The 13 Worst Album Covers of 2009...

[coolian2]

the last night on earth cover is fucking perfect!

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

i love achtung baby's montage thing. it's one of the things that always drew me to it when i first got the cassette way back when.

i love all the 90s covers. the cover for passengers is really neat. for their earlier stuff, i like the cover of a day without me. i also love the ab singles covers. put them all together and it's one big photo. that's pretty neat.

and yeah...the cover for the tuf single is appalling. especially since it's four separate photos, i'm not sure why they felt they had to use such shitty photos for adam and bono. i guess they lost a bet.

 

[coolian2]

my favourite covers, no particular order.

- passengers
- achtung baby
- pop
- zooropa
- no line on the horizon
- the unforgettable fire
- the joshua tree

love them all for different reasons. the 80s ones are great in their simplicity, the 90s ones largely sum up what they were doing and i love no line having no text on the front.

 

[Axver]

i love achtung baby's montage thing. it's one of the things that always drew me to it when i first got the cassette way back when.

i love all the 90s covers. the cover for passengers is really neat. for their earlier stuff, i like the cover of a day without me. i also love the ab singles covers. put them all together and it's one big photo. that's pretty neat.

and yeah...the cover for the tuf single is appalling. especially since it's four separate photos, i'm not sure why they felt they had to use such shitty photos for adam and bono. i guess they lost a bet.

I agree with all of that other than Achtung. I'm definitely drawn to the Passengers cover.

I remember when I first saw the UF single cover, I didn't initially realise it was Bono and Adam. Dreadful photos. In terms of musical content, I think the UF single is possibly the best thing U2 have ever released in terms of consistent quality, but in terms of presentation, it could hardly be worse.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

Easily the best and most striking U2 album cover, in my opinion.

It has that sense of being an iconic image. Not sure any other cover has that, save for maybe the Joshua Tree.

The original cover image for Boy is simple and great and memorable.

I love the color scheme used for Pop, but the actual finished product is stale. Zooropa is pretty cool, I suppose. I like that the faces of the band are nowhere near it. HTDAAB and October are abortions. The = sign on NLOTH is stolen right out of Chris Martin's playbook and reeks of trying too hard (as does the music contained within). The photography in the liner notes for AB is wonderful, but the actual cover image is nothing very special. ATYCLB is boring, but I don't mind it as much as some of the others. Rattle and Hum shouldn't even be counted as an album in any way shape or form so I won't comment on its cover art.

I guess that leaves TUF, which probably has the fourth best image behind War, JT, and Boy.

 

[An Cat Gav]

I agree with all of that other than Achtung. I'm definitely drawn to the Passengers cover.

I remember when I first saw the UF single cover, I didn't initially realise it was Bono and Adam. Dreadful photos. In terms of musical content, I think the UF single is possibly the best thing U2 have ever released in terms of consistent quality, but in terms of presentation, it could hardly be worse.

You're totaly right about the unforgettable fire single, great songs but dreadful colour. Which is strange as some of the best images of the band are from this period, the cover of the unforgettable fire album is stunning.
I love the photos on the Achtung Baby cover, the shoot of them in the car, the one of them in the disco with all the people around them smudged,the one of the german railway bridge, edge kissing adam, the Irish cow. Love it. It was incredible at the time to see a U2 Lp in colour! it really reflected the change in the music, really exciting.

 

[doctorwho]

I just want to know why U2 is considered a "dinosaur rock band" but Neil Young is a "rock legend". I don't disagree with the description of Young, but the "dinosaur" comment sounds so insulting while the "legend" comment sounds very respectful. By writing it this way, it shows a bias and takes away any point the author wanted to make. It becomes a "oh, I hate U2 and here's another reason why" statement, instead of a true critique.

I guess that's the price U2 pays for being successful - both in album sales and in touring - for 25+ years. I wonder if Michael Jackson, had he been alive, would have been called a "pop dinosaur" when he started his London shows.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

I don't believe that the idea that U2 is a "dinosaur band" is the consensus. It was just that one guy's words. So who gives a shit?

 

[An Cat Gav]

I think that the HTDAAB is worse than the October cover, I'd say it's their worst. ATYCLB on the other hand has a really good cover, it has a real charm to it, humourous and touching in a way.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

I've pissed better pictures in my sleep than the one used for the HTDAAB cover.

 

[Galeongirl]

Wrong, wrong, wrong. The album cover, and it has to be vinyl, not CD, is awesome. Their best imo. Sums up everything they were about in 91.

*cuddles her AB vinyl*

I totally agree. And that's not just because there's a nude Adam shot on the back.

 

[The Sad Punk]

I like the AB cover and always have. It's confronting. And most of the photos on it are pretty good.

 

[doctorwho]

I don't believe that the idea that U2 is a "dinosaur band" is the consensus. It was just that one guy's words. So who gives a shit?

I agree. But I also agree with his opinion of the cover. The music is so good but the cover is rather bland. However, by writing it the way he did ("dinosaur rock band"), it takes away his valid point and just becomes an insult.

 

[Zoots]

Achtung's cover is terrible. With the exception of the UF single's cover, it was the worst in the band's history until HTDAAB came along.

So not only do you not like the album, you don't like the cover either???



I think it's the way you always state your opinion like it's writ in the ten commandments that gets to me. lol. But if you don't like it, you don't like it. Fair enough.

i love achtung baby's montage thing. it's one of the things that always drew me to it when i first got the cassette way back when.

Same here! It is so interesting and reflects the chaos of early 90's Berlin so well! I fucking love it!

I love the color scheme used for Pop, but the actual finished product is stale.

By finished product, do you mean the cover or the album itself?

I agree btw, that NLOTH is nice without the = sign. The sign gives the impression that they are trying too hard to make an artistic statement that sea equals sky or whatever. It is nice though, that on the digipak the plastic sleeve with the = sign slides off to reveal the better cover.

 

[BVS]

I can't believe people actually like the Passengers cover. I flip it over and use the inside as the cover.

I think it's probably the worse album cover I own, and I fucking own Prince Lovesexy.

 

[elevated_u2_fan]

Passengers isn't a U2 album though

 

[The Sad Punk]

I think it's probably the worse album cover I own, and I fucking own Prince Lovesexy.

Dude, that's the BEST album cover I own.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

By finished product, do you mean the album or the cover itself?

haha, the cover! the music is great. Pop is my 3rd fave U2 album. And, I don't know, I still like the art used for Pop...like I said, the colors are great...but I feel the cover image could have been something greater. Oh well.

 

[Zoots]

Passengers isn't a U2 album though

Not this again.

All 4 members worked on it, hence it was a U2 project.

 

[elevated_u2_fan]

Not this again.

All 4 members worked on it, hence it was a U2 project.

yeah, but technically....

 

[Zoots]

Pop is my 3rd fave U2 album.

Mine too.

 

[Galeongirl]

Not this again.

All 4 members worked on it, hence it was a U2 project.

What is the name of the artist in the liner notes and iTunes?



One hint, it's not U2.

 

[Catman]

Don't care too much for the POP cover. Looks incedibly tacky (regardless of whether or not that was the point, I still don't like it).

As for NLOTH... this is blasphemy. It's a frickin' great cover. I don't know who this jackass that wrote the article is, but I call shenanigans. Also, despite the Jonas Brothers being, essentially, a giant turd smeared across the face of modern pop, I don't really see how their cover is one of the worst (along with Passion Pit, which is just sort of "there"). Sure, like their music, the cover is wholly unoriginal... but it displays the group in a prominent fashion as to secure CD sales. It's safe, blatant and unobtrusive. It's the vanilla-waifer of album covers.

 

[ic170]

for me...

worst single cover:

best single cover;

worst album cover.... though...

.....reissue got it right....

best album cover;

 

[OrARoundabout]

Achtung's cover is terrible. With the exception of the UF single's cover, it was the worst in the band's history until HTDAAB came along.

How could you call urself a U2 fan, and NOT like this cover...I mean, really...

I always liked this...just wish the mullet isn't so prominent

Y/N?

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

I think it's the way you always state your opinion like it's writ in the ten commandments that gets to me. lol. But if you don't like it, you don't like it. Fair enough.

i know what you mean. a lot of people do it, and it kind of gets on my nerves. it's not like you have to say "imo i like this best, and it's just my opinion..." or anything. i dunno. can't we all just get along?!

 

[Jive Turkey]

best single cover;

I'm sure I'm not telling you something you dont already know, but you gotta put the other 3 together with it to get the full picture

 

[bono_212]

I adore it, but the tuf single cover is hideous.


Btw, as soon as I saw this one, I thought The Cure. Glad I wasn't alone:
The 13 Worst Album Covers Of 2009... So Far - GIGWISE

 

[Zoots]

Best album cover: Achtung Baby
Best single covers: Achtung Baby
Best album: Achtung Baby
Best tour: Zoo TV
Best song: One/The Fly/Acrobat/UTEOTW
God, how can one album be so awesome???

Spoiler

imo

 

[KhanadaRhodes]