U2 Isn't Radical Now

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that follows U2.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Good article. But I suspect the band no longer has the energy or the drive to be as viscerally political as they have been in their past. Sadly.
 
For fuck's sake.

U2 are entertainers. They can do what they like, put on the show they like and be as political as they like.

My right wing friend complains to me that they are too political during their shows. This asshole complains they aren't political enough.

Fuck them all.

If Carlyn Rose is so adamant about all this, let her go form a band, book a gig, then preach politics till she passes out.

To an empty arena.
 
I read about half of it before the whole page was covered up by an enormous ad, but this sounds like the typical leftist complaint that Bono isn't bashing Trump hard enough. Some people seem to be sexually aroused by anti-Trump rants and just can't get enough, while others think every little thing is too much and Bono should "shut up and sing." They can't make anyone happy. This attitude in the article of "How dare you not criticize the thing I hate as much as I think you should!" fans the flames of hysteria and promotes conformist thinking.

I think U2 were smart to keep it toned down; there's enough of all that stuff everywhere else. We talked about this in another thread before the tour started, but our culture is so divided right now, and we don't need U2 causing more division, we need an escape. People actually hate each other because of political beliefs. I was glad that U2 tried to bring people together instead of throwing gasoline on the fire, and that MacPhisto poked fun at the absurdities of both sides. They still made their opinions known, but it was in a reasonable and sensible way that didn't belittle people who might not share their views.
 
This is absolutely the tour for out of touch centrists. And of course the Trump fans still hate it anyway. Might as well just go hard and actually stand for something of substance and relevance.
 
This is absolutely the tour for out of touch centrists. And of course the Trump fans still hate it anyway. Might as well just go hard and actually stand for something of substance and relevance.

Yeah, the first thing I think of with U2 is how "out of touch they are" politically.

:rolleyes:
 
I get that Bono and Co. aren't the band they were in the 90s anymore, bands evolve and change. They're older now too. However, this whole compromise thing is a bit naive. It's hard to picture that happening now, considering where we are and how is that supposed to come about exactly? But we have to be somewhat hopeful too.

I think Bono is well-intentioned and has done good things, but his relationship to world leaders and what not probably restricts him a bit from being more outspoken. Though, I imagine he can't be that naive either, this is a guy wrote Bullet the Blue Sky after all. MLK was certainly outspoken even after working with LBJ on certain legislation. He was very critical of Vietnam, Bono was a bit hush hush regarding Iraq (though he said he was against it). Nonetheless Bono is no MLK and no one is saying he is or should try to be (or can be). Though he seems to admire him greatly and he plays a notable role in the show.

All that said, I appreciated and enjoyed both E&I shows I saw. I felt the transition form Staring at the Sun (a song I really like) into Pride was quite compelling and made its point. On the one hand, it's kinda cool that they can make a point without naming you know who. They're not Roger Waters I guess and that's okay, though I appreciate what he's doing.

It's tricky though and I realize you can't please everyone, but that's always been U2's biggest problem, they want to appeal to everyone (at least musically). This tour has certainly ruffled some feathers though, however I didn't personally witness any walkouts in D.C.
 
Last edited:
This article is horse shit.

U2 confronts the American public, who paid a pretty penny to see the show, with images of Nazis walking in the streets of Charlottesville, bagged the first lady, border policy, etc...

... But then he didn't call Trump an asshole and left some room for hope, mannnnnnn. They're so soft!
 
I think Bono is well-intentioned and has done good things, but his relationship to world leaders and what not probably restricts him a bit from being more outspoken.

It's tricky though and I realize you can't please everyone, but that's always been U2's biggest problem, they want to appeal to everyone (at least musically).

If Bono isn't "outspoken" he sure has given plenty of people the impression that he's outspoken.

You mention his name to someone and typically politics, not music, is the first thing that comes up.

I don't know what people expect from U2 politically. To turn into Rage Against the Machine? For what reason? If Bono pulled out a pulpit and preached against Trump for two hours at a show not a single person would change how they vote. They've always emphasized unity and compromise as a good starting point, quite often (but not always of course).

Sometimes the best strategy is to remind people of commonalities before getting into the heated discussions over differences.

Some of the images and footage on the screen during their show I liken to a mirror. People in attendance not only hear "this is not America" . . they are being asked . . . "is this the America you want to live in? Because that's the direction he-whose-name-will-not-be-spoken is taking you."

And wanting universal appeal -- to be the biggest band in the world -- is always what has driven them. Not a bad thing. Sometimes in that endeavor they get it right, sometimes they get it wrong. But the drive to be that band works for them most of the time.
 
U2 are entertainers. They can do what they like, put on the show they like and be as political as they like.

My right wing friend complains to me that they are too political during their shows. This asshole complains they aren't political enough.

Pretty much. No matter what, it's always going to be one thing to this person and another to that one.
 
With these songs,they have no choice but to tone down the politics. The days of angry and ballsy songs, backed by a singer with high conviction are over. They have settled into the sofa so to speak.
 
This is absolutely the tour for out of touch centrists. And of course the Trump fans still hate it anyway. Might as well just go hard and actually stand for something of substance and relevance.

And accomplish what, exactly? Make half the crowd cheer and the other half pissed off?
 
Yeah, the first thing I think of with U2 is how "out of touch they are" politically.

:rolleyes:

lulz

Bono's blather about "we all need to work together!" was fine a decade ago when there weren't literal fascists and white supremacists on the streets. Hell, he himself points out the public profile of these groups, yet the show seems to have this strange disconnect in narrative: Macphisto tells us that "the KKK sieg heil'd together in Charlottesville", and then Bono goes on to urge everyone work together, as if those who support Trump neither support nor enabled Charlottesville or similar.

Fuck it. This isn't 2005 and calls for compromise have quite clearly not worked. Turn the flamethrower on the lunar right and have at it.

And accomplish what, exactly? Make half the crowd cheer and the other half pissed off?

Accomplish what? Being on the right side of history, of course.

But you wouldn't know about that, would you. I'm not sure if you are a Trump voter, but you're so busy to defend fascists, white supremacists, and their army of enablers (unwitting or otherwise) that either you are, or you're defending people who don't warrant the defence.
 
Fuck it. This isn't 2005 and calls for compromise have quite clearly not worked. Turn the flamethrower on the lunar right and have at it.

Yeah dude yeah -- let them pass out Trump face posters ala Auing San Suu Kyi and the crowd will set them all on fire!

You can't seem to understand the difference between entertainers putting on a show and a political rally.
 
Yeah dude yeah -- let them pass out Trump face posters ala Auing San Suu Kyi and the crowd will set them all on fire!



You can't seem to understand the difference between entertainers putting on a show and a political rally.



You do understand that everything is political? That being neutral in situations of oppression and hate means you've sided with the oppressor? Ax is right, compromise will not work with these people. Those who aren't fully opposed to Trump are essentially aiding and abetting him.

I know that Bono is fully opposed to Trump and I was hoping he would take a stronger stance against Trump after the Dreamforce version of Bullet where he railed against Trump. But instead we got a snarky video during JT 2017 and some direct references by MacPhisto but most of what he said was watered down calls for compromise. He doesn't want to alienate people, but he doesn't realize that Trump supporters deserve to be alienated. Bono hasn't fully stepped up during this historical moment and it's a let down.
 
Bono could speak out more strongly, but I'm not particularly bothered by it. I by no means want artists to "shut up and sing," but neither am I looking to them to tell me what I already know, regardless of how pointed they were or weren't in the past. (That's just me - I totally get some of the frustration.)

I was amused, however, to hear comments from conservative-leaning fans (dunno if they were Trump supporters or not) complain so much about how "overly political" they were on the JT30 tour.

There must be chips firmly on shoulders there, because the band was pretty fucking restrained, all things considered.
 
This article is horse shit.

U2 confronts the American public, who paid a pretty penny to see the show, with images of Nazis walking in the streets of Charlottesville, bagged the first lady, border policy, etc...

... But then he didn't call Trump an asshole and left some room for hope, mannnnnnn. They're so soft!



Agreed. I think the difference is U2 is not COOL like they were in the 90s. So they know better than to try to act as such. So they don’t come off as super edgy or whatever. Because that would be received with eye rolls.
 
You do understand that everything is political? That being neutral in situations of oppression and hate means you've sided with the oppressor? Ax is right, compromise will not work with these people. Those who aren't fully opposed to Trump are essentially aiding and abetting him.

"everything is political?"

"being neutral in situations of oppression . . .?"

At a fucking concert?

You too don't seem to understand the difference between entertainers putting on a show and a political rally.

Jesus.
 
"everything is political?"



"being neutral in situations of oppression . . .?"



At a fucking concert?



You too don't seem to understand the difference between entertainers putting on a show and a political rally.



Jesus.


An artist’s content is the sole decision of the artist.

Has U2 ever not been, as you call it, performing “political rallies”??

Seems to me that every. Single. Tour. Has evoked a message on the geopolitical stage. Sometimes it was single-issue content. Sometimes not.

Your post makes it seem as though performers have an obligation or expectation to stay neutral. Do you think U2 is being political to appease their audience? Or were they founded on that?
 
"everything is political?"



"being neutral in situations of oppression . . .?"



At a fucking concert?



You too don't seem to understand the difference between entertainers putting on a show and a political rally.



Jesus.



That being neutral in situations of oppression quote is from Desmond Tutu, a man that U2 admires very much, so much so that they've featured videos of him during their concerts. Seems to me like the band would follow his words, especially given their long history of speaking out about politics. And yes, everything is political. Every single part of our society is affected by politics, from the food you eat, to the entertainment you consume. Being able to ignore politics is a privilege of comfortable people. Pretending otherwise is willful ignorance
 
Refujesus this place.

This article is ragging on U2 for the sake of ragging on U2, because that's a thing to do now.

Springsteen changed his friggin thousand dollar a seat Broadway show once and he's a hero of the resistance, but U2 confronts well to do Americans with images of Nazis and white supremacists marching in the streets of Charlottesville every night, displays images by one of the leading protest artists of the time on the screen before the show and then again during the show... but they're just friggin soft and not taking a stance, mannnn. They're catering to the centrists mannnnnnn.

GTFO.

Springsteen has also said that he doesn't feel the need to write about what's going on now. OMG he's with the rightists!! (I just wanted to use the word rightist for LN7's sake)

I mean even American Soul, shitty as it may be to most, is a song that literally says that the soul of America has died, the American dream has died, and it's time to friggin wake up. And they say all that in from of a giant American flag.


But because they offer some hope that maybe we can fucking deal with this shit and not continue down this road... OMG they're not the band for this time!!!! They're so soft!!!!

By saying that great things have occurred by getting disagreeing parties to work together is not condoning what's going on currently whatsoever.

They helped bring Unionists and Republicans to the table in Northern Ireland... does that mean U2 condones the violence of the IRA? Of course not.

Ya know, getting rid of this monstrosity is something people from both sides of the political spectrum should be working together to achieve.


This article isn't bullshit because U2 shouldn't be political. That's horseshit and anyone making that argument is making a horseshit argument because U2 have always been political.

The article is bullshit because it's not accurate.
 
Refujesus this place.

This article is ragging on U2 for the sake of ragging on U2, because that's a thing to do now.

Springsteen changed his friggin thousand dollar a seat Broadway show once and he's a hero of the resistance, but U2 confronts well to do Americans with images of Nazis and white supremacists marching in the streets of Charlottesville every night, displays images by one of the leading protest artists of the time on the screen before the show and then again during the show... but they're just friggin soft and not taking a stance, mannnn. They're catering to the centrists mannnnnnn.

GTFO.

Springsteen has also said that he doesn't feel the need to write about what's going on now. OMG he's with the rightists!! (I just wanted to use the word rightist for LN7's sake)

I mean even American Soul, shitty as it may be to most, is a song that literally says that the soul of America has died, the American dream has died, and it's time to friggin wake up. And they say all that in from of a giant American flag.


But because they offer some hope that maybe we can fucking deal with this shit and not continue down this road... OMG they're not the band for this time!!!! They're so soft!!!!

By saying that great things have occurred by getting disagreeing parties to work together is not condoning what's going on currently whatsoever.

They helped bring Unionists and Republicans to the table in Northern Ireland... does that mean U2 condones the violence of the IRA? Of course not.

Ya know, getting rid of this monstrosity is something people from both sides of the political spectrum should be working together to achieve.


This article isn't bullshit because U2 shouldn't be political. That's horseshit and anyone making that argument is making a horseshit argument because U2 have always been political.

The article is bullshit because it's not accurate.

This is just a perfect post here! Very well done.:up::up:

It is absurd for anyone to suggest Bono or U2 in general are enabling Trump and his ilk with how they approach politics these days. They've been very vocal against them and all they stand for- directly and on very prominent stages. It just shows how little these people who write this trash actually know. Trump is the first individual since God knows who to get directly and repeatedly slammed by the band.

Also, a good amount of the Nazis you mentioned had "Make America Great Again" red hats on. What more do people want?! I had Staring at the Sun as one of the songs I'd rotate when I did my critique of this setlist early on in the tour. Once I saw the images and how the last part of that song worked so well going into Pride, I had no problem admitting I was beyond wrong.

That hit so hard and so viscerally and I would challenge anyone to get the same feeling or even close to it watching some 20 year old scream "down with Trump and all those inbreds who voted for him" over and over again.

U2 knows, as you do, that nuance exists in this world and they have worked with people with enough variety of viewpoints to know that plenty of people on the American "right" are and should be working to rid us of Trump. They can differentiate between someone who falls on that side of the spectrum and a white supremacist. Similarly, they realize that many who voted for Trump do not espouse those deplorable views. Do I or many others agree with their judgement? Of course not. Do I think they voted for a dangerous man with dangerous views? Of course I do. Do I think that alienating them versus trying to engage them, in part through an appeal to unity and hope, is a deadly mistake for those who care about fixing this and moving forward? Yes.

Just as you said, this is a hit piece on U2 because that's the thing to do now. It's trendy, so writers and editors, even at highly reputable publications, are letting it go even when articles are filled with complete BULLSHIT.

Really is frustrating.

As we here well know, there are good, well reasoned criticisms one could have for U2.

This character assassination, lying and expecting them to be something they never were is just sick.
 
I don't think the article is accurate eifher. When I read it I just said huh? The whole point of what they're doing is to get all of us in the USA to take a look at ourselves. Because like it or not even if you didn't vote for Trump, it all really comes down to the fact that it holds a mirror up to each one of us. If you're not part of the solution you're part of the problem. And anyone who wants to make U2 the problem , well that's misguided.
 
Refujesus this place.

This article is ragging on U2 for the sake of ragging on U2, because that's a thing to do now.





.

The article isn't really ragging on U2, and Caryn Rose is a big fan whose life was changed by a U2 concert and who also wrote an article ranking every U2 song.

The article is complimentary toward the band and the show, but she takes issue with Bono's pleas for compromise (which is fair - the Republicans as they are now cannot be compromised with) and with Bono saying that the racist America isn't America (it clearly is and always has been). Those are fair and fairly mild criticisms.

I find the complaint that U2 are overly subtle hilarious though. That's gotta be a first!
 
" . . she takes issue with Bono's pleas for compromise (which is fair - the Republicans as they are now cannot be compromised with) and with Bono saying that the racist America isn't America (it clearly is and always has been)."

And Bono's "pleas for compromise" are to be taken in context. Bono is not asking for compromises in LGTB rights, racism, extreme poverty, etc. I think it's perfectly clear where he (they) they draw the line. I doubt anyone attending the show from the Left or the Right is confused at all about where U2 stands.

And as the old ZOO/TV quip "everyone is a racist except you" would flash by the screen during The Fly, we are reminded that everyone carries some degree of racism within. But the idea of America, which Bono has referred to so often in the past, is what he's appealing to here, that and the fact that most people in this country are not Neo Nazi skinheads (who are feeling particular empowered right about now).

Lastly, no matter how loud Bono screams through a megaphone -- or what he screams --will change a single mind. At least not about politics. U2 designs, plots and plans a show and they put on the show they want to present to people interested enough in taking the time and spending the money to come and see them perform.

They are performers. They are entertainers. The concerts speak for themselves. To project onto them ones own frustrations about Trump is misguided and unfair. And just plain wrong.
 
Accomplish what? Being on the right side of history, of course.

But you wouldn't know about that, would you. I'm not sure if you are a Trump voter, but you're so busy to defend fascists, white supremacists, and their army of enablers (unwitting or otherwise) that either you are, or you're defending people who don't warrant the defence.

Wow, jump to conclusions much? How does me saying that U2 telling everyone their opinions on today's politics changes no one's mind make me a supporter of fascists and white supremacists? That's disgusting. You need to apologize. How can you even say something like that? What is wrong with you?

This is what I was trying to say, but apparently you're more interested in insults and slander than reading comprehension:

Lastly, no matter how loud Bono screams through a megaphone -- or what he screams --will change a single mind. At least not about politics.
 
Last edited:
Wow, jump to conclusions much? How does me saying that U2 telling everyone their opinions on today's politics changes no one's mind make me a supporter of fascists and white supremacists? That's disgusting. You need to apologize. How can you even say something like that? What is wrong with you?



I’m fascinated by the logic of some people that if you don’t agree with them 100% then you are a vile piece of garbage and are apparently on the wrong side of history? This is the main reason I don’t engage in any political discussion in this place because it is inevitable that if there is any disagreement there will not be a constructive conversation but rather what you experienced(hell, I get insults thrown at me when I express my dislike for Zooropa and Pop)

Anyway, I get what you are saying that essentially there are people who pay $350 for a music concert and are not interested in a billionaire from another country lecturing them through a bull horn about how they should think. That doesn’t mean they don’t agree with him, it doesn’t mean they have their heads in the sand, it doesn’t mean they are Nazis, it doesn’t mean they hate puppies....it simply means that they want to separate entertainment and the realities of life that they deal with the other 22 hours a day.
 
Back
Top Bottom