What if the new album is not that bad?

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Michael Griffiths

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Further, what if it's actually really good? Further still, what if it's their best ever? What will we all do? What will we say? How will it affect you?

I think this album has the potential to be unbelievably good. But so many here are in doubt. Was ATYCLB that bad? I think we've become acustomed to having our expectations challenged by U2. It's not that the album in question is worse than what we expect, but it seems it is because of our preconceptions.

I think this album will blow us away...but what do I know.

Rawking on in a free world...
 
ATYCLB is not a bad album neither is it a good one.
it just sound like the band did not put much in it and sounds effortless. the album does not say much..its u2 so i had to get it, but i dont listen to it anymore! they took 3 years to make this:huh: :huh: :huh:

yes i can do better:tongue:
so y'a i have doubt's about the next album.
i know it will be better than atyclb but i dont think it will be their best!i dont see them making any big rock songs any more.
JT, AB any one!

but its nice to see that some people still have faith in them
rock on!:yes:
 
I think some of the fans even on this forum would get kinda depressed if the new album would be their greatest ever
 
:shrug: Who knows?

IMO it will be virtually impossible to make the album with the impact of JT or AB. Maybe it's even somewhat unfair from fans to always expect from U2 to make another WOWY, another Pride, another One, another I still haven't found..., another AIWIY - you know? (because it's hard to compete with their best work, and because - let's face it - being over 40 doesn't help reaching the widest of audiences)

(I thought ATYCLB was a good effort, and one of their best. maybe the first time ever U2 really sounded relaxed.)

Having said that :hyper: if the new album is indeed a good one.
 
I still think there is this tendency to terribly overestimate the popularity of Achtung Baby

ZOO TV definately is one of the most important tours ever
no doubt about that
especially its effects on the way visual media and video clips evolved is gigantic

I still think (at least over here) that ATYCLB was in fact more popular (with the general public) than Achtung Baby was back then
 
britney is popular.

do you all think atyclb is a great record?
i like bd,stuck,kite and in a little while. but i wont put them in my top 15 or 20 u2 songs. they have way better songs on their other records(you know it) so..............

atyclb is actually a boring record:sad: u2 can do better than this .. i think.

ACHTUNG BABY, from track 1 to 12 you are like, man this rocks or these are great(the best) songs , or man this rocks. same with JT, war etc. they have great vocals , great guitar etc.


atyclb has none of the above just full on sweet pop songs to be played on the radio(i know some of you like that ,which is cool)

so who knows what the next record will sound like(dont trust bono:lol: ) i would love to go in the studio and see why they dont rock any more.
i mean every u2 record should rock(they are a rock band?)
put the dam album out so we know what its about!
:mad:
 
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I don't care about Britney

I'm just bewildered to keep reading comments that U2 won't ever reach the heights of the Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby years (which are totally incomparable as far as I'm concerned, because U2's position in music during the Joshua Tree truly is incomparable to anything else I've witnesed)
and when U2 finally does have the same amount of success it doesn't count according to the fans because the album doesn't rock enough or whatever?

(I'd rate ATYCLB as my 3rd favourite U2 album after Unforgettable Fire and Zooropa)
 
I don't know whether U2 during ATYCLB/Elevation tour time was as popular as the JT and AB albums and JT/Zoo TV tour, because I can't remember that - too young for that. That's a question for older fans.

I do think that it's quite possible that ATYCLB (I said a good effort and one of their best albums, and IMO the songs shaun vox mentioned are top 20 U2 material - maybe even top 10) was as close as U2 will get to that mainstream acceptance/worldwide popularity.

Why does everything U2 do have to be compared to their most known albums? Why not compare it to their last effort? Isn't that more fair and accurate?
(ATYCLB is currently exchanging no.1 spot with AB for me, followed by JT)
 
shaun vox said:

atyclb is actually a boring record:sad: u2 can do better than this .. i think.


atyclb has none of the above just full on sweet pop songs to be played on the radio(i know some of you like that ,which is cool)

i would love to go in the studio and see why they dont rock any more.
i mean every u2 record should rock(they are a rock band?)

No one knew what the fuck I was talking about when I posted this thought in the other thread. :rolleyes:
 
Headache in a Suitcase said:
u2 hasn't done shit since october


Man, October was a sellout record! They haven't been truly good since they wrote songs like "The King's new clothes", "Trevor", "Cartoon world" and "Street Missions." The 1978 demos were the high point of their career. Everything after that was sellout shit!!



J/K :wink:
 
MrBrau1 said:
Now I'm convinced nobody in this form knows what rock n roll or great songwriting is.

Agreed!! While I'd like to see them turn up the volume on the guitar amp, and while I'm not positive that ATYCLB is their best output, it's a great album nonetheless and just because some fans don't find it all that inspiring doesn't mean it is invalid as a body of work.

Second, there is no reason, none, why U2 cannot obtain the popularity that it obtained with the JT and AB and the tours that followed those albums. Good music is good music regardless of the age of the performer or what they accomplished in the past.

:wave:
 
Even if the new album is their best work ever, nobody will come to that conclusion until about 10 years later and then we'll cry about the glory days of 2004.

What? It's not inconceivable.
 
Exactly, Amitram - the same thing happened to a lesser extent with Pop. I remember all the Pop nostalgia threads a year after ATYCLB came out. Yet it was those very same people who denounced Pop back in 1997. I believe Pop will be heralded as a kitch masterpiece way ahead of its time in about 10 years from now...just as Revolver was heralded as a masterpiece long after the fact.
 
For u2 to come out with the greatest album of their career now would pretty much make my decade.
 
I think that even if the new album will be unbelievably great it won't replace JT and AB in the hearts of many who seem to have especially intense feelings and memories connected with these albums. U2 have got a way too tough battle to fight against their own back catalogue.

I do think that ATYCLB is a great album. And I think that it actually takes a lot of effort to make its songs sound as effortless.
 
I think that U2 in general can't be that easily defined musically as "rock" period. They've been influenced by many things and their sound varied a lot more than your usual rock band (they're a lot more melodic too). They have also less riffs and guitar solos (two things IMO that are a part or rock), and their lyrics are not shallow sex-drugs-rock'n'roll themed.

I do think that War for its political influenced lyrics is a rock album, and that AB was a rock album for it's sound - lots of riffs and solos - and for some of it's sexuality inspired lyrics. Having said that I think U2 at their heaviest sound comes somewhat close to rock - Exit, Acrobat, New York ... IMO they've got the great songwriting part more than covered already.
 
I still think U2's music doesn't have enough "drive" (physically that is, they've got plenty of spiritual drive) to rock

and I agree that not even U2's greatest effort ever would replace them in the hearts of many because of memory value

actually, I agree with just about everything Saracene posts about U2 so I'm just gonna shut up
 
Saracene said:
Personally I often find the sound of Edge's guitar a bit too, well "androgynous" for the lack of better word, to be really "rocking".

ya edge plays like a girl most of the times.(is he gay:sexywink: )
:ohmy:
edge play like a man.
 
If U2 isn't "rock" according to most of you people, then neither is Dylan, the Beatles, Bowie, Elvis, well, this list could go on forever.
If someone can listen to New York or Acrobat at high volume and still tell me it's not rock, well, they are insane or deaf. How bout this, if U2 isn't a rock band, tell me who is?
 
If you set your expectations realistically then there is no way the new album should disappoint.

I would just suggest not expecting a certain "sound" because most of U2's albums, if not all are quite diverse. So while Bono might be talking about 'loud guitars' and such, you know good and well, there will be 2 ballads, 2 radio friendly mid-tempo radio singles, a couple of rockers and then the strength of the album will come from the other 5 or 6 songs. U2 are good songwriters, but usually great or even good albums are diversified in songwriting, which by it's nature means, some will like some songs more than others. I think Miami was a great song, some people think it's crap, I don't care to much for Stuck, but some people think it's great. But that's what U2 are, a band of different elements and if you expect a little bit of everything, then you shouldn't be disappointed.

The band have proved one thing, if anything, they like every other band in the history of rock and roll, can't please all of their fans, but they have so many fans it's virtually impossible. They thing about U2 is they are consitently great at making records that leave you wondering what the band will do next. And that might be their greatest asset. They don't need to be #1 on the charts to validate their music, but sometimes you'd think the band believes it does. The music buying public is to fickle to gauge your success on what is selling and what is not. Pop was not a failure by any stretch, unless you are consdiering your own expectations. I agree with Griffiths, that album will be looked at in 10 years as U2's most misunderstood album, but very creatively sound and diverse.

The true test will be if the music is worth listening to along side with the rest of their efforts. My guess is that it will be, as long as you don't expect something that will not happen. U2 are going to give us what they want, not what they think we want. That is their formula and I think it's worked ina great fashion. Although there will always be a certain number of fans who are going to want something else.

ATYCLB is not one of my top 5 or 6 U2 albums, but it IS a great album because it affected many people and it obviously touched many people. Just because it didn't affect me the same, doesn't mean you should overlook the obvious. And if the new album "is not that bad", then why would that be surprising? Their worst album (whichever one you consider their worst) is certainly "not that bad" and anything they are doing in this day and age, 25+ years sonce they formed is just adding to their legacy.

U2 are a great band with many great albums, it's just a matter of opinion which ones are great to you and which ones aren't. When in truth, they are all great because they mean different things to different people, and the new album should be no different.

Expect from U2 to be U2. WHich means many things, all of which should be considered when "wanting" the new music to be what YOU want. I want new U2 and I don't expect it to be the greatest album I've ever heard, but I do expect it to contain the things that make the band great to EVERYONE on ths board. And that might include some songs that aren't my favorite, but I'd be willing to bet that my least favorite tracks are someone else's favorite tracks. That's why they are great, because they deliver different songs to different people, and they'v done it over and over and over.

I'm ready for what's next.
 
Personally I think the next album will share a lot of sonic similarities with ATYCLB, but there will be a lot more rockin' songs like Beautiful Day, as opposed to the ballad side of ATYCLB..could be a nice cousin to the last album in the way Zooropa jives nicely with AB.:)
 
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