New Album Discussion 1 - Songs of..... - Unreasonable guitar album
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cobl04
45:33
The Troubles is amazing. So of course they all but completely ignored it.
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
You must understand that the political landscape in America changed in 2014 after Barack Obama Obama wore a tan suit.
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AndrewCowley
Refugee
Yes it is. It’s an album track though. Nothing wrong with it being amazing and staying that way.
cobl04
45:33
This would be true if the rest of the album was any good, but it's terrible, the worst of their career (in my view), destroyed their reputation and they promoted it, and the next album, with the worst songs they've ever written.
If, instead, they'd realised that The Troubles was the best song on that album by a mile and released it as a single and seen what happened, they might be in a completely different position. Instead, it's nothing more than a curio known by a few thousand fans.
super fly guy
New Yorker
Worst of their career....
It's not though.
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
SOI was the worst blunder of their career, but not the worst musically.
super fly guy
New Yorker
Did anybody have "getting lost in the music" on their U2 bingo card?
Edge has basically just said it in this months Rolling Stone magazine. 2030 it is.
Edge has basically just said it in this months Rolling Stone magazine. 2030 it is.
Registered Dude
Rock n' Roll Doggie Band-aid
“getting lost in the music” = “the stuff we’ve been recording on and off for the last two years amounts to about 3.5 decent tunes”
Registered Dude
Rock n' Roll Doggie Band-aid
The Edge Looks Back on 'Atomic Bomb,' Ahead to U2's Next Album
U2 are revisiting 'How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" on the outtakes collection 'How to Re-Assemble an Atomic Bomb,' and starting work on a new album.
www.rollingstone.com
ascender_RS
Refugee
Yeah, its a good article (kudos to the interviewer for asking about SOA and a Pop box set) but the last three or four responses from Edge make it sound like an album and tour are a long way off.
mikal
Blue Crack Addict
The fact that he didn't say "no" to a POP Box set is enough to get me through the end of the world.
super fly guy
New Yorker
Sounds like a hard reverse on the "unreasonable" guitar record.
It's code word for watering down their sound into mainstream appeal and the 'other producers' he's talking about is the increasing bastardisation of the work they've already carried out by having probably sent their songs to Tedder again. Meanwhile Bono writes Hallmark Card lyrics for America's lost spirit or something like that.
I'm most excited about the possibility of a POP deluxe box and SOA than a new album, because it sounds they started all over again and being in an experimental phase. Please stay in that phase U2, avoid Tedder, and the other 230 producers. Bring in Eno and just release.
aMansAman
War Child
Edge has 100 song beginnings.
PopFly
War Child
The problem with U2's piecemeal approach to songwriting is that it feels like they're forever searching for that "one last mix" or one final riff or hook to take a song to whatever next level they think is there. I realize that this same process has led to their great discography, but back in the day, they were helped by the fact that they had pressure to actually release material in a timely manner. Now that they have nothing but time, it's more time to overanalyze and overcook things.
david
ONE love, blood, life
I hope they move away from the Songs Of… concept.
aMansAman
War Child
I rather wait a bit and let them be in a mindset of openness to "where the songs lead them" than have Bono/Edge talk about an unapologetic guitar album
3030 it is!
JamietheEdgefan
Refugee
Again I feel oddly optimistic after reading this.The Edge Looks Back on 'Atomic Bomb,' Ahead to U2's Next Album
U2 are revisiting 'How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" on the outtakes collection 'How to Re-Assemble an Atomic Bomb,' and starting work on a new album.
The more time they put between now and previous albums, and the more they once again get 'lost in the music', the more likely I reckon it is that they'll make a clean break from Ryan Tedder, and the 'songs of' era, and do something completely new.
In 2019, when they were still clearly in that 'songwriting' phase, and Ryan Tedder said they were working with him again, it seemed like the band was doubling down on the SoI/SoE approach, I was at my least enthusiastic about future music. I didn't like Tedder's style with the band anyway, but that path felt already well-trod, and continuing down it felt like it would be at the expense of any novel evolution and exploration of the bands sound. But now it feels like we could get the same sort of stylistic clean break we used to get between albums. The unknown, rather than more of the same, is way more exciting to me.
We've now had multiple quotes from the band emphasising their desire to jam together in a room, focusing on improvisation and whatever magic comes out of that. It feels like a real step away from the attitude they took from Rick Rubin, where songs 'didnt count' unless they could be played on an acoustic guitar, and all the atmosphere, riffs, and alchemy of the band was treated as a disposable element, or even something that got in the way of the music. For me, it's all that atmosphere, improvisation, and lack of clear, calculated songwriting - almost the moments made by accident - that are behind much of the bands best work. And it seems they're embracing that direction again.
Even the talk of the guitar being front and centre, but not wanting to make a straight up 'rock' album, avoiding any mainstream sounds, using the guitar in ways that haven't been heard before etc... is pretty much exactly what I'd want from them right now. I'm sure we'll still end up with a ton of classic Edge sounds in the end (and probably some 'straight up rock' riffs too), but the fact they're even in that headspace right now is very promising.
The Disciple
New Yorker
I was saying this on Reddit recently. An album in this vein would be amazing. Unlikely, but amazing.
Would be great!! His album is brilliant!
ascender_RS
Refugee
I'm really enjoying the Gavin Friday album and also the new one from The Cure - their first in 16 years or so.
16 years! So we should count ourselves lucky that its only been 7 so far...
16 years! So we should count ourselves lucky that its only been 7 so far...
PookaMacP
War Child
Interesting interview, although one session with Larry so far sounds a long way away from the 'recording live together in a room' vibe they described a while ago.
This was a bummer at first and led me to believe he'd be less involved creatively as a result...kind of brought in on a "Here's what we have. Add some drums." basis.
Then I thought about how a lot of POP was in its gestation without Larry until the later phases (if I'm remembering the story correctly). Maybe the absence of his sensibilities will play into the others' adventurous sides and we'll get something really cool. I of course don't say this to disparage any of the great work Mr. Mullen has done.
pacemaker
Refugee
Yea! POP was started with drum loops in Larry’s absence due to, IIRC, a back injury.
I wouldn’t want loops or samplers or drum machines to replace Larry, but as a POP stan, I’d be interested to see what an album started with a similar approach would sound like these days.
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