Thread for people who have heard the new album

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Haven't had the chance to look up all your thoughts about this record. Care to sum up everything?
 
J2-D2 said:
I'm discussing it now. WHAT ELSE DO YOU WANT FROM ME, SMEE?!?

This was a terrible idea. I have exercised poor judgment.
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you said originally you couldn't.

Can you offer us specifics. We are all horribly jealous if you've heard it.

How did you hear it?
Do you actually have a copy?
Give us some solid details on songs (rather than, "edge has a solo in MOS, and Stand Up is U2 by numbers" these are thigns we've heard a million times before)
 
J2-D2 said:
I don't think it's as adult-contemporary as Atomic Bomb, though—the songs aren't as immediately accessible. But no, it's not molten metal, and "Boots" (which I do like) isn't representative of the rest of it, although it slots in nicely.

"Stand Up" is probably my least favorite. It's a little U2-by-numbers, some of the lyrics are borderline, and it's not, like, subtle in any fashion. Edge's vocals feature a sweet echo effect, though, and his guitar has this nice slicey/piercing thing going on.
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True enough; it is not another Bomb, which I will eat my hat at...but the production is still there, probably even more so.

It's probably closer to ATYCLB than Bomb, in the sense that all the "hits" are concentrated in the beginning, and then 2nd half is more obscure.

Imagine ATYCLB with "New York" being the first single......not the a good anaolgy, but I hope you understand.
NLOTH, Magnificent, UC (especially), IGCIIDGCT, are all going to be classic tunes, IMO.
 
:cocktail:

One smiley says more than a thousand words.
 
I swear, this thread and the 5 threads of 'leak, now, leak' are just making me go crazy. Someone please put me out of my misery.
 
J2-D2 or anyone else who has heard the full song.

Could you please elaborate on Cedars of Lebanon?? I am wondering if it has any kind of solo similar to Love is Blindness or whether it ever turns in a different direction from the 30 second clips.

Thank you in advance!
 
Funny, he seems to have gone.

Oh cheese and crackers!

Now we'll never get to hear vague and generic comments about the album that anyone who has read a review could give us :sad:

Too harsh?

And aniticpation isn't half the fun. Anticipation is a side-effect of expectation and longing, and neither are fun.
 
All the reviews of this album and everything I have seen video wise points at a parallel to Unforgettable Fire, not Achtung Baby although of course it will have elements of that in it....none the less it doesnt really seem to parallel anything they have done this decade except for a few pieces of ATYCLB....it points to me towards a much earlier incarnation of U2....more like Eno and Lanios rediscovering what got them excited about U2 in the first place....and no I havent heard the album yet but based on the clips and videos weve seen thats what it feels like.
 
lemans said:
All of this "adult contemporary" talk is making me a little nervous.
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Well no....it depends on how you look at music.

It's going to make Viva La Vida or whatever the hell the subtitle is sound like Music For Elmo. (the Sesame Street character)


But.....it is not "guitar, bass, and drums".......no, no.

And that is ok with me.
 
Real Texan said:
Haven't had the chance to look up all your thoughts about this record. Care to sum up everything?
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Again, most of the reviews are pretty accurate:

"No Line" is a raucous, exciting start to the proceedings—much better than the alternate version—and the only disappointment is that it's wild enough that you think maybe you're getting another Zooropa. You're not. That's not a bad thing, but I would love another Zooropa.

"Magnificent" is like Joshua Tree 2.0: a big, beautiful, classic Edge riff that makes you think of horses racing across a western plain, but with a few dancey touches. If it's not the biggest single off the album, I'll be surprised.

"Moment" doesn't ever feel like it's a seven-and-a-half-minute song. I'm not sure how, because it's not complicated at all, but it never gets boring.

"Unknown Caller" is the weirdest song on the album, and the lyrical offenses ("Force quit! Move to trash!") stand out so much that it's a little hard to like it at first. The music is too interesting to ignore, though—like a proggy take on a classic U2 sound—so you get over it. I'm reminded of that Bono quote about Michael Jackson from (I think) the Bill Flanagan book: how Jackson's voice is the most beautiful sound in the world if you just ignore the words he's singing. And other than those glaring bits, the rest of the lyrics are quiet poignant.

"Crazy Tonight" is a sleeper. It's very poppy, but doesn't catch you right away like, say, "Vertigo" or "Beautiful Day" did. I find myself singing it in my head, though. Edge's guitar sounds so clear.

"Boots" you've heard.

"Stand Up" I discussed above. I don't have much more to say. I suspect it'll be one of those songs that gets a lot of live play on this tour and that in my dreams they would replace with, like, "Last Night on Earth." It's just Bono at his preachiest on the album—it evokes the same reaction I had to "Peace on Earth" and "Love and Peace or Else." The music is pretty good, though, still.

"Fez - Being Born" is just fun; the second half sounds like "The Unforgettable Fire" on acid. They couldn't really perform it live, but it won't surprise me if a recording of the "Lemme in the sound" callback at the start opens the show or the encore.

"White as Snow" is simply gorgeous. Like an old folk song, almost.

When I first heard "Breathe," I felt about it a little like I felt about "Stand Up." It grows quickly, though, and it's one of my favorites on the album now. It takes the preachiness of "Stand Up" and turns it around into this awesome statement of joyful resolve. They had better play it live.

And "Cedars" reminds me of "Wake Up Dead Man," because of the tempo and because it ends so suddenly, on a somber note—and I guess because some of Bono's lyrics approach "Wake Up"'s quality, not in content, but in precision. It doesn't seem like one they'll break out for the tour.

Also: Adam is in prime form throughout. No big bass lines, but lots of nice, low-key stuff. Larry, too. For the first time in a long time (for me), the album feels like it's as much about the music, or more, as it is about Bono.

It's a weird album. I'm not sure it's the masterpiece we were all waiting for. I am sure it's a marked artistic progression and that it'll keep us busy for a long time.
 
Guys, its not so much that I dislike the verve, it was more so I could be a smart-arse about the previous post. I would have said it no matter how much I liked the band :wave:
 
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