* EP vs Maxi?

[thelaj]

Sorry if I'm being foolish here, but I'm curious as to what actually seperates a single, EP and album.

The way I see it, Wide Awake In America is an EP with what, 3 new songs? But I also see that some singles have 2 or even 3 new songs on. Why is WAIA classed as an EP? And how many songs is the minimum for an album not be called an EP. I'm just curious with all this talk of an EP to support a possible 2006 NA stadium tour.

A possible thought I had was that an EP may be a cd with "album quality" tracks and a single may just have lesser quality "B-sides"...?

 

[namkcuR]

A single promotes an album. A single's A-Side IS a song from album, with any B-Sides being new songs or remixes or live tracks.

An EP is a completely seperate entity and doesn't have to have any tracks from any album. It is essentially a mini-album. It's what artists put out when they have new material they want to put out in a specific time frame but they don't have enough for a full album.

 

[thelaj]

So why would they choose to make an EP rather than put them as B-Sides on singles...

eg...Neon Lights, Ave Maria, Are you Gonna Wait Forever?

They are all B-Sides from this album, is there a reason they couldnt be an EP (in theory)?

Sorry for all the questions

 

[namkcuR]

Because not that many people buy singles. They make an EP when they need something that people will BUY in order to effectively PROMOTE something, and EPs are often used to PROMOTE something. Now, some bands also might choose to release an EP INSTEAD of an album at any given point, if they feel they're keeping their fans waiting too long for new material - but U2 is not that kind of band.

 

[chocky]

Back in the vinyl-only era, "singles" had one A-side track and one or two B-side tracks. Often they had NO album tracks on them either - even when they were released simultaneously with an album.

"EP" (meaning 'extended player') was normally used for any record that had between 3 and 10 tracks (10 or more generally constituting an album).

These days, "singles" generally have about 4 different mixes of the title track so many artists would argue that any release with 4 or more different songs (even if the title track is an album track) is an "EP".

But I think namkcuR's definition (being an interim release of previously unreleased material) is probably best. WAIA and the Target 7 release containing the ATYCLB b-sides are probably U2's only 2 real EPs, although the Aussie 12" singles of Pride (the blue 5 track) and Unforgettable Fire were referred to as EPs too.

 

[david]

Wideawake In America is interesting because it's considered an EP yet the Unfogettable Fire single is just a single yet it has almost the same songs on it.

 

[BVS]

EPs are pretty rare these days. These days you'll find indie bands that release EPs or you'll find big bands that do limited releases for die hards, such as U2's 7.

The last EP I bought was Ryan Adams, Love is Hell part 1 and 2, and the only reason he released EPs was his label was sure it would sink...they later realized their mistake and made it into an album.

EPs will probably soon become extinct with artists releasing exclusives on iTunes and what not.

 

[BVS]

Wideawake In America is interesting because it's considered an EP yet the Unfogettable Fire single is just a single yet it has almost the same songs on it.

i think the reason was, is that technically the UF single never had a US release...

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

A single promotes an album. A single's A-Side IS a song from album

not always

 

[nathan1977]

Zooropa was originally going to be an EP...five or six quick songs to promote the Zooropa tour.

 

[Ellay]

not always

what i was thinking too..


hold me thrill me kiss me kill me, for example.