No Next Birthday On The Horizon
Next Album Rumours Thread III - The Gospel of Adam
- Thread starter pacemaker
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The friendliest place on the web for anyone that follows U2.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
Hewson
Blue Crack Supplier
LuckyNumber7
Blue Crack Addict
Ankles Too Tired From the Ground
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dan_smee
ONE love, blood, life
I think the thing about SOI vs SOE is less about the songs themselves, and more about people’s preferences for consistency vs peaks and troughs. SOI to me maintains a base level quality throughout and is rarely (never?) transcendental. SOE for me has doldrums level nonsense, and god-tier moments like the end of Little Things.
SOE is life with bi-polar, and SOI is life on lithium. Do you avoid the depths only to never achieve the highs? Personal choice. For me, SOE wins hands down. It’s the only album since Achtung Baby that has had more than one moment where we remember how truly great they can be. That said, I TOTALLY understand someone preferring SOI because you listen to albums for a complete experience.
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
I think you’re right on the nose. I don’t listen to the album version of EBW (the early version is on my custom tracklisting) but I wouldn’t call it unbearable. Whereas Get Out is something I don’t want to hear again, ever, an absolute atrocity.
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
I'm in a screaming metal phase, but listened to SOI all the way through the other night and was just blown away. Still up there as a top U2 album for me.
SOI is aging very well. Better than SOE so far, I think.
I still get the same feeling I had when I first heard those songs in September 2014.
The way the Miracle kicks in. EBW. California, Song for Someone and Iris still make me emotional for different reasons. I find all speak to honest, raw human experiences. Volcano is a perfect transition song with a dark, early 80s throwback vibe. RBW has that same energy and harkens back to the poltical anger of War. It's also a very visceral recounting of the events. Cedarwood keeping up the energy while telling a story of growing up we can all relate to. Sleep like a baby- possibly the most musically interesting song on the album and poignant social commentary. Reach Me Now keeps the early U2 energy up as we follow the band on their first trip to London. The Troubles ends it all with an inspired collaboration.
Each of those songs made a solid emotional impression on me. I could relate to them- where I was in life and where I'd been. Same for Invisible and Ordinary Love.
In my mind, what really set SOI apart was the I&E tour. I thought it blew E&I away until the Berlin songs were added in Europe. Then it moved closer to a tie.
But SOI....... from the time I first heard "Ordinary Love" in November 2013 until the last notes in Paris in December 2015, just had a consistent, strong, passionate and sometimes transcendent vibe to it. By the time the tour rolled around, to my mind and ears, they'd recovered from the Apple debacle and were playing like they had something to prove.
SOE didn't quite know what it wanted to be- and the tour reflected that until the very end. Some incredible highs for sure- and while nothing on SOI reaches the level of the end of Little Things, I'm not gonna pretend that there's nothing on there that comes close. (RBW, end of Cedarwood Rd, end of Iris).
AndrewCowley
Refugee
SOE for me. Agree with the previous post. It has transcendental moments that SOI could only dream of.
Springsteen fans must do similar with Human Touch and Lucky Town. That said, you need your head read if you don’t choose the latter.
Springsteen fans must do similar with Human Touch and Lucky Town. That said, you need your head read if you don’t choose the latter.
dan_smee
ONE love, blood, life
SOE didn't quite know what it wanted to be- and the tour reflected that until the very end. Some incredible highs for sure- and while nothing on SOI reaches the level of the end of Little Things, I'm not gonna pretend that there's nothing on there that comes close. (RBW, end of Cedarwood Rd, end of Iris).
I think you’re right, but there’s also more to uncover.
There’s lots of what-ifs with this stage of their careers. If EBW kept some of the early live feeling, if they stuck to the Dangermouse vision, if they’d included invisible. It is conceptually strong and executed well. I don’t even hate on EBW or SFS the way others do. As a complete work it keeps true to its vision and is consistent in a way SOE is not.
The thing that makes it fall behind for me is that I felt moments on SOE actually tapped into the magic from the very best of their creative pasts. Maybe not complete songs, but it had something in parts that some of the better albums in their career don’t have.
RFD > RBW in my mind. It has a swagger and effortlessness that RBW nearly hit, but just missed on.
13 > SFS - it had interest, depth and complexity SFS did not. It was charmingly direct, and ultimately a bit thin because of it.
The following I feel are better than ANYTHING on SOI:
- all of LIAWHL
- all of Little Things
- good chunks of Lights of Home (chorus, most effective callback linking the albums)
- The outro of Landlady
- all of Little Things - yep it’s that good I mentioned it twice
- all of Love is Bigger - this is U2 cheese done RIGHT.
- all of The Book of Your Heart
The following I feel are worse than anything on SOI:
- all of GOOYOW
- all of American Soul
- the execution of the Best Thing
- all of the Showman
The rest balances itself out. I think the top list is a more compelling argument than the bottom.
As yours, I+e was the winner hands down…. until the last few shows of e+I. Those shows are career live highlights.
If the good things of this period could be compressed into a single album and your, it could have been phenomenal…
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All this talk about an aging band but Mick Jagger is 77 and still recording and planning on touring...and their last tour got rave reviews
I don't see why U2 can't have the same longevity.
Maybe it's less album making, more single/EP releases, more tours...but they still have something in the tank I think.
I don't see why U2 can't have the same longevity.
Maybe it's less album making, more single/EP releases, more tours...but they still have something in the tank I think.
Hewson
Blue Crack Supplier
For starters Mick at 77 is in better shape than Bono at 17.
He's a fanatic about exercise, jogging daily, doing yoga, kickboxing and more as well as eating an organic diet.
Bono does not put anywhere near that effort level into maintaining his physical fitness, so the only way I see U2 touring when they are in their 70's is if Bono is in a chair like Phil Collins is these days.
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
I actually don't mind Song For Someone, especially considering the autobiographical content.
One of the problems with EBW that doesn't get mentioned enough is that it's not a Song of Innocence, but of Experience, talking about a relationship that's on the rocks. And because The Troubles functions not only literally about Ireland but also works as a metaphor for the same relationship subject (but more fitting at the end of the album), it makes EBW even less necessary.
The band loved EBW so much they couldn't wait to put it on the subsequent companion album, but it really sticks out here, especially where it's put on the album at track 2.
tommycharles
War Child
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I think the principle thing I don’t like about SOE is that it’s largely not theirs. It’s mostly producers coming up with things for Bono to sing over (or coming up with whole songs for B to tweak the lyrics to in the case of Summer of Love).
There’s always been a bit of that with U2 and their producers, but SOE is an extreme example I think.
There’s always been a bit of that with U2 and their producers, but SOE is an extreme example I think.
I agree with the sentiment that SOI works better as an album but the highlights of SOE are superior songs. They’re still capable of greatness but keep settling for good, which flies in the face of everything their mouthy spokesperson insists upon.
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
It's because he's always dancing in the streets. Keeps his hips in good shape.
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
All I Want Is Youth
tommycharles
War Child
- Joined
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- 778
Bono has been getting progressively less mobile on stage on each tour starting with Vertigo. The laps he ran around the heart on Elevation were the last we’ll see of that, I think.
LuckyNumber7
Blue Crack Addict
Wait you guys mean to tell me a 60 year old will never run like he did when he was 40?
Shokt
Shokt
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
Except for Harrison Ford, of course.
Hewson
Blue Crack Supplier
Someone has to Buk the trend.
Mick is the only reason anyone has gone to see Stones live for the past few decades though.
They can tour in their 70s, providing no major health shocks. They just toured 2015, 17, 18 and 19. And I would guess Larry's back and/or wrists will be the decisive factors.
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The little things... is better than any song on SOI. However SOE is nowhere near as consistent as SOI.
E/I was better though, especially the latter dates with more setlist distinction to I/E.
OP
OP
pacemaker
Refugee
I just bought 4 tickets to see Genesis, and I'm beyond ecstatic to see them (never thought I'd get the chance after missing the 2007 tour), even if Phil will be sitting for the duration.
Unfortunately, I think U2's ability to keep touring will depend on how much they're willing to adapt and sacrifice as they age out of being able to run laps around a heart. I don't expect them to really be able to do either if it means de-mobilizing a band member, or hiring additional musicians. However, one of the few things I find encouraging about the pronounced outside collaborations on SOE particularly, is that maybe they're trying to grow beyond the "It only works if it's the four of us" mentality.
Gonna Run 2 U
New Yorker
Songs Of Innocence is more of a concentrated effort as a whole. You can tell with Songs Of Experience they started second guessing. I also might be the only one that thinks Little Things is overrated. I’d take Iris as having that “U2 magic” over Little Things any day.
OP
OP
pacemaker
Refugee
Hard nah on that one
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
Not with that Chris Martin "whoo-whoo" shit it doesn't.
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
Little Things is not overrated and Iris is fucking great.
