Songs of Experience - Part 2

[Dragonfave]

Brian Boyd seem to had heard it: Brian Boyd sobre o próximo álbum do U2: "Lembra muito Zooropa" | U2 Brasil

Translated:

I've heard enough. Reminds me 'Zooropa'. And there is a hint of Passengers also. Sounds much more artistic and abstract than 'Songs Of Innocence'. Due out next year, but I've heard it before.

 

[dan_smee]

Interesting though - seems to be starting to solidify. Hope there isn't a classic U2 back-out

 

[Galeongirl]

I'm getting that SoA vibe again... remember how excited we were?

 

[zoocarolina]

I'm getting that SoA vibe again... remember how excited we were?

This sounds a lot more concrete, SOA was truly more of an idea. Still hoping for those songs to be followed through at some point and who knows, some iterations may be on SOE.


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[mikal]

This sounds a lot more concrete, SOA was truly more of an idea. Still hoping for those songs to be followed through at some point and who knows, some iterations may be on SOE.


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Absolutely more concrete. Doesn't mean the band won't get cold feet, but the band never took photo shots and announced to crowds that it was fir their next album.

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[JamietheEdgefan]

It's kind of depressing that my first reaction to the report that it sounds as abstract as zooropa and even passengers was "oh Shit, the album must be a long way away, they're still at the stage of experimenting before they reign it all in and make it more standard rock/pop".

(I suspect this happened with nloth, I'm certain it happened with SoI - Larry and Edge said in separate interviews that they did a whole lot of experimenting before reigning in the songs to be more normal, plus the decision to employ Paul epworth and Ryan tedder for the last few months of the process speaks for itself)

Nonetheless, if they're doing a quick follow up, mid-tour album release, AND if they're happy with how SOI has done, then SOE has less riding on it than the usual ' we're back after 5 years, reapplying for three biggest band on the planet' mentality that u2 albums normally have. Which would mean they could afford to be a little more 'out there' and potentially less radio friendly than usual.

There's also edges remarks about potentially releasing a rough album quickly, in which he specifically referenced zooropa, and said "well, people liked that one, maybe it's ok to do that approach".

Lastly, if SoI referenced the more 'punk rock', gritty beginnings of u2's sounds by having a more rock-based sound (which I think it did, for the most part), then it could make sense, and be appropriate for SoE to reference the band's more experimental later years.

So, I'm cautiously optimistic that if SoE does get released (I'm still skeptical, not because the news doesn't look convincing, but because, well, I've been fooled before...), it could actually have that experimental zooropa vibe.

Hell, I think it's possible to have an album that marries good pop-song writing with electronics and atmospheric weirdness. Just look at coldplay's ghost stories: every song layered with atmospherics, some songs straight out unusual (for them/radio) like 'midnight', and yet I'm sure that album did really well and was pretty good imo.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

Brian Boyd seem to had heard it: Brian Boyd sobre o próximo álbum do U2: "Lembra muito Zooropa" | U2 Brasil

Translated:

I just want to check, when he says "due out next year, but I've heard it before"

Is be saying "they say it'll be out next year. Pfft, I've heard THAT one before!" In an eye-rolling kind of way, or is it a mis translation and he's saying "due next year, but I've heard it already"?

 

[Yahweh_OMG]

autumn leaves? On a beach while it's summer? That's not gonna happen. There are no autumn leaves here at the moment of shooting.

BUt it does make sense to shoot in advance, as there will be a lot of editing before the definitive cover happens. It takes a while, 6-7 months is very long but perhaps they're looking for a Christmas release. Oy we can hope.

The album cover will be in colour btw. That's what was mentioned, they enjoyed the colours of the beach and sky and everything.

I thought I read they were shooting in a forest....
Otherwise I wouldn't have said automn leaves knowing the shooting was at the beach, I might be stupid but not that much

 

[Registered Dude]

I thought I read they were shooting in a forest....
Otherwise I wouldn't have said automn leaves knowing the shooting was at the beach, I might be stupid but not that much

there was an instagram photo of something band-related happening in a forest, you're right.

 

[Galeongirl]

I thought I read they were shooting in a forest....
Otherwise I wouldn't have said automn leaves knowing the shooting was at the beach, I might be stupid but not that much

They did instagram a photo of their jackets hanging on coathangers in a forest, which was a pine forest so little leaves there. But that might be what got you confused.

 

[CosmoKramer]

Brian Boyd seem to had heard it: Brian Boyd sobre o próximo álbum do U2: "Lembra muito Zooropa" | U2 Brasil

Translated:

That quote doesn't excite me at all.


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[aMansAman]

U2 Spain did that interview with Brian Boyd. Here is the SOE part:

¿Qué esperas encontrar en el próximo álbum "Songs Of Experience"?

He escuchado bastante de él. Me recuerda mucho a Zooropa. Y hay un poco de Passengers también. Suena mucho más artístico y abstracto que Songs Of Innocence. Debería salir el próximo año, pero ya hemos escuchado eso ante

which translates into something like that (don't blame me for my bad Spanish):

What do you expect from the next album Songs Of Experience?

I heard a lot of it. It strongly reminds me of Zooropa, but a little bit of Passengers as well. It sounds much more artistic and abstract than Songs Of Innocence. It should be released next year, but we have already heard something like that before.

Full interview here:
Entrevista a Brian Boyd. El próximo álbum de U2 "recuerda mucho a Zooropa" - U2spain.es

 

[Irvine511]

given that they will have done two reasonably extensive tours of the North America and Europe, and that SOI is over a year old, and the show itself is specific and clearly about "something" (as opposed to the abstract 360), and that they are going to show it on HBO and the end of the year, i can't imagine they would even think of returning to North America and Europe without a brand new-ish show and a new album. they could keep the stage and the screen, but create an entirely new experience and storyline based on the new album and other songs from their catalogue that didn't get any time during the SOI run.

 

[Gonna Run 2 U]

I have a theory that that the recent beach photo shoot will be of a sunrise for the single cover for "The Morning After Innocence"


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[Registered Dude]

in light of recent news, fun to reflect back on Edge's SOE thoughts, from last May:


The Edge added that the follow-up album to 2014's Songs Of Innocence titled Songs Of Experience is "not finished yet. But we have a lot of material that we are really happy with. We have been working on it, recently, but it is coming together. I would say it is a lot more developed than Zooropa [the 1993 U2 album] was when we started the Zoo TV Tour. "

"I guess it really depends whether we feel it is worth pushing for within the ten weeks that we have at the end of this tour," he says of Songs Of Experience.

"We might just go for it. We might just say, 'It is more important to get it out than to make it perfect.' Which was the truth with Zooropa. And it is a lot of people's favourite album!" The Edge smiles, which he does a lot.

"We love to do stuff that kind of breaks rhyme and you are not doing the obvious shit. It gets more challenging. In the case of Passengers [the 1995 side-project album recorded by U2 and Brian Eno under the pseudonym of Passengers], it was not so bad because no one thought of it as a U2 album. But there are no kind of small U2 albums any more. You can't sneak anything out."

"The magnifying glass is on every single thing we do. I loved when [Bruce] Springsteen brought out Nebraska. A weird acoustic album."

As for how the Songs Of Experience album might sound, The Edge says that there is an influence of dance and electronica "but", he quickly qualifies, "it is quite malleable. And actually the last few mixes are quite raw again. So, it is really too early to say, I have to be honest."

"We could make all the announcements but then it would probably serve to make a fool out of us at the end when the album comes out – and the album is a country and western album!" The Edge laughs.

 

[Galeongirl]

"We love to do stuff that kind of breaks rhyme and you are not doing the obvious shit. It gets more challenging. In the case of Passengers [the 1995 side-project album recorded by U2 and Brian Eno under the pseudonym of Passengers], it was not so bad because no one thought of it as a U2 album. But there are no kind of small U2 albums any more. You can't sneak anything out."

Edge has obviously never been to Interference.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

Interesting what he said back then about the work being malleable, and therefore the end product being unpredictable. I kind of appreciate his point about not wanting to describe the album publicly in one way and have it end up completely different - I had a really warped idea of what NLOTH would sound like based on descriptions and beach recordings (didn't appreciate that the reverb was made by the recording device, ha).

Anyway, I'm curious about how close they are to theoretically releasing IoE, if anything because it could indicate how accurate the Zooropa/Passengers comparisons are. Basically done? Then that 90's sound could very well be on the album. Still a long way from completion, then it could change considerably.

 

[taytay8b]

In regards to a November or Christmas release. Most of the music industry goes into a freeze for the November - December months, since a lot of radio stations shut down their regular rotation in favor of Christmas tunes etc. But I would argue that only the biggest of the biggest could get away with a Christmas album release, that being U2. So who knows. But I wouldn't hold my breath for a November or December release. Probably spring of 2016.

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[BVS]

In regards to a November or Christmas release. Most of the music industry goes into a freeze for the November - December months, since a lot of radio stations shut down their regular rotation in favor of Christmas tunes etc. But I would argue that only the biggest of the biggest could get away with a Christmas album release, that being U2. So who knows. But I wouldn't hold my breath for a November or December release. Probably spring of 2016.

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Historically speaking; that season used to be(and still is to an extent) the biggest selling for new albums. Music makes for great gifts.


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[ChargedVT]

Bono said to fans only a few days ago in Amsterdam that Experience was coming along really well, Edge is on fire etc... That indicates there is still work going on. I don't see it coming out this year.
I would guess... With the HBO special they will announce the tour dates for 2016 then use the first quarter of the year to finish SOE before those shows start.

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[david]

Edge is on fire. All that matters.


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[BANZAI]

Edge is on fire. All that matters.


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Edge has been on fire for many years according to Bono. I just can't hear it myself...

 

[Registered Dude]

Edge is on fire. All that matters.

 

[gvox]

I'm getting that SoA vibe again... remember how excited we were?

I'm getting an NLOTH vibe. This is not a good thing lol

 

[dan_smee]

When gvox gets vibes, the blue crack listens


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[Galeongirl]

Historically speaking; that season used to be(and still is to an extent) the biggest selling for new albums. Music makes for great gifts.


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^This. Christmas season may be lower radio play, but radio sucks nowadays anyway. People buy cds as presents, you sell bigtime. U2 has released most of their records in the period of sept-dec.

Bono said to fans only a few days ago in Amsterdam that Experience was coming along really well, Edge is on fire etc... That indicates there is still work going on. I don't see it coming out this year.
I would guess... With the HBO special they will announce the tour dates for 2016 then use the first quarter of the year to finish SOE before those shows start.

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Wut, he said Edge was on fire? I don't recall that one. Speaking of a broken record..

I'm getting an NLOTH vibe. This is not a good thing lol

If you're talkin' music wise, I'm game!

 

[Mack_Again]

Edge is on fire. All that matters.


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yeah I know.

 

[bobsaget77]

First single from SOE is a Kings Of Leon rewrite titled "Edge on Fire".


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[superchuk5]

I have a theory that that the recent beach photo shoot will be of a sunrise for the single cover for "The Morning After Innocence"


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Yep, that just makes sense.

I think it will have to be released somewhat closely to when tickets go on sale so they can maximize press. Remember, today albums promote tours rather than the other way around.

 

[prbiker15]

When gvox gets vibes, the blue crack listens