Let's talk these new leaked demos

[Registered Dude]

DISCLAIMER: I dont know if this shit is real

We don't know where they came from, or when they were recorded. But, they're obviously U2, and judging by the character of Bono's voice, they're seemingly quite recent.

For those who don't know, these were made available by another poster in the 55 unfinished songs thread. The poster offered no info on where the clips came from.

Hear for yourself:
U2 - Mystery Demos, 2012 - YouTube


Thoughts:
- Bono's singing gibberish.. this is more of a demo/jam than it is a finished song
- The video above was made from two clips. They seem to be variations on the same piece of music
- The audio clips were labelled with a file name that included 13-02-12. Could this mean they were recorded on this date?
- Sounds like a pretty typical U2 anthem in the making.. I dont mean that to sound negative, but this has all the hallmarks of the U2 sound
- I don't hear waves; we're not talking beach clips. So, where on Earth were these recorded? Soundcheck? outside the studio?


Your thoughts?

 

[Vlad n U 2]

boon pls

 

[Registered Dude]

boon pls

indeed.

So, someone at the atu2 forum is claiming these are from 2011 Anaheim sound checks, which would make sense.

Which would suggest that this is a piece of music that originated pre-RedOne. Songs of Ascent prospect perhaps?

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

we've seen enough behind the scenes things of u2 in the recording process to pretty much venture a guess that they're working on something new right there, with bono trying to fill in a melody over the music before actually having real words.

 

[Registered Dude]

Ok I've just listened to the Anaheim soundcheck.. cant find anything that sounds like what I've got posted above.


so, again, where have these come from?

Interesting that the original poster wont answer this.

 

[mama cass]

i think Blue Room's gone into hiding!

 

[lemonfly]

My 2c: it definitely sounds like them (or that's the best Bono vocal impersonator that ever lived). The sound quality is too cohesive and pristine for it to be someone standing outside the studio recording it on their phone. It seems to be a legit studio recording of a session. And I don't think it's recent, certainly not this year. For one thing, it's not the kind of sonic "departure" that one would presume they have been exploring with DM and RedOne. This recording is more in spirit with EBW. So I'd put it at 2010/11.

 

[joaoclaudiobh]

New "Salome" is coming up!!!

It's not a soundcheck... for me, this is a brand new songs... fresh and very nude versions direct from a early 2012 rehearsal studio jam!

Salome "era" reborn my friends!!! totally diferent from the old beach clips... forget breeze and wave sounds...new "stolen" studio version is coming up!

Blue Room.. God bless your soul!

 

[mama cass]

new "stolen" studio version is coming up!

i'm sorry but that's really dodgy if someone on the inside is leaking stuff without permission...

 

[zoocarolina]

This is all starting to sound watergateish, second clip sounds more promising, but again these seem like real rough sketches from an unknown timeframe, let the conspiracies begin!

 

[zoocarolina]

Sounds very SOAish, but I cringe typing that BC who really knows what that concept really sounds like besides a little EBW and Soon, possibly. Would just like a date for placement, but I would guess this is not DM material, sounds too U2 for that, hopefully we will know eventually.

 

[joaoclaudiobh]

It's not a soundcheck... for me, this is a brand new songs... fresh and very nude versions direct from a early 2012 rehearsal studio jam!

Salome "era" reborn my friends!!! totally diferent from the old beach clips... forget breeze and wave sounds...new "stolen" studio version is coming up!

Blue Room.. God bless your soul!

"Salome 20th anniversary Super Deluxe Edition"

 

[Ronnie269]

Well all I gotta add, is that it sounds pretty good to me!

Hopefully U2 deliver the goods this year!

 

[popacrobat]

major facepalmage

 

[Sicy]

For those who don't know, these were made available by another poster in the 55 unfinished songs thread. The poster offered no info on where the clips came from.

He posted stating he was just joking about the clips being new. He asked to have the links removed from his post. So its anyone's guess as to where they came from or what they are.

 

[jay canseco]

Well it's obvious that Bono is leaking the clips himself.

 

[LadySpinHead]

Well it's obvious that Bono is leaking the clips himself.

Isn't that part of the new album process? Edge ignites on fire, (or travels to space, or both), Bono loses the tapes?

Larry scowls?

 

[Registered Dude]

He posted stating he was just joking about the clips being new. He asked to have the links removed from his post. So its anyone's guess as to where they came from or what they are.

true.. but on a board full of die-hard fanatics, it's interesting that he's the only one who's come across these clips.

 

[Niceman]

They obviously are new. They obviously are U2.

Any comments about anyone joking aren't going to persuade me otherwise.

 

[purpleoscar]

true.. but on a board full of die-hard fanatics, it's interesting that he's the only one who's come across these clips.

Exactly. What the hell are they? Some of the instrumentation sounds a little different than they've done before and reminds me of REM but it's of course too small a sample. The vocals are closer to what they did on Unforgettable fire.


EDIT: BlueRoom has a lot of posts. Is he going to disappear now?

 

[silkensky]

Just going by the tone of Bono's voice here, it sure sounds like sometime within the past year. Neither clip sounds even remotely similar to the Anaheim soundcheck, but I would bet they're from a soundcheck during the 2011 leg. East Lansing, MI perhaps? . It's an IEM recording without the click.

 

[The_Edge89]

Have lurked for too long but I felt a need to contribute to the discussion in this thread.

In addition to the 13/02/12 label, filename also says HQ, doesn't it?
It could either mean the obvious High Quality but also Hanover Quay offering a location.
Also, there is no doubt in my mind that this is recent and that Bono is the vocalist. I'm not sure who are playing the other instruments though, we can't say for sure that this is Adam Larry and Edge without proper confirmation. It might be an unreleased solo venture for all we know. Didn't Bono work on some Pixar thing? Maybe this is an outtake from that? An unused Spider-man demo? Let's not get ahead of ourselves.

We pretty much don't know anything yet.

My take on the lyrics for the first one, sounding very reminiscent of Luminous Times (Hold On To Love):

No…
Oh, oh
Oh God, your feet are on the ground
I know you came because I’m ’round

I gotta defame
It blocks then shines the soul
You can’t control us now
You changed my – -

As mentioned, the second piece might be part of a the same track but this section to me sounds very much like A Room At The Heartbreak Hotel.

Reunite to feed your soul
More than I believe, you’re going up
Up
Think about us in the row
Sent you down and be a known
Son…

Are U2 still glorifying the past while the future dries up? I think so. They really shouldn't be hunting for a thirty year old sound.

I will go away and dream it all up again since I lost my U2 mojo two years ago and not even this excites me.
*enters lurk mode*

 

[Gilead12]

Excites me. Reminds me of Bono talking about needing something more "light-footed."

Of course that's the kind of thing that can get produced away, but these feel like they have more space to me.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

Well, keep in mind a lot of their early demos can sound both bland and old-fashioned. Always is an early version of Beautiful day, right? But it has nothing of the spark of the final version of the song. Hell, even the 'baby' disc is pretty unspectacular compared to the final version of Achtung baby.
And listening to all the early, early demos of Achtung baby (before any real songs were formed), all the jams sounded much more heavily influenced by joshua/rattle and hum-era u2 trying to sound both 'dance' and 'country' at the same time, long before they adopted the industrial sound.

So, when i hear a demo like this new one, which sounds kind of bland, lacking a real punch or hook, and lacking a sonic departure, i'm not really worried, because all their early stuff seems to sound like that.

 

[zoocarolina]

I had found them and posted them from a Larry Mullen jr Facebook page so we have more than one corroborating source. HQ does appear to be Hanover Quay and it seriously sounds like Bono just messing around, early, sort of Bongolese, for what project, more qsts than answers to say the least.

 

[zoocarolina]

Hoping they are not starting from scratch for sure back in Feb, you figure after all this time, the DM stuff should be pretty stable and let's hope by nit sitting on it for so long has caused re-evaluation.

 

[nielsgov]

It sounds pretty good. But what are the chances of us actually hearing it on a U2 album? Small, methinks.

 

[corianderstem]

I had found them and posted them from a Larry Mullen jr Facebook page so we have more than one corroborating source.

But did they just snag them from Blue Room's clips? I only started seeing them on Facebook and other U2 sites after they showed up here.

 

[JoRu]

Bono's vocals sound quite tired compared to now when they're not touring, so I'm guessing 2010/2011 studio work.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

The answer is obvious, me thinks...

BlueRoom is Fake Edge.