In an interview (I forget which one now), Bono said that his daughter was telling him to "turn himself down" after listening to the new stuff. I agree. He's too high and up-front in the mix. And he's reaching a bit too high at times, imo. It doesn't make me cringe, but I can't help feeling it would be more enjoyable if he stayed a little lower at times. It will be tough to maintain some of those notes on tour. The live stuff on the promo tour clearly shows that these songs will not be a walk in the park for Bono to perform several nights a week.
Also, I don't know what it's called technically (not a singer), but I don't like this thing he does on the new material where he holds onto a piece of a word and fluctuates his voice all over. It sounds a bit cheesy to me, to be perfectly honest.
Having said all that, Bono certainly delivered on this album. Whether you like *what* he delivered is another question. For me, other than a few songs, it's a bit poppy/MOR sounding, but still enjoyable. But he clearly put a great effort into his vocals, and his voice is sounding very strong.
Some great vocal moments on this album for sure, he clearly did not phone this one in. Have to give him credit for pushing himself to try some new things with his voice.
