They had a shot, but they ruined by performing in the middle of the fucking Hudson.
U2 are at their best in front of a crowd, and they instead used this moment to show people a glorified music video.
Songs of Experience - Let The Chart Speculation Begin
- Thread starter womanfish
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone that follows U2.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
U2 are at their best in front of a crowd, and they instead used this moment to show people a glorified music video.
The masses don't consume music by purchasing physical copies anymore... the charts should reflect the same story.
basstrap2418
The Fly
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The Album sales only chart includes BOTH physical and digital copy purchases.
What makes the new Billboard 200 different is they include streaming(usually of just individual tracks) and individual track down loads from the albums. There is sort of a logic to the new system, but to me its just really mixing singles with album sales. So artist with a really popular single gets to see the album it came from lifted pretty high on the chart, even if few people are actually buying the album. In this case, its not the album that is popular, its the song, the single.
Catman
Rock n' Roll Doggie
fixed ;p
Even that cannot hide the fact of how badly the records done here. I think the albums done well worldwide but in the UK it's not done very well.
Simple minds number record went in at number 4 yesterday U2's was number 5
But how many has simple minds record sold?, if was proven that a few weeks earlier u2 would have gone in higher but for a splurge on other artists due to xfactor
hasin73
Refugee
AdamThomasU2
The Fly
Different climate releasing an album pre-Christmas versus February but for anyone interested, the comparison with Simple Minds and U2 in the UK is:
Opening Week
U2 #5 on 40,669 (Sam Smith #1 on 58,299)
Simple Minds #4 on 11,992 (Greatest Showman Soundtrack #1 on 41,433)
It is reasonable to argue that U2 wouldn't have sold 40,669 with a February release, but safe to say they'd have sold significantly more than 11,992. In any case, peak chart position clearly isn't all that, and I'll eat Edge's beanie hat if the Simple Minds album sells 100,000 in the UK the same way that Songs of Experience has.
Remember when the sales comparisons used to be with Coldplay? Relegated to the dad-rock charts in the UK now.
Songs Of Experience' by U2 21,000 / 1,055,000,
Just something I noticed on media traffic. The number 1 album is Justin timberlakes new one. Sold 403,000 copies. U2 beat that. Timberlakes just done the Super Bowl aswell so u2 ain't doing to bad on a worldwide scale are they
Just something I noticed on media traffic. The number 1 album is Justin timberlakes new one. Sold 403,000 copies. U2 beat that. Timberlakes just done the Super Bowl aswell so u2 ain't doing to bad on a worldwide scale are they
CosmoKramer
Rock n' Roll Doggie
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Thanks for the update.
These are actually very impressive holds we are seeing. I mean, given that there is no hit single for this album and we are nearly 3 months out of its release, not too shabby.
The most interesting aspect is that the best singles (in most of our opinions) haven’t yet been released:
Summer of Love
Little Things
Love is Bigger
And Red Flag Day! They’re doing SOE survivor over on and forum and it looks like Red Flag Day is the second favorite after Little Things.
U2freakboy
War Child
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It appears Get Out is now floundering on the Hot AC chart. The next single may not be far off.
Not surprising
Not surprising given how average the song is. They need to be braver. "The Blackout" or "Red Flag Day" for modern rock.
"Lights Of Home", "Summer Of Love", "Red Flag Day" for pop or international markets.
Really, "American Soul" and "Get Out Of Your Own Way" should have been youtube video singles at best and any of my other suggestions the 2nd single. U2 always seem to do things the hard way.
Get Out is so underwhelming.
I'll never know why "The Troubles" wasn't a single off the last album. It had a cool indie pop sound that was a bit different from the standard U2.
Not surprising given how average the song is. They need to be braver. "The Blackout" or "Red Flag Day" for modern rock.
"Lights Of Home", "Summer Of Love", "Red Flag Day" for pop or international markets.
Really, "American Soul" and "Get Out Of Your Own Way" should have been youtube video singles at best and any of my other suggestions the 2nd single. U2 always seem to do things the hard way.
Get Out is so underwhelming.
I'll never know why "The Troubles" wasn't a single off the last album. It had a cool indie pop sound that was a bit different from the standard U2.
superchuk5
Refugee
I liked Get Out, but they do need to be more adventurous with single choices. I can't say something like Little Things would chart better, but it would likely get more press attention than the standard post-2000 U2 single.
CosmoKramer
Rock n' Roll Doggie
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I think the best chance at being a radio hit is Summer of Love followed by Love is Bigger. Here's what my strategy would have been:
Fall of 2017 - The Blackout: Alternative, Active Rock and Triple A would have loved it. AC/HotAC it might have made some traction but ultimately it wouldn't hit the top 30.
Winter 2017 - Love is Bigger Than Anything in its way: Triple A, Hot AC/AC would love this and it might even have a shot at crossing over to POP. Alternative and Active Rock it would struggle to make waves on.
Spring 2018 - Summer of Love: Triple A, Hot AC/AC would love this and it would have a good shot at crossing over to POP. Alternative it's 50/50 on if it would be a hit but Active Rock it would struggle to make waves on.
Mid-summer 2018 - Little Things: radio as a whole would be revolutionized by this song and it would hit #1 on all formats, including Latin! I kid of course but this song is too good not to release, regardless if it takes off. However it should be released AFTER a successful single if possible as it would be given more of a chance ("hey, here is the follow up to the hit Summer of Love")
Late Fall 2018 - Red Flag Day: Alternative would love this song and AC/Hot AC and Triple A might also take to it.
I get that they are almost 60 and I get that Bono is looking less like Robin Williams and more like Yoko Ono but there are a lot of good songs on this album that really can be singles. Yeah, maybe they get some play and fall off the charts, whatever, but these songs I mention above are some of the best stuff these guys have done since Achtung Baby (IMO) when it comes to mainstream appeal.
Best Thing is a good radio song too(hell it was the 122nd AI ranked I the US at one point). I don't think they made a mistake with that one but it's not better than all the songs I mention above.
GOOYOW is also a good song but as much as I like it, it is rather tame, especially compared to the songs I called out above. Now, if they were able to give it life live like they do with so many of their songs, then it would work....but the Grammy performance (which was solid) was evidence that this song is not going to be a high point live.
I know a lot of posters hear Love LOH but that song comes off very generic to me and I wouldn't put it ahead of any of the songs I listed above (even Best Thing or GOOYOW). Also, the strings version is >>>>>>Album Version.
Mac_Fly
War Child
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I think Best Thing was the right choice for the first single.
I hope that Red Flag Day is the next.
SOE is Gold in Italy and Spain.
Gold equals 25,000 in Italy and 20,000 in Spain. Both these countries have reduced the requirements from what they once were. I read somewhere that France did too. It's a response to the bottom falling out of the music market, I guess.
In the U.S. SOE has sold about 280,000 copies. Since Gold in the U.S. is still 500,000, it's got a ways to go.
Gold equals 25,000 in Italy and 20,000 in Spain. Both these countries have reduced the requirements from what they once were. I read somewhere that France did too. It's a response to the bottom falling out of the music market, I guess.
In the U.S. SOE has sold about 280,000 copies. Since Gold in the U.S. is still 500,000, it's got a ways to go.
Has it pretty much run out of gas at this point or do you expect the US tour will kick sales up a notch?
Mac_Fly
War Child
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An opinion: Nothing short of a very successful single coinciding with the tour will jump start sales to an appreciable level.
CosmoKramer
Rock n' Roll Doggie
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This.
Ultimately, it’s going to be up to Summer of Love to save the album as that will likely be the next single.
Hollow Island
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I never cared about their sales but that's pretty bad. I thought maybe they'd have 500,000 physical sales. So nobody bought it and nobody's streaming it. Such a shame because it's an excellent record.
Does anybody know what the physical sales are?
The_acrobat
Rock n' Roll Doggie VIP PASS
How many bands have albums that go GOLD anymore? Not that many. They should've released more tour dates to = more album sales.
In Italy, Songs of Experience has been certified "platinum" (50,000).
