Is it unfair to expect another truly great U2 album?

[Cigar]

Has Th Boss pushed new bounderies with "Magic"? ...absolutely not.Yet, it's one of his best album of his career.The differences between U2 and him is that he hasn't gone to the studio with the idea of competing with Britney, Justin Timberlake,or any pop stars that are the flavor of the month from the past couple of years

The Boss has accomplish this great album at the age of 58,so ages isn't an issue.It's all about inspiration.All the band has to do is to get in the studio without the notion of being on the radio with the new material.

The fact that Eno and Lanois aren't just producing the new album but also part of the writting process,tells alot about the band satisfaction (or lack of it) in Bono's writting on the last couple of albums.At least, it shows that Bono's man enough to accept
outside help.

 

[U2girl]

I think that fact just tells them Eno and Lanois are involved more than usual. I don't think the credits will suddenly be "Lyrics by Bono, Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno".

 

[schnumi]

It isnt unfair, i think U2 themselfs won't just so go for another "great but same sound".

I think they want to do something fresh and im hoping for it as well.

 

[Reggie Thee Dog]

Depends on what you consider great.

They could (a) create an album that lands somewhere between ATYCLB & HTDAAB. Get the organic and free feel of ATYCLB and push it through another album like HTDAAB where every track is trying to be a single and they could have a mammoth seller on their hands. If you want to do great pop, timeless pop, you need that easy feel ATYCLB has, not the forced feel HTDAAB has. If they had done HTDAAB better, it would have been a lot bigger. Not necessarily better, but certainly bigger. They could still do that. Those beach clips sound like another MOR pop record to me. This, I think, has short term gain for them, but is long term trouble.

- OR -

(b) They manage to pull off something brilliant, creative and original musically that just demands attention. This is what they haven't done since Achtung. There's no reason why, staring down 50 blah blah they can't do it again. The original post here talks about them almost being free of the pressure now, so they just release dud albums with a couple of snappy singles and go off to tour. I think the reverse could/should happen. If the pressure is gone, or once the pressure is gone, I think that is specifically when they'll produce a 3rd truly great album. Not a moment before.

Personally, I can't wait for the day they do not need a Vertigo, but I don't think we're there just yet and you will not get another truly great U2 album while they are in that mindset. The ATYCLB/HTDAAB mindset won't do it, unless you purely judge 'great' in terms of size/sales.

That is excellent analysis Earnie...I think you are absolutely spot on with this...

U2 need that easy/relaxed feel of ATYCLB, with the experimentation of AB (which was a tense album) to make another great statement. I think it can happen, and I think that the past two albums are a starting point for this next album. Lanois and Eno are going to take the music and stretch it and challenge U2 to continue to create music that is both accessible and yet different from what they've done in the past....I really believe that.

As much as I like HTDAAB it isn't as cohesive as JT, or AB or ATYCLB, which is what I think hurts it...

 

[U2girl]

I hope this time with Eno/Lanois we get something more tight like JT, AB and not something that runs out of steam in second half like UF and ATYCLB.

 

[Liesje]

It's all gravy from here on out. They've given us tons of great music and fan experiences over the years. I'm very satisfied.

This sums up how I feel. Unforgettable Fire is my masterpiece, and that came out right as I was born. When it comes to music, I either like it or I don't, there is no scale of "greatness" or "masterpiece" for me. There are no more than a dozen U2 songs I don't like/care for and there's really no pattern as far as album/era. I'll either like it or I won't, but changes are I will.

 

[OrARoundabout]

your wish has come true my friend!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=KLHeCeQ9CEs&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=8MbrbIUkDSQ&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=oo-w7B4tNB4

this is simple: clearly, U2 still has an incredible passion for their music...as long as this passion exists, they can make "a truly great album" because they are U2...because they've done so much already, it will get increasingly difficult to discover a JT/AB brilliance (this has been proven quite clearly when you realize the similarities in sound and direction between ATYCLB and Bomb) but as Bono once said, the songs exist, they just need to be discovered

Yes, those perfomances were very good...BONO DID A GREAT JOB!
Hopefully his voice will continue to do as well as it seems to be doing!

 

[OrARoundabout]

From all possible arguments against a new good/great U2 album, this is the one I refuse to accept, because if something has definitly improved in recent years, it's Bono's voice. His latest performances are what really gets me excited about the new songs. If nothing dramatic happens (and I hope it doesn't), his voice should be a real strength on the new album.

Listen, I really hope your right! I wouldn't say it improved but I wouldn't say it got worse know what I mean?

Bono has a great voice no matter what

 

[BVS]

Listen, I really hope your right! I wouldn't say it improved but I wouldn't say it got worse know what I mean?

I know you are new to U2, but seriously compare Popmart voice to Vertigo voice, Bono improved leaps and bounds.

 

[OrARoundabout]

I know you are new to U2, but seriously compare Popmart voice to Vertigo voice, Bono improved leaps and bounds.

No Sir, I'm not new to U2 at all actually!

He's voice is fine in Vertigo and yes, it's better than Popmart you've got me there...but I wouldn't say it improved "leaps and bounds".


BUT ITS NOT LIKE J.T OR A.B now is it? Thats when it was the best...16 YEARS AGO!
But my opinion REALLY doesn't matter....its not like I'm an expert on these things

 

[Liesje]

Listen, I really hope your right! I wouldn't say it improved but I wouldn't say it got worse know what I mean?

I think it has improved a lot, technically. I can barely stand to listen to most JT and LoveTown stuff, same for ZooTV. It's like Kermit the Frog does U2. I'm sure the vocal cords themselves have deteriorated at the same time so he has a raspier tone and can't hit some of the notes he used to, but technique-wise, Bono has only improved.

 

[BVS]

No Sir, I'm not new to U2 at all actually!

I meant relative to their career, not your life.

He's voice is fine in Vertigo and yes, it's better than Popmart you've got me there...but I wouldn't say it improved "leaps and bounds".

BUT ITS NOT LIKE J.T OR A.B now is it? Thats when it was the best...16 YEARS AGO!
But my opinion REALLY doesn't matter....its not like I'm an expert on these things

JT he had some great tone, but his technique was bad. Zoo, he had lost some of his strength, but had great falsetto. Pop it was just fried... But Vertigo he actually has great strength and technique, he's losing a bit of control over his falsetto, but overall it's the best he's sounded since Lovetown. Especially given his age and the downfall it took there for awhile.

 

[phillyfan26]

My thoughts? I don't care at this point. I don't have expectations. I want a new album that I can listen to objectively and then form an opinion on. They could do more of the same or something completely new. Whatever. I just want the album. Same or new doesn't matter: inspiration and execution matters. And we can't know that based on quotes. We'll know when we hear it.

 

[OrARoundabout]

I meant relative to their career, not your life.




JT he had some great tone, but his technique was bad. Zoo, he had lost some of his strength, but had great falsetto. Pop it was just fried... But Vertigo he actually has great strength and technique, he's losing a bit of control over his falsetto, but overall it's the best he's sounded since Lovetown. Especially given his age and the downfall it took there for awhile.

Yeah, you make some great points. I'm listening over some "Lovetown" now. I guess your right. The falsetto is, overall, gone now...but he is regaining alot of control so...

way to go Bono.

 

[LyricalDrug]

Don't expect, suggest.

 

[catlhere]

I thought ATYCLB and HTDAAB were already great? If we're talking about TJT level then, well no I wouldn't expect that to happen. They have never come close to that AAA+ goodness since then. But the rest of their catelogue is still fantabulous.

 

[the tourist]

Don't expect, suggest.

That's the problem--too many people have expectations, and therefore suggestions. And this brings around disappointment.

 

[Rob33]

no bono hasn't lost his falsetto, although it was strongest during zooTV... I really suggest you talk to Peterrr before saying stuff like that...he will give you accurate, detailed information that will only help you in your analysis of Bono's voice...

someone earlier mentioned something about failing to hit notes... please! you really need to listen to union chapel thoroughly and very carefully...

 

[the tourist]

someone earlier mentioned something about failing to hit notes... please! you really need to listen to union chapel thoroughly and very carefully...

His voice is a lot weaker than it used to be. It's due to the smoking of cigarettes.... I notice a significant vocal change from Zooropa to Pop. Maybe it's just that the way he sings has changed.

 

[OrARoundabout]

His voice is a lot weaker than it used to be. It's due to the smoking of cigarettes...I notice a significant vocal change from Zooropa to Pop

Yeah...about that

 

[phillyfan26]

I thought ATYCLB and HTDAAB were already great?

There's split opinions on that. I'd say it's about 50-50 with ATYCLB and 60-40 (60=unfavorable) on HTDAAB.

 

[the tourist]

There's split opinions on that. I'd say it's about 50-50 with ATYCLB and 60-40 (60=unfavorable) on HTDAAB.

It's funny how that is. Because about the time HTDAAB came out, most everyone liked it, and at that point more people disliked ATYCLB

 

[phillyfan26]

Well, I think most releases are popular RIGHT after they're released (or at least seem that way).

 

[the tourist]

Well it seems like the albums are really popular right when they're released. But then they fade for awhile until a lot of people really dislike them. But then later on those albums regain their lost popularity.

 

[Earnie Shavers]

There's always a natural boom out of the gates, then a sort of natural drop (I guess as people taper the reality against the considerable 4 year build up and expectation) and then a sort of levelling.

I think it was noticeable that ATYCLB grew in popularity around here after HTDAAB, or at least gained some respect.

Personally, I think it is probably in line with October as their weakest albums track for track, but that it's natural, breezy overall feel took a while to shine through, and in the end that overall feeling has sort of made up for a lot of it's track by track weakness. I think post-HTDAAB that became more evident. You thought Walk On was a formulaic anthem, but not after you heard Miracle Drug. You thought Elevation was a tacky throw away song, but not after you heard Vertigo. You thought When I Look at the World was an empty track, but not after you heard the overblown cheese of Original of the Species, suddenly WILATW is sweet in it's simplicity. And then there's Beautiful Day, Kite and In a Little While. Easily the three best tracks, IMO, of the 00s and by far the most successful songs of their 00s sound, themes and musical positioning. I think Beautiful Day and Kite alone will mean more to U2 fans in a decade then the entire Bomb album. They'll only grow in stature while generic soulless tracks like All Because of You will just fade away.

That's just my personal opinion though. I don't think it's a 60/40 split against Atomic Bomb, in here anyway. I think it's probably 1/3 adore, 1/3 detest, 1/3 neither here nor there. I do think it is without a doubt, along with Pop, their most polarizing album and, again, in my opinion... my hot tip is that by the very nature of the type of music on there, the popular opinion of HTDAAB will probably slide over time.

 

[Axver]

I think HTDAAB has actually caused somewhat of a decline for ATYCLB. Prior to HTDAAB, there were all the Pop vs ATYCLB debates and they generated some pretty strong feeling. ATYCLB was the return some people wanted and they were willing to cling to it regardless of its cheese (Elevation), poor vocals (In A Little While), and b-sides posing as album tracks (Wild Honey). Then along came HTDAAB and the Pop vs ATYCLB debates are now a more generic 1990s vs 2000s debate. What's more, the poor showing of HTDAAB helped to reveal just how mundane ATYCLB was. This U2 sound became the norm, not a return. The common cheesiness and blandness shared by the albums has done nothing to help ATYCLB's image.

At the end of the day, there's no way either are classics or truly great and I don't think many people here think they are; not even their fans are regularly putting them up on a JT/AB pedestal as some people (including myself) will do with UF. HTDAAB could never be a classic without a remaster anyway; even if its songs were fantastic and lyrics worthwhile, its mixing is so horrifically bad that it's off-putting. If U2 are going to release another truly great album, they absolutely must have it mixed and mastered by someone who's got a clue, i.e. someone who will let the songs breathe and won't force the "loudness wars" upon them.

 

[Rob33]

Axver, who do you think will do this for the next album?

as for HTDAAB and ATYCLB, they are both 4 star albums, great albums that, when compared to the majority of everything else out there, are amazing...when we analyze a U2 album nowadays, we speak in terms of what U2 is capable of...this is a very high standard...

the primary difference between these albums and JT and AB is simply, the latter are masterpieces...the fact that the general opinion of U2 albums fluctuates so much is an indication that when albums come out, there are few people who actually give the album a chance and listen to it carefully as opposed to immediately arriving at some rash conclusion...

When a new album is released, opinions immediately begin to form. If there was more deep discussion and analysis of the actual music and then opinions, when all there is to learn has been learned, the opinions would be more justified and album popularity wouldn't fluctuate so drastically over the years following the album's release...

this may seem a bit off topic but i believe this is why it appears the consensus of many U2 fans on a particular album doesn't stabilize until many years later...

 

[the tourist]

If U2 are going to release another truly great album, they absolutely must have it mixed and mastered by someone who's got a clue, i.e. someone who will let the songs breathe and won't force the "loudness wars" upon them.

Amen. If anything, let the single mix (and the single mix alone) be mastered louder. As for the mixing, they need a new ear. The mixing on songs like City of Blinding Lights ruined the song for me. It's great live, though.

 

[last unicorn]

His voice is a lot weaker than it used to be. It's due to the smoking of cigarettes.... I notice a significant vocal change from Zooropa to Pop. Maybe it's just that the way he sings has changed.

Yes, but Pop was a weak point in Bono's singing carreer, he had almost lost his voice by then. I don't think it's fair to compare THAT voice to the voice he's having now. I think it's pretty safe to say that his voice has improved very much in recent years, it's not the voice he used to have back in the 18s, that's for sure, but he's not 25 anymore, it's different now. Technically, he is a much better singer now. I just hope that he doesn't wear it out too much and that it stays great and strong for the recordings of the new songs.

 

[ludvic]

Give me HTDAAB and ATYCLB over Zooropa & Pop any day.

I know Zooropa and Pop are loved around here but to me they don't sound experimental at all, in fact they just sound a mess. It seems to me that the experimental tag is used as an excuse for accepting lower quality music.