New Album Discussion 1 - Songs of..... - Unreasonable guitar album

[MrPryck2U]

Larry's 64 today, right?

 

[DaveC]

You really have him pegged

 

[dabiggestu2fan]

i just remembered the time my mom found "Big Girls Are Best.mp3" on the family computer hard drive, and immediately accused me of downloading porn. good times.

Lol now this made me laugh! I can totally see this happening to many parents who see that file name on their computer!

 

[mediaman44]

I'm so glad I am not the only one that became a U2 fan during the ATYCLB cycle. I "borrowed" it from my uncle and never gave it back . That was Jan of 2001. I wore that CD out. What a great year for U2. I saw them in Nov for the first and sadly only time so far.

 

[ferball415]

Good question. It was very rough down there back then - now it's surrounded by office buildings and apartments, all part of the regeneration of that part of the docklands.

Comparing the 2025 and 2009 streetview gives a sense of what it was like and why they probably don't get any privacy down there anymore. Google Maps

Who remembers this one:

U2 Tower - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[MattD]

Slug from Original Soundtracks I is the featured article on Wikipedia today (EDIT: If you're not reading this on Nov 6, then it has changed!)....

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[ferball415]

Slug from Original Soundtracks I is the featured article on Wikipedia today (EDIT: If you're not reading this on Nov 6, then it has changed!)....

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org

Whoa.

 

[jphelmet]

Maybe, just maybe for the 50th anniversary they will tour and do what Radiohead is doing. Play small residences and just mix it up every night with their 50 greatest songs. The Radiohead setlists have been amazing so far, and if U2 would do the same they would be some of their greatest shows.

 

[AndrewCowley]

They’re not mixing up setlists. Sad to say but anything like that which is targeted at their core fan base is something U2 has not cared about for a long time.

Their #1 and perhaps only customer is Live Nation.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Their fan base is bigger than Radiohead's. They have generations of fans across multiple eras and "versions" of U2. It's not the same thing.

One person may want to hear a lot of War and Boy on a tour like that, while a younger fan might look more towards All That You Can't Leave Behind.

If it were merely about catering to Live Nation, tours like i/e/i would be stadium hits shows. Sphere, which is not owned or operated by Live Nation, wouldn't have happened.

 

[ascender_RS]

Big Girls Are Best is a fun, throwaway b-side, I have a real soft spot for it. Same with Always and Summer Rain, I also like those songs where we hear snippets of what became album tracks.

 

[ferball415]

Speaking of “snippets”, one great memory of the weeks leading up to ATYCLB’s release was going to u2.com and listening to the (QuickTime or WMA, or whatever) snippets they posted as teasers, which were (shockingly) judiciously curated (ex. for “Walk On”: “a singing bird…[most of chorus]”).

My October 2000 morning ritual in my high school’s computer lab.

 

[Irvine511]

Speaking of “snippets”, one great memory of the weeks leading up to ATYCLB’s release was going to u2.com and listening to the (QuickTime or WMA, or whatever) snippets they posted as teasers, which were (shockingly) judiciously curated (ex. for “Walk On”: “a singing bird…[most of chorus]”).

My October 2000 morning ritual in my high school’s computer lab.

I remember this. I loved it.

 

[BEAL]

Someone hacked it and released them all at once

I remember when the first one was released and someone on here said oh i found the rest haha

 

[david]

The internet 25 years ago was pretty awesome in that regard. I found this forum in June of 2000 although I was an Internet user since the summer of 1996. I vaguely remember some U2 websites I might have stumbled upon before eventually finding interference but those memories are a little hazy.

 

[U2387]

Love reading these stories from 2000! I wasn't a fan yet, but I distinctly remember exploring the internet as an elementary and middle school student 1997-2000. What a thrill it must have been following the rumors and leaks at this time!

I'm really glad the 25th anniversary of ATYCLB is falling in this year, in these times. Externally with world events but also personally, I'm the age Bono was when he wrote these songs. On an emotional level, they resonate so much more than they did even 5 or 10 years ago for me.

There's an honesty and vulnerability that runs through the whole thing- perfectly summed up in Beautiful Day. As others have mentioned, what a master stroke and what a PERFECT song! They really hit it out of the park here!

Vulnerability, struggle but perseverance, hope and even a little bit of swagger amidst it all.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Someone hacked it and released them all at once

I remember when the first one was released and someone on here said oh i found the rest haha

i feel that we collectively discovered that the file names of the songs were already uploaded through trial and error.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

u2songs | Bono in Outfoxed! |

Bono has joined the voice cast for the 3D-animated film, Outfoxed! about a family of foxes on the run according to Screen Daily. The film by MK2 will feature an all-Irish voice cast. It is being produced by Monster Entertainment (Ireland), Walking the Dog (Belgium) and Doghouse Films (Luxembourg) and is being made in conjunction with Screen Ireland, Film Fund Luxembourg, Screen Flanders and Screen Brussels.

A preview of the film will be shown at American Film Market (AFM) November 11 – 16 in Los Angeles, where companies present films looking for distribution. Work on the film started in January 2025.

Bono will play the leader of a pack of hounds, chasing a family of foxes from the city who take a trip into the Irish countryside. They have a wild adventure home with the help of other animals they meet along the way. Bono’s character in the film will be named Plato.

Len is the slightly overweight head of a family of foxes who live in the city. Sal is his resourceful partner: bouncy, inquisitive. Kev is their cub. They’re set up in a comfortable garden shed in the suburbs: there’s a steady supply of hamburgers and chips in the bins behind the cafes. Life is easy for the little family. So, when, one Autumn day, young Kev puts on his cutest face and says he’d like to visit the place where Len was born – just to see what it’s like, Dad – he agrees. After all, it’s just a day out in the country. What could possibly go wrong?

The film is directed by Paul Bolger, and written by Barry Devlin. Devlin was part of Horslips an Irish band in the 1970s. He also went on to produce one of U2’s demo tapes in the 1970s, and later would produce a number of U2 videos in the 1980s before moving into film. The videos he worked on for U2 include “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For“, live videos of “Pride“, “Bad“ and “A Sort of Homecoming“ and videos for “In God’s Country“ and “Spanish Eyes“.

Bono previously voiced the character of Clay Calloway in the feature film Sing 2 in 2021. He also made a live appearance in the 2023 animated film Peter and the Wolf based on the book by Gavin Friday and illustrations by Bono. In both cases Bono did contribute to the music of the film.

Outfoxed! is expected to be released in 2027. A big thank you to Andrew for passing this info along. Additional information is available at Screen Daily.

 

[Hewson]

u2songs | Bono in Outfoxed! |


Outfoxed! is expected to be released in 2027. A big thank you to Andrew for passing this info along. Additional information is available at Screen Daily.

A mere 4 years before the next U2 album

 

[ferball415]

“Eahmm, yea, ya talk about Zoo TV..only this time, Outfoxed Broadcast….”

 

[DeVaul]

Raised by Wolves Foxes

 

[Mr Gone]

Big Girls Are Best is a fun, throwaway b-side, I have a real soft spot for it. Same with Always and Summer Rain, I also like those songs where we hear snippets of what became album tracks.

Always was my favorite b-side from those days . . . .

 

[Registered Dude]

Remember when 5 years between albums felt ridiculous?

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

They're old. COVID and Larry also threw an obvious monkey wrench into the situation. At this point I think they're done and just waiting for the 50th anniversary year to release.

If not... yeesh

 

[JWR1992]

What are the odds we get a tease at the end of the year similar to what they did with JT30?

In a perfect world, they would drop unreleased concert audio/footage and material throughout the year leading into a new album release in the fall.

Or they will just downplay the opportunity and drop videos of performances from already released concerts on YouTube with no album tease

 

[jay canseco]

The slow loris must be dead of old age by now.

 

[DeVaul]

They're old. COVID and Larry also threw an obvious monkey wrench into the situation. At this point I think they're done and just waiting for the 50th anniversary year to release.

If not... yeesh

I’m going to give them a little credit here. A little. The recording output has certainly slowed down, but they’ve kept themselves relatively busy and out in front of their audience.

2009: NLOTH
2009/2010/2011: 360 Tour
2014: SOI
2015: I+e
2017: JT30
2017: SOE
2018: e+I
2019: JT30
2020: oh ****
2022/2023: Stories of Surrender tour
2023: SOS
Oct 2023 - March 2024: Sphere

I’m of the belief they’ve got at least one album’s worth of release-worthy songs socked away but they’re their own worst enemy when it comes to taste.

 

[U2387]

Completely agree, DeVaul! People equate them not going out touring every year or not releasing just superhuman levels of new and in the vault content like Bruce with them being lazy. It helps to take our superfan, heavy analysis glasses off from time to time!

I remember talking to my friend who first saw them with me on I&E. He then accompanied me to JT 30. I distinctly remember talking to him about SOE this time in 2017 and telling him they'd be back around Summer 2018. He thought for a second and said "wow, they're really prolific, aren't they?" He went on to say how much he wanted to go see Billy Joel- MSG or somewhere- but that he wasn't going to kid himself into thinking that he played new and interesting material/changed the show every time like U2.

We all have our complaints about static shows night-to-night, but tour to tour? Era to era? Whatever the merits of the material or our views on it, everything you mentioned above is very much it's own thing.

They've also never stopped breaking new ground- I&E I think as a tour is underrated here. The JT 30 screen. Obviously the Sphere.

No band that's lazy and/or just wants to count the money and rest on the past would enthusiastically decide to go first at the Sphere. Especially with the first extended absence of a band member.

 

[DeVaul]

Whoa whoa, let’s calm down here.
They’re still Lazy…

 

[ferball415]

[just happen to be listening to “Disc 4” of Achtung Baby (30th)]:
1. #TheyreLazy, so to speak, no doubt, despite certain demonstrated activity over past decade and a half, recorded or live.
2. This and/or Deluxe Edition (2011) is a really good option for those wishing to listen to Achtung-adjacent stuff without listening to The Real Thing.