I would think (and hope) that the only chance of Moment of Surrender ever being released as a single would be as a part of this Bono memoir CD thing.I think Moment would come out as a single for a reissue for No Line and I can see them shooting a video maybe if everyone is still heathy and fine then.
I would think (and hope) that the only chance of Moment of Surrender ever being released as a single would be as a part of this Bono memoir CD thing.
Otherwise? Yea I can't see anyway they release a single to promote a reissue of an album that flopped on it's initial release.
I guess I was finished with U2 after the 2005 tour. It didn't help that getting tickets was becoming next to impossible, with GA tickets being sold out within minutes of the sale going online. And then appearing en masse on resale sites. I dug the New Line on the Horizon album, the 360 tour bootlegs and videos were still awesome, but not being able to go to the shows at an affordable price caused my interest to go down over the years. I never connected with the Songs of .... albums or those tours.To me they sound like U2 has ceased being relevant and become like the Rolling Stones, where every new album is an excuse to go on tour and cash in on a greatest hits collection. But they do get points for still trying. And I'm kinda hesitant to even listen to recent bootlegs. Bono was becoming insufferable already in the tours of the 00's, I fear that hearing him go off a woke deep end might kill off what remains of my love for this band's music. Kinda like how Patrick Stewart has killed off my love of The Next Generation with the new Picard series. Ignorance is bliss I guess.
But I reckon more people are finished with U2. Or they moved on to other places. I've been absent for several years, mostly lurking in once a year or so, and the traffic here has slowed here significantly. Threads whose last post was last year on the first page? That didn't happen a decade ago. Even when we were in a years long lull between albums.
I never connected with the Songs of .... albums or those tours.To me they sound like U2 has ceased being relevant and become like the Rolling Stones, where every new album is an excuse to go on tour and cash in on a greatest hits collection. But they do get points for still trying.
Bono has been woke since 1981.
You know what's fucked up? I hardly ever "cringe", but that term (usually meant in a derogatory manner) makes me cringe. I never use the term. It's called being a decent human being. I've never been bothered by Bono's speeches. That is what you get when you're a U2 enthusiast. Bono utilizes his platform to send out positive messages. Good for him.
"Woke Mob" makes me cringe even more. Like in some senses, I agree. I think our society has become outrage addicts to a degree and I find myself getting really annoyed that we have to walk on eggshells now in fear of offending certain groups. But at the core definition, "woke" means well informed and I find it funny that the ones that are using this term in a derogatory sense are usually the most ignorant.
Have to disagree this point.
They would routinely play 6-7 songs off Songs of Innocence plus Invisible on the i&e tour and usually 8 songs off SoE on the e&i tour. Those tours were not cashing in on greatest hits by any means.
You could argue that about JT30 certainly and the latter legs of 360, but not the Songs of tours.
Theirs nothing knew under the son
Before 360 2011 and JT 30, I seem to recall every other thread here complaining about not playing enough of the catalogue live. To read threads back around 2009, you'd be forgiven for predicting that 90% of the forum would erupt in ecstasy to get Exit and Acrobat live. What happened? These two (among other rare favorites) were brought back and people just bitched about something else.
If U2 wanted to just cash in on the greatest hits, they could've spent the last 20 years playing the simplest of stage set ups in stadiums and arenas and just cranking the jukebox. No innovative production. No albums. No concepts for the albums. Maybe a one-off single here and there. Just cash the checks.
the whole "it's only the four original members on stage" thing is a bit misleading and kinda bullshit.
you can't make that argument without also mentioning that the band relies heavily on backing tracks to create their live sound.
Nailed it. I remember when the band got into a consistent habit of changing 2-4 songs a night on the I&E tour in 2015, and pulled out a number of seldom played tracks along the way. The argument shifted from "Why don't they switch up even just a few songs a night?" to "Well, if they can shift those 2 or 4 songs, then why don't they change these slots out - or EBTTRT for Discotheque?" and all that jazz. The debate didn't go away, it just shifted to something different.
Yep. On top of that, these guys are entering their 60s now, so I try to see the bright side of any upcoming shows or tours as being a great thing overall. The fans of, say, Tom Petty or Linkin Park aren't really as lucky these days. I'm sure many of them would give an arm and a leg to hear "the hits" right about now.
Yeah, when the Stones tour, if you hear 4 new songs, or 6 from the last 30 years, you're lucky.
They're a jukebox.
U2 may not be making music as good as their best, but they believe in their new material.
I actually like their 21st century output. And the fact that they're still attempting to put out new material is admirable in and of itself. Billy Joel gave up songwriting nearly 30 years ago and he's still performing shows using the same old hits. No one seems to care about that.
I agree on the 21st century output! The fact that, as a whole, it doesn't clear one of the highest bars ever set by ANYONE in the 80s and 90s is next to meaningless. There's a few songs (at least) per album that most fans would rate as on par or very close to it. And as danm said, they still nail their live performances.
As for Billy Joel (and others) EXACTLY! Because, by in large, that's what the people want from older bands. They want the hits and the songs they remember!
The fact that U2 is focusing a little more on that these days is both inevitable and welcome with the vast majority of fans.
And of course, they're still doing it their way.
JT30 had Little Things and a revolutionary screen. They also were consistently playing 5 post 2000 tracks.
Acrobat, when finally played live, wasn't some half ass acknowledgement, they worked at it and made it both a staple and a highlight. Same with the 2018 version of Wild Horses.
I&E/E&I followed pretty much the exact same ratio of new to old material (one unheard of for bands their age/status) that Elevation, Vertigo and 360 did.
I've said this a few times, but I don't know what more people expect from them these days!!
One of the most repeated criticisms here, by many, is "they're nowhere near as good as they used to be" and then "they're resting on the past with these shows/this theme" in the literal next breath!
It's unreal!
You bring up a valid point that it's possible to both like their 21st Century output and have the opinion that it doesn't come close to touching their 80's and 90's output.