Daniel Lanois on Dave Fanning

[roy]

Now with this album again we hear Lanois say on multiple ocassions: "the songs are ready and we're now doing the singing-parts"
So AGAIN it seems that Bono hardly wasn't around creating the music for this album

Bloody hell...talk about taking a quote out of context and running with it.

You're not an editor for a tabloid newpaper by any chance are you?

 

[Zoots]

They've done just about every style of music they could try. What could actually be new?

I agree and disagree. Sure, they have dabbled a little with all the prominent forms of music like punk, Americana, blues, gospel, dance, techno, trip hop, R&B, soul etc. but do you realize how many different types of music there are out there in the world? They have hardly done anything eastern tinged with the sitar (sure, the Beatles and countless other artists have of course!) or anything with hints of African or world music. I'm sure there's still tons of stuff to explore!

As for whether they will make another masterpiece, I have to somewhat agree with onyourkneesboy that they have no reason to. And this is not a slight on them, honest! When you are young, you are on fire and are determined to rise up and reach your peak. No wonder they were excellent from UF thru Zooropa. But once you have reached your peak and are world famous and have made bucketloads of money, anything decent you put out will become a huge hit. Why spend a ridiculous amount of effort to perfect it then? It's only human tendency to take the easier way out. And since Bono's social campaigning work is actually helping him achieve something concrete for humanity, why would he sacrifice that time and spend it on the album when he knows that the album is gonna be a hit even if he doesn't put his 100% to it? I don't know. Maybe I'm being too presumptuous. I'd love to be proven wrong with another musical masterpiece.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Now with this album again we hear Lanois say on multiple ocassions: "the songs are ready and we're now doing the singing-parts"
So AGAIN it seems that Bono hardly wasn't around creating the music for this album with the other guys and has to match his singing-lines on top of the music AFTERWARDS! From Boy to (at least) Zooropa this was all happing simultanously: creating the music AND the singing blended in!

first, that's not neccesarily true about all the music being done together. they've always taken what they've done on their own, brought it together to the room and shared it.

which they've probably done this time as well. don't you think that maybe, just maybe, what lanois is refering to is the final recording/mixing/producing of the album? like the songs are written, have been performed, and then they layed down all the music parts, and now they're just putting the already completed vocals to track?

and btw i'm one who would be much happier if bono handed off his humanitarian duties to someone else and concentrated on the band more... but i think you're reading too into this particular quote by lanois.

 

[last unicorn]

OK, before we run and blame Bono for everything that might go wrong again, here's the exact quote from Lanois from the interview:

"Yeah, yeah, yeah - it's all done and we're just finishing the vocals. Bono's in great form, singing fantastic. Everybody's in high spirits."

Doesn't sound to me like he's saying:

Well, Bono wasn't in that much, he was always in Africa, so we couldn't do the vocals, that's the only thing missing right now, if we can do the vocals, than the album will be finished.

Taking a quote out of its context and twisting it so it becomes something negative, anyone?

Since we're not in the studio with them I think we are not qualified to comment on the way U2 are working and how the recording process is going exactly.

I'm sure they have done a lot of vocals, they are finishing, wrapping things up.

And no, Bono wasn't away all the time, in fact, he was in the studio a lot. Ever read about the fan meetings that were going on for months?

 

[Zoots]

I just want to make something clear for the record. I wasn't agreeing with onyourkneesboy on the whole "is bono even in the studio?" argument. I was agreeing with him on why they don't need any motivation now to make another masterpiece. Again, as I said I'd love to be proven wrong! ray:

 

[U2girl]

I think he spent less time on activism this time compared to ATYCLB and Bomb making (not that I think it's relevant to their recording).

 

[rihannsu]

The idea of Bono laying down the vocals at the end being anything different from previous albums is bullshit. You can go all the way back through every album and find quotes about Bono putting off until the very end. It is one of the reasons that the lyrics on the records have such common themes. There are guide vocals and melody experiments and Bongolese done throughout the recording process and this time is no different. The video pieces we saw from Fez showed them singing after all. Every single album has Bono finishing the vocals at the end. That's why 40 was recorded in the last 40 minutes they were in the studio for War. Discotheque had backing vocals being redone in the mastering suite, and for Bomb Bono finished the last vocals lying on his back on the floor of the studio because he threw his back out and wouldn't leave to go to the doctor until he finished the album. He has probably been with them more this time then the last two. For ATYCLB he was just really gearing into the whole work and the timing of things that were going on with the activism did cause difficulties and delays. But by last time the band said they were starting to see the advantages in them having time in between Bono's spurts in the studio. It was actually better in some ways because they could tinker with the music and always have fresh ideas for Bono to hear which is very good because that's when Bono is at his best when hearing new stuff. I think they've got the routine down well now hence the short sessions with breaks in between when they can go off and work on things without Bono. People who think that they only time they worked on this was during those few two week sessions really haven't studied how this band works.


Dana

 

[lazarus]

Very good points, Dana. And I'll add that from what I've read about the band, the different parts played by the various members continue to influence each other throughout the sessions, a very organic mutation back and forth.

It would make sense that even though Bono may be singing much further back in the gestation process, he's not going to lay down a final vocal until the music is totally locked in, because his lyrics, phrasing, his whole vocal approach may change as the music does.

 

[U2opra]

Sounds promising so far.

 

[popacrobat]

The idea of Bono laying down the vocals at the end being anything different from previous albums is bullshit. You can go all the way back through every album and find quotes about Bono putting off until the very end. It is one of the reasons that the lyrics on the records have such common themes. There are guide vocals and melody experiments and Bongolese done throughout the recording process and this time is no different. The video pieces we saw from Fez showed them singing after all. Every single album has Bono finishing the vocals at the end. That's why 40 was recorded in the last 40 minutes they were in the studio for War. Discotheque had backing vocals being redone in the mastering suite, and for Bomb Bono finished the last vocals lying on his back on the floor of the studio because he threw his back out and wouldn't leave to go to the doctor until he finished the album. He has probably been with them more this time then the last two. For ATYCLB he was just really gearing into the whole work and the timing of things that were going on with the activism did cause difficulties and delays. But by last time the band said they were starting to see the advantages in them having time in between Bono's spurts in the studio. It was actually better in some ways because they could tinker with the music and always have fresh ideas for Bono to hear which is very good because that's when Bono is at his best when hearing new stuff. I think they've got the routine down well now hence the short sessions with breaks in between when they can go off and work on things without Bono. People who think that they only time they worked on this was during those few two week sessions really haven't studied how this band works.


Dana

 

[popacrobat]

Very good points, Dana. And I'll add that from what I've read about the band, the different parts played by the various members continue to influence each other throughout the sessions, a very organic mutation back and forth.

It would make sense that even though Bono may be singing much further back in the gestation process, he's not going to lay down a final vocal until the music is totally locked in, because his lyrics, phrasing, his whole vocal approach may change as the music does.

x2

 

[BVS]

Why not? Because they are different people now. And Bono a partime-musician who can't remember the titles and lyrics of his own songs when on tour!

At least we can say your posts are always entertaining, because they are always filled with "points" like this... I mean really, what does this have to do with anything?

We all know the stories that when the writing- and the recording-process was happening for ATYCLB and (especially) HTDAAB Bono's just wasn't there a lot of times! Also to the frustration of the band!

We also know the band including Bono felt like that was a mistake... So I doubt they would let this happen again.

Now with this album again we hear Lanois say on multiple ocassions: "the songs are ready and we're now doing the singing-parts"
So AGAIN it seems that Bono hardly wasn't around creating the music for this album with the other guys and has to match his singing-lines on top of the music AFTERWARDS! From Boy to (at least) Zooropa this was all happing simultanously: creating the music AND the singing blended in!

You don't know much about recording do you? Vocals are layed down last. Period. How many reports do we have of the three in the studio and Bono being out and about?

Usually the weaker a song is the more they start backing it up with a lot of blah-blah, because the song probably needs it and is not as strong on it's own.

(Still, I hope I'm wrong this time around..)

Oh please enlighten us on this theory... When has U2 not hyped up their albums?

 

[JOFO]

People are gonna be real disappointed when they hear HTDAAB 2.

 

[last unicorn]

People are gonna be real disappointed when they hear HTDAAB 2.

Speak for yourself, please.

How some people here can come to such conclusions simply based on one or two songtitles and some muffled, barely audible recordings is really beyond me.

 

[Rob33]

People are gonna be real disappointed when they hear HTDAAB 2.

wtf....

it's actually sort of humorous- you know virtually NOTHING about the new album or recording process and you're already jumping to senseless conclusions such as this?

absolutely ridiculous....you come off as almost wanting the next album to sound like HTDAAB part 2....would you like that?

 

[JOFO]

I'm just kidding.

 

[Rob33]

Lemme say this:

IMO this time around U2 will make another "really good" album.. like ATYCLB and HTDAAB were...

But U2 will NEVER make an album as groundbreaking, multi-dimensional, passionate, spiritual as JT and AB again...

Why not? Because they are different people now. And Bono a partime-musician who can't remember the titles and lyrics of his own songs when on tour!

20 years ago they really wanted to prove themselves that one day they could reach that top of the mountain when it comes to creating something really special and "out of this world" and more important: "out of their own world"..
Every minute in the writing- and recording process was spend on achieving this "high" point. Adam, Larry, Edge AND Bono spend every drop of sweat in it to get there.. Full time! And especially Bono was really a 100%-er when it came to the music.
We all now that nowadays he's 50/60% politician and patriot for the good cause and just 40/50% musician!

Yes, I know that he's has always been active in fighting for the good cause (even around JT and AB) But when it came down to the writing-process of the songs: he was there! From the very first note to the last mixing! And Bono's brings a very important and huge contribution to the writing-process, not only with his singing...
We all know the stories that when the writing- and the recording-process was happening for ATYCLB and (especially) HTDAAB Bono's just wasn't there a lot of times! Also to the frustration of the band!

Now with this album again we hear Lanois say on multiple ocassions: "the songs are ready and we're now doing the singing-parts"
So AGAIN it seems that Bono hardly wasn't around creating the music for this album with the other guys and has to match his singing-lines on top of the music AFTERWARDS! From Boy to (at least) Zooropa this was all happing simultanously: creating the music AND the singing blended in!

So nowadays having arrived at this the-biggest-the-best-peak years ago, and being are middle-aged men now who have "been-there, done that", together with Bono as a part-time musician: this album will probably "sound" a little different compared to the previous 2 and will again be a "good" album but will never achieve a new groundbreaking "Highness"-level of JT and AB (or even UF)!

Another point to worry about: the more Lanois/Eno/Bono starts to point out: "this is the best song/album yet" the more we need to worry. Usually the weaker a song is the more they start backing it up with a lot of blah-blah, because the song probably needs it and is not as strong on it's own. Usually when Bono/U2-camp knows this they start pumping it up with a lot of swagger...

(Still, I hope I'm wrong this time around..)

onyourkneesboy, you are seriously mistaken.

FIrst of all, you seem to so conveniently declare that Bono is now a "part-time musician." You really know nothing about Bono and how he divides his time up...do you have access to his schedule? How on earth do you know that Bono is "just 40/50% musician!" these days? You don't! Don't make assumptions you can't support. Bono doesn't have to be in the studio all the time whenever the rest of the band is present in order to earn the "full-time musician" label (what does that even mean? Bono has been doing things on the side for the majority of U2's career!). And in case you forgot, Bono has been forgetting lyrics/titles and things of that nature forever, so to use that to justify your argument makes zero sense. Bono/U2 did in fact have to prove to themselves and everyone around them that they could truly change the world with their music, and that they could create extraordinary music beyond their years....they succeeded. Now they have to prove to themselves and the world that they can remain not only relevant, but ground-breaking. Bono/U2 has said on countless occasions that at this point, they would not be making music if they didn't genuinely feel that their best work was ahead of them, or at least, that they could still produce sensational music that continues to raise the standard even higher for younger bands. At this point, the band has placed such high standards on itself that they still have something to prove and follow through on. And as lazarus pointed out, Bono's lyrics, phrasing and vocal arrangements are in a constant state of progression from day one to the final mixing job, so the fact that the group is focusing on vocals now means nothing as far as the quality of the next album is concerned. Sorry, I honestly cannot understand where you're coming from.

 

[Odd Sponge Out]

Speak for yourself, please.

How some people here can come to such conclusions simply based on one or two songtitles and some muffled, barely audible recordings is really beyond me.

Truuuue dat.
And even if it was a lot like HTDAAB, that wouldn't be bad. I personally prefer it to ATYCLB. . . By a lot.

ANYWAY.
I am super excited! Aaaahhh.

 

[Zoots]

I'm just kidding.

 

[Blue Room]

The idea of Bono laying down the vocals at the end being anything different from previous albums is bullshit. You can go all the way back through every album and find quotes about Bono putting off until the very end. It is one of the reasons that the lyrics on the records have such common themes. There are guide vocals and melody experiments and Bongolese done throughout the recording process and this time is no different. The video pieces we saw from Fez showed them singing after all. Every single album has Bono finishing the vocals at the end. That's why 40 was recorded in the last 40 minutes they were in the studio for War. Discotheque had backing vocals being redone in the mastering suite, and for Bomb Bono finished the last vocals lying on his back on the floor of the studio because he threw his back out and wouldn't leave to go to the doctor until he finished the album. He has probably been with them more this time then the last two. For ATYCLB he was just really gearing into the whole work and the timing of things that were going on with the activism did cause difficulties and delays. But by last time the band said they were starting to see the advantages in them having time in between Bono's spurts in the studio. It was actually better in some ways because they could tinker with the music and always have fresh ideas for Bono to hear which is very good because that's when Bono is at his best when hearing new stuff. I think they've got the routine down well now hence the short sessions with breaks in between when they can go off and work on things without Bono. People who think that they only time they worked on this was during those few two week sessions really haven't studied how this band works.


Dana

Correct, they have ALWAYS worked this way for just about every single album including Joshua Tree and I know for a fact Achtung Baby. I think there was even a picture in a magazine from the Achtung Baby recording showing Bono sitting on a couch with a microphone coming up with the final lyrics at the end of the sessions.