Today is 23 November 2004, an overcast Tuesday afternoon. I have finally gotten my hands on the most expensive of the 4389304984 formats that U2's 11th studio record, 'How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb', was released in today in the U.S.(Our friends in Europe got the record yesterday).
I have given it a listen, all 12 tracks - the U.S. Super-Duper-Ultra-Limited Box Edition of the record DOES include 'Fast Cars', the track left of the regulation U.S. copies of the record - to give the record its official Christining, if you will, in this househould. Having heard it countless times in the last two weeks due to the leak, however, I have listened to the record more than enough to give an accurate and meaningful review.
Is this record of the quality witnessed on such U2 epics like 1991's 'Achtung Baby' or 1987's 'Joshua Tree'? No. Is this record a clone of the generally bland(though critically acclaimed) 2000 release, 'All That You Can't Leave Behind'? No, it's far better. Is this record a return to the industrial-techno-dance genre that U2 immersed themselves in for the better part of a decade during the 90s? With the exception of one track, no. So then, you ask, what IS this record? The answer is simple: This record is a great rock record from one of the great and seminmal presences in rock history. And while this record doesn't have the sheer brilliance of earlier U2 releases, it does have about 5 times the heart and passion(not to mention the quality of Bono's vocals) as the aforementioned 2000 release, and it has some damn good songwriting as well.
'Vertigo', the opening track, is also the first single and as such, everyone has heard it by now. This is U2 101, and it is U2 with its first straight-on rocker in some time. Traces of U2 lore can be heard here - the presence of the ghosts of 'Even Better Than The Real Thing', 'The Fly' ,'I Will Follow', and 'Beautiful Day' are unmistakable to the ear of any longtime U2 fan. With a catchy-as-hell chorus and one of Edge's loudest and hardest solos of the record, as well as some brand new Bono lyric-catch-phrases(Just give me want I want and no one gets hurt; swinging with the music), this was the perfect choice for a first single. 7/10
'Miracle Drug' is one of the best songs on the record. Parts of it we've heard U2 do a million times before, other parts of it sound fresh and new. The meaning behind the chorus and indeed the whole song is the search for a cure for any number of as-yet-uncured diseases, AIDs, paralysis, and others among them. According to the band, this song was additionally inspired by the plight of an old school friend. Perhaps more than any other track on the record, Edge shows off his individual brilliance here, with a spine-chilling solo late in the song, and then a rare stint as lead vocalist for one bridge. But true to form, for his first lead vocal since 1993's 'Numb', he chose to sing some of the best lyrics on the entire record - "Beneath the noise/Below the din/I hear a voice/It's whispering/In science and in medicine/I was a stranger/You took me in" - just before Bono soars back in with the final chorus, which has a slightly altered melody from the first chorus that improves said chrous by 500%. This is the first classic of the record. 10/10
'Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own' is the signature power-ballad U2 places on every record it records. But perhaps this one, while not having the lyrical genius of 'One' or the musical genius of 'With Or Without You', is more personal to the band and Bono in particular than either of the aforementioned ballads. This song was written about Bono's relationship with his late father Bob, who passed away in late 2001. However personal it may be, it expresses a sentiment legions of people can relate to - "And it's you when I look in the mirror/And it's you when I don't pick up the phone/Sometimes you can't make it/on your own". These lyrics are sung in a heartbreakingly beautiful falsetto by Bono, and Edge adds backing vocals later in the song. And while the song speeds up midway through, it never loses its underlying sentiment. It tugs even more in the final chorus when Bono adds "Best you can do/Is to fake it/Sometimes you can't make it/on your own". How many times have you faked being 'ok' when you're really not? This is the second classic on the record, and of the best ballads U2 have recorded in the past decade, right up there with 'Miss Sarajevo'. 10/10
'Love And Peace Or Else' is the one track on the record that takes a page from the industrial-techno-dance-obsessed U2 of the 90s. If you have any doubts about Adam Clayton's abilities as a bassist, listen to this song. Your doubts will mysteriously vanish as if they never existed. Clayton is indeed the star for the first minute of this very thumpy rocky electronic peace anthem, until Bono and Edge kick in. I don't know where so many critics have gotten the idea that there are no politics on this record, because this song is obviously about the concept of talking vs fighting. For a flaming, bleeding-heart liberal like myself, seeing the greatest band in the world tear through a quite catch techno-rocker like this with the purpose of sending the message of love and peace or else, is quite liberating and energy-raising. "I don't know if I can take it/I'm not easy on my knees/here's my heart I'll let you break it/we need some release/we need love and peace". Indeed. A welcome return to tehcnoville for U2, especially for fans like me who thought 'All That You Can't Leave Behind' meant U2 had lost the courage to make a songs like this anymore. 9/10
'City Of Blinding Lights' is infuriatingly catchy. It's the kind of song you can't get out of your head even if you were labotomized. But that's ok, because where other songs in the aforementioned category, like Whitney Houston's 'I Will Always Love You', are migrane-inducing, this song is great, and touching when you consider the context. Now, I know what you're thinking as you hear the first minute of this song: Do I have this Journey CD? What happened to the new U2 record? And then the Journey-esque keyboards(which are, again, infuriatingly catchy) finish, and the band comes in to start the song that, in my ever-so-humble opinion, has more live potential than any other song on this record. The city being referred to is none other than New York City, and the song is simply about when U2 played the Fall shows there during the Elevation Tour 2001, shortly after 9/11, and how emotional the crowds there were. In this context, the chorus lyrics "Oh you look so beautiful/Tonight/In the city/Of blinding lights" mean quite a bit more than you may have thought at first. This song is only made better by Edge's backing vocals during the repetitions of the final chorus, which I think are quite brilliant. This is the third classic on this record. 10/10
'All Because Of You' might be a little overrated already, if you ask me. I only say this because it's the most repetative song on the record. However, save for Vertigo, this is the most straight-up rock number on the record, and it is blistering at times. Bono is either singing this song to Jesus or to his fans or to his wife or to his dog, take your pick, use your imagination. The great thing about U2's religious songs is that they don't have to be religious if you don't want them to be, which bodes well for people like me who generally don't share U2's beliefs(or any religious beliefs). This song definitely hits its high point in its last third, where Edge does a mini-solo, Bono screams, and then Edge goes all out. Bono screaming is cool. Unless you have ginger-colored hair and think you're cooler than you are, you will agree(inside joke for Poplemoners). Should be killer live. Expect the kind of improvement of this song when played live that 'Bullet The Blue Sky' got when played live. 7/10
'A Man And A Woman' is one of the most unique songs on the record. It's almost an acoustic ballad, a cross of 'Love Comes Tumbling', 'The Three Sunrises', and an acoustic 'Mysterious Ways', if you will, to create something I've never heard U2 do before, but it is utterly beautiful and a personal favorite of mine. I've noticed that a lot of people are quick to say this is a weak track. I don't know why. The acoustic guitars and the harmonies of Bono and Edge's vocals together, as well as the lyrics - it is another love song, but it speaks of perhaps the most mature love Bono has ever written about - make for a chilling experience, for me at least. 10/10
'Crumbs From Your Table' is a semi-straight-on rocker. It is very similar to the post 9/11 anthem 'Walk On', except it's less melodic and is much rockier. When sings the chorus - "I would believe/If I was able/I'm leaning on the crumbs/From Your table" - I am musically reminded of Velvet Revolver's 'Fall To Pieces'. That is a good thing. There isn't a whole lot to say about this song except that it is a grower, and while it may not seem great the first time you hear it, it gets better and better with each listen. 9/10
'One Step Closer' is a very instrumental song - again about Bono and his late father - that sounds like it could have come straight off U2's ill-fated - but nontheless farking brilliant - 90s side project, 'Passengers Original Soundtracks #1'. It has the same relaxing, other-worldly ambiance that the aforementioned record did, and really settles you down after a block of songs that were mostly rock numbers. The sentiment in this song is pretty universal - after you've been through anything deep and life-altering, you're 'one step closer to knowing'. 8/10
'Original Of The Species' - first thing's first: This is the coolest U2 song title since 'Mofo' from 1997's unfairly critically dismissed 'Pop'. However, this is a very different song. This song is another power ballad, but this time it's about celebrating new life and the uniqueness of every life, and about how no one should be afraid to be themself. This song is quite interesting because it has several well-defined parts. First you have the quiet beginning - "You are the first one of your kind" - then you have the bridge - "And you feel like no one before" - then the chorus, one of the most beautiful choruses U2 have put out in years - "Everywhere you go/You shout it/You don't have to be shy/About it", then it goes through it all again before culminating with a coda - "I want you some more/I want you some more" - and concluding with Bono and Edge harmonizing without descipherable words - "Oh no, Oh no, Oh no". This song was featured in Bono's 60 Minutes interview several years ago. A lot of fans wondered what it was, and are now rewarded for the wait by seeing it here. This is the fourth classic on this record. 10/10
'Yahweh' - U2 have a tradition of putting depressing downer type songs to finish their records, so it was a surprise to many fans when this, the final song on the regulation formats of this record, was uplifting and anthemic. There's not a whole lot to this song, but the chorus just makes you feel good. 'Yahweh' is Hebrew for 'God', but I can ignore it if it's on music this good. Lest I forget, Edge shines sublty on this song. But as good as it is, I wouldn't go as far as saying it's U2's best closer since "40", as many fans have suggested since the record leaked. See, that would be saying it's better than 'All I Want Is You' and 'Love Is Blindness' and, it's just not. Great and uplifting closer nontheless. 8/10
'Fast Cars' is the track that initially was only going to be on the UK presses of the record, and then was added to the box editions of the record worldwide. And I'm happy as hell it did. This is a fantastic song and is more experimental than anything on the regulation record except for 'Love And Peace Or Else'. This has a very Middle-Eastern influence, and is incredibly catchy. The record's title comes from a line in this song("They're in the desert to dismantle an atomic bomb"), so it is a bit ironic that this song only made certain editions of the record. It should have been on all of them. The interlude after the second chorus in which both Bono and Edge sing - "Don't you worry 'bout your mind/Don't you worry 'bout your mind/Don't you worry 'bout your mind/Don't you worry 'bout your mind/You should worry about the day/That the pain it goes away/You know I miss mine sometimes" - is brilliant. The two men's voices compliment each other perfectly and this is a perfect example of that. This might cause some to roll their eyes, but this is the fifth classic on this record. 10/10
Overall this record gets a 9/10. I don't give it a 9/10 because I think it's that close to 'Achtung Baby' or 'Joshua Tree', I give it a 9/10 because the album is consistantly great all the way through. It's not epic, but it's great. There is a difference. That said, I will say what everyone else seems to be saying: Bono's voice sounds better than it has in a decade, Edge is playing guitar like hasn't since at least 'Pop', maybe before, and Clayton and drummer(also founder) Larry Mullen Jr. have shown on this record why they're one of the great rhythm sections(and they were even better on 'Pop'). Finally, don't ever listen to Bono. He said it was an all out rock record. It's not. Nobody's surprised. It is the best record of 2004 though, and perhaps one of the top 5 records U2 have ever recorded, in terms of consistancy and performance, even if it doesn't have the cinematic epic quality of their 80s work or the sheer dark brilliance of their 90s work. Get the Bomb today.
This review will be out in paperback by the end of the month.
P.S.I'm posting this on other forums too.