Why I think ATYCLB sucks the big one

[One Tree Still]

Well, okay, it's been almost 2 years now since the release of ATYCLB (can you believe it?) and I have to say, as much as I love U2, I really think ATYCLB sucks by comparison.

There are few bands, especially active bands, with the kind of catalogue U2 has. Deep, wide, diverse and solid.

This album doesn't contribute much IMO.

Song by song...

Beautiful Day - Interesting composition, good (not great) "riff", clumsy lyrics. ATYCLB rank: 4, Overall grade (in comparison to other U2 songs): C+

Stuck In A Moment - Michael Bolton will be singing this song soon. I can't tell you how much I hate this song. The video sucks too. Album rank: 11, Overall Grade: F

Elevation - This song pretty much works for me, but the lyrics sound like they were written by Lenny Kravitz. The music is great and it was sweet live, but it pales in comparison to it's beautiful sister "The Fly". Album rank: 3, Overall grade: B

Walk On - This is the best track on the album, and not 'cause it sounds like classic U2, 'cause it really doesn't sound like anything U2 has done before. It is simply a strong song all-around and it will be the one song that people remember ATYCLB by. Album rank: 1, Overall grade: B+

Kite - Can you say "November Rain"? This song is more full of cliches than an interview with Al Gore. The closing lines are almost embarassing to listen to. Album rank: 9, Overall grade: D+

In A Little While - I really like this song, but I hope it isn't the direction U2 is headed. It's a breath of fresh air after "Kite" and the guitar lick is sweet. It's very Van Morrison-ish, which is cool, but again, not the U2 I am hoping for in the future. Album rank 5, Overall grade: B

Wild Honey - A throwaway song. Should have been replaced by a finished version of "Summer Rain". The concept is so far from the rest of the album (which really has no concept) that it is annoying. The bridge is pure torture. Album rank: 10, Overall grade: D+

Peace On Earth - A lot of people dislike this one, but I think it's okay. I am very fond of event-inspired U2 songs and this one obviously qualifies. Some of the lyrics seem like they were rushed (trees:knees), but the overall vibe of the song is good IMO. Album rank 6, Overall grade: B-

When I Look At the World - This one puts me to sleep every time. Again, the ugly sister of the gorgeous "Dirty Day". The message is tired too - it worked much better on "Wake Up Dead Man". Album rank 7, Overall grade: C-

New York - Great music, horrific lyrics. I will give Bono props for giving props to the classic "Neeeew Yooorrrk" Sinatra wail, but the patched together lyrics drag this one down. Album rank 8, Overall grade: C

Grace - I like this song, save a couple lines (lips:skips:fingertips). It has all the makings of a good U2 album closer and it has the strongest message of any of the tunes IMO. It's definitely low-energy, but it doesn't try to be anything else. Album rank:2, Overall grade: B+

Okay, so you can see why I think this album sucks by U2 standards. Of course, I know that many of you love this album, but I don't and I just explained why.

Here's to U2 - they rule - but I hope they step it up next time. U2 is at their best when they put together a thematic album and wow us with their significant lyrics.

fire away...

 

[Bonochick]

You are entitled to your opinion, and you were civilized with your post. I hope others will be as civilized.

ATYCLB is my favorite U2 album though...I treasure it. It's the album that saved my life.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

one tree still, there's only one thing i can really say...











you rock! a lot of times i agree with parts of people's likes/dislikes about an album, but i agreed with every bit you said. even the ratings and such.

 

[Zoomerang96]

well i agree, except i really think beautiful day is better than the way you discribed it.

atyclb has had no staying power for me, and u2 must stop catering to what their dumb fans want. please, for the love of kissing, please "rock" or something but enough of the adult contemporary PLEASE.

 

[martha]

but the lyrics sound like they were written by Lenny Kravitz.

OMG!! That is so funny!!

I agree, it's not that great an album. I said it when it first came out, and I'm still sayin' it!

 

[popkidu2]

While I DO like ATYCLB and I think it has some strong tunes on it....

I have to wonder about Bono's lyrics a bit. Not the concepts, but some of the couplets...they're, um, kinda simple. I've been listening to Achtung Baby a lot recently, and I really feel this was when he was at his best.

But, I'm not complaining. I can't write lyrics half as good as his worst

 

[FallingStar]

Well, I can't agree with what you say cos ATYCLB is really one of the best albums of U2, but.....I'll better shut up before I say something evil.

 

[GypsyHeartgirl]

ATYCLB is my favorite U2 album though...I treasure it. It's the album that saved my life.

I agree. Actually I like a few better, but I have a deep love for ATYCLB. It saved my life too. It is very precious to me and came like a special gift from the band to me. I love it very much.

I can respect anyone's opinion if they want to diss an album as long as they respect mine, but I wonder what would happen to me if I started a thread that said "Why Pop blows major chunks!" ?? I shudder to think!! What's sauce for the gander should be sauce for the goose as well if all was fair, but it isn't, so I won't start one.

It's like the old saying, opinions are like assholes. Everybody has one.

 

[FallingStar]

It's like the old saying, opinions are like assholes. Everybody has one.

 

[Roland of Gilead]

For all of you that feel that One Tree Still was spot on, I am truly sorry for your loss.

 

[Achtung Bubba]

Here's to U2 - they rule - but I hope they step it up next time. U2 is at their best when they put together a thematic album and wow us with their significant lyrics.

I thought ATYCLB had a theme (death, mortality, smelling the flowers while you can) AND significant lyrics.

I believe, honestly, that ATYCLB is among U2's best work, if not THE best.

At any rate, your entitled to your opinion, but I wouldn't say you "explained why" you hated it - it's opinions backed with more opinions.

 

[One Tree Still]

Of course it's opinions - that's all it can be when you're talking about what you like and don't like.

I certainly don't disrespect anyone for liking or loving ATYCLB. That's everyone's perogative.

I simply don't like it and hope U2 makes a better record next time.

It's okay to criticize U2, you know.

Like someone else alluded to, I couldn't even begin to write a song half as good as "Stuck", but that doesn't mean I have to like "Stuck".

 

[Sicy]

I wonder what would happen to me if I started a thread that said "Why Pop blows major chunks!" ?? I shudder to think!! What's sauce for the gander should be sauce for the goose as well if all was fair, but it isn't, so I won't start one.

Is there a thread that you DONT mention how much you hate POP? Fine fine fine that's your opinion great but hearing the same thing come out of the same person's mouth in every damn thread they post in is seriously getting old and STARTS FIGHTS!

And I'm sure One Tree Still will get his share of bashings! Anytime ANYONE says they hate a U2 album, there are going to be those fans that love everything U2 has ever done, good or bad, that are going to argue it.

This sob story that everyone picks on you because you hate pop wouldnt be necessary if you didnt talk about it so much. This is just my opinion, I'm not saying you cant talk about anything you want but you're asking what would happen if you started a thread like that and because of your history I would imagine you would get flamed.

 

[Hallelujah Here She Comes]

As much as I don't want to perpetuate any Pop argument, I have to come out in support of Sicy here. I think it needed to be said and I'm glad she did.

And for the record:

POP rocks and so does ATYCLB. Wait, am I allowed to like both???

 

[pinkfloyd]

here you are in 3-4 years there will be no sign of this album . their worst work , it's my personal opinion . 3-4 okdk songs , poor , very poor lyrics , good booklet .

Beautiful Day : Very good tune , good lyrics , great song

stuck In A Moment : after Gone , Who's gonna ride your wild horses , one , SIAM does not look good , pop ballad no more no less .

Elevation : pure crap studio version on the album , live sounds much better , lame lyrics , incomplete .

Walk On : trad U2 optimistic tune , good lyrics , great song , classic .

Kite : dull , booring pop ballad , good lyrics though + rear guitar solo of The edge on the album makes it unique ( where during recording he lost all his guitar tricks , i wonder , or bono decided to shut him up??? ) .

In A Little While : i have no feelings for this song unfortunately .


Wild Honey : i mean , look a rock band , what is this britney spears of rock'n'roll ?????? sometimes it's fun to listen to it .

Peace on earth : Bono's political campaigns in power . yuck

When I look at the world : Bono plays politics part II.

New York : wow !! suddenly a rock tune with very medium lyrics , but after *previous two * it sounds great .

Grace : good enough to be an outro for Elevation tour , this song is not really a song , but it's good to sleep while it sounds .


it's my anylysis , it's not an attack on gypsygirl or something like that .

 

[BVS]

This is actually my first post here, I've been viewing it for days and wanted to contribute but the ones I felt interesting would have taken me novels to explain. So here it goes.

I liked ATYCLB. I liked a lot. Not the best, but could have been if it wasn't for a few tunes. So I'll respond song by song like One Tree Still did:

Beautiful Day - I thought this was a really good tune. It will never be one of my faves, but with the exception of a few the released songs rarely are. But I thought the lyrics were very witty(for a song about someone who's staring down death).

Stuck in a Moment - Come on, Micheal Bolton?! It was a great song about a topic that normally would be filled with horrible cliches of "I wish this, I wish that, and I know you're in a better place now" I thought it was a little ballsy to confront it that way, but yes the US version of the video sucked.

Elevation - The song was weak, it was weak on the album it was weak live, the video really sucked, and it was the only time a U2 song was better when it was remixed(the one on 7)

Walk On - Beautiful tune. Very few bands can write an optimistic tune like that these days.

Kite - This is by far one of the best U2 songs to date. No one has written a song about facing their mortality in such an elegant way ever. Song writers will be modeling songs after this one for awhile. In fact I've already read a handful of interviews from songwriters about how they were inspired by this paticular song i.e. Weiland, Elvis Costello

In a Little While - Who else can write a song about a hangover and make it sound like a gospel song.

Wild Honey - This is a really intellegent love song.

Peace on Earth - This song gets better everytime I listen to it. I didn't know any of these "names read over the radio" but I feel for them with every listen.

When I look at the World - Love the concept, love the little solo, I think the message is quite a bit different than WUDM, but still wasn't executed to it's full extent. But by no means a pass over tune.

New York - Great music, throw away lyrics. Bono should quit writing about US cities. It did get better live, but still shouldn't have made it on the album. This song along with Elevation should have been taken off, replaced with Summer Rain and Always, I think we could have had a classic album on our hands. Just my opinion.

Grace - beautiful closer, great little lyric.

I do agree with Achtung Bubba this album has one of the strongest themes that a U2 album has had in a while.

Just my .02

See I told you, novels...

 

[typhoon]

Wow, ATYCLB is my least favorite U2 album, but I still can't believe you find so little redeeming about it. You don't even like "Wild Honey?!" Lighten up, man!

 

[Achtung Bubba]

POP rocks and so does ATYCLB. Wait, am I allowed to like both???

YEP.

 

[ILuvLarryMullen]

I'm not that big of an ATYCLB fan either (it's probably my least favorite after October). Don't get me wrong, I do like ATYCLB I just don't think that it's their best work, same goes for October. The songs that I like best on there are Elevation, Kite, In a Little While, and Beautiful Day. The song I like least is When I look at the World. It depends on my mood for the other songs. Overall I thought that the album was kind of boring and definately does not belong up there with AB and JT.

 

[JOFO]

I agree with every criticism that has been made of the tunes on atyclb so far. The thing is, I still like it, and it gives me hope that u2 are not finished writing great songs yet, and that the next album will be a true classic.

 

[pinkfloyd]

i'm tired of this classic mood , around , can u2 just release a double set of songs , with no deviding on good and bad , like white album by beatles ,

 

[wertsie]

I like ATYCLB, but it's not one of my favorite U2 albums or anything. When it first came out I was absolutely in love with it and played it over and over...haven't listened to it as much since...

I have noticed a weird pattern with me...The albums that it takes me awhile to get into are the ones I love the most...AB, October, and Pop. With AB I heard it playing around my house for years before I became a fan because of my mom, but it took me awhile to "get it." Now that I do, I love it so much. AB, I would have to say, is the album that saved MY life.

With October, I think I just listened to Gloria, Tomorrow, and October for the longest time...but once I got into the other songs, it was love!

Pop...Oh, man, the first 2 or 3 times I listened to that, I was like, "what the f*** is this?" but now I absolutely love it.

Sorry...this was sort of veering o/t...

 

[NShaik]

I'll go through the album song by song, like others have done.

Beautiful Day - very impressive song, with great riffs, allthough lacklustre, cold performance from Bono on the album version. His voice loosens up considerably on the Boston DVD, and it sounds so much better (plus love the "Goal is Soul" part."

Stuck in a Moment - Excellent song, but disappointing live. I think it would have worked better with Edge on Keyboard + Bono on guitar. Beautiful Lyrics though, and elegant vocals from Bono.

Elevation - Its a good song if you don't take it seriously. The lyrics are ridiculous, but I still love them. It is very much a "sing-a-long when they play it live" song, but its still cool to listen to. The live version is infinitely more interesting, especially when they slip in an augmented fourth interval.

Walk On - Strong lyrics, good vocals on the studio version. Its a good live song, but you have to be there. the solo is a bit of a waste. Compared with other solos such as Mysterious Ways, and the Fly. I don't like the fade out at the end though, its very lazy.

Kite - Take out the Cheesy fucking keyboard shite and I would love it. Bono's Vocals are the best on the album, Edge's guitar work, genious, Adam + Larry carry the song well - GET RID OF THE REST OF THE SHIT - ITS A WASTE OF TIME, AND RUINS A POTENTIALLY BRILLIANT SONG!! Like the version on the DVD.

In a Little While - very slick song, but too short - ends way to early, and leaves you feeling "is that it?" Love Bono's voice

Wild Honey - Disaster in every possible way (except Bono manages to hit a high C).

Peace On Earth - Larry's drumming in the choruses is very out of place, and all the studio stuff just bores me. They should recorded the whole song like they did at the Tribute to Heroes, and I would have quite liked Edge to sing on it, instead of Bono.

When I Look at the World - suprisingly good song. Has the most interesting 30 seconds on the album (Edge's solo + "I can't wait any longer...). Shame they didn't play it live.

New York - shit in the Studio - great live. For some reason I always compare this song to Please. It just doesn't compare. Edge's live solo is nice though.

Grace - waste of a track - complete how do you do.

The problem with ATYCLB, I think, is that when you listen to it, it sounds so normal. You hear the songs on the radio, allthough they may be good songs, they fit in. They don't sounds out of place like an extraordinary band like U2 should. ATYCLB has good songs, but the over-all sound is very unspectabular. It doesn't hav ethe distinctiveness and unique sounds they they have an all their other albums. That being said, I still enjoy listening to it, and think it has good songs on it.

 

[Michael Griffiths]

Re: Re: Why I think ATYCLB sucks the big one

I thought ATYCLB had a theme (death, mortality, smelling the flowers while you can) AND significant lyrics.

I believe, honestly, that ATYCLB is among U2's best work, if not THE best.

At any rate, your entitled to your opinion, but I wouldn't say you "explained why" you hated it - it's opinions backed with more opinions.

Bubba: For once, I actually agree with you!
It really is all a matter of opinion, as is the case when you're dealing with something subjective, intuitive and emotive such as art. We are all different, have had different experiences, and thus are affected differently by even the same things. We perceive the same things differently, which is fine -- and thank God!

As for my opinion, ATYCLB has saved my life on more than one occasion, and it's the most heartfelt album U2 have ever released. It's not a "cool" record, and was never intended to be. They wanted this one to be "uncool"; if you don't believe me, just ask Bono...

As for the whole Pop argument, it's rather mute. It's also a brilliant album, but it's not ATYCLB. So what? (Thank God for that, too.)

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

For all of you that feel that One Tree Still was spot on, I am truly sorry for your loss.

too bad that we don't feel the same way. i am getting goddamned sick of all these trolls coming in to disagree with a blatantly ANTI-ATYCLB THREAD! if you like the album and want to have its manbabies, start your own damn thread. this is getting quite old.

 

[Bonochick]

Just a reminder...

If this debate gets out of control, it will be closed.

It sucks having to close a thread that does have a good debate in it. Let's just try to keep things as calm as possible.

 

[*Wolverine*]

This thread reminds me of an interview with Bono back in 1991 after Achtung Baby was released. He said that there was a group of girls that were always outside their hotel during Lovetown who were pissed about Rattle and Hum. They apparantly told Bono this and said they need to do something different or go back to basics. Bono told them that is where the next album is headed (something different). He said he saw the same girls standing out in the rain at their hotel right after AB was released. He went to them and asked what they thought. They told him they thought it was Sh*t!! He was dumbfounded and said in the interview those girls stood in the rain for hours to tell me the album was sh*t?? He said that it shows you cannot please everyone and that the most important thing is that U2 are happy with what they are doing.

All reports indicate that U2 love ATYCLB. Thats all that matters. If they are not happy with what they are doing, then they dont make records or do tours any longer. Honestly, I dont know what people were looking for with this album, JT part II, or AB part II??? Why? ATYCLB doesnt sound like any other U2 album IMO. Sure it has hints of some of their other styles but every U2 album since Unf. Fire has had that.

U2 is the best judge of their work, and they are very happy with the album.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

Honestly, I dont know what people were looking for with this album, JT part II, or AB part II??? Why? ATYCLB doesnt sound like any other U2 album IMO. Sure it has hints of some of their other styles but every U2 album since Unf. Fire has had that.

i can't speak for everyone, but i think it's too adult contemporary for them. and as for the purpose of this thread, it's for us who don't love atyclb to death to discuss why not. if this had been, say, an anti-pop thread, the same people that are trolling this thread would be calling us trollers if we dared to post about how much the album rocked. how hypocritical.

 

[SkyBlueDreamer]

Don't worry ATYCLB, millions of people loved you, including this one.

 

[Bono's shades]

I would rank ATYCLB in 6th or maybe even 7th place among all of U2's albums, depending on what kind of mood I'm in. It's not a bad album, not at all - it's just not that great, compared to a number of other U2 albums. I used to think the reason I wasn't as crazy about it as so many people seem to be is my love for hard-rocking' U2 (Bullet the Blue Sky, God Part II, Sunday, Bloody Sunday, The Fly, etc.), but then I remembered how much I love their slower songs (WOWY, One, All I Want Is You, Heartland, etc.) So I guess that kind of blows that theory out of the water.

I think ATYCLB would have been considerably improved if:

1. It had not been so overproduced. I love you Brian and Danny, but this time you messed around with the songs just a little too much. You sucked the life right out of them. They sounded so much better live.

2. The lyrics hadn't been so uneven. There are some great lyrics on the album, but unfortunately there are some lines so lame I simply cannot believe a brilliant lyricist like Bono wrote them. C'mon, Bono, can't you come up with something better than "a mole, digging in a hole"?