Finally figured out what U2 has lost...

[An Cat Gav]

I think it is possible to have a peak of interest in a band. My peak was from JT-AB period. Doesnt mean i like em any less now, just, for me, that period to be a u2 fan was untouchable for its special-ness......and i dont think that ferver will ever be recaptured. I am a different person now.
I think maybe...its an age related thing too. Back then, nobody could say a bad word about u2 without me leaping to their defense. Since i have grown up, i have mellowed and realised musics place in the grand scheme of things. U2 always have been, and always will be my No 1, they just dont dominate my life as once they did

I feel the same, between 1987-97 I was as an avid, perhaps rabid U2 fan as you could get, I wouldn't let anyone say a bad word about U2, but times change. ATYCLB and especially Bomb were a major disappointment, the first times I had experienced this with U2, and on top of that I was getting older and couldn't dedicate enough time to U2, so maybe that's why their songs don't speak to me as much as they did.
That said, I still love U2, they're my fave band ever and always will be, NLOTH is a top, top album.

 

[last unicorn]

I never felt disappointed by U2 because I don't feel they owe me something.

I'm just happy to be living in their time and have them still around, making music that moves me.

 

[ozeeko]

If you posted this a year ago, I would have wholeheartedly agreed with you. But I think at the moment there are two U2’s wandering around out there. There’s the stale, safe U2 of the past decade, where yes, it really seemed like the soul had been washed out of everything, and then there’s a bit of the old U2 breaking through here and there. Sometimes I still think yeah, they’re definitely not what they used to be, but then I think a few years ago we had Sometimes You Can’t Make it On Your Own, now we have Moment of Surrender. A few years ago we had Miracle Drug, now we have Fez. A few years ago we had tubby Bono marching around in a police hat on the Elevation With A Couple of Other Light Tricks tour, now we’ve got this awesome manic Ultraviolet performance on another groundbreaking set.

So sure, there's still a bit too much of the 00s in it all - Crazy Tonight is their current single, after all, and I'm sorry, but it's fucking awful - but there's at least a balance maybe returning, if not the first leaks that hopefuly will lead to a flood. Something definitely left the building at the turn of the century, but it also definitely feels like they’ve let a part of it back in lately.

Amen to this. There's nothing in here that i disagree with. Especially true of MOS, the first U2 song i've heard in quite some time that is truly heart wrenching, really hits you in that raw place (that didn't come out right). Also with Fez Being Born, on the parts with the choir vocals, really takes me to that timeless, haunting U2 world of sound that i'd been missing.

Like you said, all U2 has to do is once and for all get the Breathes, and the CT's, and the SUC's and the GOYB's out of their systems for once and for all.

 

[U2girl]

It would be hard to enjoy 30 years of career equally and not have preferences...it's not surprising this forum enjoys NLOTH more than the previous two albums.

 

[last unicorn]

I think it has more to do with me personally and with my personal experience and what I'm going through in a certain phase than with U2 and their music. I didn't really enjoy most of their 90s work and wasn't really interested in them back then, but looking back now I relate to much of this stuff and actually love and enjoy it. I feel NLOTH came out in a time that I really needed this album and I can connect to it emotionally.

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

you mean you don't like people with less than 200 posts in five years coming in and telling us they don't like u2?

what does someone's post count have to do with anything? We are all entitled to our own opinion....just because someone rarely posts here doesn't make their opinion any more/less valueable than someone who posts 10000 times a year.

And for the record, i agree with what Earnie Shavers said. Awesome post, though i am sort of guilty of liking CT as a single. But when i listen to NLOTH the first 4 songs really do speak to me. And thats something that hasn't happened on the last two albums.

 

[catlhere]

They didn't lose anything. They changed like every band should at least attempt to do. And if they lost anything, their soul should be at the bottom of that list, considering ATYCLB is probably their most joyous and uplifting soul-filled album they have ever made. BD was practically written with soul in mind. So it seems to me like more people are just annoyed they lost their "edge", not their soul. The songs became more about happiness and less about sulking.

 

[Bono's shades]

They didn't lose anything. They changed like every band should at least attempt to do. And if they lost anything, their soul should be at the bottom of that list, considering ATYCLB is probably their most joyous and uplifting soul-filled album they have ever made. BD was practically written with soul in mind. So it seems to me like more people are just annoyed they lost their "edge", not their soul. The songs became more about happiness and less about sulking.

Songs like Gloria, Streets and Pride aren't about sulking - they are very uplifting songs. And they still reach inside my heart in a way BD never did.

 

[A stor]

MOS-UC are two songs that really move me. They're so beautiful. So I don't think they've lost "it". But of course I'm a newer fan. I wasn't their when TJT and AB came out.

I think they are beautiful songs, too.

 

[jphelmet]

It's personal to everyone, and it really comes down to personal preference. You change over time, and your tastes change. It's a rare thing to really like ALL their catalog equally.

The weird thing to me, is that I really do like just about all of it. I am amazed that U2's changes have coincided with my life. I actually love most of Bomb. My first son was born right after it came out, so I love OOTS. One Step Closer was the song of my wife's pregnancy. Miracle Drug, and Yahweh have very deep personal meaning to me (i always role my eyes when someone pronounce them as awful or cheesy). Are You Gonna Wait Forever is one of my favorite songs ever by U2- it just hit me at the right time.

That said, I love UC, MOS, Fez, AND Breathe, Crazy Tonight. I guess having grown up with U2, I just feel like I usually know where they are coming from. I give them the benefit of the doubt. I actually like most of it. I like the more ambient, experimental U2 and the pop radio side of U2. They do both extremely well, and I think they are both hard to pull of at the level they do. I respect them for writing a great pop song like Crazy Tonight or OOTs as much as a do for MOS or Fez. Maybe I am just easy to please. I'm not sure why it has to be one or the other, but that is the way it seems to go on this forum lately.

 

[doctorwho]

If you feel that, I do feel sorry for you. I completely disagree personally, I think these songs dont speak to some people because they are expecting a similar style, or a similar message or something connected with the past. These songs speak to a new generation of fans, and I love them

QFT.

That said, there are albums that are so-so with me. Maybe I loved the album when it was released, but over time it didn't stand up. Or maybe there are some songs from an album I still adore, but the whole album doesn't suit my tastes.

For example, there are some JT songs I love, but overall, the album sounds too similar and doesn't speak to me (yes, I know I'm unique, but I felt this way in 1987 too). "Pop" excited me at first, but as I listen to it now, it just doesn't connect.

NLOTH, so far, has held up. Right now, I put it up there with TUF - and for the very reasons I like TUF so much.

But if one dismisses a band because of one album, then you may be a bit too critical. If ATYCLB and HTDAAB were great for you, then accept that NLOTH may not be your ideal album, but that others love it. And perhaps the next album, the situation may be reversed.

Plus, time has a way of changing things. Over the years, I've enjoyed some albums even more (AB), while others have faded a bit (ATYCLB). But when I look at U2 overall, I realize there is no other band I enjoy as much. Hence why I remain such a big fan.

 

[AndrewCowley]

I still love them. All is forgiven when I hear / see them play live. But I wish they'd -

1. Pick a non Eno / Lanois producer pairing and stick with it through to the end.

2. Don't spend so long in the studio.

and then their studio material might improve. They are simply trying too hard in the studio.

 

[mellow moog]

Some people are too busy searching for what U2 might have lost instead of focusing on what they still have.

Personally I can say that I feel more connected to them right now than I've had before, mainly because of he songs on their current album. I just connect with most of them on an emotional level. I can't analyse or explain it, it's just the way it is. And my relationship to music is only an emotional one, never intellectual.

You've read my mind. I am so connected with this album I would say almost to the level of Unforgettable Fire and the Joshua Tree when they came out. The only way I can explain why some people don't feel as connected as they used to is that people change, music can be a part of that change.

Don't over analyze it. If you don't like it or it doesn't give you what you are looking for on some level, you can maybe find it somewhere else.

I get chills when I think of the first time I played this album back in March, especially the first time I heard Magnificent!!! By the way, I'm an aethiest so it's not a christian song to me, just an incredible piece of music with the most sublime guitaring I've ever heard.

 

[nielsgov]

I still love them. All is forgiven when I hear / see them play live. But I wish they'd -

1. Pick a non Eno / Lanois producer pairing and stick with it through to the end.

2. Don't spend so long in the studio.

and then their studio material might improve. They are simply trying too hard in the studio.

It would be very interesting if they'd release some songs without working on them for ages. They want everything to be perfect, maybe a little too pefect. At least we would get the albums faster.

 

[gherman]

MOS speaks to me more that any other U2 song in terms of my soul.

 

[Salome]

That said, I love UC, MOS, Fez, AND Breathe, Crazy Tonight. I guess having grown up with U2, I just feel like I usually know where they are coming from. I give them the benefit of the doubt. I actually like most of it. I like the more ambient, experimental U2 and the pop radio side of U2. They do both extremely well, and I think they are both hard to pull of at the level they do. I respect them for writing a great pop song like Crazy Tonight or OOTs as much as a do for MOS or Fez. Maybe I am just easy to please. I'm not sure why it has to be one or the other, but that is the way it seems to go on this forum lately.

 

[Zoots]

it's not surprising this forum enjoys NLOTH more than the previous two albums.

It is not surprising because NLOTH is uhh.. much better? The songs don't suck this time like they did on Bomb? Pretty simple answer there.

 

[VintagePunk]

It's personal to everyone, and it really comes down to personal preference. You change over time, and your tastes change. It's a rare thing to really like ALL their catalog equally.

The weird thing to me, is that I really do like just about all of it. I am amazed that U2's changes have coincided with my life. I actually love most of Bomb.

...

That said, I love UC, MOS, Fez, AND Breathe, Crazy Tonight. I guess having grown up with U2, I just feel like I usually know where they are coming from. I give them the benefit of the doubt. I actually like most of it. I like the more ambient, experimental U2 and the pop radio side of U2. They do both extremely well, and I think they are both hard to pull of at the level they do. I respect them for writing a great pop song like Crazy Tonight or OOTs as much as a do for MOS or Fez. Maybe I am just easy to please. I'm not sure why it has to be one or the other, but that is the way it seems to go on this forum lately.

Another thumbs up from me for all this.

I kind of have trouble figuring out where albums fit into the grand scheme of things for me pretty much until the next album comes out. With that in mind, I listened to HTDAAB in its entirety for the first time in probably a couple of years recently, and I was pleasantly surprised how well it has held up for me. I really, really enjoyed it. I guess intellectually, I always think that there are other albums I like much better, and probably the cynicism around this place might have slightly affected my perception, but it was like rediscovering a dear friend, to me.

Then again, I always say that my favourite U2 album is the one I'm listening to at the time. I honestly can't choose. And I guess that HTDAAB is among the rest of them for me, in that way.

 

[financeguy]

Songs like Gloria, Streets and Pride aren't about sulking - they are very uplifting songs. And they still reach inside my heart in a way BD never did.

Indeed.

 

[financeguy]

BD was practically written with soul in mind. .

Er, yeah, and that's the problem with it. A commercially driven attempt to manufacture fake soul in a studio. Which, of course, sold trillions and is on constant play on classic AOR radio ever since. Bit like Phil Collins, in other words. Beautiful Day is a favoured song among the type of U2 fan that has no Marvin Gaye records and at least three Phil Collins records.

 

[allbecauseofu2]

oh yea? you question u2;s soul? ? watch footage from the post 9/11 u2 shows in ny and you find out what soul is. I don't give a fuck if you attended the 1969 woodstock. On the darkest day in us history , i would pick u2 over basically every band in HISTORY except the Beatles to play a show to lift my spirits or to "speak" for the state of the times. Hey no offense to Marvin Gaye or anything.

 

[kingofsorrow]

First, I really wanted to snag people with that thread title.
But basically I realized the other day that they're no longer speaking to me! In other words, what was once very soul-touching music, with some sort of genuinely affectation, no longer happens.
Don't get me wrong, I think the songs are VERY GOOD SONGS, with interesting lyrics and the like. It's just that they don't ring the bell of my soul.
In a way I think they've (understandably) lost touch, now that they're veteran megastars. In another way, it's almost like they've lost that "It" factor, though still retaining fabulous creativity.
Could it also be anything about relevance? I think relevance, soul touching, and the It factor are all related.
Does this make sense to anyone?

another way of looking at things is:

1 maybe "you've" lost your soul.

2 u2's soul has undergone changes based on all the experiences inbetween these long years.

3 your soul has changed for the same above reasons.

4 people connect at times on the deepest levels, then for whatever reasons they loose that connection.

there's nothing wrong with what your feeling/thinking(regardless of what other would have you think), you just need to accept that the 4 guys you've shared such a deep profound connection with has moved on. it's time for you to do so also. don't worry though, when someone touches your heart/soul/mind the way U2 has, you won't stay apart forever.


-this message brought to you by my swine flu infested mind and Kahlua.

 

[bono_man2002]

Wow, the first post describes about my first 2-3 weeks of listening to NLOTH.

I've come to love it now, though.

 

[indra]

-this message brought to you by my swine flu infested mind and Kahlua.

You can keep the swine flu, but Kahlua is always good.

 

[Rob33]

oh yea? you question u2;s soul? ? watch footage from the post 9/11 u2 shows in ny and you find out what soul is. I don't give a fuck if you attended the 1969 woodstock. On the darkest day in us history , i would pick u2 over basically every band in HISTORY except the Beatles to play a show to lift my spirits or to "speak" for the state of the times. Hey no offense to Marvin Gaye or anything.

"except the Beatles" ???

...to play a show and lift your spirits on the darkest day in US history...the fucking Beatles over U2?

Name one Beatles song more powerful than Streets...

 

[The Sad Punk]

"except the Beatles" ???

...to play a show and lift your spirits on the darkest day in US history...the fucking Beatles over U2?

Name one Beatles song more powerful than Streets...

you have got to be kidding me.

 

[zwervers2]

Name one Beatles song more powerful than Streets...

 

[last unicorn]

Since I don't care about the Beatles, I can't think of any song.

 

[The Sad Punk]

Since I don't care about the Beatles, I can't think of any song.

It's entirely subjective, of course - but just the way Rob said made it sound like thinking the Beatles are better than U2 would be completely preposterous.

 

[blueeyedgirl]

oh yea? you question u2;s soul? ? watch footage from the post 9/11 u2 shows in ny and you find out what soul is. I don't give a fuck if you attended the 1969 woodstock. On the darkest day in us history , i would pick u2 over basically every band in HISTORY except the Beatles to play a show to lift my spirits or to "speak" for the state of the times. Hey no offense to Marvin Gaye or anything.

Oh OK this whole "U2 spoke for the world on the darkest day in history" is total bollocks, frankly. So 9/11 is the darkest day in history huh? So what about the thousands that died in Northern Ireland, Ireland and the UK during the Troubles? Or the tens of thousands who died in the former Yugoslavia. Or the thousands who died and are still dying in Chechnya? Or for the hell of it, how about the 50 million who died in WW2???

Oh I'm sorry, they weren't American were they? I realise this is EYKIW and not FYM, but really this sort of "ranking" thing totally riles me.....