Next Album Rumours Thread II - Songs of Ass Scent
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zoopop
Rock n' Roll Doggie
Some good stuff posted lately.
One thing to note, many rock bands now just don't get the buzz like they use too when it comes to commercial success. Billboard Top 40 success is a flash in a pan now, dominated by commercial Pop/Hip Hop trash. There isn't even new rock bands making themselves known. You'll find them on the Indie circuit and most of them are understanding of the lack of commercial success.
NLOTH was the last opportunity for a big U2 hit but even then it was drifting away. They should have released Moment of Surrender and make a statement. Same with SOI & SOE. Wrong singles to turn some heads. At the very least U2 still has some songs on the albums that shine. And of course there shows/tours are something to behold. Can't say that for the Stones anymore. ( I do enjoy some tunes off Bridges)
One thing to note, many rock bands now just don't get the buzz like they use too when it comes to commercial success. Billboard Top 40 success is a flash in a pan now, dominated by commercial Pop/Hip Hop trash. There isn't even new rock bands making themselves known. You'll find them on the Indie circuit and most of them are understanding of the lack of commercial success.
NLOTH was the last opportunity for a big U2 hit but even then it was drifting away. They should have released Moment of Surrender and make a statement. Same with SOI & SOE. Wrong singles to turn some heads. At the very least U2 still has some songs on the albums that shine. And of course there shows/tours are something to behold. Can't say that for the Stones anymore. ( I do enjoy some tunes off Bridges)
zoopop
Rock n' Roll Doggie
Blue & Lonesome is awesome. But that was a album of covers Mick wanted to do and they recorded it in 2-3 days because thats what Mick would allow. Saw them in 2019 in Houston, great show but same show they've been doing the last 15 years.
I'm talking about new material which hasn't happened since a Bigger Bang 2005. Even on that tour they played maybe 2-3 new songs a night.
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DaveC
Blue Crack Addict
about 15-20 years ago the Stones leaned hard into being old gravely coots in a way that i can only hope U2 also does at some point. i think old U2 covering a bunch of songs from artists that influenced them could be pretty decent IF they made the right song selections. they haven't shown a very good ear for picking good songs to cover. for example, imagine if the Beatles song that 80s U2 had chosen to enthusiastically cover was It's All Too Much rather than making a corny attempt to "steal" Helter Skelter back.
IRL they keep making awful choices that will surely never lead to that kind of album happening now, but it kinda feels like the potential is there for something like that to be successful if they did it the right way.
IRL they keep making awful choices that will surely never lead to that kind of album happening now, but it kinda feels like the potential is there for something like that to be successful if they did it the right way.
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LuckyNumber7
Blue Crack Addict
Neon Lights was a fantastic decision tho
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
Exactly.
The Stones have been creatively bankrupt for decades.
U2 puts on a great show and is still writing great songs. That they can’t put 10+ together for an album in unfortunate, but it’s better than the above alternative, unless you prioritize being “cool” over everything else.
ascender_RS
Refugee
I know its a total outlier, but the recent Stones track Ghost Town was great. Albeit very Stones'y...
Was interesting hearing Edge & Adam talking about ATYCLB and how much fun it is working with Eno & Lanois as the band suddenly becomes something very different.
U2 and cover versions are more erratic than Bono's choice in glasses. You literally have no idea what you'll end up with regardless of song choice.
Was interesting hearing Edge & Adam talking about ATYCLB and how much fun it is working with Eno & Lanois as the band suddenly becomes something very different.
U2 and cover versions are more erratic than Bono's choice in glasses. You literally have no idea what you'll end up with regardless of song choice.
Hollow Island
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Oh come on. U2 is still writing great songs? What year is this, 2004? They're a good, competent band but their last two albums are no better than A Bigger Bang, and U2s best songs from the last three albums are as good as mid tier b sides from 84-97. Those b sides were pretty damn good though. The only song from Bomb onward that lives up to the standard they'd set is City of Blinding Lights.
mikal
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Hollow Island
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Not really. They're nowhere near as good as they used to be. For a long time they were as good and interesting as anyone else (with a Beatle shaped exception), but then they dropped off. It happens to everybody. There are lucky ones like REM, Bowie and Weller who get a second (or third) wind. I hope it happens for U2, but I don't think it's likely. They've been making terrible decisions for too long to have any confidence that they'll come out of their creative rut.
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
I agree that they are not nearly as good as they were between 1984 and 1997. Hard to keep that kind of quality up. But I also think it’s a bit of a stretch to say that they’re not writing any great songs. You can literally point to their last three albums and find 2 to 3 great songs on each.
It would be nice if Bono went back to a more poetic, open landscape style of writing. Less words, stretch out the ones used....some of the lyrics on JT weren’t that mind blowing but the music and delivery made them seem much more important.
And edge please play a memorable riff. At least Boots had a riff you could hum to yourself.
I can’t think of one from the last two albums.
And edge please play a memorable riff. At least Boots had a riff you could hum to yourself.
I can’t think of one from the last two albums.
Certainly, it’s just that the filler has gotten way worse/more desperate. You could put together an incredible single album “Songs of Innocence & Experience” and no one would question their songwriting strengths. Production choices are a separate problem, and initially turned me off SOI, but I can’t deny the mostly cohesive thematic approach. The tour was incredible. If they had played the European setlist in the US for e+i, I would’ve been raving similarly.
mikal
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Irvine511
Blue Crack Supplier
this can't be emphasized enough. sure, creatively on record, they seem a bit taxed and tentative and increasingly generic and asking the audience "is this the U2 you like?"
but live? i/e and e/i were pretty much 2nd only to Zoo TV in terms of creativity and innovation, and they showed a new level of staging and choreography, what with the TIGHTNARRATIVE and all.
they have gigantic ideas and ambitions. still. can't say that about almost anybody else.
Hollow Island
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There are some very good songs on those albums, but nothing I'd say is great. Pride is great, Gimme Shelter is great, Deacon Blues is great. They don't write songs on that level any more. Can't really expect them too, either. At least they still bring it live. Hopefully they will bring that level of ambition to the studio.
zoopop
Rock n' Roll Doggie
This. No band can go back to their prime in the studio. It happens to all artist. I just think of how U2 has kept it up live. For them to produce Innocence/JT/Experience tours within 4 years apart this late in their career is mind boggling. Leaving Experience show in Vegas I was blown away and kept thinking how long can they do this at a high level. But if you look at:
NLOTH
Magnificent
Moment
Invisible
Every Breaking Wave
Raised By Wolves
Reach Me
Troubles
Red Flag Day
Summer of Love
Little Things
Love Is Bigger
Those are really solid songs that worked out for them. Especially live . You can make arguments for others. Sonically its not as interesting as years past but its more than other rock acts for the most point. If they just got away from the straight rockers as lead singles and released something else it might have gotten them some more exposure.
dan_smee
ONE love, blood, life
Who does write songs on that level any more? The barometer for great has shifted considerably. U2, for the first time in their career decided they would try and fit their version of greatness into the prevailing style and not shape what great actually was themselves. It’s so hard to be great when you do that.
I’d argue that there are great songs on both albums, but they get ignored or minimised because they are swamped by outrageous attempts at fitting the climate (Best Thing), they are genericised from a great base to have mass appeal (EBW), or they aren’t innovative enough to be different from previous greatness (Little Things).
If ‘great’ means that you permeate the culture and become part of the fabric, then only a handful of rock songs have done that in the last 15 years. U2 won’t do that again, but I would not agree that that means they haven’t written great songs in that time either. Great songs should be able to cross eras and generations, and I think sometimes we only go one way with that when we should be thinking about it as a two-way thing. We find songs from the past that still resonate. But I think we should also try and remove some of the context of the moment and think about what a certain song would have been like in a previous era too. And I do think Little Things, Love is Bigger, EBW, The Troubles, Iris, Ordinary Love and more stand up in that context. We just can’t hear them outside of them being part of albums associated with American Soul or from a time when their desperation to be cool is killing their chances of being heard.
AndrewCowley
Refugee
The European E&I tour is the highlight of it all. All I have seen is the edit that’s on YouTube. It is mind blowing. I am still pissed that Australia got the JT tour instead, but that’s history now.
SOI and SOE are albums they should be rightly proud of. Just imagine what could have been without all the producer swapping and if Edge had bothered to turn up.
Hmm ... Is the E&I show ever going to be released? Christmas time perhaps.
SOI and SOE are albums they should be rightly proud of. Just imagine what could have been without all the producer swapping and if Edge had bothered to turn up.
Hmm ... Is the E&I show ever going to be released? Christmas time perhaps.
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ascender_RS
Refugee
I think that’s really harsh on them and am surprised you’d choose City of Blinding Lights as being the high watermark of recent times.
I really enjoyed the last couple of tours and albums, inspite of the failings we’ve discussed to death on here and I still think they’re producing far better albums than we have any right to expect from a band who’ve been around for this long with the same lineup.
Bowie, Weller, Neil Young, NiN/Trent, even Springsteen,I think all benefit from the fact they’re solo artists and have more creative freedom to take risks and/or try something different when they feel like it which can often get some really interesting results which are usually lapped up by the critics too. U2 seem to get paralysed whenever they have to make a decision which might end up with them doing something different in case it “fails”.
Irvine511
Blue Crack Supplier
I think it’s time for us all to admit that the last great rock song to truly permeate the culture was “Mr Brightside.”
The end.
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
There’s a ton of great rock out there right now, sure a lot of it is heavier than U2 or The Killers, but I’m literally finding new phenomenal rock tracks every week.
Irvine511
Blue Crack Supplier
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
Nah rock is far from dead. It might not be appearing on pop radio but who gives a shit? There’s so much good stuff out there right now and with streaming services, it’s not buried under a rock.
With that said, it makes it that much harder on bands like U2 right now because no matter what they release, there’s probably a lot better and fresher rock out there. That’s why U2 had to embrace the fact that they still have a huge fan base that will eat up anything they release. So trying to make a hit and just be yourselves.
Irvine511
Blue Crack Supplier
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
Why are you even here, then? You just want to dwell on U2's past glories and thumb your nose at anyone who has been able to find enough gems among the modern compromises to keep listening with anticipation?
You're just as bad as some sycophant who thinks every song on their recent albums is great. It's an extreme position that leaves no room for discussion.
Find a new hobby.
Hollow Island
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Why are you even here, then? You just want to dwell on U2's past glories and thumb your nose at anyone who has been able to find enough gems among the modern compromises to keep listening with anticipation?
You're just as bad as some sycophant who thinks every song on their recent albums is great. It's an extreme position that leaves no room for discussion.
Find a new hobby.
For fuck's sake, man. Grow up.
I am here because U2 have extraordinary body of work, and because they're still interesting. A lot of what I find interesting about them has nothing to do with their recent output. It's interesting to watch a band of their stature deal with age, with declining popularity, and with their own legacy. They're a fascinating band.
I don't "thumb my nose at anyone who has been able to find enough gems among the modern compromise" because I am one of those people who find gems in their recent work. I'm always saying how l like much of what they've done recently. It doesn't mean that they've done anything great though. On average, they still make very good songs.
There's nothing extreme about that position, and it doesn't close the room to discussion. I'm saying that they haven't written a great song in a long time, not that they can't write a great song. That would be closing the door - I'd be writing them off, and you can't write off any artist that has created as much great work as U2 have.
Hollow Island
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Totally. It's such a shame. Most of the melodies and lyrics are the best Bono's contributed since 2000, and the rhythm section has been excellent. I wish the last two albums were mixed so that the band was louder, but I guess they were adhering to the industry standard for pop radio and putting the emphasis on the vocals. I listened to the Joshua Tree bonus disc and then SOI and the difference in approach to mixing was striking. On the Joshua Tree tracks, every member was present and clear, but the recent mixes are focused on Bono's vocals to the detriment of the music. He used to be integrated into the band, but now it sounds like he's towering above them. Even if Edge was doing great work it would probably be buried in the mix.
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