Mixed UK Review - Your views

[Daveone]

During my lunch break I had a quick scan of the new 'Classic Rock' magazine which featured a review of HTDAAB. I didn't buy the mag (because 'classic rock' isn't really my bag) but off memory heres what they said (someone on here probably buys the mag so could provide a scan):

*First lines declared the album to be 'excellent' however they only gave record 3 stars out of a possible five. They mentioned that 'City of Blinding Lights' was as good as anything U2 have ever done. They also singled out 'Vertigo' and another song (can't remember which off memory , sorry!) has exceptional. The major criticism however was the fact that the album seemed to be obsessed with hooks and melody as opposed to fresh and creative sounds (i cant remeber their words but that was the basic drift of it). I think they also mentioned how every song went from verse to chorus to verse and criticised "yahweh" and "OOTS" as songs that could have come off a Bon Jovi album (I think this was a reference to the super-polished production and predictable song structure). They mentioned that U2 never used to do this, and sited 'Bad' as one of their best songs and that it was the basic two notes played over and over for seven minutes which helped make it a fantastic song. They also noted that WOWY had no real chorus and was a fantastic song.

That's about all i can remember (which is a great amount for my memory), but if anyone does have the magazine they will be able to give more in-depth/accurate details.

I think 'Mercy' is the best song of the HTDAAB era and it's also the most non linear song out of them all - maybe this was why it wasn't on the album.

Anyway, i was wondering do you agree with the points they raised? Are the songs too linear? Can an album have to many melodies and hooks? Do they really sound like Bon Jovi (and if so god help us all)?

 

[doctorwho]

"Kite" has no chorus. "Fast Cars" has no chorus. "A Man and a Woman" has no chorus. "Walk On" is similar to "With or Without You" in it's lack of chorus. "Love and Peace or Else" has no real chorus.

Another reviewer full of bs.

 

[If you shout...]

Well, I neither think that they sound like Bon Jovi (ugh) nor that there can be "too many" hooks on an album. Even so, I still have to agree with most of what you're telling us was said in that review.

I don't think that hooks are a bad thing, but I do think that a lot of the hooks from this album (and the last one) are a bit too in-your-face--they refuse to be subtle, to let you gradually take them in, or to simply BE.... The songs explode with color in HUGE blasts, but the problem is that this happens in pretty much every song. I still remember listening to All That You Can't Leave Behind for the first time and being struck by this for the first three songs and then bored by it as the album went on; it just gets boring and predictable, after a while. On this album, I'd say that only one song--"One Step Closer," which is a great-but-over-produced song, if you ask me--really is able to break that mold to any extent.

So, yeah. I think the album is "too linear," too predictable, and too...vintage, I guess. I don't really know that the album sounds just like anything else the band have done (probably owing to the overblown production on most every song), but it was still way too easy to know where EVERY SINGLE SONG was going the first spin through. It's wonderfully listenable, a lot of fun, and mostly well-written and well-played (though these songs are so simple...who couldn't play them in the studio...?), but it's still not exciting.

 

[Aardvark747]

I shall go read this review in full now I think...sounds interesting

 

[If you shout...]

"Kite" has no chorus. "Fast Cars" has no chorus. "A Man and a Woman" has no chorus. "Walk On" is similar to "With or Without You" in it's lack of chorus. "Love and Peace or Else" has no real chorus.

Another reviewer full of bs.

I know that it doesn't really matter, but I'd like to point out that "Kite" obviously has a chorus. I'm not sure if you meant to talk about a different song and just typed "Kite" in by mistake, but it has a chorus....

"A Man and a Woman" has a chorus, too; again, I've grown a bit confused. I don't know where you were trying to go with that. You're right, though, about "Love and Peace or Else."

"Fast Cars" has a chorus, too, by the way....but it isn't even on the album, so it doesn't matter so much. I think maybe you need to spin some of them tunes one more time to see where the reviewer was coming from--he's right, you're wrong in this case.

 

[U2_Guy]

I agree with the review. That's what i've been saying here.

 

[Hoodlem]

I dont know if i can take it
I'm not easy on my knees
its my heart that your breaking
we need some release, release, release...

This my friends is called a 'Chorus'

 

[ZeroDude]

not an obvious chorus though

 

[doctorwho]

I know that it doesn't really matter, but I'd like to point out that "Kite" obviously has a chorus. I'm not sure if you meant to talk about a different song and just typed "Kite" in by mistake, but it has a chorus....

"A Man and a Woman" has a chorus, too; again, I've grown a bit confused. I don't know where you were trying to go with that. You're right, though, about "Love and Peace or Else."

"Fast Cars" has a chorus, too, by the way....but it isn't even on the album, so it doesn't matter so much. I think maybe you need to spin some of them tunes one more time to see where the reviewer was coming from--he's right, you're wrong in this case.

When I think of a chorus, I think of a repeated series of lines. Singing "Walk On" over and over does not make a chorus - otherwise, "With or With You" has a chorus.

To my ears, the songs that have obvious choruses are "Vertigo" and "All Because of You" and "City of Blinding Lights".

And I didn't realize this was about "being right and wrong".

 

[rjhbonovox]

Miracle Drug has an obvious chorus, Sometime You Can't make It, Crumbs From Your Table + ABOY COBL, and One Step Closer and Yahweh......in fact every song has an obvious chorus. U2 never used to do this. There last album they started to do this on almost every track and this album is in a similar theme. Thats what I have said on another thread. The music is good but like the reviewer said (and I think he is pretty spot on) there is something missing, the songs are too immediate and too obvious. This will definetly mean that the album will sell shitloads, probably a lot more than ATYCLB. That will please the record company if not maybe the U2 fans like me who expect a bit more from the best band in the world.

 

[KUEFC09U2]

its not what we want anymore... they dont have to carry on, but they do it for there own enjoyment

 

[U2girl]

Almost all of U2's hits/best known songs have VERY obvious choruses: SBS, NYD, Pride, Streets, I Still haven't found, Desire, Angel of Harlem, All I want is you, Even better.., Mysterious ways, Discotheque, Beautiful day. The only exceptions are WOWY and One.
The verse-chorus-verse-chorus formula is NOTHING new to them, either.

 

[kiwilad]

woah hang on there!!! How high are your expectations if this album is a disappointment?! Shit!

People, these guys are in their 40's, they have a back catalogue of songs and albums almost unmatched, in the world, ever. Think about that, it's a big deal!
And here they have given us an album being ranked by avid fans as one of their best, perhaps behind JT and AB. This is 2004, JT was recorded in 1986! Think of how jealous REM fans are of us, they haven't written a song worth listening to in 10 years!

While there is no denying the hooks and the formulas that are present on this album, these things are only ingredients that help make up a song. The songs themselves are heavy, heart-felt and inspiring.

But each to their own opinion, I know

 

[Flying FuManchu]

Wow, its sad to think that a hook (which generally means a catchy-something) is a bad thing.

 

[ZeroDude]

Wow, its sad to think that a hook (which generally means a catchy-something) is a bad thing.

strange aint it

 

[RademR]

U2 SOUND NOTHING LIKE BON JOVI!!!! PLEASE!!!! I'm sorry, its just frustrating...nothing against them but what a bad comparison.

 

[If you shout...]

When I think of a chorus, I think of a repeated series of lines. Singing "Walk On" over and over does not make a chorus - otherwise, "With or With You" has a chorus.

To my ears, the songs that have obvious choruses are "Vertigo" and "All Because of You" and "City of Blinding Lights".

And I didn't realize this was about "being right and wrong".

I didn't mean to imply that I thought you were wrong in liking the album or anything like that--I like it, too! There aren't any "right" or "wrong" answers to questions like that one, as it's all just a matter of personal opinion. We can all be right to ourselves, but not necessarily to anyone else. There are, however, right and wrong observations to be made about basic song structure and the like.

The songs you focused on have choruses: that's simply a fact. Saying that "Kite" or "Fast Cars" (both of which seem to fit your requirements for having a chorus) don't have choruses is like saying they don't have drums. It's there--there is no denying it, as it isn't a matter of opinion. There are choruses and there are not choruses; there's no middle ground or room for interpretation. There is no "to my ears," here.

As for all the hook talk, I don't think that hooks are a tool of the devil or anything like that. EVERY traditional song needs a hook of some sort! Even ambient works created by Eno, Aphex Twin, and many others have SOME kinds of hooks buried in there somewhere... What bothers me isn't the fact that the band uses hooks--they SHOULD. What "bothers" me (that's not really the best way to put it...) is that the songs are just SOOOOOOO immediate that it seems they could fade away pretty rapidly....not unlike the songs from the last album. A buried hook oftentimes has more longetivity than an in-your-face, look-at-me-now sort of hook. That's all.

 

[rjhbonovox]

A buried hook oftentimes has more longetivity than an in-your-face, look-at-me-now sort of hook. That's all.

Yep have to agree with this.

 

[Sleep Over Jack]

What about The Beatles? A ton of their songs have instant hooks, even many of their more "difficult" songs, yet those songs hold up today and are loved by millions.


( to add, I think U2 are sort of in their retro period, more Beatles-influenced, more tradtional, and I don't think they will make albums in this way till they split)



Havign said that, I would LOVE an album with all kinds of sounds, distortions etc from them again

 

[Reggie Thee Dog]

Look not everyone hear will agree that this is a great album, or that U2 have done their best work. Some people will love the hooks and big chorus (which by the way are a U2 trademark), and others will look at Zooropa and Pop and claim those to be the definitive U2 works. Those two albums lacked the big hooks and chorus for the most part.

I like the big choruses. If you've ever attended a U2 concert you will appreciate those big choruses. They are a huge part of every concert. They lift the band and crowd and make us one. Whether or not you believe it's lazy or unimaginative is your opinion, and you have every right to hold that opinion.

I on the other hand love the hooks and big choruses and will always support U2's right to create them.

Cheers