Songs of Ascent V - The Final Bell

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either way it looks like they are bent on getting us SOME new music for 2010. I'm excited for that even if it's only three songs. or one song.
 
Maybe an ep on blue ray disc only. The difficulty in getting the music onto computers would create a furor! :wink:
 
jay canseco said:
Maybe an ep on blue ray disc only. The difficulty in getting the music onto computers would create a furor! :wink:
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Well, you're forgetting the Special Edition. That comes with an 8-track tape of SOA AND a copy of Linear on Betamax! :drool:
 
Some more info from that Hot press with Edge - early December, thanks to atu2.com.

The last time we spoke, you mentioned the possibility of a new U2 album coming out before the end of the year. That's obviously not going to happen, but when can fans expect a new record?

We would like it to be sooner rather than later. We are working on some stuff that sounds amazing, but it's hard to say when it'll actually be done. Well, certainly I don't, and I know Bono doesn't want to leave too long of a gap between the last record and the next one.

What's the feel of the songs you're working on at the moment?

It's too early to say, but because the last record was an experiment writing with Brian [Eno] and Danny [Lanois] in that kind of free-flowing workshop, Bono and I -- we're really kind of songwriting in a much more formal way at the moment. We've got some stuff, more abstract stuff that we could put together as a release, but right now what's really intriguing me is plain, old-fashioned songwriting, and we have some amazing stuff.

How about the Spiderman musical? It's been reported that, thanks to the recession, it's run into problems. Is it going ahead?

Well, it's all ready to go. We're just waiting for the word that we can ... we've pretty much done our job. We're waiting for the word that our director, Julie Taymor, can get back and get into the theatre and start putting the show together. We're told it could be any day. We've got new producers involved: Michael Cohl is coming in, to become an additional producer. So they're busy working on raising finance and getting all that stuff in order. I'm really happy with the music and the script, and the cast that we have are fantastic, so I don't have any concerns, ultimately, but it's kind of frustrating that it's taking so long.

(Edge also answered some questions about U2's plans for the 360 tour in 2010, and you can read those on U2tours.com.)
 
U2girl said:
Some more info from that Hot press with Edge - early December, thanks to atu2.com.

It's too early to say, but because the last record was an experiment writing with Brian [Eno] and Danny [Lanois] in that kind of free-flowing workshop, Bono and I -- we're really kind of songwriting in a much more formal way at the moment. We've got some stuff, more abstract stuff that we could put together as a release, but right now what's really intriguing me is plain, old-fashioned songwriting, and we have some amazing stuff.
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I forget who the poster was but someone here described NLOTH as a "Frankenstein" album and I suspect from this quote that the same thing will happen with SOA. There will probably be some experimental leftovers from NLOTH along with some new "back to the basics" tracks. That awkward mix hurt NLOTH in my opinion. SOA may share the same fate. :down:
 
This is ridiculous!

I feel like U2 is writing album after album and just not sharing!!! This was HTDAAB's greatest weakness; it was the Best-of 2001-2004. Give us an ALBUM! From a single idea, a single train of thought.....
 
so NLOTH was an expirement? WTF...seriously Mr. The Edge, based on your answers there you might as well just go into politics because you said a lot without really saying anything at all.
 
Mrs. Garrison said:
so NLOTH was an expirement? WTF...seriously Mr. The Edge, based on your answers there you might as well just go into politics because you said a lot without really saying anything at all.
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I think he's actually right in that he says it's an experiment in co-writing with Eno and Lanois. They had never done that before, so I think it is not outlandish to call it an experiment.
 
mikal said:
i'm guessing the Irish Times article is still the most recent interview, since newspapers print the news that day, where the Q article could have taken place up to a month ago.
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That is indeed very true, magazine interviews can be printed pretty much a month or so after its been done, where a newspaper they want it out pretty much there and then.
 
Mrs. Garrison said:
so NLOTH was an expirement? WTF...seriously Mr. The Edge, based on your answers there you might as well just go into politics because you said a lot without really saying anything at all.
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as somebody else said, i think he's just talking about the song writing process for No Line. which they had only really done with Passengers and Lanois wasn't part of that.
 
«We would like it to be sooner rather than later (...) but it's hard to say when it'll actually be done»

This seems very clear and sums pretty much what some feared: there'll be no new album this year.
A new single? Maybe.
"The Horizon Prospekt's Monster" reedition with a bonus EP with 4 or 5 new tracks (being these new tracks, 3 «old-fashioned songwritting» tracks - that is, U2 by the numbers, perfect numbers for NLOTH having finally a big hit song - and 2 NLOTH reworked leftovers? I would bet my money in this option being released before the tour restarts.
New album? I think... not.

And since U2's like RS who releases albums as a pretext for touring (Zooropa's an exception, 1993 is way long ago and today's U2 posture in the industry have nothing to do with back then) we won't see a real new album before 2013/14, when a new tour will start again. This is the cycle and this is U2's DNA-chain, we know it too well. Just let's face it.

What's more rentable now, in 2009/10 context for U2, McGuinness, Universal and Live Nation?
A new mediative, slow-paced album, with interesting gems and a focused and real concept that won't generate Hot 100 hits because U2 don't appeal anymore to MTV kids and that will sell half then NLOTH did?
Or a NLOTH reedition with a bunch of new tracks ready to follow any ad-campaign and that are catchy and U2-ish enough to become another hit and propel NLOTH a bit more and make it a bit more rentable?
 
Aygo said:
«We would like it to be sooner rather than later (...) but it's hard to say when it'll actually be done»

This seems very clear and sums pretty much what some feared: there'll be no new album this year.
A new single? Maybe.
"The Horizon Prospekt's Monster" reedition with a bonus EP with 4 or 5 new tracks (being these new tracks, 3 «old-fashioned songwritting» tracks - that is, U2 by the numbers, perfect numbers for NLOTH having finally a big hit song - and 2 NLOTH reworked leftovers? I would bet my money in this option being released before the tour restarts.
New album? I think... not.

And since U2's like RS who releases albums as a pretext for touring (Zooropa's an exception, 1993 is way long ago and today's U2 posture in the industry have nothing to do with back then) we won't see a real new album before 2013/14, when a new tour will start again. This is the cycle and this is U2's DNA-chain, we know it too well. Just let's face it.

What's more rentable now, in 2009/10 context for U2, McGuinness, Universal and Live Nation?
A new mediative, slow-paced album, with interesting gems and a focused and real concept that won't generate Hot 100 hits because U2 don't appeal anymore to MTV kids and that will sell half then NLOTH did?
Or a NLOTH reedition with a bunch of new tracks ready to follow any ad-campaign and that are catchy and U2-ish enough to become another hit and propel NLOTH a bit more and make it a bit more rentable?
Click to expand...

Cynical or not, this has the ring of truth about it. Didn't Coldplay do something similar? I hope this isn't what happens and i don't think it will but you never know...
 
Aygo said:
«We would like it to be sooner rather than later (...) but it's hard to say when it'll actually be done»

This seems very clear and sums pretty much what some feared: there'll be no new album this year.
A new single? Maybe.
"The Horizon Prospekt's Monster" reedition with a bonus EP with 4 or 5 new tracks (being these new tracks, 3 «old-fashioned songwritting» tracks - that is, U2 by the numbers, perfect numbers for NLOTH having finally a big hit song - and 2 NLOTH reworked leftovers? I would bet my money in this option being released before the tour restarts.
New album? I think... not.

And since U2's like RS who releases albums as a pretext for touring (Zooropa's an exception, 1993 is way long ago and today's U2 posture in the industry have nothing to do with back then) we won't see a real new album before 2013/14, when a new tour will start again. This is the cycle and this is U2's DNA-chain, we know it too well. Just let's face it.

What's more rentable now, in 2009/10 context for U2, McGuinness, Universal and Live Nation?
A new mediative, slow-paced album, with interesting gems and a focused and real concept that won't generate Hot 100 hits because U2 don't appeal anymore to MTV kids and that will sell half then NLOTH did?
Or a NLOTH reedition with a bunch of new tracks ready to follow any ad-campaign and that are catchy and U2-ish enough to become another hit and propel NLOTH a bit more and make it a bit more rentable?
Click to expand...

Seems to be right along of what we've been hearing. Sure, Bono and McGuiness said "something by June" (and this IS the latest info we have), but the truth is they don't know, at this point, when it will be done. And in early December when Edge did this interview I'm sure it was too early to tell how a U2 record planned "by June" will sound like...

Certainly the band is in the songwriting mode, though it seems more like they have SOA with a clear lyrical idea, and a separate batch of songs. NLOTH is an awesome album, and the middle trio works nicely as a bit of a break.

A single or EP might be more plausible, but a new edition of NLOTH ? No. In fact being in mid-tour mode takes off the weight of them to have a big single - assuming U2 will ever have a big single in the US after 2004 - to sell the album. The tour ("pretext to tour", as if) will do that for them.
 
An Cat Gav said:
Cynical or not, this has the ring of truth about it. Didn't Coldplay do something similar? I hope this isn't what happens and i don't think it will but you never know...
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What seems clear to me is that, more than not knowing if the songs are ready, McGuiness and the band don't know what to do after having seen NLOTH selling "not bad", but ot having been a success, at least as predicted.

U2 could release right next month if they wanted to. I don't believe that band don't have a good amount of songs (most of them NLOTH leftovers) pretty ready to be mixed and released now, and that could probably match the concept of the SOA pilgrimage. I think they do. But do they want to do it?
I see many people here still believing in the SOA-concept thing going ahead. Im not sure anymore of that. And we know U2 changes its ideas very fast at this stage, specially after Bono's quotes about it.

We fans, know that NLOTH is the best album among years and that is one of those albums that people will discover as years go by. But did it generate hits? No. Did it sell well? [Yes, it was one of 2009's best sellers but...] No. Was it well received by the critics? Yes, but not as well as the predecessors [unfortunately, I don't know why].

U2 has lots of dillemas to face. To release a conceptual REAL album that critics and the public will like, but that don't necessarily mean it will be a success. And we know [and we have had tones of quotes that express it] that U2 would love to have another bunch of big hits and commercial successes in the bag. So, is really a new album what they want?

I still don't think that U2 and McGuinness has figured out that they're in the 50's, their career is in another stage of consolidation, that the industry has nothing to do with their "glory days" and that NLOTH's overall promotional strategy was wrong since the beggining and that's why it didn't succeed as expected.

For me, U2 is in a phase where they have to choose: do they want to still press the button of the "Biggest Band in the World" (which everybody is tired to know they are... maybe too much) by having lots of commercial successes and soldout stadiums or if they want to proove to the public that they're still artistically relevant? That's why I think that from 2009/NLOTH forwards on the next years, the answer is going to be given with the next steps.
 
Looks like "move on" is the answer, considering they want to have new music out this year.
 
I find it funny that people here seem to know everything the band is thinking or what is going to happen. The reality is that no one knows what U2 will do not even U2 knows! SO why not just wait and see? If we get something this year then bonus! If not, then no big deal, (not the end of the world) I still love NLOTH and there are many other bands I listen to that can keep me entertained while U2 are not releasing songs/albums.
 
Judging from what Edge said in the interview it is safe to say that the "experiment" is likely over and they will go back to old fashioned song writting.

Not exactly what I wanted but also I sort of knew it was going to happen as well. What would be best for U2 is if "good old fashioned song writting", didnt sell as well as NLOTH then maybe theyde stop worrying so much about Grammies and CD sales all the time.
 
santiago said:
I think a mix of some abstract original SOA and some Bono-Edge more "written rather than improvised" songs is what we can expect.

It does not have to be bad both approaches have been good in the past. Even Achtung Baby was a record that relied more on writing than on improvising.

I think the moderate commercial success of NLOTH has given them a reduced margin for error this time around. So it's understandable they want to include some more potential hits than the full-on original SOA.

It's a bit of a pity as NLOTH is in my view a great artistic success (except for the songs the band wrote as "hits" which broke the atmosphere and, even worse, did not succeed in their intention of becoming hits) and a more unadulterated atmospheric album would have been just what the doctor ordered, but let's see what they come up with.

But I have a lot of trust in this band as they have provided me with great music for a long time, and even their failures (IMHO October, War, Rattle and Hum, Pop, HTDAAB) are very interesting and show new sides of their art.

So I'm fairly impatient to listen to SOA.
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"moderate" success of NLOTH has to be taken in context- it was the second best selling album of 2009- behind Lady Gaga- sales compared to previous are way down- but then they are across the board- and some of the problems with NLOTH stem from dismal choice for lead single- which was their choice- had anyone here heard the album before I doubt anyone would have gone for Boots

as for the music- I really like the more abstract moments on the album- MOS, UC. Fez, White as Snow etc- as I also do on some of their other albums- been playing UF and you can't get much abstract than some of that- but if they want a radio hit then those kind of songs won't do it

as for new album- well I guess they probably will have something new out- there doesn't seem much mileage in trying to promote and 18 month old album- if not then I suspect it will become a greatest hits tour with the amount of NLOTH tracks down virtually nothing
 
windylad72 said:
The latest Q magazine in the UK quotes Bono' s 5 step plan to take over the world in 2010. He says that they want to play some songs by the time they go back on tour at the end of May..........."We've been listening to material for Songs of Ascent. We havent fully decided to press 'go' on that. But we're touring at the end of May and it'd be nice to have some new songs. Even if it's an EP or a single song".

On Spiderman..........."It's potentially one of the best things we've ever done".

Dont hold out for a full album before the tour!!!!
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yeah but "Bono- time" is as close to real time as "Duran time" is- another lot who seem to have no concept of real time (oh yes we'll have the album out next year- what they actually mean is in 3 years time)
 
And the posters here overthink even more than the band does :lol:.

Re-Edition? EP? One-Off Single?

No way.
 
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