Maybe it's something every artist of their age goes through. Nick Cave has been going through a "dirty old man" phase recently too, especially with the Grinderman project (and the 1970 porn star moustache!)
That's exactly what I thought when I heard Bono singing about 'sexy boots', sounds like someone's lecherous uncle. They should just have replaced all the 'sexy boots' lines with 'get on your boots', made it easier to listen to. The chorus is still horrendously bad for a U2 lead single though, they should have rethought that too.
Well, "second tier" is relative here. Sure, it's not as great as JT or Achtung, but most bands never make a masterpiece like either of those once in their careers, and would kill to have "second-tier" U2 albums like Zooropa, Pop, HTYCLB, HTDAAB, and NLOTH as their main achievements.
All in all, I say, well done lads. I think it's great that they're still making music that excites me and interests me this long into their career, and I couldn't give a shit what the mainstream critics or masses think. If the album sold just one copy - to me - I'd be happy with it.
Too much talk of "relevance" (without spelling out exactly what that's supposed to mean or providing any context), sales, and chart positions around here, and not enough focus on the music.
I think it's a good album, but some of the songs are not executed properly or fully realise their potential. Eg. NLOTH, MoS, UC (the BC version had better singing/solo), Being Born, SUC.