SOE 25 - The Freakout

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This 100% - I can't understand why people aren't all over this.

Because the first two-thirds or so is plodding, aimless, and utterly bland? The ending is very little reward.

I'm glad I only had to stand through it once live. I enjoyed the novelty of hearing an unreleased song close a show. But I would've left early if it had closed another.
 
Because the first two-thirds or so is plodding, aimless, and utterly bland? The ending is very little reward.



I'm glad I only had to stand through it once live. I enjoyed the novelty of hearing an unreleased song close a show. But I would've left early if it had closed another.



To each their own - maybe the album version will reveal some textures/layers that make the first section more interesting for you?
 
Free trial one month. The blackout is not on. Yet?
It makes sense for them to release YTBTAM (yay acronyms) first since it's the lead single.

So I'm navigating through this rather useless streaming service and it's nowhere to be found - trolling or waiting a few more hours? Have a feeling it could be some sort of exclusive.
 
Yes. You should have.

Because that's crazy talk.

Same with the people comparing this to Zoo Station.

The Blackout is a very listenable track but let's not get carried away.
I think its better than Grace
 
It makes sense for them to release YTBTAM (yay acronyms) first since it's the lead single.

So I'm navigating through this rather useless streaming service and it's nowhere to be found - trolling or waiting a few more hours? Have a feeling it could be some sort of exclusive.

I saw this tweet from @U2Uruguay https://twitter.com/u2uruguay/status/903267186491482113


[TWEET]903267186491482113[/TWEET]

So... tomorrow we'll hear ytbtam????

Edit to say that I'm in PST, so it's not Friday here yet :p
 
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I disagree, but that is the beauty of music.

a whole sub-sub genre came out of Reagan's presidency. The 80's hardcore scene spawned a thousand bands with Reagan in their title, or songs, or album names, or inspiration.

Now, those bands were young and angry and in very different circumstance than U2. But Bruce Springsteen was also reacting to the Reagan era on Born in the USA. Neil Young was pretty old when Rockin' In The Free World, still a pretty beloved song, was dating itself by referencing 1000 points of light.

Because of the times...not just Trump, but the times for recording artists...I think a topic record rooted in the now could be interesting for a band that has often avoided the literal. Because they aren't going to sell 5 million anyway.

But U2 is not going to do a Trump record. I could envision, however, a more figurative statement of the times, about a world pulling away from any center/consensus, careening off to dangerous territory while its citizens seek confirmation of bias rather than useful information. That is also more than political...every argument seems to be based on fingertip-ready data, and we argue about the bias of the data. We have people who reject modern medicine/inoculation based upon discredited and flawed research and a belief that 97% of the medical world is on the take. Conspiracy theorists are more emboldened than ever, as they can share (often) flawed data, again, against the 98% that must be shills. What we are seeing is more than a US presidency issue...it's a social issue, where winning the argument is more important than being right. With all the information in the world at our fingertips, we seek confirmation rather than truth.

I think there is a hell of an album in there somewhere. But I don't think U2 made it.
Superb post. I think the platform social media has given everyone makes it very conducive to wanting to win arguments more than being right.

Also, I think u2 were very prescient about this with EBTTRT
 
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It's pretty great for them and a strong showing but these aren't really newsworthy figures on their own.

Taylor Swift's lead single just debuted with two videos released in the last week and both already have a combined ~160 million Youtube views and broke a bunch of streaming records. U2 are well short of that reach.

And for what it's worth her song really sucks.

In fairness to U2, it's Taylor Swift, you can't make any sort of reasonable comparison to her (almost no one gets those numbers). I think we all know U2 will never be the most popular musical act in the world anymore, so I don't think it makes sense to hold them up to that standard.
 
God I love The Little Things That Give You Away.

It's fucking perfect. The first half is very contemporary and pop-y. I really love the chorus so much.

But the second half WRECKS me every time. It's falling while soaring. It's maybe the most vulnerable I've ever heard U2. It's scientifically constructed heartbreak.
Yep. The Kimmel performance really got to me. It could be an all timer.
 
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This 100% - I can't understand why people aren't all over this.

Agreed. As a listener who doesn't like "The Blackout" really at all, I do think the last half of "The Little Things" is transporting U2 at its best. Anger/hurt and soul/transcendence in equal measure.
 
I still stand by BD. Never been wowed by it, enjoy it live, but would never seek it out to listen to. But it was great choice for a first single for them. Just not my cup of tea.

Exactly. BD helped U2 to get huge chart success & I am grateful to BD for this. But Blackout is way cool.

....... But Discotheue & its guitar riff is from another planet. Edge was more bold & daring then.

May be current music scene has mellowed him a bit.
 
Surely they can't think this is anything but a success. I have a niggling concern over the removal of the album info commitment in the Facebook post. There is no reason to remove it unless they are not going to do it. This means there are two scenarios, one far more likely than the other:
1. Something happened in the intervening 24 hours that has made them review their strategy. I can't think of anything that would do that that wouldn't also put the tour in jeopardy considering reaction to the song is overwhelmingly positive, and they have a clear and defined schedule.
2. They will release the whole thing on September 6 because it went so well, thus no longer needing an announcement. Far less likely though, because they have a clear strategy and schedule.

Of course, it could just be an oversight or an innocuous change. I doubt it though, because it had to be a conscious decision to remove it. It is important info in the post.


It could just be that they were originally thinking December 1st but don't want to officially commit to that date now. Maybe if Best Thing hits really big they won't want to wait so long (a smart move). This gives them that flexibility.

But it's not just about the release date. "Full album details" could have meant they were going to reveal the whole tracklisting, and maybe they're still debating a late addition or subtraction. Hopefully Larry doesn't rob of us of another Mercy-level gem.
 
BD is lame. Like a computer was told to write a catchy U2 song for basics who couldn't handle the innovative genius of the previous 3 albums.

If The Fly is the sound of four men chopping down the Joshua Tree, Beautifui Day is the sound of four men putting a fake plant in the middle of a tasteful table setting.

At least Stuck is going for some kind of modern gospel thing and has a fucking sonic identity.

I agree with every words. :up::up::up::up:
 
A theory on the Blackout names from another forum

Ned, Fred, zach are all biblical references, with zach being the father of John the Baptist, Fred being the benevolent king, and Ned being in the lineage of David.

Jack could be short for Jacob - again biblical. But I prefer think he is referencing JFK who was o/w known as Jack. Makes the democracy statement even more powerful.
 
What was the source of the information that the album is set for Dec 1? Was it a band source?
 
Because the first two-thirds or so is plodding, aimless, and utterly bland? The ending is very little reward.

The ending is nothing Coldplay haven't done a million times already in their songs, and better.
 
So what's with this TIDAL thing ?

TIDAL announced on Twitter new Music today from several artists including U2 and this TBT image with Edges' daughter
 

So it looks like we'll be hearing The Best Thing this weekend then (assuming someone leaks it to non-Tidal users)?

Also, colourful album art :hyper:

Lastly, I too think it's a little weird that they removed the "album news" part of their post(s). We still have a "lead single" coming, so there's no need to worry about an Invisible type situation... as mentioned above, I think they either don't want to confirm to a release date, or (more likely) they haven't settled on a track-list yet.
 
So it looks like we'll be hearing The Best Thing this weekend then (assuming someone leaks it to non-Tidal users)?



Also, colourful album art :hyper:



Lastly, I too think it's a little weird that they removed the "album news" part of their post(s). We still have a "lead single" coming, so there's no need to worry about an Invisible type situation... as mentioned above, I think they either don't want to confirm to a release date, or (more likely) they haven't settled on a track-list yet.



They said in the post we will get all info on the new album this coming Wednesday along with the new single, are people now really thinking this won't happen? Wtf?
 
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