Daniel Lanois weighs in on SOI/Apple

[Joey788]

I think someone like Nigel Godrich or Beck would be a good choice. I love everything John Congleton produces too.

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[Flying FuManchu]

U2 is responsible for the music that they put out which is why they torpedoed some of Danger Mouse's work with them and brought in Tedder. I didn't read anything negative from the interview. Also, if you listen to Lanois' albums, he's far from boring on them as opposed to NLOTH which goes to show U2's fingerprints were probably all over that album (NLOTH) as well. In the end, I blame Rick Rubin!


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[Irvine511]

and to think, we'd have that proper DM album if the band hadn't been utterly blindsided by their Oscar loss to Adele Dazeem.

after weeks of sobbing and morose soul searching, it seems the band did their best to Disney-up the album so they could better appeal to 6-year old Frozen set.

 

[gvox]

Wait - we can blame SOI on the Oscars?

 

[Hewson]

 

[Cancer45]

What I remember hearing is the album was more of invisible than ordinary love. Then I remember the reaction invisible got which was a whole lot of meh.

 

[Hollow Island]

Is there any band more manipulated by their perception of public opinion than U2? They collectively need to see a shrink and get some balls. They're alternately arrogant and infuriatingly insecure.

 

[Flying FuManchu]

They love that Beautiful Day/ Vertigo money!


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[Nick66]

They're alternately arrogant and infuriatingly insecure.

You've pretty much described every celebrity in the world.

 

[Irvine511]

They love that Beautiful Day/ Vertigo money!


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more like Beautiful PAYDAY and VertiGOLD!

 

[Flying FuManchu]

more like Beautiful PAYDAY and VertiGOLD!

?


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[Headache in a Suitcase]

and to think, we'd have that proper DM album if the band hadn't been utterly blindsided by their Oscar loss to Adele Dazeem.

after weeks of sobbing and morose soul searching, it seems the band did their best to Disney-up the album so they could better appeal to 6-year old Frozen set.

 

[thavidesco]

I listened to Lanois yesterday a bit and his latest album is some arty noise, it didn´t impress me much. His older songs sounded like Running to stand still rewrites without momentum.

 

[Nick66]

I listened to Lanois yesterday a bit and his latest album is some arty noise, it didn´t impress me much. His older songs sounded like Running to stand still rewrites without momentum.

Well, normally I'd say you've come to the wrong place if you want to slam Danny Lanois musical abilities and knowledge, but sadly you're not alone here in your opinion. And I'd say most of your "partners" here are roughly on par with your level of musical taste & knowledge.

 

[thavidesco]

So you like Lanois solo stuff? What is your favorite part?

 

[Salome]

The chorus.

 

[womanfish]

Is there any band more manipulated by their perception of public opinion than U2? They collectively need to see a shrink and get some balls. They're alternately arrogant and infuriatingly insecure.

This sums things up perfectly.
Seeing the link of the Pop Hong Kong mixes, and hearing the space they were in at that time, really just kills me. I think they were in a great spot there with confidence and experimentation mixing well together.

I think at times they forget that while they are considered a great band, that they still have a very large group of fairweather followers.
When that group gets annoyed by something they do and drop off, the band seems to freak out.

Then we get ho-hum album like ATYCLB, the fairweathers come back and they take that as being direction they need to go...

That was the one thing that made them stand apart during their first 17-18 years as a band. Nothing was like Boy at that time, War was at odds with everything in 1984, as was JT. Completely in a different world than what was on the radio in the late 80's.
They explored their own passions with R&H. And then when that was critically panned, they didn't scurry back into a hole and record another War or JT, they busted out AB!! And it worked! And while grunge and Boy Bands ruled the scene - Mysterious Ways and One were all over the radio, defying the odds.
And then they said, we're gonna take it step further with Zooropa. The band that had Desire playing non-stop on MTV in 1988, now had Lemon and Numb being played on MTV. You couldn't even imagine those songs being from the same band. But they had the balls, and it worked.

Then when they had snags and some misteps with Pop's release and timing, and first single/video choice, and tour prep, TV special flop, etc... It seems like that was one of the first times that they let it get to them, and it's never been the same since.
I still love what they do, love their shows, love SOI, etc... But they never recovered from that and have allowed themselves to remain stuck in the "please the masses" mindset.

 

[thavidesco]

Yes, you are right, until the last record the last attempt to make an authentic record without thoughts in mind like "we need to be the biggest", "we need to be at the top of the charts" "Existence of U2 is to be relevant for masses" was Pop. I always appreaciated that even the final result didn´t work out as they wanted.

 

[LemonMelon]

until the last record

The band that sold an album with California and Song for Someone on it to Apple for $10 million had no interest in money or commercial relevance this time around. OK.

 

[thavidesco]

For sure they had, they are clever businessmen, but the record doesn´t sound like it got affected by compromises in a bad way like the previous did. This time they let their instincts lead them.

 

[djerdap]

You just keep telling yourself that.

 

[thavidesco]

I just keep listening to the record

 

[womanfish]

Yes, you are right, until the last record the last attempt to make an authentic record without thoughts in mind like "we need to be the biggest", "we need to be at the top of the charts" "Existence of U2 is to be relevant for masses" was Pop. I always appreaciated that even the final result didn´t work out as they wanted.

I think that's kind of the point of what i was saying. I think they actually were happy with POP when they released it, but after all the backlash, and slow ticket sales, etc... They retroactively disowned a lot of it, saying it wasn't fully realized. That's what I mean about that being the first time they let the public get to them and dictate what their next move was.

I'm sorry, but I will take Mofo, Gone, DYFL, SATS, Please, LNOE, WUDM, etc... over three quarters of the material on ATYCLB, Bomb and No Line.

 

[topplehatU2]

I would be a fan of the live thing, they did that on the end of the 360 Tour though.

 

[thavidesco]

That's what I mean about that being the first time they let the public get to them and dictate what their next move was.

I think it is exactly what happened, they lost their self confidence, they suddenly didn´t know what to do and they started to feel very uneasy because of decreasing popularity.

 

[ozeeko]

Not for nothing, but I think they were more focused on ATYCLB once they got the ball rolling. I know, thavidesco, that you think ATYCLB is the nadir of music as we know it, but it was pretty straightforward - simple and emotionally direct pop songs. POP, on the other hand, and while I do like it better, was borne out of a more confused time for U2.

 

[thavidesco]

Not for nothing, but I think they were more focused on ATYCLB once they got the ball rolling. I know, thavidesco, that you think ATYCLB is the nadir of music as we know it, but it was pretty straightforward - simple and emotionally direct pop songs. POP, on the other hand, and while I do like it better, was borne out of a more confused time for U2.

Yes, Pop is a confused record, record that doesn´t know what it wants to be. It is unfinished, U2 songs in dance arrangement doesn´t work. SOngs like Playboy Mansion or Miami are hopeless crap. Yes. But at least they tried to challenge themselves with something authentic.
On the contrary ATYCLB was a safe record for the radios to please the pop kids, which is the worst approach you can have as an artist.

 

[ozeeko]

On the contrary ATYCLB was a safe record for the radios to please the pop kids, which is the worst approach you can have as an artist.

Yea, because SOI is just nothing but risk, right?

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Not for nothing, but Pop was closer to what was being played on popular radio in the late 90s than All That You Can't Leave Behind was in the early 2000s.

 

[ozeeko]

Not for nothing, but Pop was closer to what was being played on popular radio in the late 90s than All That You Can't Leave Behind was in the early 2000s.

Word.