th-anniversary-box-set-1057243/Actually excited by this. It's a damn good album. U2's last meaningful and essential album, I've always been a big fan of it even if it heralded their return to a more mainstream sound. Regardless of it being musically being less ambitious than anything they did in the 90s, the songs are just really good. Front ended with the anthemic singles, the rest of the album is very understated and beautiful I thought. Bono on top form in particular with his lyrics being more sincere and observant, avoiding the vague Hallmark inspired platitudes of latter albums. A largely quiet, contemplative and calming album, it would have been a perfect last album for them. It is an awesome album and exactly the one I wanted from them when it dropped in October 31, 2000. However, it came with one flaw attached to it. As a result of U2’s newly found popularity resurgence after a well received album critically, huge global sales and one of my fav tours of all time, it led to U2 constantly trying to be loved by every single soul on planet earth for a good decade plus. Them wanting to be liked and loved by everyone diluted future songs and albums in my opinion. They quickly became a parody act despite ALWAYS kicking ass live. Yeah it really marked their downfall, which is a shame because it's a great record and one of my favourite songs of all times is on it (Stuck In A Moment) With that said, their latter works still gave us the odd very good tune, and I believe they get a lot of undeserved flack |
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Post by matt on Sept 10, 2020 15:00:44 GMT -5
U2 to reissue 20th anniversary deluxe edition of All That You Can't Leave Behind. www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-all-that-you-cant-leave-behind-20th-anniversary-box-set-1057243/Actually excited by this. It's a damn good album. U2's last meaningful and essential album, I've always been a big fan of it even if it heralded their return to a more mainstream sound. Regardless of it being musically being less ambitious than anything they did in the 90s, the songs are just really good. Front ended with the anthemic singles, the rest of the album is very understated and beautiful I thought. Bono on top form in particular with his lyrics being more sincere and observant, avoiding the vague Hallmark inspired platitudes of latter albums. A largely quiet, contemplative and calming album, it would have been a perfect last album for them. It is an awesome album and exactly the one I wanted from them when it dropped in October 31, 2000. However, it came with one flaw attached to it. As a result of U2’s newly found popularity resurgence after a well received album critically, huge global sales and one of my fav tours of all time, it led to U2 constantly trying to be loved by every single soul on planet earth for a good decade plus. Them wanting to be liked and loved by everyone diluted future songs and albums in my opinion. They quickly became a parody act despite ALWAYS kicking ass live. Agree with every word. All That You Can’t Leave Behind’s critical and commercial success, for all its worth, has been a millstone around the bands neck ever since. Always trying to replicate it and falling massively short in every creative and promotional endeavour since. |
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Post by matt on Sept 10, 2020 15:05:01 GMT -5
It is an awesome album and exactly the one I wanted from them when it dropped in October 31, 2000. However, it came with one flaw attached to it. As a result of U2’s newly found popularity resurgence after a well received album critically, huge global sales and one of my fav tours of all time, it led to U2 constantly trying to be loved by every single soul on planet earth for a good decade plus. Them wanting to be liked and loved by everyone diluted future songs and albums in my opinion. They quickly became a parody act despite ALWAYS kicking ass live. Yeah it really marked their downfall, which is a shame because it's a great record and one of my favourite songs of all times is on it (Stuck In A Moment) With that said, their latter works still gave us the odd very good tune, and I believe they get a lot of undeserved flack The warranted criticisms are the ones that Lennon2217 refers to, but other than that, I agree the flack is undeserved. Particularly towards Bono, everyone thinks he’s a knobhead? Surprise surprise, that’s the case for 9/10 of every frontman and singer. If Bono’s worst crime is his holier than thou megalomania, then it really is small fry in the rock world. There are hundreds and hundreds of far far worse characters in music than Bono (many of whom I’m a fan of their music too). |
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Post by Lennon2217 on Sept 10, 2020 22:32:06 GMT -5
Yeah it really marked their downfall, which is a shame because it's a great record and one of my favourite songs of all times is on it (Stuck In A Moment) With that said, their latter works still gave us the odd very good tune, and I believe they get a lot of undeserved flack The warranted criticisms are the ones that Lennon2217 refers to, but other than that, I agree the flack is undeserved. Particularly towards Bono, everyone thinks he’s a knobhead? Surprise surprise, that’s the case for 9/10 of every frontman and singer. If Bono’s worst crime is his holier than thou megalomania, then it really is small fry in the rock world. There are hundreds and hundreds of far far worse characters in music than Bono (many of whom I’m a fan of their music too). U2 should just be thankful that on 3 different occasions they rode in Valhalla. - Joshua Tree - Achtung Baby - All That You Can’t Leave Behind Most bands don’t given one of those moments let alone three. |
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Post by World71R on Sept 11, 2020 3:46:34 GMT -5
U2 to reissue 20th anniversary deluxe edition of All That You Can't Leave Behind. www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-all-that-you-cant-leave-behind-20th-anniversary-box-set-1057243/Actually excited by this. It's a damn good album. U2's last meaningful and essential album, I've always been a big fan of it even if it heralded their return to a more mainstream sound. Regardless of it being musically being less ambitious than anything they did in the 90s, the songs are just really good. Front ended with the anthemic singles, the rest of the album is very understated and beautiful I thought. Bono on top form in particular with his lyrics being more sincere and observant, avoiding the vague Hallmark inspired platitudes of latter albums. A largely quiet, contemplative and calming album, it would have been a perfect last album for them. It is an awesome album and exactly the one I wanted from them when it dropped in October 31, 2000. However, it came with one flaw attached to it. As a result of U2’s newly found popularity resurgence after a well received album critically, huge global sales and one of my fav tours of all time, it led to U2 constantly trying to be loved by every single soul on planet earth for a good decade plus. Them wanting to be liked and loved by everyone diluted future songs and albums in my opinion. They quickly became a parody act despite ALWAYS kicking ass live. Unfortunately, yes. I feel like Atomic Bomb was a solid album that did its job but then No Line on the Horizon was a big missed opportunity considering everything that went into it. Then SOI was good but the release was, frankly, fucked and omitting The Crystal Ballroom was a crime punishable by death. And SOE was alright but the production is all over the place and choosing to tinker with it after the U.S. Election, rather putting out what they had, ruined the feeling of the album. |
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Post by Lennon2217 on Sept 11, 2020 7:21:23 GMT -5
It is an awesome album and exactly the one I wanted from them when it dropped in October 31, 2000. However, it came with one flaw attached to it. As a result of U2’s newly found popularity resurgence after a well received album critically, huge global sales and one of my fav tours of all time, it led to U2 constantly trying to be loved by every single soul on planet earth for a good decade plus. Them wanting to be liked and loved by everyone diluted future songs and albums in my opinion. They quickly became a parody act despite ALWAYS kicking ass live. Unfortunately, yes. I feel like Atomic Bomb was a solid album that did its job but then No Line on the Horizon was a big missed opportunity considering everything that went into it. Then SOI was good but the release was, frankly, fucked and omitting The Crystal Ballroom was a crime punishable by death. And SOE was alright but the production is all over the place and choosing to tinker with it after the U.S. Election, rather putting out what they had, ruined the feeling of the album. Atomic had some really good songs on it but it feels like a direct copy cat album. It tried too hard to be ATYCLB. I find it ironic it won album of the year at the Grammys. It’s not that good. |
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Post by World71R on Sept 11, 2020 12:31:49 GMT -5
Unfortunately, yes. I feel like Atomic Bomb was a solid album that did its job but then No Line on the Horizon was a big missed opportunity considering everything that went into it. Then SOI was good but the release was, frankly, fucked and omitting The Crystal Ballroom was a crime punishable by death. And SOE was alright but the production is all over the place and choosing to tinker with it after the U.S. Election, rather putting out what they had, ruined the feeling of the album. Atomic had some really good songs on it but it feels like a direct copy cat album. It tried too hard to be ATYCLB. I find it ironic it won album of the year at the Grammys. It’s not that good. For U2, it's average. For others' standards, it's good. ATYCLB feels like the album the band was working toward for years. Atomic Bomb feels like a celebration of that album being a success. It's the sound of someone reaching a point in their life where they're free to do whatever they want to do and are exploring the wonders of life; hence the nature of the lyricism and straightforward songwriting on much of Atomic Bomb. They deserved Atomic Bomb after their hard work, but where they messed up was not innovating after that to develop their sound more. A more folk/electronic/ambient sound moving forward would've played to another side of the Eno/Lanois partnership, continued what they did with Atomic Bomb, and strengthened the themes they went with on NLOTH & Innocence/Experience. |
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Post by matt on Sept 12, 2020 9:22:00 GMT -5
Unfortunately, yes. I feel like Atomic Bomb was a solid album that did its job but then No Line on the Horizon was a big missed opportunity considering everything that went into it. Then SOI was good but the release was, frankly, fucked and omitting The Crystal Ballroom was a crime punishable by death. And SOE was alright but the production is all over the place and choosing to tinker with it after the U.S. Election, rather putting out what they had, ruined the feeling of the album. Atomic had some really good songs on it but it feels like a direct copy cat album. It tried too hard to be ATYCLB. I find it ironic it won album of the year at the Grammys. It’s not that good. Aside from the singles, there's nothing I can recall from Atomic Bomb. Just had a look on wikipedia about that album and surprised at the good reviews it got - I think this was more a case of U2 riding the crest of their renewed success rather than the album being good. |
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Post by matt on Sept 12, 2020 9:25:59 GMT -5
Atomic had some really good songs on it but it feels like a direct copy cat album. It tried too hard to be ATYCLB. I find it ironic it won album of the year at the Grammys. It’s not that good. For U2, it's average. For others' standards, it's good. ATYCLB feels like the album the band was working toward for years. Atomic Bomb feels like a celebration of that album being a success. It's the sound of someone reaching a point in their life where they're free to do whatever they want to do and are exploring the wonders of life; hence the nature of the lyricism and straightforward songwriting on much of Atomic Bomb. They deserved Atomic Bomb after their hard work, but where they messed up was not innovating after that to develop their sound more. A more folk/electronic/ambient sound moving forward would've played to another side of the Eno/Lanois partnership, continued what they did with Atomic Bomb, and strengthened the themes they went with on NLOTH & Innocence/Experience. I think Songs of Experience is their best since All That You Can Leave Behind, barring the tripe singles. Sadly by then, everybody had stopped caring. That's the one U2 album that came and went without any fuss mainly because everyone aside from the fans were fed up with them. Which is a shame because some of the songs are some of their best in the last 25 years. |
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Post by Lennon2217 on Sept 12, 2020 10:53:05 GMT -5
Atomic had some really good songs on it but it feels like a direct copy cat album. It tried too hard to be ATYCLB. I find it ironic it won album of the year at the Grammys. It’s not that good. Aside from the singles, there's nothing I can recall from Atomic Bomb. Just had a look on wikipedia about that album and surprised at the good reviews it got - I think this was more a case of U2 riding the crest of their renewed success rather than the album being good. 110% Even the Atomic tour Mirrored closely the heart stage from ATYCLB tour. Very similar in tone with setlists and stage routines. Felt like an extension of that tour from 2001. |
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Post by World71R on Sept 12, 2020 17:20:02 GMT -5
For U2, it's average. For others' standards, it's good. ATYCLB feels like the album the band was working toward for years. Atomic Bomb feels like a celebration of that album being a success. It's the sound of someone reaching a point in their life where they're free to do whatever they want to do and are exploring the wonders of life; hence the nature of the lyricism and straightforward songwriting on much of Atomic Bomb. They deserved Atomic Bomb after their hard work, but where they messed up was not innovating after that to develop their sound more. A more folk/electronic/ambient sound moving forward would've played to another side of the Eno/Lanois partnership, continued what they did with Atomic Bomb, and strengthened the themes they went with on NLOTH & Innocence/Experience. I think Songs of Experience is their best since All That You Can Leave Behind, barring the tripe singles. Sadly by then, everybody had stopped caring. That's the one U2 album that came and went without any fuss mainly because everyone aside from the fans were fed up with them. Which is a shame because some of the songs are some of their best in the last 25 years. There are some good tunes but the production feels like lifeless on many of the tunes and takes away from the good material on there. The Blackout, for one, sounds like they're trying to go for '90s U2 industrial but they fall far short by not giving more power to Larry's hard-hitting drumming that made that era great. Get Out of Your Own Way is a good song but the production is a total pastiche of Beautiful Day and Streets. Love is Bigger... is good too but it lacks The Edge's touch on it (a la Ultra Violet). American Soul has The Edge's touch but it doesn't really build to anything and is, again, a re-hash of their "rawk" songs. That's at least four of the 13 songs that just don't sound right, which could for other bands but not a band like U2 that is so well-known for their beautiful and captivating soundscapes that define some of their best songs. On the bright side, though, you still have songs like Love is All We Have Left, The Little Things, Summer of Love, Landlady, and 13 that sound great and build on the U2 style with a more songwriting-driven approach, and others like Lights of Home, Red Flag Day, and The Showman that are just well-written songs. (Also You're the Best Thing, which isn't bad.) |
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Post by matt on Sept 12, 2020 17:45:14 GMT -5
I think Songs of Experience is their best since All That You Can Leave Behind, barring the tripe singles. Sadly by then, everybody had stopped caring. That's the one U2 album that came and went without any fuss mainly because everyone aside from the fans were fed up with them. Which is a shame because some of the songs are some of their best in the last 25 years. There are some good tunes but the production feels like lifeless on many of the tunes and takes away from the good material on there. The Blackout, for one, sounds like they're trying to go for '90s U2 industrial but they fall far short by not giving more power to Larry's hard-hitting drumming that made that era great. Get Out of Your Own Way is a good song but the production is a total pastiche of Beautiful Day and Streets. Love is Bigger... is good too but it lacks The Edge's touch on it (a la Ultra Violet). American Soul has The Edge's touch but it doesn't really build to anything and is, again, a re-hash of their "rawk" songs. That's at least four of the 13 songs that just don't sound right, which could for other bands but not a band like U2 that is so well-known for their beautiful and captivating soundscapes that define some of their best songs. On the bright side, though, you still have songs like Love is All We Have Left, The Little Things, Summer of Love, Landlady, and 13 that sound great and build on the U2 style with a more songwriting-driven approach, and others like Lights of Home, Red Flag Day, and The Showman that are just well-written songs. (Also You're the Best Thing, which isn't bad.) I don't mind Love Is Bigger, it's alright (forgot it was a single). I think American Soul is awful though. It's just generic dad rock and I find it faintly embarrassing when they go 'rawk'. Don't like You're The Best Thing or Get Out... either - I feel it's generic cut and paste chorus and really uninspired. Don't know what they're trying to achieve but if its the euphoria of songs like Beautiful Day then they are kidding themselves (working with Ryan Tedder does not help either). The Blackout has potential but again, it's a cut and paste generic chorus isn't it - nothing that contrived or bombastic on Achtung Baby (if that was the vibe they were going for)? For all the talk of the 'Songs of...' albums being concept albums, they are incredibly unfocused and messy. There's loose threads of themes here and there, and there's nothing sonically coherent in them either. They really do suffer from 'too many cooks' and it's no surprise that the last album they made that felt complete and focused was All That You Can't Leave Behind with just Eno & Lanois (with Steve Lillywhite mixing). I do think keeping with one producer would help things massively - the songs that Andy Barlow from Lamb did on Songs of Experience (Love Is All We Have Left, Book Of Your Heart, Little Things) all felt more restrained and introspective, and didn't suffer from the ostentatiousness of the Ryan Tedder singles produced nonsense. The Little Things in particular being a big achievement as I think it's by far their best song since Walk On. |
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Post by World71R on Sept 13, 2020 21:42:45 GMT -5
There are some good tunes but the production feels like lifeless on many of the tunes and takes away from the good material on there. The Blackout, for one, sounds like they're trying to go for '90s U2 industrial but they fall far short by not giving more power to Larry's hard-hitting drumming that made that era great. Get Out of Your Own Way is a good song but the production is a total pastiche of Beautiful Day and Streets. Love is Bigger... is good too but it lacks The Edge's touch on it (a la Ultra Violet). American Soul has The Edge's touch but it doesn't really build to anything and is, again, a re-hash of their "rawk" songs. That's at least four of the 13 songs that just don't sound right, which could for other bands but not a band like U2 that is so well-known for their beautiful and captivating soundscapes that define some of their best songs. On the bright side, though, you still have songs like Love is All We Have Left, The Little Things, Summer of Love, Landlady, and 13 that sound great and build on the U2 style with a more songwriting-driven approach, and others like Lights of Home, Red Flag Day, and The Showman that are just well-written songs. (Also You're the Best Thing, which isn't bad.) I don't mind Love Is Bigger, it's alright (forgot it was a single). I think American Soul is awful though. It's just generic dad rock and I find it faintly embarrassing when they go 'rawk'. Don't like You're The Best Thing or Get Out... either - I feel it's generic cut and paste chorus and really uninspired. Don't know what they're trying to achieve but if its the euphoria of songs like Beautiful Day then they are kidding themselves (working with Ryan Tedder does not help either). The Blackout has potential but again, it's a cut and paste generic chorus isn't it - nothing that contrived or bombastic on Achtung Baby (if that was the vibe they were going for)? For all the talk of the 'Songs of...' albums being concept albums, they are incredibly unfocused and messy. There's loose threads of themes here and there, and there's nothing sonically coherent in them either. They really do suffer from 'too many cooks' and it's no surprise that the last album they made that felt complete and focused was All That You Can't Leave Behind with just Eno & Lanois (with Steve Lillywhite mixing). I do think keeping with one producer would help things massively - the songs that Andy Barlow from Lamb did on Songs of Experience (Love Is All We Have Left, Book Of Your Heart, Little Things) all felt more restrained and introspective, and didn't suffer from the ostentatiousness of the Ryan Tedder singles produced nonsense. The Little Things in particular being a big achievement as I think it's by far their best song since Walk On. I'm glad you showed some love to Walk On. That track is one of my favorites from ATYCLB and one of my favorite post-Pop songs. I definitely agree that one producer would've been great for them. Andy Barlow did a good job for them on those three tracks and, going back to SOI, Danger Mouse did a good job for them SOI. I think if you had those two handling production, with Steve Lillywhite to give the songs a little more edge when needed, you'd have gotten some cohesive-sounding songs that wouldn't have been as sloppy as the last two albums have turned out (SOE more than SOI). Them working with Ryan Tedder was a huge mistake. That felt like U2 submitting themselves to the adult contemporary stereotype that they didn't really have, a la Coldplay working with Stargate was like submitting themselves to the top 40 stereotype that they didn't really have; both bands didn't have those labels until they worked with the respective people that they did. |
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Post by glider on Sept 14, 2020 2:07:08 GMT -5
ATYCLB, what an album. In A Little While is my favorite song on it.
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Post by 2nz on Sept 14, 2020 7:09:39 GMT -5
ATYCLB is a good album- but it drops off a cliff near the end.
When I look at the world, New York and Grace add nothing.
I think it's let down a few times by strange production choices, and some great songs could be tidied up a bit more (Elevation, Walk On, Kite)
Atomic Bomb had some great songs on it (All Because of You, Original of the Species) but it was definitely just a record done to get back on the radio and touring again. The tour was good, but Bono was a bit preachy and they played Vertigo twice.
The long gestation periods of the subsequent records, added to the fact that it's Producer overload on them, with direction changing so often- they're struggling for relevancy and must be focus grouping the shit out of things.
I thought SOI and SOE suffered from the release strategy. They were definitely better than NLOTH
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Post by matt on Sept 14, 2020 9:39:31 GMT -5
ATYCLB, what an album. In A Little While is my favorite song on it. Last song that Joey Ramone ever listened to while he passed away. |
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Nov 4, 2024 5:04:30 GMT -5
Nov 4, 2024 5:04:30 GMT -5