***HERE IS THE COMPLETE INTERVIEW!!
New U2 album 'fantastically innovative'
By Michael Oliveira, THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO - If you ask Canadian record producer Daniel Lanois about how U2's work-in-progress album sounds, he'll say it's "fantastically innovative" and "some of their best work."
But before Lanois gets back to tinkering with the tracks - the album is one of 2009's most anticipated releases - he's tackling his real "dream project," touring in support of his own music.
Lanois just finished two weeks of recording work with the Irish mega-band in New York and will now play a handful of shows in Ontario and Boston before flying to London, England, for another 10 days in the studio with U2.
Playing music live is a critical part of being a good producer because it helps reinforce what makes a good song that connects with listeners, Lanois said in a telephone interview.
"By performing live it really helps me to do better work in the studio, because you become aware of what works in the presence of an audience," he said.
"It's a necessary part of one's awareness and education, and you'll make better records if you play live."
Lanois has several albums and dozens of production credits to his name, and has worked with some of the biggest acts in music including Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel and Emmylou Harris.
He helped mould some of U2's classic albums by co-producing "The Unforgettable Fire," "The Joshua Tree" and "Achtung Baby." He also co-produced "All That You Can't Leave Behind" and one song off "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb."
A short video clip recently posted on U2.com shows a quiet moment in the studio with Lanois and the band. Lanois said the snapshot of the recording process could have been one of "thousands of exasperated moments" they've experienced, although the album is now getting "very close" to completion.
But because the band has been known to make significant changes to compositions at the final stages of recording, Lanois said he has no idea when the album will really be done.
"In the spirit of the moment, in the home stretch, people often come up with their best work," Lanois said, although he thinks the album already sounds amazing.
"It has broken new sonic ground, and I think Bono's lyrics and vocal performances are better than ever," he said.
"I'm glad to see he's stepping up and talking about what's on his mind."
Lanois said he doesn't have a wish list of dream projects in terms of producing other artists and is currently relishing the chance to work on his own music whenever he can.
The outlet for the work that comes out of his Toronto "laboratory" is his own label Red Floor Records, which he started about 10 months ago so he could share music with the world without having to deal with the corporate bureaucracy of record labels.
Case in point, Lanois plans to release three of his own instrumental CDs in a few weeks through his website and another three next year, which almost certainly would have been impossible to do through conventional channels.
"It's a beautiful, very touching body of work but it's not something I would want to burden the major record companies with," he said.
"But it's fine for me because I can put it up on the site and still release what I regard to be some great work.
"I think it's a great thing that modern times afford us all this technology and people have their own little corner stores and shops (online) and sell their wares."
He's also thinking about ways to make his website a behind-the-scenes window into the work he's involved with, not unlike his recent documentary feature, "Here Is What Is," which chronicles a year and a half of his life and work and includes appearances by the likes of U2, Willie Nelson, Aaron Neville, Sinead O'Connor and Billy Bob Thornton.
But Lanois isn't willing to go entirely digital and will continue to perform live and sell physical CD copies of his music.
"No matter how electronic everything gets, I think fundamentally, human beings, we love tangibles, we like to hold things with our hands and feel like we're collecting something, and we should never get tired of giving or receiving a gift," he said.
"Imagine showing up at somebody's birthday and saying, 'Oh, I already sent you your gift on your email.' People want to feel something with their hands."
Lanois plays the Aeolian Hall in London, Ont., on Thursday; the Drayton (Ont.) Festival Theatre on Friday; the Stockey Centre in Parry Sound, Ont., on Saturday; and Toronto's Massey Hall on Nov. 14.
Canadian record producer to the stars Daniel Lanois is touring in support of his own music and exploring ways to use his "corner store on the web" to connect with fans. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO
