All "Is U2 Breaking Up" Discussion

[WalkOn21]

Exactly. They would get involved in vanity projects (like the Spider-Man musical) to occupy them creatively, but other than that they would have no problem sipping cocktails on a yacht with celebrity pals. They LOVE that life. I don't know why anyone thinks they'd be hopelessly lost without U2.

They love living the lives of rock stars, which apart from hanging out with celebs and enjoying luxury also includes recording albums and touring. Don't think they would easily settle for just the former half of rock star life.

 

[Popmartijn]

This smacks of bono painting them into another creative corner. Of they heap the pressure onto themselves, they can allow themselves a lot more creative freedom. All the Achtung baby stuff must have got them thinking about it

That could be. In that respect this blog article by Neil McCormick is also interesting: Is it time for U2 to call it a day? – Telegraph Blogs

From my experience, what they tend to do is manufacture a sense of crisis to drive them. Edge refers to it as jeopardy, a constant buzzword in his discussions of their creative process. U2 need to feel that there are things at stake when they are writing and recording, deliberately using tension and risk to maintain focus. This, presumably, gets harder the more successful and comfortable individuals get. When Bono declares U2 to be on “the edge of irrelevance”, what he is really doing is raising the stakes for himself and his band, shoving them rudely out of their comfort zone.

U2 are in temporary retreat while their leader recharges his batteries, but his own self-questioning is not actually an indication of disillusion, but an instigation to action. Fans worrying that Bono’s remarks suggest U2 are about to call it a day could not be more wrong. What he really wants to do, indeed what he feels he needs to do, is for U2 “to go away and create the album of their lives.”

 

[WalkOn21]

That article is already being discussed in this thread.

 

[cobl04]

Numbers The Panther you are sex on a stick.

As for the article, as a budding journalist I know I always prefer my sources to be as credible as "Ed The Sock".

 

[LemonMelon]

Numbers The Panther you are sex on a stick.

It's a crying shame that the stick is keeping the sex confined.

Link doesn't work anymore. Didn't keep its relevance as long as U2, I'm afraid.

 

[gareth brown]

hahaha some of the quotes are laughable. especially the part on zooropa.

 

[waynetravis]

How long until we get a leak of this breakup?

Remastered break up?

 

[WalkOn21]

Let's have the discussion here and stop posting in this thread, please.

We've got enough 'relevance'/'breaking up' threads as it is.

 

[Nick66]

What a complete and utter waste of time. I want the last 10 minutes of my life back.

I respect that there are all kinds of opinions about U2's music, but when this guy basically said they jumped the shark w/Achtung Baby, he pretty much lost credibility with me. And the "poll" was just a lot of specious nonsense.

There was a much better article someone posted recently rating all of U2's albums (had the typical UF/JT/AB at top) that I didn't completely agree with but at least I could respect.

 

[WalkOn21]

Come on now people, there's no sense in having two threads about the same article.

 

[gareth brown]

hey guys how's it going?

 

[WalkOn21]

Yay, all 'relevance'/'breaking up' threads have been merged.

edit: oh wait, not all. There's this one as well.

 

[U2girl]

Where did the number 60 come from? The Who, the Rolling Stones and Neil Young are still touring and they're way past the 60 mark.

We shouldn't take anything for granted, but it's too early to write them off on account of their age.

Besides, what are they going to do if they stop making music? It's not as if they've got jobs to return to. They've probably got enough money to support them for the rest of their lives, but they don't strike me as the type of people who would spend the last 25 years of their lives just sipping champagne on a beach in the south of France.

2008 - they signed the Live Nation contract which is valid for 12 years. Until 2020 by which time they will be 60 years old.

They strike me as exactly the type of people who could happily spend time sipping champagne in the south of France. One of them has activism/friends in high places that would keep him busy, two of them could happily live without U2, and one of them would probably make solo albums.

 

[mikal]

My sources tell me that U2 has already called it quits but hasn't publicly announced it yet. They're still holding out hope that the right situation pops up with a team that could contend for a Superbowl.

 

[WalkOn21]

My sources tell me that U2 has already called it quits but hasn't publicly announced it yet. They're still holding out hope that the right situation pops up with a team that could contend for a Superbowl.

Your sources being your infamous "gut feeling"?

 

[corianderstem]

My sources tell me that U2 has already called it quits but hasn't publicly announced it yet. They're still holding out hope that the right situation pops up with a team that could contend for a Superbowl.

Headache is going to kill you for having Super Bowl as one word.

You're a Packer fan, man. You should know this stuff.

Spoiler

I had to be schooled on it by this site.

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

whats all this talk about "sex on a stick"

Or is it a "sex stick", or "sticky sex"

Either way it must be good for the economy and the morale of the pastel shade of crack.

Blue crack or blew yer crack?

Yeah i don't know. Gonna go outside and watch the army march up the street. If they come to conquer then you'll know what became of me. Read it and write that down.

sex on a sticky crack
pillage the kings and queens
line up their sons and daughters
take their treasures
pawn them well
drink for a spell
throw it up and do it all over again

 

[last unicorn]

I think they've done all they could do. They've had some awesome tours and some really great albums. What else do they have to prove? They don't need the money.

How about because they like each other and still love to be in each other's company and make music together?

The money argument is invalid. If it were for the money, they could have ended many many years ago.

I truly believe they won't do a big tour again, but I think we will see performances, maybe a smaller tour, and there will be another album, maybe two. I think family commitments and also health matters (Bono's back!) will be an issue, but they won't stop making music now. I cannot simply see the guys exist without making music. It's ridiculous to think about it: Why shouldn't they make more music if they can and want to?

 

[LuckyNumber7]

I'm not sure about that. Bono is not the only one in the band who values 'relevance'. Edge says in U2 by U2: "The big prize for us has always been to stay relevant".

I'm just going by what we know. Easy to speculate that it's a Bono/Edge Adam/Larry divide at the moment, but all we've really heard is Bono v. 'his bandmates'.

 

[Blue Room]

I have heard the U2 break up talk after every single album and tour since The Joshua Tree. I do not think the band will ever break up. I think they may take longer breaks or do a semi retirement thing at some point. It is not now though. They plan to tour in 2013 or 14 and I do not think that has changed. Most likely 2014 though.

 

[mama cass]

what happened to all the "the only way out of U2 is in a coffin" talk from just a few weeks/months ago?

 

[OpenG180]

what happened to all the "the only way out of U2 is in a coffin" talk from just a few weeks/months ago?

I thought that was a Keith Richards line. But then again, U2 is the new Stones...

 

[TheWanderingFly]

I was at a college hockey game last night and as I walk into the arena the first thing I hear is EBTTRT over the intercom, followed by Sunday Bloody Sunday. And that was a pretty small arena to me, nothing like United Center, MSG, etc. Hmmmmmm......

Who else thinks they should do a back-to-basics tour like Elevation, JT, etc.?

 

[gvox]

After Zooropa I felt they might be done. I felt it was their weakest overall output up to that point and that if this was where they were headed, it wasn't looking good. I backed off a bit to be honest. Just listened more to my older U2 albums.

 

[cobl04]

After Zooropa I felt they might be done. I felt it was their weakest overall output up to that point and that if this was where they were headed, it wasn't looking good. I backed off a bit to be honest. Just listened more to my older U2 albums.

Striiiiiiiiike two!

 

[gvox]

I was describing my mood at the time. I'm not sure what you were up to in 93 but there was a hell of alot of other stuff going on that was way better than this album overall, I'm sorry. Looking back Zooropa has held up fairly well, but there are still some pretty throwaway songs on it.

 

[intedomine]

Maybe they have released their last album, but that's not to say that they are gonna break up.

Maybe they will be more inclined towards 4-6 song EP's. Going back to that whole 4-albums at once thing they had going, maybe they've got four diverse collections of quality songs that can't go together on an album, and therefore are best released as EP's?

I wouldn't be completely against 4 EP's released over 4 Xmas', if they really are struggling to complete a satisfactory album (10+ songs).

 

[LuckyNumber7]

I was describing my mood at the time. I'm not sure what you were up to in 93 but there was a hell of alot of other stuff going on that was way better than this album overall, I'm sorry. Looking back Zooropa has held up fairly well, but there are still some pretty throwaway songs on it.

Personally, I was hardly 'around' in 93. But my feeling from Zooropa is that it aged well. I could be off on that, but it really lacks a strong top to the album that most U2 albums have. But from top to bottom, I think it's excellent. I'd listen to all of Zooropa before I'd listen to all of ATYCLB, if you get what I mean by that.

 

[Niceman]

A LOT of U2 fans I knew at the time felt Zooropa was where the band lost it. I wasn't impressed at first either. But yeah, it has aged well. I still don't understand when some people put it in the top 5, but it's a good one. I think of it as a long EP, and that gives it less pressure than a full release.

 

[gvox]

I was just also really really busy with every other form of music (and the scenes that went with those genres) and not rock/pop much at all. Like I said, looking back I probably appreciate it more now than I did then and certain songs have grown on me.