Is This The Best U2 Album Ever?!

[Amiarockstar]

I'm reserving judgement until I hear it live. Recording wise, it's top notch but it must take me to that other place. U2's good at doing that, but HTDAAB didn't really do that for me. Some songs on ATYCLB did. So we'll see where it stands when they play it live!

 

[Amiarockstar]

After all, U2 is a live band!

 

[BOYO3221]

Achtung is StILL the best...that album redefined music for a decade. its lyrics were much deeper and heartfelt , prolly due to the edges marriage disolving and boys turning into men. but i am liking this album more and more, but i do not have it anywhere near those classics, i think we need to turn down the excitement and see what we think in a few months before we can judge it with the others. i think everyone is juiced up on adrenaline..as am i. but c'mon its good but let's wait and see....and i'm no newbie fan either '84 and from experience these albums change as time moves forward about how we feel about them...lets relax and "breeeeaaaaathe"

 

[T_Mack]

Thats just my opinion, it could be affected by the hype of the last 24 hours, but nevertheless!

As a new member, I'm curious as to the hype with Bomb or ATYCLB... Did it compare to the craziness here in the last 24 hours?.. or is this album just that much better, as I believe it is?

 

[cseggleton]

best ever in my opinion as far as cohesiveness. its crazy but i do not hear a killer all time single on the album but i love the sound and feel of the whole album. i am not sure if Linear is going to include all the songs but i could see this album being set to a movie as it just feels bigger than an album by itself.

 

[ABLE]

u2 making music like this hitting 50..an unexpected joy...i've had an uber shitey day and this album has blown me away just like joshua tree and achtung baby did on first listen....although nothing will ever beat the unforgettable fire as a song..unknown caller is trying to pass on the inside.

 

[xaviMF22]

lol @ HTDAAB

 

[johnb137]

yeah this album has no clear single that will be a radio success like jt, ab and atyclb do. so i predict it will be a hardcore u2 fans' favorite like uf or zooropa. but stilll wont be a considered a masterpiece by the mainstream. but i loveooove it to death specially the first four songs...

 

[Catman]

yeah this album has no clear single that will be a radio success like jt, ab and atyclb do. so i predict it will be a hardcore u2 fans' favorite like uf or zooropa. but stilll wont be a considered a masterpiece by the mainstream. but i loveooove it to death specially the first four songs...

I'm inclined to agree with this. After HTDAAB, I can't say I really expected this record... U2 really hit this one out of the park

 

[AEKU2]

It will be considered a masterpiece and probably there best in a few months once the dust settles. Joshua Tree's second side wasn't as strong and Achtung Baby may have redefined U2 but it wasnt as jouyous as NLOTH. To be honest it is JT and AB merged.

 

[dan_smee]

Hmm, i dont know. I could have sworn COBL would have been a huge radio song. It wasn't. I could have sworn WITS would have. It wasn't.

I would not be surprised if Magnificent and IGCIFHGFAHJSDA aren't major hits based on my poor judgement.

 

[dan_smee]

It will be considered a masterpiece and probably there best in a few months once the dust settles. Joshua Tree's second side wasn't as strong and Achtung Baby may have redefined U2 but it wasnt as jouyous as NLOTH. To be honest it is JT and AB merged.

I said this earlier. I believe it is the consistancy of AB, but the best songs are the quality of JT

 

[Ladera Heights]

After about 15 listens and 24 hours later, I still say their its best work ever. After years of Bono hyping up their next record as their best ever, it actually happened. I'm crying as I listen to this masterpiece. The only potential filler was Stand Up Comedy, but it really came through - I was sure it was crap from the 22 second clip. Fuckin ay, I can't believe what I'm listening to.

The stars have aligned. Pop Adam's bass playing is here, Larry's beats are still the same, but arranged more dynamically to its strengths, Edge's signature figures are the same, but arranged more dynamically to its strengths, and the songwriting is really sophisticated, complex and mature. NLOTH even feels like a Pink Floyd record, with the cheesy techno-references in the lyrics. This is my wet dream cum true.

 

[artdirector]

I think this album by far beats the last two albums. As best ever, close but no cigar. I think its the best since Achtung. Why? The songs are all unique and listenable. Not one make me cringe except maybe for one. The rest really emotionally touch the senses. From beginning to end it lives. Its not a loud rock album. Its UF part 2 with a little of the joshua tree and Achtung mixed in. I dont see any of the last albums in this album. I think if ENO had his way it could have been UF part 2 but I think the band realised they didn't want it that way.

 

[ShipOfFools]

As a new member, I'm curious as to the hype with Bomb or ATYCLB... Did it compare to the craziness here in the last 24 hours?.. or is this album just that much better, as I believe it is?

I'd like to know that myself. I wasn't a member here when ATYCLB or Bomb came out (but I was a fan), so I never heard any leaks. I just bought the album on the day that it came out.

With this album, I'm hearing it two weeks earlier than I'm buying it. Plus, I was here through the crazyness before the leak. It's a different experience.

 

[Ladera Heights]

I respectfully disagree, because I know what you mean about Achtung. But, this album is better because this collection has a sophistication Achtung didn't have. The songwriting here is spectacular. The production is spectacular.

Achtung, for me, had some real big duds. Zoo Station, EBTTRT, Wild Horses, So Cruel. This album is fuckin amazing from end to end.

I think this album by far beats the last two albums. As best ever, close but no cigar. I think its the best since Achtung. Why? The songs are all unique and listenable. Not one make me cringe except maybe for one. The rest really emotionally touch the senses. From beginning to end it lives. Its not a loud rock album. Its UF part 2 with a little of the joshua tree and Achtung mixed in. I dont see any of the last albums in this album. I think if ENO had his way it could have been UF part 2 but I think the band realised they didn't want it that way.

 

[Popmartijn]

As a new member, I'm curious as to the hype with Bomb or ATYCLB... Did it compare to the craziness here in the last 24 hours?.. or is this album just that much better, as I believe it is?

This is what I said earlier in this thread:

Then you're one of the few. Substitute NLOTH with HTDAAB and you have almost the same thread as there was on this forum a bit more than 4 years ago.

For comparison, take a look at this thread, which has Interference reactions to HTDAAB after that one was released: http://www.u2interference.com/forums/f288/merged-fan-reviews-of-htdaab-here-101399.html

Different album, but the same reaction.

 

[hasin73]

There is a two-way tie between AB and NLOTH.

 

[edgeplaytheblue]

This is an impossible thread. It is impossible to rate an album as the BEST just after 24 hours. It is definitely the best they've done in the 2000's. But then ... is it better than AB or JT. I can't tell right now, because I know all the ins and outs of AB and JT. NLOTH still has be figured what is going on there ....

So no verdict here ... in a couple of years we can tell. I thought bomb was superb too when it came out, but looking back at it now I skip lots and lots of songs on that CD.

 

[Irishteen]

I really don't think this album is their best but the more I listen to it the more I love it, definitely top 5 or 4 or 3. AB and TUF are better but that's the only thing I'm sure of.

I wasn't here when Bomb was released, I remember my first listen though. Only 3 songs stood out to me, COBL, Fast Cars and I can't remember the last one. I didn't fake out and act like it was the greatest thing ever like some people. Although my superfandom started soon after and the record grew on me and I did love it for a while but at that moment in time I loved everything the band released.

 

[theedge2009]

I am dizzy at the thought of saying this...

After 5 listens on my home stereo surround system...this album is not only equal to Achtung Baby, which I cant believe I am saying!!!, it could possibly be better....

my God....not in my dreams did I think this would happen...

 

[clerks]

Are you saying their best album as in "your favorite" or the band's best work? Or is it one and the same?

Joshua Tree has 3 songs that made U2 the biggest band in the world... but AB to me is the best of the bunch... but I love all the stuff they put out after that.

Really enjoying this one... but wow is it too early... it hasn't even officially been released and now it's better than an album from 1991 or 1987 that has been with us for over 20 years? Come on now...

At least give it a month before we "all go crazy tonight"

And just a side note MIRACLE DRUG and WHO'S GONNA RIDE YOUR WILD HORSES are 2 of my favorite U2 songs and are constantly based as "duds" -- just makes me enjoy them more.

 

[SecretFly]

Well I am at a different stage of my life and Achtung Baby and Zooropa are of sentimental value to me and will always be my two equal favourites. So far I am liking what I am hearing on NLOTH but whether the songs will stand the test of time is another question. This album is better than bomb hands down but whether it is better than the POP and ATYCLB is another question. Give it another another 50 to 100 listens and maybe I will be able to rank this album.

 

[clerks]

Exactly... Rattle and Hum was the first album I bought and got me in the band, so it would be higher on my list than others... best album is different for each depending.

I'm 30... so it's tough to replace the joy of a teenager hearing a new album and being touched by it...

But No Line might be coming out when you're in high school and that can really hit home...

So many factors. Right now to me its a cool album, but I'm doesn't feel like it has any singles which is cool in a way, but I'm not used to that too... it's a grower for sure...

I just feel this happens every new album. Best Ever! So my first theory is this can't be the best album, until they stop putting them out as the next one is the best one ever...

 

[SBU2]

Yeah i got the album yesterday, now its on my ipod

Anyway from my first listen i was really happy, the sonic stuff they have introduced was a great move, its modern and it really works well. My fav ATM is Magnificent, but i can feel " crazy and unknown caller growing over me ". Love the riff in stand up, really makes up get up and go wild lol. Anyway like the rest said, its hard to say yet if its there best, but atm im enjoying it more than others.

 

[drbono]

24 hours have passed and things have changed for me a little. Sure, it's great to come across an album where all the songs are "cohesive". And the new sounds are exciting. But I love U2 because there are songs that I keep coming back to, even after over 20 years in some cases... I haven't across such consistent song longevity as I have with U2.

I am judging these new & past songs based on whether I really look forward to & enjoy listening to them over & over again. And so, after several listens of NLOTH, I cannot say it's one of their greatest albums as there are already a few which are being skipped...

Magnificent, Crazy, MOS & Unknown Caller will keep me excited about the modern-day U2. I suspect from GOYB onwards will fall into the same category as Grace / Miami / Playboy Mansion and not be played much. For me, the first 5 songs set this album up to be their 3rd masterpiece but, unfortunately, I just don't get the last 5 songs.

In my eyes, equal to HTDAAB & ATYCLB. Better than POP. So far behind Achtung Baby...

 

[ywamperth]

I think it bodes well for the album that I am only scratching the surface of the lyrics on the first half a dozen listens. The music and the vocals here have tremendous depth.

 

[LyricalDrug]

I think it's their true 4th masterpiece.

 

[vivaSA]

really?

U2 Feedback - View Single Post - MERGED-->Fan Reviews of HTDAAB Here

But I said I "really, really liked it". I never said that it is almost as good as Achtung Baby. :embarassed:

At the end of the day, I think HTDAAB is the album that I have listened the least out of all U2 albums.

 

[ludilobrate]

24 hours have passed and things have changed for me a little. Sure, it's great to come across an album where all the songs are "cohesive". And the new sounds are exciting. But I love U2 because there are songs that I keep coming back to, even after over 20 years in some cases... I haven't across such consistent song longevity as I have with U2.

I am judging these new & past songs based on whether I really look forward to & enjoy listening to them over & over again. And so, after several listens of NLOTH, I cannot say it's one of their greatest albums as there are already a few which are being skipped...

Magnificent, Crazy, MOS & Unknown Caller will keep me excited about the modern-day U2. I suspect from GOYB onwards will fall into the same category as Grace / Miami / Playboy Mansion and not be played much. For me, the first 5 songs set this album up to be their 3rd masterpiece but, unfortunately, I just don't get the last 5 songs.

In my eyes, equal to HTDAAB & ATYCLB. Better than POP. So far behind Achtung Baby...

Come on man! whole album is fantastic there is no way that only first half is fantastic!Maybe the first half is catchier but the second half as good as first one...please listen it cafrefully.

HTAAB and ATYCLB are great albums with some great tunes...but this album is so much deeeper than them! This album has no weak tune,its so cohesive...so it has potential to be third masterpiece...and let the time to show us!