Songs Of Experience XII : RIP U2

[ChargedVT]

At least it wasn't quite the vague, non-commital stuff we usually get.... "lost in the music, seeing where it's taking us" etc. There is still ample time for a November release.
But the question has to be asked... if it's down to this stage of things, why has the band been taking holidays and not working for the past 2 months? They probably would have finished it!

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[CMIS]

What do any of us know? I am a minute to minute proposition - ask me now and I am sure the single is out tomorrow and they play it at iHeart. In a few minutes I'm convinced the whole thing is scrapped, and we may never see it


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Nah, that can't be you, because that's me.

Right now, the 'only God and The Edge knows' bit gives me a lot of hope. As we know, Edge is the scientist of the family and the official tinkerer, and only him having some work left to do means the songs are all but done.

My glass is full... fuck half-full.

Ask me in an hour

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[dan_smee]

Nah, that can't be you, because that's me.

Right now, the 'only God and The Edge knows' bit gives me a lot of hope. As we know, Edge is the scientist of the family and the official tinkerer, and only him having some work left to do means the songs are all but done.

My glass is full... fuck half-full.

Ask me in an hour

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Your optimism is very refreshing. But the fall is hard, my friend.


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[thegameisback]

Recap:

The Little Things That You Give Away - fka The Morning After Innocence
Red Flag Day
Civilisation
Instrument Flying
Get Out Of Your Own Way
Much More Better
Tightrope
Landlady
Where The Shadows Fall
The Best Thing
Love Is All We Have Left - may be now referenced with one of the titles above
Ordinary Love - Edge wanted to put it on the new album with a new arrangement, said Bono during one of the ieTour gigs. Don't think it will happen.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

I think the content of what he says is pretty optimistic. If they have a coherent theme for the album ("write as if you're already gone"), and have whittled down songs to close to SoI's number, that's great. It implies to me they're truly in the last stages. Maybe they're looking at very final mixes and all they need to do is decide on b-sides.

The thing that concerns me is I just can't see Bono giving an interview with this kind of information right before a big announcement. Even without a surprise release, there would surely be some radio silence before they unveil an album. At least he said he shouldn't be talking about it? We can hope that they're moving away from the surprise release method, and that's why he's more open.

It's weird, but I don't see any of what he said as a reason not to play at least a single at iheart. The benefits of the show plus all the activity the past couple months still suggest they'll have something new on display. But talking so openly does not give me the vibe that something big is happening.

Maybe a standalone single is most likely, but I could see it go any way now really...

 

[blueskies]

But the question has to be asked... if it's down to this stage of things, why has the band been taking holidays and not working for the past 2 months? They probably would have finished it!

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Because they are getting older and want to enjoy life. They come out of a year of touring, and have at least a year of touring ahead of them. I just think they don't want to sacrifice their personal lives just to finish an album a bit earlier. Understandable.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

If the challenges facing them are that they need to decide how to get from 16 to 12 songs for an album, then there will be a single on Friday. There is no reason to not utilise the promotion opportunities presented to them. That is just indisputable logic.

If they do not play/release a new single this week, then the issues are far bigger than he let on.

To be fair, although the number is more concise this time, we know Bono thinks a riff and skeletal structure counts as a 'song'. Could be that they're actually far away from 12 actual finished songs (though signs point to final mixing, so I don't think that is the case).

Still, things are a lot better than a couple days ago! U2 are not broken up, they're playing iheart, and SoE still exists. It certainly sounds like we're getting it sooner rather than later.

 

[aMansAman]

Because they are getting older and want to enjoy life. They come out of a year of touring, and have at least a year of touring ahead of them. I just think they don't want to sacrifice their personal lives just to finish an album a bit earlier. Understandable.

Yeah, but these lazy bastards said they paused the Tour in 2016 in order to work on/finish SOE.

Maybe that just happened / is happening right now ...

They just can't finish things /let go of things .. that's it.
They = Edge actually

 

[INSTCUWSUMVC]

FFS, what did you expect him to say?
"Yeah Charlie, album is done. It'll be out on Friday"
Album out before the end of the year or bust.


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[JamietheEdgefan]

Because they are getting older and want to enjoy life. They come out of a year of touring, and have at least a year of touring ahead of them. I just think they don't want to sacrifice their personal lives just to finish an album a bit earlier. Understandable.

True, but absolute lack of activity by the band from late July up until now still says to me that they finished the bulk of the work/went into mixing back then.

Absolutely no attempts to finish anything for this massive single-promoting opportunity with iHeart just doesn't add up unless they were finished long ago.

I think the issue is whether they're happy with final mixes or not, and which songs to sacrifice for a 11-tune track list.

 

[CMIS]

Your optimism is very refreshing. But the fall is hard, my friend.


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Okay, half-full now

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[Gonna Run 2 U]

At least we're down from 50 ideas to 16 songs right?


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[Headache in a Suitcase]

His being coy and secretive over the release while readily admitting that they are rehearsing and that there will absolutely be a tour in 2017 to me is a very good sign that we're very close, and perhaps the whole surprise release thing is an option once more.

What if they released a single Friday, play it Friday night... and release the album to coincide with the tv broadcast two weeks later?

Get double bang for your buck, so to speak.

Unlikely but just a thought

 

[dan_smee]

His being coy and secretive over the release while readily admitting that they are rehearsing and that there will absolutely be a tour in 2017 to me is a very good sign that we're very close, and perhaps the whole surprise release thing is an option once more.

What if they released a single Friday, play it Friday night... and release the album to coincide with the tv broadcast two weeks later?

Get double bang for your buck, so to speak.

Unlikely but just a thought

This is my hope, and if I was involved in their management, I would be pushing them hard in this direction


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[JamietheEdgefan]

Anyone got a link to the interview?

 

[cseggleton]

You can tell Bono also had some Botox or something as he was a little blotchy during the interview.

 

[PRB216]

Bono's comments last night made me more optimistic. He was being coy yet still giving concrete answers regarding the theme, song titles and gave a resounding "YES." when asked if they'd be touring in 2017. All signs are looking good.

Add last night's statements in with the fact that:
-Lillywhite said he's mixed a single
-Kygo has remixed (and played) a single
-They're playing a HUGE promo event in just 2 night's time
and I'd say things are looking better than ever. I still think there's a master plan at work here that we'll be let in on shortly...

 

[macawaca]

I still can't really see them releasing the whole album at the same time as the lead single. To do that would be to neutralise the lead single and doesn't give it time to breathe and gain momentum on its own. You gotta at least give it a couple of weeks at least, especially if they do have some sort of deal with iHeart to give it loads of airplay. That could then also play into the "we're trying to whittle 16 songs down to 11 or 12 for the album" line. They still have a couple of weeks to tinker even after a single is released, if the first release method is digital only. Doesn't take that long to load it onto servers. Physical release can then be properly planned once they have set on the final track listing, etc.

Don't forget that not only was Volcano inserted at the last minute on SOI, Winter also got a last minute boot from No Line (as there was a video for it and it was included in the Linear DVD), and Mercy got a last minute boot from Bomb (as it was included in the list of songs on the booklet for the deluxe CD). That lends a lot of weight to the fact that the 16 songs Bono mentioned last night are all pretty much finalised mixed songs.

 

[Vox16]

From what we've heard of The Best Thing, do we feel like it fits the theme of SOE? That might be telling if it's a one off single or not.


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[dan_smee]

California, the troubles, every breaking wave don't REALLY fit SOI. They made tenuous links to innocence with comments of first loves etc. U2 have never really committed fully to a thene


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[JamietheEdgefan]

Also, didn't Bono say that the theme of 'songs written as if you're dead' runs through "most" tracks? Implies there are some thematic differences running through the album as it is.

As cynical as it sounds, the most important thing about The Best Thing is not how thematically cohesive it is, but how good it sounds.

 

[dan_smee]

Also, didn't Bono say that the theme of 'songs written as if you're dead' runs through "most" tracks? Implies there are some thematic differences running through the album as it is.

As cynical as it sounds, the most important thing about The Best Thing is not how thematically cohesive it is, but how good it sounds.

It sounds good. Is it as artistically challenging as The Unforgettable Fire? Probably not. Does it combine U2s uniqueness with some of the basic elements that make current music popular? Quite possibly. That is the only way they crack any charts.


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[CosmoKramer]

His being coy and secretive over the release while readily admitting that they are rehearsing and that there will absolutely be a tour in 2017 to me is a very good sign that we're very close, and perhaps the whole surprise release thing is an option once more.

What if they released a single Friday, play it Friday night... and release the album to coincide with the tv broadcast two weeks later?

Get double bang for your buck, so to speak.

Unlikely but just a thought

I find it funny that since 2013ish I have always been optimistic about U2 releases and what is coming "soon" and you are typically very measured and usually rain on the parade and yet now you are optimistic and I feel as if we won't be getting an album until March.

I will take your optimism as a positive sign for at least some hope of new music in 2016.


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[JamietheEdgefan]

Yeah, Unforgettable Fire it ain't, but it's got a great catchy tune and a really upbeat vibe. It's more 'Beautiful Day' than 'Bad', but that's not a bad thing at all.
I can tell from what little we've heard that they've nailed the 'hook' of the song. It's not an early demo in brainstorming stages... I think they've got a good lead single right there.

 

[dan_smee]

Yeah, Unforgettable Fire it ain't, but it's got a great catchy tune and a really upbeat vibe. It's more 'Beautiful Day' than 'Bad', but that's not a bad thing at all.
I can tell from what little we've heard that they've nailed the 'hook' of the song. It's not an early demo in brainstorming stages... I think they've got a good lead single right there.

Yep. I think we are sitting on 60-40 new song this week, and 60-40 new album this year


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[JamietheEdgefan]

Yep. I think we are sitting on 60-40 new song this week, and 60-40 new album this year


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Yup, it feels tense and like it could easily all go wrong, but all signs are faintly pointing towards good news... for now!

 

[dan_smee]

Yup, it feels tense and like it could easily all go wrong, but all signs are faintly pointing towards good news... for now!

The tension is kind of exciting, but incredibly frustrating


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[BVS]

Also, didn't Bono say that the theme of 'songs written as if you're dead' runs through "most" tracks? Implies there are some thematic differences running through the album as it is.

As cynical as it sounds, the most important thing about The Best Thing is not how thematically cohesive it is, but how good it sounds.

But one could also easily say TBT fits in that theme. Themes don't have to be that literal. The line "why am I leaving"; it could be more than a simple break up song.


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[Headache in a Suitcase]

I find it funny that since 2013ish I have always been optimistic about U2 releases and what is coming "soon" and you are typically very measured and usually rain on the parade and yet now you are optimistic and I feel as if we won't be getting an album until March.

I will take your optimism as a positive sign for at least some hope of new music in 2016.


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If not for the invisible start/stop of last year, we would look at all the signs of what's going on right now as a clear sign that something is very close. It just makes sense.

Alas, this is U2. So it would not be shocking at all if Friday comes and goes and we have absolutely nothing, and they play 2 SOI songs and 4-5 warhorses.

But just with what we actually know (not including multiple sauces from posters)...

-they're band is about to headline a festival in Las Vegas as the only act without new material being either already released and/or announced. The festival is a vehicle for new music promotion and is run by a huge radio conglomerate.

-the band has been on the west coast for two weeks, rehearsing with Terry Lawless. The only previous times we know of that Terry is with the band for this long is prior to tours starting, and prior to the release of SOI.

-a very popular DJ snapped about doing something top secret with Bono that will be huge. Some sort of video element was filmed.

-another popular DJ played a completed remix at his hometown festival, which after leaking onto the internet was promptly removed and he hasn't played it again since. This was one a month ago... meaning there's been completed music for well over a month

-Steve Lillywhite has a xompleted mix on his phone of a single

-this weekend is the 40th anniversary of the band, and the album title and theme is based around Experience.


So either something is imminent, or something went really really wrong. And if something went really really wrong, would Bono really be discussing themes and tours yesterday?

End of the day? Yea. It's U2. Things can change. But the facts of what we know point to something very soon.

 

[womanfish]

To me, we have two scenarios here. One, the album having to just be whittled down 4 songs, means that they have plenty of time to get it settled by October for a November release. And makes sense for single to come out Friday.

Two, he is giving complete disinformation, maybe they have already whittled it down and are ready to roll. Single and album come out Friday, or single Friday, Album in the next week or two...

I tend to think option one is more realistic. I don't think getting down to 12 songs means no album this year.