Songs of Ascent V - The Final Bell

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I still believe U2 will release a new album before the tour starts again.
I still hope it will be Songs Of Ascent, the way it was described at first, very probably with 3 or 4 new songs with the potential to be hits.
I still have complete confidence in U2 being capable of making their best album.

However...it makes me so sad to read all the bits and pieces of information the band is giving...it looks as if making a new record is speculating over so many things that should exist outside the creative process...as if they were a business board analyzing the future of a corporation, or a group of scientists deciding how to assemble an atomic bomb...
:hmm:
Ok, forgive me for my exxageration...
I know U2 have always wanted to be on top, and having been on top for almost their entire career it´s understandable they may feel it´s a natural part of their dna, to be massive, to be the biggest band of the world...
What I´m trying to say is, I really wish they made an album for themselves, an album that they feel they want to listen as fans of music...with the desire to connect with all their fans and as many people as possible, yes of course, as that is undeniable one of the best virtues of the band, their yearning to connect...
But without trying to meet anyone´s expectations, certainly not the tastes of the radio for gods sake!...
Only their own as extraordinary musicians and artists they are...
I feel this would be the best way to avoid all the second thinking and over producing that complicated their creative process in the last decade...
Just go for the music that excites them when they are in the room playing, and make an album the 4 of them can fall in love with...
:hmm:
Oh well, just my thoughts...sorry if I bored anyone...

I still trust U2 to be the only ones that know what´s really the best way to make their albums. I hope they feel this way too.
 
One possibility with Edge saying they'd like to play new songs live first is see what kind of reaction they get before releasing an album like SOA. If the songs take off live, then they probably wouldn't have any problem going forward. If they don't, maybe they just release some "traditional" songs instead and save SOA for another time, or just never.

Who knows what's going on. Like others have said, it's going to be a bit maddening over the next few months.

I don't know...they were somewhat doubtful over the live reception of the last album but Crazy remix was the highlight of the show, with Ultraviolet. Also most people enjoyed NLOTH, as well as the other singles...what you say is possible but my understanding is more along the lines of "we will do our best to have a new album in Summer 2010, but at the very least, we will bring some new songs live next year". Still, Bono/McGuiness quotes are the most recent.
 
BTW, why is the name of the thread 'the final bell'?

haven't you heard, there is a world wide bell shortage and even the Liberty Bell has a crack in it. Like the polar caps melting, Bells are in danger of becoming extinct and so we have to try and preserve them, or not *ring* them too much. I'm guessing the thread author has noticed a lot of bell ringing associated with these new album threads.
 
Just going back a few pages, I think there's nothing unfair in suggesting that Edge has definitely, well, stalled creatively. As great as NLOTH is, there's nothing new from him on there. Or even particularly brilliant. His playing in a technical sense has been fantastic all decade, but in a creative sense I'd say, with maybe only one or two exceptions track wise, nothing truly amazing since Pop. ATYCLB gets a pass because we all wanted to hear a bit of that again, and of course it's fantastic for him to get a retrospective look at what is essentially - rightly or wrongly - his signature sound, but I really don't think it's unfair to suggest that he's pretty much dialed in the last two albums.

As someone else said, Eno/Lanois drove NLOTH. Bono stepped it back up again vocally and lyrically after what in Bomb I'd call his weakest effort on both fronts. The U2 rhythm section always bring the goods. Edge, sadly, is not much more than a supporting player, supplying guitar parts as necessary, with most if not all sounding mostly vaguely, but sometimes explicitly, like something we've heard before. I think a U2 step forward on the next album would mean ALL of them re-embracing the creative end of their spectrum. For me, that image of a professor Edge up late at night noodling away at new sounds and ideas has pretty much gone, and the last two albums just sound like a guy checking in, supplying a comfortable part, and checking out. Of course comfortable can still be great - Unknown Caller, MoS, No Line, Breathe etc are all great Edge-wise, but the 'woah' has gone.
 
BTW, why is the name of the thread 'the final bell'?

Use of Roman numerals got me thinking of Rocky. Rocky V was sometimes referred to as Rocky V - The Final Bell. Irony being that 16 years later he made the 6th movie. Apologies for the obscurity
 
I would say since ATYCLB the entire band has kind of gone into a supporting role. Larry picked it up on NLOTH after being very bland on the past two albums.

Adam has all but admitted he's done looking for cool bass riffs and is trying to play in a more musical sense.

Maybe Edge is taking that same route as well, though he's tried with the big riffs, and while they are kind of cool, it just doesn't have the same mood or coolness as something like The Fly or LNOE. All very simple riffs, but just seems as though something is missing from Vertigo/GOYB.

I have no idea what to expect from the next U2 album.
 
I never thought I'd see the day when the one member of U2 whose musical abilities were not being questioned was Adam : )

While I agree that Edge seems to have slipped a little creatively, I'm not sure it's due to "mailing it in" as suggested above. I just think he's struggling to find the plot, if you will. I have noticed two things in the last several years about Edge's playing and quotes:

1) His guitar work has gotten much more obvious and lost the sublime quality that permeated his earlier work - and made him God-like in my opinion, and
2) He seems to be losing touch a bit with what makes a quality song. The stuff he trumpets as the cream of the crop is mediocre at best and that worries me.

As for Bono, God love him for who he is, but he flunked out in 1st year of attending the School of Similes. I got a copy of his final essay submission:

"It's warm in this room;
I'm like cream cheese on a toaster bagel.

But my pen is getting heavy;
Heavy like a motorcycle.

God is like a little old lady;
I must help Him/Her across the road

Time to go for a pint now;
I'm thirsty like a man who just ran a marathon."

Grade: F+

Comments from teacher: "Please refrain from similes on Songs of Ascent"
(And that my friends, is how I make this post remotely relevant to the topic. I'm crafty. Crafty like a craft maker.)
 
I never thought I'd see the day when the one member of U2 whose musical abilities were not being questioned was Adam : )

While I agree that Edge seems to have slipped a little creatively, I'm not sure it's due to "mailing it in" as suggested above. I just think he's struggling to find the plot, if you will. I have noticed two things in the last several years about Edge's playing and quotes:

1) His guitar work has gotten much more obvious and lost the sublime quality that permeated his earlier work - and made him God-like in my opinion, and
2) He seems to be losing touch a bit with what makes a quality song. The stuff he trumpets as the cream of the crop is mediocre at best and that worries me.

Watching the band up close on the 360 Tour last year I got the feeling Adam is really enjoying himself and both he and to some extent Larry, are playing better than ever adding musical flourishes to some of the older numbers such as Streets, as well as the newer songs.

I can't quite put my finger on it but it felt to me like Edge was not enjoying himself. He often just did not seem fully committed to the show, I can't explain why but if ever it seemed he was turning up to turn out a performance rather than lose himself in the music and with a bit of spontaneity it was on this tour. Perhaps the huge stage does not suit him so much, I don't know.

Having said that I thoroughly enjoyed the show. Just hoping to see a bit more 'angry' Edge. Seems he plays best that way such as Achtung Baby era. Would love to see Electric Co played.

As for the new album - I hope they don't run the song choices too democratically if it means trying to play it safe. I hope they stick to the original plan and give us part 2 of NLOTH - the contemplative Songs of Ascent. Please stick to your guns guys and let the record sales sort themselves out. Even business wise who cares if you sell 4 million versus 8 million albums when you can run the highest grossing tour of all time (probably) and pack stadiums to the point that 9 of the 10 top grossing music performances last year where U2.
 
I'm really enjoying these thoughtful Edge analyses and find myself agreeing with much that's being said.

And I too noticed that Edge (who's always been my favorite band member) has seemed a little 'out of it' on the 360 tour so far. I don't know if its the mic situation or what, but he looks generally uncomfortable and doesn't seem to be going through the full range of emotions he usually does in a show. I don't mean to sound over-dramatic, but I'm worried that the fire/passion could be dwindling for him.
 
I would say since ATYCLB the entire band has kind of gone into a supporting role. Larry picked it up on NLOTH after being very bland on the past two albums.

Adam has all but admitted he's done looking for cool bass riffs and is trying to play in a more musical sense.

Maybe Edge is taking that same route as well, though he's tried with the big riffs, and while they are kind of cool, it just doesn't have the same mood or coolness as something like The Fly or LNOE. All very simple riffs, but just seems as though something is missing from Vertigo/GOYB.

I have no idea what to expect from the next U2 album.

Agree for the most part on Edge.

I think Larry, but especially Adam, turned in some of his most creative work in a while on NLOTH. He provides the mood for MOS, makes Magnificent soar in a way that Walk On or COBL do not, etc. NLOTH2 and SUC are also Adam highlights.

Due to Adam, and to a lesser extent Larry, Magnificent sounds less like the U2 by numbers of the 2000's and more like the great 1980s anthems: NYD, Pride, ASOH, In God's Country. I think Magnificent could easily fit on 3 of the top 5 U2 albums: War, UF and JT.
 
Watching the band up close on the 360 Tour last year I got the feeling Adam is really enjoying himself and both he and to some extent Larry, are playing better than ever adding musical flourishes to some of the older numbers such as Streets, as well as the newer songs.

I can't quite put my finger on it but it felt to me like Edge was not enjoying himself. He often just did not seem fully committed to the show, I can't explain why but if ever it seemed he was turning up to turn out a performance rather than lose himself in the music and with a bit of spontaneity it was on this tour. Perhaps the huge stage does not suit him so much, I don't know.

Having said that I thoroughly enjoyed the show. Just hoping to see a bit more 'angry' Edge. Seems he plays best that way such as Achtung Baby era. Would love to see Electric Co played.
This.

And I am glad it is not just me!

He seems to be into it right at the opener, as he claims Breathe is his favorite NLOTH track, but then its autopilot.

I hope it is just something we can't quite put our finger on, and that his daughter is not sick again. I think there is a quote from him somewhere saying the last U2 show in South America before they postponed Vertigo was the one show in his life he truly just did not want to be at.
 
I don't know about the live Edge stuff, but from a creative/studio standpoint, I think I have partially put my finger on it:

For me, the brilliance of the Edge was always that his guitar work was textured, atmospheric and layered. And I'm not just talking about the slow, moody songs. On the up front, rocking tunes like Bullet, The Fly and Until the End of the World, the album versions have an atmosphere about the guitar and they're veiled in some mystical quality. I think that's why those songs worked so well live. The album versions were brilliantly shrouded, but live, the guitar work was stripped down and in your face which made them a striking complement to the album.

The last several years, his guitar work has been largely devoid of that on the rock songs. The studio versions of songs like Vertigo, All Because of You, Boots and Breathe all have very obvious, simple, less-than-meets-the-eye vibes to them. And so live, it's more of the same.

To try and sum it up simply, I think what used to be great about the Edge was that all of his work had the air of some underlying texture that made it so intriguing. But lately, there is nothing underlying to challenge us. His guitar lines don't alter our moods. They're just there.

Anyway, that's how I hear it now. I'm not saying they're bad. They've just lost their touch a bit.
 
I don't know when the rhythm section got so great...outside of the groove on Magnificent (and they did do dance-able beats in the 90's), there's not a song where they really stand out.

I liked Edge's melody on Crazy Tonight, and the riff on Stand up.

he other songs are all greatly aided by Eno's studio assistance.
 
we need some positive news in a bad way. i had a bad feeling after the "U2 makes fans' Xmas" that things would get sour.
 
I don't suppose the total silence on a 4th single from NLOTH could be a hint on a sooner-than-later release of SOA ?
 
I don't suppose the total silence on a 4th single from NLOTH could be a hint on a sooner-than-later release of SOA ?

i like your thinking. the band easily could have released Moment Of Surrender last year November or December, but chose not to.
 
And they even said there'd be special cardboard boxes with space for 4 singles...
 
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