Do you ever wish U2 wasn't so popular?

[VertigoGal]

zootles, you don't have slane?!

sometimes I wish they were less popular because theoretically tickets should be cheaper and easier to get. I suppose it's a bit like living in the US. Half the world hates you (or pretends to), the system is driving you broke, arrogant and occasionally embarrasing frontman, tons of people keep coming yet no one will admit to liking it, you have a curious pervading feeling you're being fucked over, ...and yet at the end of the day you still kick everyone else's ass!

I kid I kid

 

[Zoots]

VG!


No, I don't have it. Maybe I should get it.

 

[VertigoGal]

you'll defend me right?

You really need to get it even if you don't love new U2. It's just got a ton of great performances...All I Want is You into Streets, a great version of One, just a really good show IMO...

 

[Zoots]

About Dubya being an arrogant and embarrassing frontman? Sure!

 

[edgeboy]

the biggest 2 reasons u2 is so mainstream is; Bono and the fact that they have become filthy rich. It's not so much that the mainstream has a grasp on good music because they clearly don't anymore. I think the fact that u2 is so much in the spotlight they have no creative freedom at all,they won't ever put out another experimental album i don't think which is too bad. I just feel like they are over exploited and that really takes something away I think.

 

[blueeyedgirl]

Do I ever wish they were less popular?? All the fucking time! I remember getting really great tickets to see them and only had to line up for about 20 minutes with about 15 other diehards, in 1984. Ah the good old days...

 

[JMScoopy]

Re: Re: Do you ever wish U2 wasn't so popular?

Well, the Beatles are the most popular band in history but I don't see anyone here feeling like their taste is crappy for liking them. When someone like me says the Beatles are over-rated, we're shouted down and even flamed.

god i hate that statement, "U2 is overrated."

here is how i usually handle this conversation:

asshole: "U2 is overrated."

me: "says who?"

asshole: "says me."

me: "well, you're full of shit!"

asshole: "well, your gay!" (another statment i hate, just because the meaninglessness and immaturity of calling something/someone "gay."

me: i then administer a side kick to their face.

 

[shart1780]

Well, there may be one reason why I wish they were less mainstream and that's because I think their creativity has went down the tubes due to a desire to stay popular.

And the statement someone made saying the reason bands are popular is because they're good is completely 100% wrong. There are hardly any good popular bands today and there are a TON of unpopular great bands.

One thing I pried myself in is that I enjoy music that spans all popularity levels, from the most popular in the world to the bands that when you mention them people say "who again? never heard of em".

 

[Celticfc]

Sometimes that thought has popped in my mind. I dont think u2 would still be together if they hadnt become what they are now.

Other bands that I loved that were big in the 80's like The Alarm & The Mission are still together but with different members.
Its great going to see them in small places and being able to meet the guys but its just not the same.

 

[katiebu21]

The ticket thing is annoying, especially for hardcore fans. I must say that I do wish they were a little less popular. But that's not going to ever happen. Ten years from now they will still be selling out stadiums.

I believe that U2 still have it in them to come back and wow us with an amazing album or two, despite being the biggest band in the world!

 

[Dudette]

Well, there may be one reason why I wish they were less mainstream and that's because I think their creativity has went down the tubes due to a desire to stay popular.

Do ya think after having 2 mega selling albums they'd look back and think "yeah...we've still got it, we're poprular" and reinvent themselves with a new Bono character and go more experimental?

 

[cypress]

I'll just echo what others have said. U2 is so popular because U2 is that damn good. It didn't happen by any means other than pure musical talent. OF COURSE there are many times i wish they were less popular. When I was in college and worked college radio, I used to go out and PARTY with bands.. how cool would it be to be able to pull an all-nighter with U2?!!!

And, yeah, I'm also getting to the point that I basically ignore anyone who says "U2 Sucks". Just the other day someone in a chat room stated that "U2 has been going downhill ever since Joshua Tree". How much you wanna bet that that person has not even heard 90% of the songs U2 has released since then?

A lot of the complaining you hear about U2 is by people who quit listening to them by the early 90's OR are teenagers and think U2 is "old". Many people have no idea just how great an album Achtung Baby is because they don't own it and only heard One and maybe Mysterious Ways on the radio. And very few people I know own ATYCLB or Bomb. They only know U2's "newest song" is "Vertigo" and some even call the album "Vertigo".

One thing I learned working college radio for 5 years was that you cannot judge a band by one or two songs you hear on the radio. We here understand the genius and greatness of U2 because we are the few willing to dive all the way in and immerse ourselves fully in their albums. Most people today want everything giftwrapped in a shiny small package. 3 and a half minute pre-packaged music videos they can channel surf through. That's not me, and I bet it is not you either.

When I purchase a new CD, I listen to the whole thing before I start dissecting it into parts and then I listen to it again... Many, many people I know buy a new CD, listen to one or two songs they heard on the radio and never listen to the rest of the songs. You can do that with Britney Spears but it doesn't work with U2. Most people don't get it and never will.

I am just grateful there are places like interfernce.com where there are others like me.

 

[AtomicBono]

How about I remember and was there when U2 was a dirty little secret. I've been a fan for yeah, 30 years, when they were just begining and on college radio, I even stood outside in December rain when they were at a local club that I was too young to get into. To me they have always been the worlds greatest, nothing for me to compare to. I feel like I grew up with them.

I'm so jealous of you! I would love to have been...well...alive...and a U2 fan back then

There would be some advantages to U2 being not as popular (mainly, as people have already mentioned, the availability of tickets. U2 is the only band that has caused me any difficulty getting tickets. Even big name bands like Oasis, Green Day, and The Killers were easy to get tickets to), but I love going to a bookstore and seeing U2 on the cover of 4 different magazines. It makes me happy. I love it when U2 is ubiquitous and I like how they have so many DVD's and CD's and whatnot that you can buy at any major store. At the same time there's tons of bootlegs for the diehards.

You know it's weird because even though U2 is possibly the most popular current band in the world right now, I don't think I've met anyone in high school that is a fan. I've met a few people that I guess are casual fans, but no one diehard like me. I have done my bit and converted a couple people luckily, and I'm working on some more. But still, sometimes I wish they were more liked, especially in my age group. I think I get a lot more stigma (not like seriously but more like people coming up into my face doing a horribly butchered HELLOOOOOO HELLOOOOOO and making fun of 'Boh-noh') than praise for being a U2 fan. I guess it's cuz I'm so young. I've actually met two teachers at my school who are U2 fans and I've met a lot of adults (like in their late 30s maybe) who saw ZooTV because I guess everybody saw ZooTV, except me because I was like three.

My point is that even though U2's popular, sometimes I feel like they're not, and so I like things that remind me, yes, they are the biggest band in the world.

 

[babyman]

I wish only U2 would never go in the charts.....................

1Sugababes
2Britney Spears
3->U2<-
4Christina Aguilera
5 6 7 8 etc etc




Unfortunately they sell millions of records..........................

 

[Achtung_Bebe]

In my day to day life, I see very little evidence of U2 being the biggest band in the world. It's not until I look on the news stand and see Bono on the cover of Rolling Stone, TIME etc, or until I go to a concert and see thousands of other fans just like myself, or log online and discover that there really are other U2 nuts out there. (PLEBA? ) When it comes to my every day experience, I feel that I'm going against the grain by being a U2 fan. The reaction I get from people is seldom "Oh yeah, I like U2." It's usually "Oh... U2... huh." haha... I rather like it that way.

 

[shaynar]

yes and no

I agree with the point that the fact that they are popular allows them to tour a lot and thereby I get to see them a lot!

HOWEVER, (and I'm sure everyone here will have a same story) when people ask me what music I like and I answer u2 I usually get some sort of eye rolling (as if to say, yeah everyone loves them) or just some sort of "meh" as if it's an expected answer. I want to tell them "no, I REALLY like them" but then there's no point.....

 

[thankyou]

just imagine if there were no casual fans so they could play smaller venues with varying sets and no need to play Pride at every show

i like that idea. smaller venues, plus they would be even more approachable. And if they weren't so big, there wouldn't be scalpers out there buying up so many tickets that diehard fans pay the price for.

I also just like the idea that if they were a more unknown indie band, it's like they would be "our little secret".

 

[angelordevil]

yes and no

I agree with the point that the fact that they are popular allows them to tour a lot and thereby I get to see them a lot!

HOWEVER, (and I'm sure everyone here will have a same story) when people ask me what music I like and I answer u2 I usually get some sort of eye rolling (as if to say, yeah everyone loves them) or just some sort of "meh" as if it's an expected answer. I want to tell them "no, I REALLY like them" but then there's no point.....

Yeah, I get that a lot. It's almost like saying you like bread. I mean, who doesn't, right? But following through with my bread analogy, there are very few who want to trace the bread back to the factory, to see where it was made, figure out what influenced the recipe....okayyy, I think I'll stop now.

 

[ultravioletluvv]

YES! ALL the time! The Elevation Tour was perfect... U2 were respected and yet it was still pretty easy to get a ticket... those were the days...

 

[kakvox]

My taste in music is completely not in sync with my favorite band being U2. So, on other band's forums, U2 really doesn't come up, unfortunately, and when they do, let's just say they are not well liked or respected (at least their '00's stuff). I think that has a lot to do with their popularity (not underground enough) and Bono. I can look past both and love U2 for their music.

 

[thankyou]

So, on other band's forums, U2 really doesn't come up, unfortunately, and when they do, let's just say they are not well liked or respected (at least their '00's stuff). I think that has a lot to do with their popularity (not underground enough) and Bono. I can look past both and love U2 for their music.

so true. not underground enough. I wish they were. But like you said, you gotta love U2 for their music. Much more meaningful than a lot of underground bands.

 

[U2 Beginner]

The only simple reason why one wouldn't want U2 to be so popular is because they would want U2 to only love them. Every fan feels that, I believe.

I'm a fan of R.E.M., and it feels quite special because they are not as popular as other bands. But then again, its a lovely and special feeling that so many people love U2, that makes U2 so special.

 

[mysticchild]

I am selfish, I want them to be my band. LOL! Like the earlier days, when they still had people waiting to get tickets at 5am but it was more intimate and personal. The tickets were far from being overly priced and they played smaller arena's.

 

[Ellay]

If they weren't so popular then the amount of concert boots that do exist, probably wouldn't.

So Yeah, I love supporting the Man Utd of rock.

 

[TwoAmericas]

I wish U2 were like the pre-JT days. During 1980-84, they were just a cool band, but not as popular as bands like Van Halen and the Police. They were the "alternative" college-radio band that had a unique allure about them with their unique style of music. But as they have become more popular, more and more people are getting sick of them, so there is always a backlash.