So what've we got so far? - a proposed map of the album

[digitize]

"Sexy Boots" doesn't sound boring or plain at all. In fact, I think it's one of the most exciting and fresh things U2 has done for a long time. I hope they don't mess too much with these songs or waste them for b-sides. I want to hear them on the album the way they are now, just in better quality, of course.

They should release an album of beach clips.

 

[LemonMelon]

The album is done, guys. Speculation on the recording process is over, and now the waiting game begins. I know it sucks, but it should only be a few more weeks before we hear some concrete information regarding the first single, release date, album title, and so on. It would be disappointing if Paul McG pulled a Chinese Democracy on us and delayed the thing, but there's nothing to speculate about on that front. Just wait.

 

[BVS]

The album is done, guys. Speculation on the recording process is over, and now the waiting game begins. I know it sucks, but it should only be a few more weeks before we hear some concrete information regarding the first single, release date, album title, and so on. It would be disappointing if Paul McG pulled a Chinese Democracy on us and delayed the thing, but there's nothing to speculate about on that front. Just wait.

There's some type of McGuine$$ and the internet joke in there somewhere...

The new U2 album: Chinese Internetocracy...

Ok, I've had little sleep.

 

[PowerSurge]

Just wondering....

If an album is officially "done", then what else is left before it hits the stores? Printing the CD's, jewel cases, booklets, etc etc, right?

So if this things been done for a little while now, whats the delay? Are they rethinking the order of songs and details of that nature?

 

[LastNameonEarth]

If the album is in the process of being printed, I doubt they'll be changing the order of songs! Vertigo was on the radio by mid-September '04 wasn't it? And I remember Beautiful Day being the closing music to the BBC's coverage of the Olympics in 2000, so there can't be much longer to wait before we hear a "slightly" clearer version of the beach clips, or Sexy Boots anyway. At least they finished recording in plenty of time for the release schedule, unlike for POP when they had to rush completing it (even if the re-worked versions of POP songs they released years later were inferior to the originals).

Personally, though, I'm really attached to the beach clips now, and can't imagine the songs sounding better without waves lapping onto the beach, and people talking over the recording. The baby speaking at the end of Sexy Boots is better than any backing vocals Edge has ever done

 

[ChargedVT]

I think the single (Sexy Boots or other) will be released to radio no sooner than the end of September. When Vertigo was first on the radio it was a full two months before the album was released and, to me, that seemed a bit long, because a lot of people would have heard the song flogged to death and been kind of "over it" before the album was released. As it was, the physical single of Vertigo wasn't released until early Nov and didn't chart as high as it should have due to this time frame. I think the perfect amount of time between first single on radio and album release would be 6 weeks.
Here's my predictions:
Single to radio - end of Sept/early Oct
Album - Nov 18th (US) and prob the 15th here in Aus!

 

[BloodRedSky2k5]

I think, despite the obvious success of Vertigo, the whole radio/video thing was somewhat poorly handled with HTDAAB. The song was on radio 1-2 weeks before it should have been, which is idealy around 6 weeks before the album is released. McG may have looked at the Grammy situation though. The Vertigo video wasn't exactly helped by the weather conditions when they were shooting in Spain but they should have a video ready at the same time as the song goes to radio.

 

[LastNameonEarth]

I just hope the videos on this album suit, and do justice to, the songs they release eg One, Beautiful Day, The Ground Beneath Her Feet, and unlike horrible videos like Walk On or All Because of You.

 

[namkcuR]

Just wondering....

If an album is officially "done", then what else is left before it hits the stores? Printing the CD's, jewel cases, booklets, etc etc, right?

So if this things been done for a little while now, whats the delay? Are they rethinking the order of songs and details of that nature?

They hold the album when it's finished. They want it to be released late October to mid-November, for the holiday rush. Sell more. And also have relevance through two grammy cycles.

 

[PowerSurge]

I think, despite the obvious success of Vertigo, the whole radio/video thing was somewhat poorly handled with HTDAAB. The song was on radio 1-2 weeks before it should have been, which is idealy around 6 weeks before the album is released. McG may have looked at the Grammy situation though. The Vertigo video wasn't exactly helped by the weather conditions when they were shooting in Spain but they should have a video ready at the same time as the song goes to radio.

If you remember, the reason why it came out early was because the song was already leaked through the internet. The U2 camp scrambled to get Vertigo on the radio ASAP as a result. But I totally understand your point...its very true.

 

[PowerSurge]

They hold the album when it's finished. They want it to be released late October to mid-November, for the holiday rush. Sell more. And also have relevance through two grammy cycles.

makes total sense to me. So by that theory we should have an official single in the next couple of weeks, right?

 

[mikal]

If you remember, the reason why it came out early was because the song was already leaked through the internet. The U2 camp scrambled to get Vertigo on the radio ASAP as a result. But I totally understand your point...its very true.

Actually, that's not true at all. We didn't hear Vertigo until the radio played it (I believe Indie 103 was the station).

 

[PowerSurge]

Actually, that's not true at all. We didn't hear Vertigo until the radio played it (I believe Indie 103 was the station).

Not true either.

I remember hearing it well before that. I thought how the story went was that they sent the single out to radio stations two weeks prior to release for people to promote and get a listen and it was leaked. I remember hearing a crappy recording of it almost two weeks prior.

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I remember waiting for the radio release to get a better recording of it. Each time I raised the volume on the mp3 it sounded horrible. All of the high and low levels were digitally cut and it made the song sound weak when played loud.

 

[popacrobat]

We did not hear Vertigo until a radio station played it. September 23, 2004.

 

[PowerSurge]

We did not hear Vertigo until a radio station played it. September 23, 2004.

All I know is that I had a ripped Vertigo mp3 about maybe 1 1/2 - 2 weeks prior to it hitting the radio nationally. I'm not sure where it came from, whether it was the Indie station playing too early, but I had the song prior.

 

[PowerSurge]

http://digitaldreammachine.blogspot.com/2004/10/apple-itunes-u2-vertigo.html

now I remember...the single was stolen. Thats why they rushed it to iTunes then the radio.

Maybe my recording was a quick crappy rip off of that stolen CD. Whatever it was, it was still pretty good to hear the new song at that time before everyone else. I remember pulling a Bono in my car and blaring the song really loud with my windows down.

 

[mikal]

All I know is that I had a ripped Vertigo mp3 about maybe 1 1/2 - 2 weeks prior to it hitting the radio nationally. I'm not sure where it came from, whether it was the Indie station playing too early, but I had the song prior.

If you had the song ripped to mp3 (other than the beach clip) before September 23rd, 2004, then you were very lucky, because absolutely no one at Interference had it until the radio played it.

 

[Jono]

i just ripped an mp3 and was blaring sexy boots in my car...awesome!

 

[Jono]

and it starts like this...
Un, Deux, Trois, Quatorze!!!

 

[LemonMelon]

i just ripped an mp3 and was blaring sexy boots in my car...awesome!

and it starts like this...
Un, Deux, Trois, Quatorze!!!

You have an MP3??? Let me get my not-so-portable tape recorder out of the attic.

 

[Jono]

i only have reel to reel and 8 track for my Sgt Peppers tape-

 

[PowerSurge]

If you had the song ripped to mp3 (other than the beach clip) before September 23rd, 2004, then you were very lucky, because absolutely no one at Interference had it until the radio played it.

I was also a member of U2star.com at the time and someone either mentioned a link or posted a link or something to that nature.

I remember not seeing anything at all at this site at the time. I guess the policy about posting songs illegally had just been instituted.

 

[PowerSurge]

i just ripped an mp3 and was blaring sexy boots in my car...awesome!

LOL!

thats awesome!

make sure to sing to it really loudly so that passersby and other drivers think you are crazy.

 

[mikal]

I was also a member of U2star.com at the time and someone either mentioned a link or posted a link or something to that nature.

I remember not seeing anything at all at this site at the time. I guess the policy about posting songs illegally had just been instituted.

i'm sorry, and please don't take offense, but i really don't believe that you had Vertigo before September 23rd. i was a member of u2star.com too, and there were definitely no links floating around, and trust me, if there had been it would have been posted here, no doubt. the policy about posting leaked songs didn't stop the album from being leaked in November of 2004.

 

[LemonMelon]

Yeah, I was a regular on U2star and didn't have a link until the 23rd.

 

[Jono]

i have vertigo
want a mp3 of it?

 

[U2DMfan]

i'm sorry, and please don't take offense, but i really don't believe that you had Vertigo before September 23rd. .

That song didn't exist in remotely proper form on the world wide web until it was played by Dave Fanning. So, I think he's obviously mistaken.

 

[dan_smee]

That song didn't exist in remotely proper form on the world wide web until it was played by Dave Fanning. So, I think he's obviously mistaken.

That's not quite true either. Ther world was waiting, and JJJ Australia was lined up to be the frist to play it world wide (because of the thimezones). I think the Nova syndication t5ried to gazump them, so JJJ played it a day early so they could still be first. There was no version on the net before this. I am a member of Interference, The larry Mullen band and u2star, and it was nowhere. JJJ said they found it online to get around the restrictions on playing it early. They later admitted they didn't, because it wasn;t available anywhere.

 

[PowerSurge]

i'm sorry, and please don't take offense, but i really don't believe that you had Vertigo before September 23rd. i was a member of u2star.com too, and there were definitely no links floating around, and trust me, if there had been it would have been posted here, no doubt. the policy about posting leaked songs didn't stop the album from being leaked in November of 2004.

Maybe I was mistaken about the date, but I distinctly remember having a leak of the song with someSpanish guy talking over the beginning of it...and NO it was not a beach clip. Could that have been the early radio play that you're speaking of?

About a week and a half later the song finally hit nation wide in America. I might not have realized that there were a few radio stations playing it exclusively. That being said I still had the early leak.

 

[Maassie]

Maybe I was mistaken about the date, but I distinctly remember having a leak of the song with someSpanish guy talking over the beginning of it...

I think you're almost right! I remember also to have a mp3 that started with a spanish DJ talking through it (and also at the end I believe)!

But that mp3 became available on september 23...