Ok, it's been 48 hours.... / Post 48 hours Analysis

[Vlad n U 2]

only good songs are Pride and Bad

You don't like Unforgettable Fire, Wire or A Sort Of Homecoming?

Its still your opinion though.

 

[HansaTonImbiss]

If I'm picking my top five, it's easy: AB, JT, UF, Zooropa, and this is currently duking it out with War for number 4/5. After listening to Zooropa all day today, I genuinely missed some songs off of NLOTH. We'll see where it ranks around June-time....

 

[JOFO]

I would rank my favorite's as:

1) TIE: JT and AB
2) UF

those 3 way out in front, then:

3) TIE: POP, ATYCLB, Rattle and Hum, NLOTH
4) Zooropa
5) HTDAAB
6) War
7) Boy
8) October



Feels pretty right......

 

[tsweeney]

For me Achtung Baby is still their best album. I think NLOTH will most likely be my third favorite U2 album overall. I thought HTDAAB was their best work since AB but that has changed over the past few years. I think Pop is lyrically better overall than ATYCLB and HDTAAB and their most underrated album. Zooropa is an amazing album also and their most experimental. I think I'll have to wait to see how the new songs translate live as someone else had also posted.

 

[The Sad Punk]

Because the kids are doing it:

Tier 1: "Damn, this is some crazy ass shit!"
TUF
War
Zooropa

Tier 2: "This is the good stuff, guys. Right here."
Boy
October
JT
NLOTH MAYBE

Tier 3: "I respect this."
OR NLOTH BELONGS HERE
Pop
Passengers

Tier 4: "Hey, wait a minute!"
AB
Hutdab

Tier 5: "Pure shit."
Atycub

 

[LemonMelon]

1. Zooropa
2. The Joshua Tree
3. Pop
4. Boy
5. War
6. Achtung Baby
7. NLOTH
*PASSENGERS*
8. HTDAAB
9. Rattle And Hum
10. The Unforgettable Fire
11. ATYCLB
12. October

 

[U2STU]

You don't like Unforgettable Fire, Wire or A Sort Of Homecoming?

Its still your opinion though.

I neally choked on my cockatoo when i read his statement.



UF is a classic!

 

[icebergy]

so basically all this thread established is that U2 fans will never reach a consencus on album rank......

 

[LemonMelon]

so basically all this thread established is that U2 fans will never reach a consencus on album rank......

Not as long as Zooropa is my favorite, no.

 

[grant72]

i cant compare u2 albums, they all have their own special thing about them. THIS ALBUM is absolutely amazing.

 

[Roland of Gilead]

I popped my "U2 Cherry" with UF, so it is automatically a classic right there.

 

[GibsonGirl]

Forty-eight hours later, and I still cannot stop listening to this album.

Going into it with low expectations probably helped... Honestly, I thought we would get HTDAAB Pt. II with a couple of boops and beeps thrown in here and there to create the illusion of a departure. I have never been more wrong in my life, and I've never been happier to be wrong. It's just a really great time to be a U2 fan. I recognise that the album might slip a little in my rankings given a little time, but as of now, it's up there with the great ones.

Some random comments...

The North African influence
The Moroccan sessions didn't come through as strongly as I hoped they would, but when they do they're truly excellent. I think people are underestimating how much of the influence is in there -- it's not just on Fez -- so I thought I'd break it down a little bit for those of you who haven't been listening to the background noise as obsessively as I have been. I'm probably overlooking a few as well:

a.) NLOTH - Synth/guitar drone in the left channel (0:09). Drums on right channel, kicking in at the 1:15 mark.
b.) Magnificent - Synth behind the guitar solo. (Reminds me of Dubai at night.)
c.) Unknown Caller - Intro.
d.) FEZ-Being Born (whole song, obviously.)

The solo in Magnificent just sounds...well, fucking magnificent. I've already associated a picture with it in my mind, and it looks something like this: Marrakech at Night on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (incidently, I think that would make a great album cover)

The atmospheric soundscapes
NLOTH is absolutely chock full of soundscapes. We all owe a big thank you to Brian Eno for that one. The thing I'm probably loving most about this album is that I can close my eyes and imagine scenes in my head as I'm listening to the songs -- something I can't really do with HTDAAB or ATYCLB. I've already mentioned the solo during Magnificent... Others include pretty much all of Moment of Surrender, the intro to Unknown Caller, all of Fez-Being Born (still cannot fucking get over how incredible it sounds when Bono starts yelling), all of White As Snow, all of Cedars Of Lebanon. Speaking of Cedars Of Lebanon... So, so, so good. Some people seem to think it's too depressing, but fuck that. It's so dark, and we haven't had dark U2 in ages. I cannot tell you how much that intro affects me. It sounds like something you'd hear on Kid A. The "return the call to home" line chokes me up. The delivery is perfect. And when last have we heard such pure poetry from Bono?

The Edge
He's on fire. Sure, he relies on the old sound quite a bit, but there are moments when you just have to sit up and say, "fucking hell, Edge." The solo in Moment of Surrender gets to me like you would not believe. It's almost Gilmourish. Then there's the solo in Unknown Caller... And the section from 2:26-2:58 in Stand Up Comedy... I don't really care for that song, but that section almost makes up for it. When last did Edge use his flanger? If he'd have busted out a Zoo TV Mysterious Ways-like solo at the end there, it might have pushed the song up a bit higher for me. Too bad. Maybe on the tour, Edge? Please?


Overall, I'm just beyond pleased with NLOTH. It's cohesive, it's carefree, it flows, and even the worst songs have moments I can appreciate. Is it as good as JT and AB? Not by a mile. It might be the closest they've come to writing the third masterpiece, however. I'd rank it alongside UF and Pop at the moment. Thanks, U2. You've pulled me back. (Those are tears of joy, by the way.)

 

[Vlad n U 2]

Friday can't come soon enough, all my download attempts have so far failed.

 

[SecretFly]

Friday can't come soon enough, all my download attempts have so far failed.

Gees I feel sorry for you. Has the link expired or is it your computer? Would like to help you out here.

 

[Vlad n U 2]

Gees I feel sorry for you. Has the link expired or is it your computer? Would like to help you out here.

Computer, got dial up connection, and you would think trying to download a 98MB file will take very long. It took me about 4 hours to get to 60%, at which my download was terminated.

I've only got two options now. A) download each song separately (i've posted that in the request thread) and B) wait until Friday.

 

[AshTS]

This is the 4th masterpiece.

Pop is the 3rd masterpiece, BTW, but No Line slides in 4th.

Honestly though, my top 3 changes with the mood and there is room for a fourth in Ashley's top U2 album car pool.

 

[U2girl]

I'm getting the feeling the band has now really come full circle.

Like ATYCLB and Bomb, NLOTH takes the (best, in this case) bits of the past while (actually) not forgetting to look ahead. They took UF and Zooropa sounds/landscapes, touch of JT, while not forgetting the pop sensibilities of the last two albums. And I feel this is the perfect mix of both Eno and Lanois on a U2 album.

Now we're ready for U2's 4th era.

 

[kraftus]

This is a Top3 album (if you only have three U2 albums, of course).

 

[laurent37]

It is their best since Achtung baby. If they get the being relevant and appealing to a younger audience out of their system and just make music for the sake of it they will go far.

 

[tim722]

This may be their best. It ranks right up there with TUF, TJT, and AB. It reminds me of all three, mostly of TUF and AB. Their music on this album takes me to another place as the same as TUF but with the Achtung sound. Moment of Surrender is the best song I've ever heard. This is the first song I've ever cried to when I don't even know what it is about. Maybe they were tears of joy of a great song but I think it was just the raw emotion of the song itself.

It's their most complete album in a long time. A lot of soul. But for me one of my favorite songs from last album is A Man And A Woman. That song could have been on this album.

 

[Rosebud]

^Props for mentioning AMAAW. I adore that song.



.....though it does need an instrumental break in there.

 

[bram]

I'm not really sure where this one will end up in my final U2 album ranking, but I think I can say at this point that it is my favorite since AB. Which, considering it's been 18 years, is pretty good indeed.

 

[ntalwar]

Every song gets better with each listen, including Boots.

The North African influence
The Moroccan sessions didn't come through as strongly as I hoped they would, but when they do they're truly excellent. I think people are underestimating how much of the influence is in there -- it's not just on Fez -- so I thought I'd break it down a little bit for those of you who haven't been listening to the background noise as obsessively as I have been. I'm probably overlooking a few as well:

a.) NLOTH - Synth/guitar drone in the left channel (0:09). Drums on right channel, kicking in at the 1:15 mark.
b.) Magnificent - Synth behind the guitar solo. (Reminds me of Dubai at night.)
c.) Unknown Caller - Intro.
d.) FEZ-Being Born (whole song, obviously.)

Good analysis. I would add:
- parts of the second half of Crazy Tonight (strings at 2:35 onward and near the end) on the right channel. Sort of a Kashmir sound.
- The drums at the start of Moment of Surrender, and in several other parts (tabla-like sound). And some strings in the middle.
- The flute in Unknown Caller.

 

[zoocarolina]

Still hotter than a biatch to me!!!!! MOS is brilliant and I love the experimentation on FEZ, but MAG takes the cake, eats it and shoves it in your face, one of the most amazing songs I've ever heard!!!!!!

 

[Val]

This is a Top3 album (if you only have three U2 albums, of course).

 

[mikal]

Forty-eight hours later, and I still cannot stop listening to this album.

Going into it with low expectations probably helped... Honestly, I thought we would get HTDAAB Pt. II with a couple of boops and beeps thrown in here and there to create the illusion of a departure. I have never been more wrong in my life, and I've never been happier to be wrong. It's just a really great time to be a U2 fan. I recognise that the album might slip a little in my rankings given a little time, but as of now, it's up there with the great ones.

Some random comments...

The North African influence
The Moroccan sessions didn't come through as strongly as I hoped they would, but when they do they're truly excellent. I think people are underestimating how much of the influence is in there -- it's not just on Fez -- so I thought I'd break it down a little bit for those of you who haven't been listening to the background noise as obsessively as I have been. I'm probably overlooking a few as well:

a.) NLOTH - Synth/guitar drone in the left channel (0:09). Drums on right channel, kicking in at the 1:15 mark.
b.) Magnificent - Synth behind the guitar solo. (Reminds me of Dubai at night.)
c.) Unknown Caller - Intro.
d.) FEZ-Being Born (whole song, obviously.)

The solo in Magnificent just sounds...well, fucking magnificent. I've already associated a picture with it in my mind, and it looks something like this: Marrakech at Night on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (incidently, I think that would make a great album cover)

The atmospheric soundscapes
NLOTH is absolutely chock full of soundscapes. We all owe a big thank you to Brian Eno for that one. The thing I'm probably loving most about this album is that I can close my eyes and imagine scenes in my head as I'm listening to the songs -- something I can't really do with HTDAAB or ATYCLB. I've already mentioned the solo during Magnificent... Others include pretty much all of Moment of Surrender, the intro to Unknown Caller, all of Fez-Being Born (still cannot fucking get over how incredible it sounds when Bono starts yelling), all of White As Snow, all of Cedars Of Lebanon. Speaking of Cedars Of Lebanon... So, so, so good. Some people seem to think it's too depressing, but fuck that. It's so dark, and we haven't had dark U2 in ages. I cannot tell you how much that intro affects me. It sounds like something you'd hear on Kid A. The "return the call to home" line chokes me up. The delivery is perfect. And when last have we heard such pure poetry from Bono?

The Edge
He's on fire. Sure, he relies on the old sound quite a bit, but there are moments when you just have to sit up and say, "fucking hell, Edge." The solo in Moment of Surrender gets to me like you would not believe. It's almost Gilmourish. Then there's the solo in Unknown Caller... And the section from 2:26-2:58 in Stand Up Comedy... I don't really care for that song, but that section almost makes up for it. When last did Edge use his flanger? If he'd have busted out a Zoo TV Mysterious Ways-like solo at the end there, it might have pushed the song up a bit higher for me. Too bad. Maybe on the tour, Edge? Please?


Overall, I'm just beyond pleased with NLOTH. It's cohesive, it's carefree, it flows, and even the worst songs have moments I can appreciate. Is it as good as JT and AB? Not by a mile. It might be the closest they've come to writing the third masterpiece, however. I'd rank it alongside UF and Pop at the moment. Thanks, U2. You've pulled me back. (Those are tears of joy, by the way.)

very good post. i pretty much agree with everything.

 

[MikeyJB]

Anyone noticed the strange correlation between running order of songs between NLOTH and AB?

Zoo Station = NLOTH
EBTTRT = Magnificent
One = Moment of Surrender
Until the end of the world = Unknown Caller
WGRYWH = Crazy Tonight
The Fly = Get On Your Boots
Mysterious Ways = Stand up Comedy
TTTYAATW = Fez-Being Born
Acrobat = Breathe
Love is Blindness = Cedars of Lebanon

Long shot I know but the similarities in song feelings/dynamics really stood out to me as I was listening to it. Love the album, maybe not quite as much of a departure as I was hoping for but it sounds more rich, textured and vibrant than any U2 album ever. Bono's singing is incredible the whole way through, would have liked a bit more of The Edge's vocals and maybe Larry's drumming being higher in the mix at parts but other than that its a fabulously-produced album.

I reckon Moment of Surrender, Stand Up Comedy, Magnificent and Crazy Tonight will move onto a whole nother level when played live. All in all, very impressed and can't wait to listen to it more as I know it will grow and grow on me. Impossible to say at the moment where to place it in the catalogue - but I think it will reside alongside 'the other 2' as the '3 masterpieces'.

 

[orangemathias]

There's a cohesion in everything eno and lanois produced, of which the heavily multi-tracked harmonies are a sign. it's really beautiful, and I'm still piecing it together. But i can unequivocally say, Stand-Up Comedy only works to the album's detriment

Heard the album once on myspace and that's it. waiting for the release but I'll have to agree with corcovadosong that Stand-Up Comedy is Stand-Out bad, pedestrian track the kills the flow

 

[MikeyJB]

Heard the album once on myspace and that's it. waiting for the release but I'll have to agree with corcovadosong that Stand-Up Comedy is Stand-Out bad, pedestrian track the kills the flow

I disagree. SUC is the funkiest thing they've done since Mysterious Ways. Imo they should definitely release it as a single as it would definitely grab people's attentions and confirm to transient music fans that U2 have changed direction.

 

[orangemathias]

I disagree. SUC is the funkiest thing they've done since Mysterious Ways. Imo they should definitely release it as a single as it would definitely grab people's attentions and confirm to transient music fans that U2 have changed direction.

Well I've only heard it once so that was my first impression. I hope I'm very wrong. What do you think of the rest of the album?