Beach Clips, musically overall sounds ok but guitar playing/ ideas not so stellar?

[Flying FuManchu]

I know, the sound quality is crap for the beach clips and none of these songs are definitely for a future album much less can be considered complete but do you all think the Edge's guitar contribution from what you have heard so far are up to snuff? I think what little I could hear in terms of synths and such sounded good but the Edge's guitar playing sounded blah to ? Track 402 with its Dirty Day/ HMTKMKM play and the typical Edge picking is ana example. Track 404 with all my life and the arpeggio that he intros with is reminiscent of JT and One Step and generic. I think the solo in the song is interesting but I'm wondering if its b/c it's actually a long solo compared to past solos and the closing solo is sort of like a melodic MOFO close (I'm not a fan of that tone/ technique even though it sounds good).

Is the Edge running out of interesting things to play or not feeling inspired? I mean, I feel HTDAAB suffers the same problems. U2's claimed that ATYCLB is U2 musically reclaiming their roots which is fine but I wonder if they're stretching that philosphy too far or the Edge is slacking.

 

[tomtom]

I agree completely. Edge's playing on these clips and in some parts of HTDAAB is not inspired. Very generic pop-rocky....

 

[Flying FuManchu]

Its funny, but the one clip that sounded the most interesting to me guitar-wise (may be my taste) was clip 409 but its been revealed that the song may not be a U2 song LOL! I mean the rhythm (bass and beat) would fit under what Adam and Larry could conceivably play but the guitar bits were interesting b/c they could have been played by Edge and fit under his philosophy of guitar playing.

 

[Flying FuManchu]

I have no problems with borrowing from the past or taking ideas and evolving them alah Unforgettable Fire's ideas and carrying them over to Joshua Tree... and there is nothing THAT wrong about sounding like himself, but is Edge following through on that idea too strongly or is it an indictment on minimalist guitar playing in general?

 

[LemonMelon]

The new beach clips are brilliant. Most of them have more potential for greatness than anything on Bomb had.

And Edge isn`t running out of ideas...he just sounds like Edge. It wouldn`t take much for him to change his sound, anyway; just turn off the delay pedal.

 

[ElectricalVoice]

I could certainly not tell from the beach clips - at all. I never cared for 409 anyway, and thought it was rather boring and standard. I have no idea what Edge are up too, and specially not from these beach clips. If I must say something, I guess I should have made up my mind before hearing the beach clips, because these clips told me nothing. Just gave me some excitement.

 

[Salome]

I can't say I hear what you mean

a friend of mine who is very much into music and not into U2 thinks Edge's playing on POP isn't even that much different (or "inspired" or whatever) as on Boy
it just comes across a bit more sparse in the production because they also needed to get some samples in there

I don't really agree nor disagree with that
I do agree that Edge sounding like Edge is nothing new and that if you were able to discover new elements to his guitar playing in any point of U2's career then it isn't hard to discover new elements nowadays also

 

[Flying FuManchu]

I can't say I hear what you mean

a friend of mine who is very much into music and not into U2 thinks Edge's playing on POP isn't even that much different (or "inspired" or whatever) as on Boy
it just comes across a bit more sparse in the production because they also needed to get some samples in there

I don't really agree nor disagree with that
I do agree that Edge sounding like Edge is nothing new and that if you were able to discover new elements to his guitar playing in any point of U2's career then it isn't hard to discover new elements nowadays also

The examples I gave are things that I'm talking about though. A song that has a Dirty Day riff that was also used for HMTMKMKM (with slight variations) or a One Step Closer style arpeggio. Edge did this in HTDAAB and it was a distraction. It makes me wonder if he realizes this. It's not to say U2 as a band can't borrow like The Killers or Coldplay do from U2 (I mean if you can't borrow from yourself, then that what's the point, right?) but the clips we've haeard have been blatantly obvious.

As for Pop, there are Edge style techniques/ ideas throughout as well as sparse playing b/c of the samples in some songs BUT the innovation was from the different tones and rhythms and effects he utilized in POP as opposed to Boy which is actually sonically simpler and not as diverse (sonically). There are things in POP, that have been done before in Boy I believe but Edge was able to mix it up or make it so that isn't as clear where one could say, "Hey this style of playing/ sound comes from JT, Achtung, or Boy on the first listen."

Mebbe the interesting bits are going to be the synths and keyboards which the beach clips seem to have a lot of and not the guitar playing, who knows. I think the clips (as bad as they sound cause of the recording) show tons of promise but who knows.

 

[U2girl]

I don't hear any Dirty Day/HMTMKMKM guitar in those clips. 402 sounds like Mercy/U2's MDH songs to me.

Then again, I don't mind it when he references himself.
(just as long as it's not as obvious as ES/Crumbs/Walk on solo)

 

[Flying FuManchu]

I don't hear any Dirty Day/HMTMKMKM guitar in those clips. 402 sounds like Mercy/U2's MDH songs to me.

Then again, I don't mind it when he references himself.
(just as long as it's not as obvious as ES/Crumbs/Walk on solo)

That's what I'm talking about. As a fan, you don't want it to be too obvious when a band you like borrows or steals. Hide your influences well, even if you're borrowing from yourself IMO.

 

[U2girl]

That said, I'm not saying it was intentional.

Remember they wrote/recorded Crumbs while being drunk so they can't really be held responsible...

 

[U2DMfan]

U2 is not a guitar band.
Edge doesn't pick his parts to blow the mind of the readers of Guitar World.

I really don't think these ideas are nearly as complete as others do. In fact I think they are just a few steps beyond a jam piece.
Bono just riffing, repeating the same shit over and over, doing his Bongolese, the songs, especialy 402 seem to have that driving feeling of going somewhere but not knowing where.

I think they probably jammed their ass off for a good while and then produced at least these 4 ideas. And they are gonna need more for an album.

Whatever it is, I don't think we should be holding Edge's guitar work up to scrutiny this early in the process. I think it's really early.

 

[Canadiens1131]

I haven't listened to the Beech Clipz in a while, but isn't Edge just noodling away on the guitar mostly compared to the parts he usually plays in finished tracks?

I don't think there's any need to judge how his playing might be on the final cuts, or even the real studio tracks, based on the beach clips.

Sometimes you just gots to noodle to find a good riff or mood. Consider it Edge's verison of Bonoglise, or however you spell his gorilla grunts and shouts on demo tracks.

 

[Michael Griffiths]

I have to admit, HTDAAB is fairly derivitive throughout, not that it is a poor album by any stretch. In fact, if it were U2's first album, it would be heralded as one of the greatest debuts of all time. But the fact remains, it has more than borrowed from past U2 songs. 'Sometimes' has the blatent recycled guitar of 'Ultraviolet', and 'Crumbs' borrows from 'Electrical Storm'. Obviously, 'Vertigo borrows from a few places, not just themselves ('Stories for Boys'), but here it's more like a nod to their former teenage selves. Overall, I think U2 managed to sample their previous work in a classy way, despite the fact I wish they wouldn't do it so blatently. There are other moments on the album where they sample themselves much more subtly, and that's where the album succeeds (as much as I like 'Crumbs').

 

[biff]

'Sometimes' has the blatent recycled guitar of 'Ultraviolet'

I really don't get this. Please explain. I see only the very dimmest of similarities (if I try really hard).

 

[U2girl]

I can see a similarity between One and Sometimes in the quiet, hushed start but Ultraviolet?
Just goes to show how different things we can hear in the same songs.

 

[Canadiens1131]

I really don't get this. Please explain. I see only the very dimmest of similarities (if I try really hard).

It's not very obvious, but the chorus guitar from Ultraviolet (Baby baby baby) sounds like it's somewhere around the chorus guitar from Sometimes.

Kind of.

A more fair pot shot at Edge would be the blatant re-using of the Streets chord shape for the 'chorus' of the alternate and crappy ABOY take.

 

[U2girl]

If anything he is giving a nod to Streets right at the end of OOTS.

 

[ntalwar]

402's guitar sounds more interesting than most of the guitar riffs being done in rock today. I didn't care as much for the guitar in the other clips.

 

[Michael Griffiths]

I really don't get this. Please explain. I see only the very dimmest of similarities (if I try really hard).

It is defiinitely quite blatent once you know what to look for. It's the guitar arpeggios you find during the chorus of 'Sometimes' and also in the "Ultraviolet light..." portion (sung by Edge) of 'Ultraviolet'. Note, this is not the main chorus of 'Ultraviolet' (which is the "Baby, baby, baby" portion). During the main chorus, you here a similar sound, as Canadiens1160 alluded to, but not as similar as the "Ultraviolet light..." part.

U2girl, I envy you. I remember the days when I didn't recognize some of the mechanics of U2's music. Those were the days when I could just get swept up by the illusion....a beautiful time, really. And that's what music is supposed to do - create a beautiful illusion. Consider yourself lucky you don't see some of it! By the way, by borrowing sound, I wasn't talking about the type of song (ie, "quiet and hushed"). It's just a very distinct guitar part (for a very different type of song).

 

[U2girl]

Maybe similar, but still vague enough not to be a copy like Crumbs/Walk on solo or WOWY bassline in MD.

I never said we were talking about the same thing in borrowing sound. Why the condescending "ignorance is bliss" tone?

 

[Michael Griffiths]

Maybe similar, but still vague enough not to be a copy like Crumbs/Walk on solo or WOWY bassline in MD.

I never said we were talking about the same thing in borrowing sound. Why the condescending "ignorance is bliss" tone?

To the first part of your post: I don't see it as beeing too vague. It's done in a classy way, sure, but to me it's quite obvious. 'Walk On' is less similar to 'Crumbs', to me, than this is....but as you said, it's funny how we all hear different things. Music is obviously subjective.

To the second part of you post: I apologize for misinterpreting your post - by saying 'Sometimes' and 'One' were similar in terms of being "quiet and hushed", I thought you had interpreted my post as more of a general "type" of song, rather than a specified guitar part (which of course could be used for any type of song).

Also, I apologize for coming across as condescending. That was not my intention. I just remember the times when I used to listen to U2's music without disecting it into parts, and I would probably enjoy U2's music of today much more if I was still the same way. For me, ignorance WAS bliss. Again, I apologize.

 

[thrillme]

Maybe similar, but still vague enough not to be a copy like Crumbs/Walk on solo or WOWY bassline in MD.

I never said we were talking about the same thing in borrowing sound. Why the condescending "ignorance is bliss" tone?

Which part in MD is a copy of WOWY bassline?

I was comparing bass tabs, as finding bass sheet music for U2 has not been easy, and haven't seen the copycat. I did look at a tab that was allegedly from a sheet music book for WOWY, which was more than just the same 4 notes repeated I see in every other tab for it. Even that one wasn't the same as MD.

 

[nathan1977]

Which part in MD is a copy of WOWY bassline?

I was comparing bass tabs, as finding bass sheet music for U2 has not been easy, and haven't seen the copycat. I did look at a tab that was allegedly from a sheet music book for WOWY, which was more than just the same 4 notes repeated I see in every other tab for it. Even that one wasn't the same as MD.

The chord progression in the verses is similar -- not necessarily notes/key but series of progressions.

 

[Canadiens1131]

Maybe similar, but still vague enough not to be a copy like Crumbs/Walk on solo or WOWY bassline in MD.

I never said we were talking about the same thing in borrowing sound. Why the condescending "ignorance is bliss" tone?

Nah, come on you can't say the bassline of MD is copying WOWY. The intervals on those chords are one of the most common chord progressions in pop/rock music.

 

[GibsonGirl]

Even though MD and WOWY share the same chord progression in the verses (D-A-B-G for those of you who don't play instruments) Adam plays them quite differently. On the B-G part of the progression, for instance, it sounds like he throws in some open notes. I don't care about this enough to actually take out my bass and check, but you can hear it if you know what you're looking for. Either way, it doesn't really matter. Artists often borrow chord progressions from themselves/other artists and make subtle changes to them. And as canadiens1160 said, D-A-B-G is a painfully common progression.

As for the original post, I agree. But I do think it's too early to judge. Perhaps Edge is just recycling techniques and ideas to temporarily fill in the guitar parts? For all we know, the guitar could change drastically, as we've often seen from demos in the past.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

am i the only one who's listened to these things once and have yet to listen to them again because, frankly, i don't give a crap because you can't hear shit?

 

[Earnie Shavers]

I haven't listened to the clips in a couple of weeks and can't remembering the numbering, but the riff from Dirty Day is as clear as anything in one of them. Not masked at all, just the exact same thing with a different effect on the guitar.

 

[GibsonGirl]

I haven't listened to the clips in a couple of weeks and can't remembering the numbering, but the riff from Dirty Day is as clear as anything in one of them. Not masked at all, just the exact same thing with a different effect on the guitar.

That'd be 402. The notes are a bit higher on the fretboard, there are some slight variations, and it's played a bit faster, but it's essentially identical to Dirty Day. I haven't bothered to check, but the riff in 402 sounds like it might be a whole octave above the DD riff. (And again, for those of you who don't play instruments, when something is an octave higher the notes are actually the same just in varying pitch.) I don't have a good ear for that sort of thing when I don't actually have a guitar in my hand so I'll have to check.

EDIT: Faster, not slower.

 

[GibsonGirl]

Okay, I checked. I was wrong. It isn't a full octave higher, but it's close. The riff is 99% identical. Only difference is the string it's being played on. Observe:

402 (bitches!!11!)

e|--10b11r10-6-9---8-9-8--6--|
b|---------------------------|
g|---------------------------|
d|---------------------------|
a|---------------------------|
e|---------------------------|


Dirty Day

e|---------------------------|
b|---------------------------|
g|--10b11r10---8---8b9r8--6--|
d|---------------------------|
a|---------------------------|
e|---------------------------|

Edge probably doesn't play it all on one string, but I just tabbed it that way for the sake of simplicity. There's only one tiny, subtle difference. Probably one of the most obvious times that Edge has copied an older riff. It sounds pretty cool played in unison.