Project Zero One / Songs of Ascent / New Album Discussion

[U2387]

Housekeeper AND an accountant.

It will be 50-year-old Clayton's second High Court action in the space of six months.

In January, the High Court agreed to freeze the assets of Clayton's former housekeeper, Carol Hawkins, after the court heard claims that she had defrauded him of up to €1.8million.

Now Clayton has lodged papers at the High Court signalling his intention to bring a negligence claim against Smyth and two other accountants -- Jill Percival and Pat Cleary -- in Smyth’s company.

The ease with which his former housekeeper was allegedly able to take €1.8million from his accounts, taking €600 a day from his debit and credit cards for up to three years, alarmed Clayton.

The housekeeper allegedly used the money to go on a spending spree, which included the 2007 purchase of a $465,000 New York apartment, cars and jewellery, as well as living a rock star lifestyle far beyond her means.

At one stage, she was spending €900 a month maintaining racehorses.

This is Adam taking his finances seriously ? Should be interesting to see him really let his guard down...

Bono is not a smart investor on his own. See above. That is why it's good U2 has people in their own organisation taking care of their money, starting with McGuiness. Their choices have made the band sucessful.

So he discovers it within 3 years and gets rid of the people who allowed it to happen. That's really not giving a damn.

Context is essential here.

1.8 million gone sounds completely irresponsible, but it's a drop in the bucket for Adam.

Like anyone with a lot of money, he hires people to look after his assets. Holding these people to account when they don't do what they're hired to do is the responsible thing to do.

A lot of people with Adam's money would not be asking the same questions he asked that ultimately led to this discovery.

Very few would even notice that amount missing.

Anyways, you are using this to go way, way out on a limb to say that U2 aren't very involved in finances or financially savvy people, which is completely false by any standard.

They're in some of the best business arrangements of anyone in the industry and their acumen for this stuff has been evident since interviews back in the early 80's.

 

[tomtom]

Can we, um, stop hijacking this thread already?

 

[shart1780]

I like pickles.

 

[corianderstem]

Paul McG is the reason you like pickles. Admit it. You wouldn't have been able to understand pickles without him.

 

[phommel]

back to topic.

I asked Universal Netherlands for more information condisering teh new album.

The bad news is that a date is not yet fixed in Netherlands. The good news is that tehy don't deny there will be a new U2 album.

"Het nieuwe album van U2 staat nog niet vast in de planning voor Nederland maar op universalmusic.nl kun je alle nieuwtjes vinden dus als je deze site in de gaten houdt dan zal nieuws over het nieuwe U2 album hierin zeker voorbij komen."

"The new U2 album has not been fixed in the planning for the Netherlands but on universalmusic.nl you will find all news, so if you keep an eye on this site, you will certainly not miss the news about the new U2 album in the future."

 

[corianderstem]

Is it possible they just aren't allowed to confirm the exact date until some higher power declares it official?

 

[phommel]

Is it possible they just aren't allowed to confirm the exact date until some higher power declares it official?

yes, you might be right!

 

[corianderstem]

I just keep looking for the optimistic stance.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

corianderstem, i think that's a very good point - i'm sure u2 would want to be the ones in control of announcing the release date. I don't think it matters that Universal Netherlands don't know it yet, or aren't prepared to divulge the information yet.
And the fact they're telling us to be on the lookout for an announcement soon is very good

 

[U2387]

There is very little doubt in my mind that we will have most or all of the details- release date, first single, track listing- sometime next week between the 2 Africa shows.

As others have remarked here to no end, the gaps in tour legs leading up to the start of the N America tour are designed perfectly for rolling out new material, getting it on the radio, releasing an album, playing songs live, etc.

 

[tomtom]

Alternatively, they are designed to coincide with end-summer and beginning-summer in the southern and northern hemispheres respectively.

 

[corianderstem]

And the fact they're telling us to be on the lookout for an announcement soon is very good

I didn't get that from it - it just said "if you keep an eye on our site, you won't miss a future announcement." That's more "keep reading our site, we need the traffic" not "stay tuned really soon."

 

[kingofsorrow]

the steelers are going to bring out the edge as their secret weapon in the 4th quarter.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

I didn't get that from it - it just said "if you keep an eye on our site, you won't miss a future announcement." That's more "keep reading our site, we need the traffic" not "stay tuned really soon."

Oh wait, yeah
... god damn it

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

There is very little doubt in my mind that we will have most or all of the details- release date, first single, track listing- sometime next week between the 2 Africa shows.

As others have remarked here to no end, the gaps in tour legs leading up to the start of the N America tour are designed perfectly for rolling out new material, getting it on the radio, releasing an album, playing songs live, etc.

There's certainly an opportunity for them to spill the beans before the south africa shows, but will they take it? Is there a possibility they'll wait until the lead up to the south america shows?

Edit: Nevermind, that would mean (assuming the may release date is true) them announcing everything as they release the first single, which i'd bet is going to be released in the lead up to the south america shows.
This coming week is definitely the time for them to give info to South African Journalists.
Although, is that really how they'd want to do things? Surely they'd rather announce the info from their website, than give it all to a south african news paper? Which would mean, they wouldn't have to tell us anything this week
It seems more likely we'll learn everything at the end of february/early march

 

[U2387]

There's certainly an opportunity for them to spill the beans before the south africa shows, but will they take it? Is there a possibility they'll wait until the lead up to the south america shows?

Edit: Nevermind, that would mean (assuming the may release date is true) them announcing everything as they release the first single, which i'd bet is going to be released in the lead up to the south america shows.
This coming week is definitely the time for them to give info to South African Journalists.
Although, is that really how they'd want to do things? Surely they'd rather announce the info from their website, than give it all to a south african news paper? Which would mean, they wouldn't have to tell us anything this week
It seems more likely we'll learn everything at the end of february/early march

Well there shouldn't be anything stopping them from putting the information up on U2.com like they did with NLOTH and then talking about it at the shows and to journalists.

In fact, we know this will happen anyway- it will be a highly sought after story everywhere and obviously the journalists in S Africa where they will be at the time will be capitalizing on this!

U2 are likely already lining up interviews for next week with journalists.

I see it as very strong possibility(like 95%) that we hear official details next week.

 

[dabiggestu2fan]

Well there shouldn't be anything stopping them from putting the information up on U2.com like they did with NLOTH and then talking about it at the shows and to journalists.

In fact, we know this will happen anyway- it will be a highly sought after story everywhere and obviously the journalists in S Africa where they will be at the time will be capitalizing on this!

U2 are likely already lining up interviews for next week with journalists.

I see it as very strong possibility(like 95%) that we hear official details next week.

I will believe it when I hear the news! With U2 who knows when we will get the news! I remember one day before we knew the details of NLOTH that the next day we would get an announcement and we all got excited and then that day came and nothing! SO not holding out hopes of an announcement this week but if it happens then awesome!

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

Well there shouldn't be anything stopping them from putting the information up on U2.com like they did with NLOTH and then talking about it at the shows and to journalists.

In fact, we know this will happen anyway- it will be a highly sought after story everywhere and obviously the journalists in S Africa where they will be at the time will be capitalizing on this!

U2 are likely already lining up interviews for next week with journalists.

I see it as very strong possibility(like 95%) that we hear official details next week.

Very good points, that would be a really good publicity move for the band, it sounds like an opportunity too good to miss!
I hope you're right, dude

 

[Vlad n U 2]

I like pickles.

You actually like something?

 

[powerhour24]

Zing!

 

[An Cat Gav]

If only Magnificent could have been the first single...

nah, cos it has like that "classic" U2 sound we hear so much about! Now back to Adam's housekeeper...

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

I like to make werewolf movies!

 

[KEVIN051269]

I like to make werewolf movies!

Do you nooooooooooooooow?

 

[phommel]

There is very little doubt in my mind that we will have most or all of the details- release date, first single, track listing- sometime next week between the 2 Africa shows.

As others have remarked here to no end, the gaps in tour legs leading up to the start of the N America tour are designed perfectly for rolling out new material, getting it on the radio, releasing an album, playing songs live, etc.

That's true, but....after the Outside broadcast leg there was a huuuuuge gap till the Zooropa leg started. And the album came out after the 10th, 15th show of that leg...
I'm a bit scared we haven't heard anything official yet...

 

[paulrg]

That's true, but....after the Outside broadcast leg there was a huuuuuge gap till the Zooropa leg started. And the album came out after the 10th, 15th show of that leg...
I'm a bit scared we haven't heard anything official yet...

Fret ye not! That was 18 years ago, in a very different music marketplace at a completely different point in U2's career. Do not forget they launched NLOTH with another album on the back-burner ready to go if/when. Since then they have recorded more material and worked with a couple of other producers. I think the U2 garden has produced a bounty of fruit and veg from which they have already selected the starter... and it is coming our way. I wouldn't worry if nothing much is said regarding new material during the South Africa show interviews. At the moment the band have us producing their publicity/hype for them!

 

[Marien]

I would pay attention at the rehearsals in South Africa, I hope we get someone there to tell us, and their activity during the days in between the two gigs, we must remember they need to shoot a video for the first single if they are having a new album, I had the crazy idea of them announcing it and playing the first single live in South Africa, but some posters gave me some very good reasons for them not to do so, now I think that if they don't take this surprise path, they will make the announcement through U2.com after these two gigs with time to make interviews before the South American leg and we'll have to wait for about a month to get the single and two for the album.
I hope a new European leg will be announced just after the new album gets official.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

I think, given that a may release would indicate a late march lead single, that it is more likely that the first single will coincide with the south america shows. If they debut the single live, it will be during that leg.

That being said, i also doubt they'll release the info first and foremost to journalists in south Africa. I'm pretty sure they'll announce everything officially via u2.com (even if the info is leaked elsewhere first), and after that they'll probably want to do very high profile interviews e.g. with the bbc or on the letterman show, where they divulge important info that isn't in the official announcement, like the names of more songs, what they sound like, what it was like to work with danger mouse, why they kept it so low profile until now etc.

I just can't see them giving their first interviews about the new album with south african journalists, it's just not 'high profile' enough for a band like u2. I think they'll wait until after the leg is over, when they'll have a month to make an announcement and do a few high profile interviews, to get proper publicity for the album.

Sure, we might get a bit more info before the South Africa shows, like further confirmation of may as the month of release, or how the edge is on fire, but given it's so close before an official announcement is likely to be made, they simply won't reveal anything particularly important (let alone still be 'trying out' new songs), because then the announcement would be less 'special'. This goes for interviews with south african journalists too - they wouldn't reveal anything important, because then the high profile interviews later on would be less revealing if the public already knows everything. So i won't worry if/when the south africa tour comes and goes without giving us any more information than we already know.

My guess is an official announcement a week or two after this leg.

 

[Popmartijn]

why they kept it so low profile until now etc.

They have?
I think that U2 still have been in the news lately. The Australian leg of the tour, Bono & Edge's involvement with the Spiderman musical, Adam becoming a dad, the blips about U2 working with Danger Mouse.
Plenty of people will probably think that U2 is always in the news. Maybe not necessarily with information about their upcoming album, but they have kept some profile.

 

[Danny Boy]

I'm just glad that anything they say to the South African press will be printed in English.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

They have?
I think that U2 still have been in the news lately. The Australian leg of the tour, Bono & Edge's involvement with the Spiderman musical, Adam becoming a dad, the blips about U2 working with Danger Mouse.
Plenty of people will probably think that U2 is always in the news. Maybe not necessarily with information about their upcoming album, but they have kept some profile.

U2 have been in the news, the album? Not so much.
When they started working on No Line, they announced officially on their website that they were in the studio with Eno and Lanois, and were going to morocco. They aso gave interviews and played their songs to whoever would listen, a full year before the release. Three months before the album came out, we knew the names of almost all the songs that would be on the album, and what they would sound like.

This time round, U2 worked with Danger Mouse throughout the summer, in between the shows of the European leg of 2010. We only found out about this in october, when Bono mentioned it to one reporter.

There's obviously a massive change in the way they're releasing info for this album. It is evidently much more low profile than NLOTH.