Adam Clayton: Album in 2008

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hey wait, wasnt adam the one who nearly promised us an album last fall?

i dont believe that guy.
 
U2girl said:
It's true they were arguing a lot due to different views, but hey, he is still credited for 5 AB songs. We also know he is in the trenches with the band, and Eno just comes by once in a while and gives his opinion.

This could be an interesting precedens: Lanois working with U2, alone. I always felt since Eno got on board with Zooropa and he had Passengers (does anyone know where Lanois was during that time and why he wasn't involved with them?) that Lanois should get a try with solo producing U2.

His journal at daniellanois.com, dated May 10, says this

"It has been a very busy time since my last post. I have 3 of my own projects on the go that are nearly complete, and a few with some friends. Stay tuned, i'll be doing the official announcment in the next couple of weeks, I'm very, very excited!"

:hmm: I wonder if "some friends" means U2.
Click to expand...

The announcement will be "I'm working on U2's new album and The Edge is on fire", maybe. :hmm:
 
U2Man said:
hey wait, wasnt adam the one who nearly promised us an album last fall?

i dont believe that guy.
Click to expand...

You don't believe the Italian??

well, I can confirm that Adam stated that there will be no album this year.

A member from a board I'm on, was there at the studio's at the same time (last thuesday) and he mentioned the same.

Adam & Larry pulled out of the garage and stopped for pics and autographs and Adam chatted a little about the new material.

This member of the U2board mentioned a security guy (could this have been Sam?) coming out of the studio and entering the garage, who told them to go away, they had been there all day and the guys (Bono&Edge) were pissed off, because it had been a long day.

Bono & Edge just drove off without even acknowledging the fans, no wave, nothing..
 
greety said:

This member of the U2board mentioned a security guy (could this have been Sam?) coming out of the studio and entering the garage, who told them to go away, they had been there all day and the guys (Bono&Edge) were pissed off, because it had been a long day.
Click to expand...

:bono:: "Hey, guys! I think we're ready!"
:edge:: "Yeah, Bono's started his 'Edge is on fire' hype."
:bono:: "And Edge has lead them all astray with his "we're just going where the music takes us" bit."
:edge:: "And we've done what no one else could do---get both Rick Rubin and Daniel Lanois in the studio at the same time."
Twilightseer.gif
cactusjack.gif
: "Hi." :wave:
 
:bono:: "So, erm, what do you think? Let's put the album out this year!"
:adam: :larry:: <cricket> <cricket>
:bono:: "What?"
:adam:: "We, uh--"
:larry:: "The songs are shit. We're starting all over again."
:bono: :edge:: :mad: WTF????1!11?? :mad:

Bono & Edge just drove off without even acknowledging the fans, no wave, nothing..
Click to expand...
 
Utoo said:
:bono:: "So, erm, what do you think? Let's put the album out this year!"
:adam: :larry:: <cricket> <cricket>
:bono:: "What?"
:adam:: "We, uh--"
:larry:: "The songs are shit. We're starting all over again."
:bono: :edge:: :mad: WTF????1!11??

Click to expand...

So this is what you guys resort to when I take a break from cartooning for a month? :wink:
 
Blue Room said:


Heres to hoping its just Lanois. I'm not sure why some are so distraught over this. When U2 took one of their most radical departures from their sound Lanois was a major factor in the production. Most seem to want a departure, this should be good news for you. Now if Eno was onboard also (which personally I wouldnt have a problem with) then I could see the collective groan by some because it might be more of the same.

Maybe they are going to have Lanois be the producer/5th member of the band for the next year while they get the songs together. Then have Rubin come in and listen next year to see if he has any suggestions. Sounds like a good plan to me.
Click to expand...


Lanois should NOT be credited for U2 changing their sound. According to Flanagan's book, Lanois told them they would be destroying their careers if they continued down the dark, experimental path.

Flipping the U2 sound on its ear is something that was totally shepherded, if not suggested by Eno, which shouldn't come as a surprise, as he did the same mold-breaking job on Bowie, Talking Heads, and James, to name a few. If you read that "Bringing Up Baby" article from Rolling Stone that was mentioned earlier, you can see the whole philosphy behind the change, and it's written by Eno himself.

Lanois was "in the trenches" and there for the recording of everything after it was conceptualized, but to imply that he was the catalyst for those changes is just way off. As for his work with Dylan, he contributed some truly great production, but while Oh Mercy and Time Out of Mind are atmospheric, they aren't anything out of left field; the former has a swampy, New Orleans-influenced sound, and the latter is a total old-timey retro job. As for his work w/ Peter Gabriel, you only need look to PG's self produced works to see that he's the experimental genius of the two.

At this point Lanois knows how wrong he was with Achtung Baby, and probably doesn't steer the band in any kind of direction any more. And I would argue that Rubin wouldn't attempt to put himself in the driver's seat either. While he and Lanois might both have great sets of ears, Eno is a greater asset because he's going to bring something interesting to the table.
 
You know after reading all these posts about who is supposedly responsible for what I get the impression that U2 could go on vacation and leave the producers to make the albums. Somewhere in all this discussion of the effects of the different producers the voice of U2 themselves has been totally discounted.

As for Eno shepparding the total change in sound or it being his idea that is so much bullshit. Before Rattle and Hum even came out Bono was talking in interviews about totally recreating U2. He was quoted frequently discussing how he believes the spirit or essence of the band is so strong that you could strip away everything that supposedly is U2 and you would still have U2.

That is just one example. If you look at every album then go back to interviews a year or two ahead of them you will find things that Bono is saying that seemed like throwaway statements at the time but that make much more sense in light of where the band went. Yes Eno and Lanois have an effect on the creativity, but after all that is what the band was after, inspiration. The band were the ones who pursued working with them because as Bono said
"The music tells us who to work with, so we made some music and it was more atmosperic, more experimental so we knew we needed someone like Eno. "
They persued him until he agreed. If their vision is so strong and they are so persistant why does everyone seem to ignore their ideas. I see so many people who seem to credit every idea or direction to the producers seeming to forget that those very producers talk repeatedly about how U2 are very much in charge of their creative process. The producers provide inspiration and spark ideas but it's not like they are dragging U2 along behind them. On Achtung Baby, Danny was lost and U2 was dragging him along and when Eno popped in he was able to frame things in a way the Danny finally understood. Eno didn't come up with the ideas he encouraged them and got Lanois to see the benefit. Eno's role on that album was very clearly as an occasional irritant as he himself described in a Rolling Stone article called "Bringing up Baby".

The majority of posts in this thread have given me the impression that most U2 fans seem to think the band can't tell their ass from a hole in the ground. If the album sucks it's because they picked the wrong producers or if the album is great it's because they picked the right producers well what about the band?

Personally I think they should produce themselves, but you see they have this little self-confidence problem because as Edge said when talking about Rubin they never thought they were very interesting on their own. That's why they are always bringing people in to work with. I for one would love to see what they come up with on their own. Lanois is close enough to that because he is more like another musician and is very good at getting them to do their best. And in spite of what everyone says about Lillywhite, he seems to be the only one who understands that sometimes they just need a swift kick in the but. "Do your job."

Dana
 
rihannsu said:
You know after reading all these posts about who is supposedly responsible for what I get the impression that U2 could go on vacation and leave the producers to make the albums. Somewhere in all this discussion of the effects of the different producers the voice of U2 themselves has been totally discounted.
Click to expand...

Amen.
 
rihannsu said:


As for Eno shepparding the total change in sound or it being his idea that is so much bullshit. Before Rattle and Hum even came out Bono was talking in interviews about totally recreating U2. He was quoted frequently discussing how he believes the spirit or essence of the band is so strong that you could strip away everything that supposedly is U2 and you would still have U2.

That is just one example. If you look at every album then go back to interviews a year or two ahead of them you will find things that Bono is saying that seemed like throwaway statements at the time but that make much more sense in light of where the band went. Yes Eno and Lanois have an effect on the creativity, but after all that is what the band was after, inspiration. The band were the ones who pursued working with them because as Bono said
"The music tells us who to work with, so we made some music and it was more atmosperic, more experimental so we knew we needed someone like Eno. "
They persued him until he agreed. If their vision is so strong and they are so persistant why does everyone seem to ignore their ideas. I see so many people who seem to credit every idea or direction to the producers seeming to forget that those very producers talk repeatedly about how U2 are very much in charge of their creative process. The producers provide inspiration and spark ideas but it's not like they are dragging U2 along behind them. On Achtung Baby, Danny was lost and U2 was dragging him along and when Eno popped in he was able to frame things in a way the Danny finally understood. Eno didn't come up with the ideas he encouraged them and got Lanois to see the benefit. Eno's role on that album was very clearly as an occasional irritant as he himself described in a Rolling Stone article called "Bringing up Baby".
Click to expand...

I agree with much of what you're saying, and the band certainly isn't given enough credit by much of their fans.

But I don't understand how you don't think what Eno did on Achtung Baby wasn't "shepherding" them. What the he do you think that means? Do they not look up to him? Do they not share their ideas and recordings with him and listen to his advice? If he served as a guru-like figure to them in the past, then he certainly did here as well.

And while the style of the sound and conception of the changes may not have been Eno's idea directly, certainly the band was looking at him for inspiration. Why the fuck do you think they were in Berlin in the first place, recording in the same studio where Eno worked with Bowie? It wasn't a coincidence, that's for sure.

Eno isn't the kind of guy who's going to say that the whole thing was his idea, but I'm sure there are many little tweaks on that album that come from him. And I'm sure a shitload of them came from The Edge.

My original point was to show that Lanois was certainly not the originator (or collaborator, for that matter), and that if any credit for the sound is given
to a producer here it should be Eno. I feel that his subsuquent, increasingly involved work on Zooropa and Passengers bears this out.

The band managed to experiment even further with Pop, and that was completely without Eno, so I support your assertion that the band doesn't need either of them.
 
"Mercy" - great, that it might be on the album, even greater it might get a live playing, too. I'll keep my fingers crossed for this hopefully not forgotten gem ...
 
lazarus said:


I agree with much of what you're saying, and the band certainly isn't given enough credit by much of their fans.

But I don't understand how you don't think what Eno did on Achtung Baby wasn't "shepherding" them. What the he do you think that means? Do they not look up to him? Do they not share their ideas and recordings with him and listen to his advice? If he served as a guru-like figure to them in the past, then he certainly did here as well.

And while the style of the sound and conception of the changes may not have been Eno's idea directly, certainly the band was looking at him for inspiration. Why the fuck do you think they were in Berlin in the first place, recording in the same studio where Eno worked with Bowie? It wasn't a coincidence, that's for sure.

Eno isn't the kind of guy who's going to say that the whole thing was his idea, but I'm sure there are many little tweaks on that album that come from him. And I'm sure a shitload of them came from The Edge.

My original point was to show that Lanois was certainly not the originator (or collaborator, for that matter), and that if any credit for the sound is given
to a producer here it should be Eno. I feel that his subsuquent, increasingly involved work on Zooropa and Passengers bears this out.

The band managed to experiment even further with Pop, and that was completely without Eno, so I support your assertion that the band doesn't need either of them.
Click to expand...

I wasn't directing my comments to any one poster in particular but the after reading all the other posts the term shepherding came across to me as if U2 was being led around by the nose. Sorry but I don't have a high opinion of sheep and also the way shepherding tends to be used usually has connotations of guiding people who are too dumb to know what to do without it. Maybe that is my prejudice to the term. All I know is that this entire thread seems to have totally forgotten that there are four very opinionated SOB's in this band that are not going to be railroaded around and it doesn't seem to me that enough credit or blame is being attached to them. If I misunderstood your particular post then I apologize.

Dana
 
lazarus said:



Lanois should NOT be credited for U2 changing their sound. According to Flanagan's book, Lanois told them they would be destroying their careers if they continued down the dark, experimental path.

Flipping the U2 sound on its ear is something that was totally shepherded, if not suggested by Eno, which shouldn't come as a surprise, as he did the same mold-breaking job on Bowie, Talking Heads, and James, to name a few. If you read that "Bringing Up Baby" article from Rolling Stone that was mentioned earlier, you can see the whole philosphy behind the change, and it's written by Eno himself.

Lanois was "in the trenches" and there for the recording of everything after it was conceptualized, but to imply that he was the catalyst for those changes is just way off. As for his work with Dylan, he contributed some truly great production, but while Oh Mercy and Time Out of Mind are atmospheric, they aren't anything out of left field; the former has a swampy, New Orleans-influenced sound, and the latter is a total old-timey retro job. As for his work w/ Peter Gabriel, you only need look to PG's self produced works to see that he's the experimental genius of the two.

At this point Lanois knows how wrong he was with Achtung Baby, and probably doesn't steer the band in any kind of direction any more. And I would argue that Rubin wouldn't attempt to put himself in the driver's seat either. While he and Lanois might both have great sets of ears, Eno is a greater asset because he's going to bring something interesting to the table.
Click to expand...

Um, I think you inferred a bit much from my post. Where did I say he was the catalyst? Bottom line is U2 will do what they please regardless of the producer. If you read my post (actually read it) I said he was the producer on the album that took that direction. Which is 100% true. So obviously Lanois is capable of producing that type of an album. So ease up, and calm down. :wink:
 
rihannsu said:


I wasn't directing my comments to any one poster in particular but the after reading all the other posts the term shepherding came across to me as if U2 was being led around by the nose. Sorry but I don't have a high opinion of sheep and also the way shepherding tends to be used usually has connotations of guiding people who are too dumb to know what to do without it. Maybe that is my prejudice to the term. All I know is that this entire thread seems to have totally forgotten that there are four very opinionated SOB's in this band that are not going to be railroaded around and it doesn't seem to me that enough credit or blame is being attached to them. If I misunderstood your particular post then I apologize.
Click to expand...


No apologies necessary. And you're certainly illuminating something that is largely overlooked. Many of us are eager to blame the band for poor choices, but seem to think that without a great producer we're headed for a shitty album.

The Edge knows as much about all the recording equpiment as any producer, if not more, and he's surely capable of producing on his own. My guess is that he doesn't want one member of the band having too much control over the process (his Zooropa production credits were shared with Flood and Eno, and he was listed last), or that he wants to be free to focus on the more important aspects--the writing and recording.

Perhaps the term shepherding wasn't the best one to use for Eno. Midwiving, perhaps, since his article was called Bringing Up Baby?

Let's hope he's available to help deliver the next one.
 
This is a fantastic thread :up: And while I don't have anything really worthwhile to add at this time, I'm quite enjoying reading everyone's posts. But since we're talking about U2's turn to experimentalism and darkness with Achtung Baby, let me throw something in for discussion, as I'd like to get opinions on it from the experts here:

U2's cover of Night and Day was out a full year before Achtung Baby, and in many ways, is darker than much of the album. The song was produced by Paul Barrett and The Edge. Now I'm not familiar with Barrett at all and don't know what else he's produced, or what sort of sound he would lend to something's he's produced, but perhaps someone here does.
What I'd really like to know though is, in the recording of that cover, who was it that said "Here's this great Cole Porter love song, let's turn it into the darkest stalker song since Every Breath You Take."
The fact that it's a cover is relevant, because were it original material, one could assume that it was a song that just developed darkly. This was a song that was quite light and airy, until U2 got a hold of it, at the crux of their crossover from light 80s to dark 90s. Insight into who made that decision would shed light on who's wearing the "let's be moody and dark" pants in the U2 family :wink:


Also:

LemonMelon said:
So this is what you guys resort to when I take a break from cartooning for a month? :wink:
Click to expand...
Yes. :angry: Get to work. *cracks whip*
 
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