The Work with Rubin

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burningedge101

The Fly
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In one of the last Fez updates Edge mentioned that the band had not played any of the Rubin material to Lanois and Eno, but there was at least the bones of an album there.

What do you guys see happening with this material? Are they going to save it for a quicker turn around in albums? Will we get B-sides? An EP? Or will they attach it somehow to the Lanois/Eno album (which seems unlikely because then it won't carry a common sound--unless they make a clear distiction in sides or have 2 different discs).

Obviously I haven't heard any of the new album, but I'm curious because the song called "All My Life" by fans (heard in the beach sessions) is really good. I hope it sees the light of day sooner rather than later.

Your thoughts?
 
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:hmm: Good question. I guess Eno and Lanois material is the priority and Rubin songs may surface later (B-sides for the next album, maybe?).
 
Who knows, they've been pretty tight lipped about those sessions, makes me wonder if they weren't happy with them or what... :shrug:
 
I hope that all things with Rubin went in the garbage, Rubin's latest work has been too mainstream...
 
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Rubin has always been about mainstream. Even when he wasn't working with mainstream acts he found a way to make them more relevant. That's what he's really good at, but when given someone who's already mainstream he doesn't seem to know where to take it.
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:
Rubin has always been about mainstream. Even when he wasn't working with mainstream acts he found a way to make them more relevant. That's what he's really good at, but when given someone who's already mainstream he doesn't seem to know where to take it.

I really like his work with the Chilis
 
burningedge101 said:


I really like his work with the Chilis

Exactly. When the RHCP went to work with Rubin they were still practically unknown and very funk-based. They had a hit with Stevie's 'Higher Ground' but that was it.

Rubin really forced them to think out of their box, and really started molding their sound, he pushed them to do 'Under the Bridge', which was really a turning point for them. They are a perfect example of what Rubin is good at.

He's also really good with acts such as Johnny Cash and Neil Diamond, who've lost some of their relevance and get them to break out of their comfort zones that were holding them back.

But he seems to get lost with acts that are already mainstream.
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:



But he seems to get lost with acts that are already mainstream.


Be interesting to see if his work with Metallica is any good. I'm not a huge Linkin Park fan, but I thought his work with them was pretty good. I like Shadow of the Day (even though it's getting played out)
 
Seems to me like Rubin's idea of production is to not have any. Which means he'd have been a great presence for the supposedly true four-men-in-a-room spirit of ATYCLB...it would've been interesting to see what the "Rubin sessions" could have yielded as opposed to the Eno/Lanois approach which was to have tons of layers. But I'm pleased he isn't producing any more...I don't think he's much of a sonic/melodic innovator.
 
I don't think it's necessarily a fair assessment of Eno and Lanois to say that their approach is to have tons of layers.

The Unforgettable Fire and The Joshua Tree are awfully minimalist in their production for the most part.
 
Hopefully that awful All My Life song will never surface. The only time U2 sounded like Bon Jovi IMHO.
 
I didn't mean in general, just ATYCLB. Mostly every track has synths/acoustic guitars/piano/overdubs. And I actually like a lot of those sonic shadings. But I'd have been interested to hear Rubin's more straightforward and forceful production on those songs as well.
 
Rick Rubin could have done wonders for U2. But as stated before, Rubin is all about time and place. U2 are not necessarily in that time or place to necessitate Rick Rubin right now. As much as I'd love a disc of Rubin and a disc of Eno/Lanois, I feel that the Rubin sessions have been swept under the rug for now.

That's not to say that I think the band started fresh with Eno and Lanois. I'm SURE they learned a thing or two from Rubin. After-all, the man has been known to work miracles, and even if the sessions failed to produce the desired results, I can't imagine the band NOT bringing anything away from him.
 
theFly51 said:
All My Life should be on the album. It sounds complete already...it just needs some touch ups and thats it.


But if Edge said they never played any Rubin stuff to Eno/Lanois and the able needs to have a consistent sound, then perhaps it won't be on the new album?
 
burningedge101 said:



But if Edge said they never played any Rubin stuff to Eno/Lanois and the able needs to have a consistent sound, then perhaps it won't be on the new album?

But who knows how truthful that statement is. I mean it's possible that they have snuck some of that material in and are prepping it for the new album. I think it's a possibility...:yes:
 
Headache in a Suitcase said:


would have been nice for u2 to break out of their comfort zone

I agree. But Rubin hasn't had much success doing that with acts that are still relevant or doing well, it's only with acts that have slipped or below the radar.
 
eno and lanois could easily put there stamp on anything that rubin has put any effort into. u2 are masters at having a song and changing it around several different ways. I would say that if u2 makes a song, it could always be in contention to make the album.
 
Swan269 said:
eno and lanois could easily put there stamp on anything that rubin has put any effort into. u2 are masters at having a song and changing it around several different ways. I would say that if u2 makes a song, it could always be in contention to make the album.

:bow: I completely agree...I don't understand why they couldn't introduce the Rubin material to Eno/Lanois...:hmm:

I think they take the more 'rock' aspects of the Rubin material and intertwine it with the Eno/Lanois production team and you might get pure magic...:yes:
 
I don't know. I was excited at first to see that Rubin would be doing stuff with the band, and then I saw some of the atrocious bands he's worked with, like Linkin Park. I'm much happier with Eno and Lanois helping the band out. They're undoubtedly the more experimental producers. Eno's work blows Rubin's work out of the water.
 
Rubin seems too different to be able to work with the band. he has different work ethics. Brian and Danny i think are very compatible with the band.
as for rubins work being on the album, i doubt it. it probably wont flow right
 
would it be fair to suggest that most albums with multiple producers and scrapped sessions are generally poorer that those created with one producer or a team production...

just a thought...
 
chrissybaby said:
would it be fair to suggest that most albums with multiple producers and scrapped sessions are generally poorer that those created with one producer or a team production...

just a thought...

First of all the Rubin sessions were never promised as an album. Secondly, I can think of a lot of great albums that came from scrapped sessions, it shows a band not resting on their laurels...
 
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