MrPryck2U
ONE love, blood, life
i always knew you were my favorite pryck. (the stoned smiley that was deleted)
Thank you! I think that made my day!
i always knew you were my favorite pryck. (the stoned smiley that was deleted)
No. When all is said and done, U2 will be known as one of the all time greats no matter what their missteps were.
Serious question: Is any musical artist's fanbase more obsessed over its P.R. image and legacy than U2's?
Serious question: Is any musical artist's fanbase more obsessed over its P.R. image and legacy than U2's?
If you start a thread about actual music, it dies after four posts. But if you start a thread about how the mass public perceives / loves / hates U2, it goes on for 57 pages.
On the rare occasion I do listen to a rock station, U2 is well represented, so they are definitely classic rock.
That said, it's usually the material from the 80's, along with perhaps Beautiful Day. I never hear their 90's stuff.
Well, I think that every group of fans want their favorite artist to be looked at in a positive light. Just look at a Coldplay fan group where most of them are saying how incredible Music of the Spheres is.
And I agree and disagree with DeVaul, in that the fans here want to see U2 stop thinking about hits, charts, and being "relevant.' But, I also think that in that same way we wish the band would actually think about their legacy and not what song(s) they have to shoehorn into albums to get some radio play. Thinking of their legacy in the big picture would more likely have them go down a road of making creative, passionate songs, charts and radio be damned, which would probably give them the most success they've had in over a decade.
On another note. I got to thinking about the initial question posed by this thread. And I have changed my view a bit. I think that U2's post-POP work, didn't do irreparable harm to their legacy. In fact I think it was essential to them having a solid legacy.
If U2 would have stopped after Achtung Baby or Zooropa or even POP... I don't think they would enjoy the same status they do now. As much as a I don't really like ATYCLB and Bomb, they were huge albums and truly cemented them as a long-term, biggest band in the world. Before that, their biggest band in the world run would have been like 4-6 years? With those two albums, and No Line along with the 360 tour, they were up to about 25 years of biggest band in the world.
Now for a more hot take on the subject. I actually think that U2's 90's work (my favorite era) actually was a double-edged sword on the legacy. On the Strombo show I was talking about, he said, U2 would have gone down as just an incredible 80's band, but with Achtung Baby, they cemented themselves as rock royalty alongside, The Beatles, Stones, and Zeppelin.
Ok, true enough. And as I say above, ATYCLB, Bomb, 360 cemented that further.
But U2's 90's material did something else. Yes, it was a transformation of historic proportions, it was boundary busting, it brought ZooTV which changed the live concert world moving forward, etc...
But it also veered U2 into alternative rock territory which then IMO splintered not just the fanbase, but how U2 is now played on the radio. Or where it is included in streaming playlists, etc...
Go listen to a classic rock station. Zep, GNR, AC/DC, Queen, Pink Floyd, Journey, Van Halen, Aerosmith. VERY little U2. Why? U2 really isn't considered classic rock.
Go listen to an "alternative" station. VERY little U2. Why? They don't really fit into that category either. If they play "older" acts, its more RHCP, Greenday, Nirvana, Pumpkins, etc...
The only places I hear some U2 now is the 80's/90's and today stations will play WOWY, Still Haven't... and the occasional Beautiful Day.
And on "independent" stations like great WFUV in NY. some on the one here in Nashville.
And I heard Streets on the classic rock station a week ago.
I can honestly say I don't think I've heard One on the radio in 10-15 years. No Mysterious Ways, no Even Better, no Vertigo, no Stay, no Staring at the Sun, no Desire, no Angel of Harlem. Don't really hear Pride or NYD anymore either.
On streaming playlists, they aren't an "80's band", or a "90's band" or a "2000's band". because they were successful over all 3 of those decades, they often aren't on these compilation playlists.
So while Achtung brought them to a new level of greatness in the world of rock, it did alter how they were viewed, could no longer be easily labeled which makes them less likely to be heard now. But the alternative would have been them dying a slow (or quick) death trying to remake The Joshua Tree.
Either way, i do think most of their 21st century material was essential in solidifying a lasting legacy.
Sirius XM's the Spectrum is the most commonly played station in our house - because we know we're old but have occasional denial (and we're fairly certain there aren't going to be any F bombs dropped in front of the kids) so the mix of new and old is pleasing to our rapidly aging sensibilities.
U2 are played fairly often. many of the hits, but they would play the singles from SOE during that time frame as well. your song saved my life is currently in the rotation.
https://xmplaylist.com/station/thespectrum/most-heard
Achtung and Zoo TV veered U2 into the alternative rock world, but that's where they'd been for 4/6 of their albums up to that point. It's where they came from and it's their natural habitat. They didn't become mainstream in 1987 by going to the mainstream - they brought the mainstream to them.
ATYCLB and HTDAAB are essential to their legacy but I think that what's hurt them is staying in that place and adopting that version of U2 as their identity instead of continuing to evolve and change. The questions of "What will they do next, who will they be next?" were central to who they were and by NLOTH those questions had ceased to be relevant. I think they've been hurt by being predictable more than anything else.
Yep, the F bombs come by surprise sometimes. Totally forgot that the singer for Atreyu yells "Get the fuck up" in the beginning of "Underrated", and now my 5 year old has a new phrase...
#parentingfail
Wondering what their new stuff would sound like was so exciting. Biggest WTF I ever had was when they released Passengers. I'd never even heard ambient music before! And that was U2?! God, it was incredible. Not that a band can ever be expected to throw a curveball like that. But what I wouldn't give for some surprised next time around. NLOTH had some, but more than anything it carried the suggestion of a new U2. They'll never do it, but a box set of the NLOTH sessions would likely be fascinating. I want that and a comprehensive set of the Pop sessions - including the album that was "ready" in 1996.
I think that the Achtung 30th was a great opportunity to repair their legacy somewhat, but they didn't really do anything for it. I guess it doesn't jive with the Sincere U2 that they want to project. They went all out for the Joshua Tree's 30th.
Yep, the F bombs come by surprise sometimes. Totally forgot that the singer for Atreyu yells "Get the fuck up" in the beginning of "Underrated", and now my 5 year old has a new phrase...
#parentingfail
man i thought i was safe with a replay of the Buffalo show from the Working On A Dream tour being replayed on E Street Radio in the car and then Bruce goes and drops like 8 F bombs during the story part of Growing UP.
Queen of the Motherfucking Supermarket
an album full of other artists covering AB front to back.
sure. i wouldn't have minded another live release either, but to be fair, we already have official releases of Sydney and Dublin.
i swear the dublin ZooTV show saw an audio release at some point but now i can't find it. i have the release uploaded to my YT Music account though.
perhaps i'm losing my mind. highly possible.