New Album Discussion (Will it be bigger than Zeppelin? Rush? Bon Jovi? Jesus? Allah?)

[mama cass]

This is pretty funny...participation in this thread seemed to hit a high when it devolved into talk about "Rush/Zeppelin/Bon Jovi", or who has the biggest tour, or who's most popular in what country, or what the "kids" were listening to, etc. Followed quickly by the expected whines of "This is boring!"..."I thought this was a U2 forum"..."Can we get back to talking about the new record now!"

And now that we actually have the most real, solid news about the record yet...crickets. Where are all the people who wanted so desperately to talk about the "new record"?

LOL...see ya next year.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jcCE8ioje8

it's exciting getting news at last, but i don't really pay too much attention to the descriptions/genres mentioned etc... as they never do match up in the end so hardly see the point in discussing/debating them in here LOL

i would like to hear the album this time round without any preconceived ideas - Bomb and NLOTH were the only albums i've had the "internet"/"fan" experience with, with leaks and snippets and fan news, and i kind of think it spoiled the whole album experience for me really, like reading setlist parties before my concerts lol... pre-Bomb, i never had a clue what to expect until i stuck the cd/tape/record on my player, and that's what i'm hoping to do this time round... i've loved the quietness leading up to this one

 

[ahittle]

I remember i the build up to ATYCLB there was this mini-site and they were spacing out little teasers of songs. Someone punched in the known song titles to the URL and discovered all the snippets were already there, just waiting to be officially linked. That was pretty exciting.

 

[Catman]

I'm pretty stoked about the description of the new material, especially the soul/R&B elements. I really love the Achtung era B sides that tap into this like Heaven and Hell

Same

Walk to the Water was probably my favorite U2 b-side until that song came along

 

[Airseven]

This is pretty funny...participation in this thread seemed to hit a high when it devolved into talk about "Rush/Zeppelin/Bon Jovi", or who has the biggest tour, or who's most popular in what country, or what the "kids" were listening to, etc. Followed quickly by the expected whines of "This is boring!"..."I thought this was a U2 forum"..."Can we get back to talking about the new record now!"

And now that we actually have the most real, solid news about the record yet...crickets. Where are all the people who wanted so desperately to talk about the "new record"?

I think the problem is that most fans here are too smart to invest themselves in genre descriptions for a new U2 album. It very rarely pans out, and as such, the descriptions are often vague, hyperbole, or premature. A song title is nice, albeit a generic title, but there's just not much else to say about this "news" that hasn't already been said.

 

[RockNRollDawgie]

I'm somewhat excited about the L.A. Times news. One song title. A hint of the theme of the album, etc. My expectations at this point for the new album are at an all time low.
I'm still going to buy it, whenever it is released. I think it's the long wait between album
releases, Bono's usual hype, no news for the longest time, endless delays as I said, that
has me not as excited. It's almost as if Bono had a self-fulfilling prophecy about U2 being
relevant and decided let's disappear for a few years so people lose interest and move on
to listening to other bands sort of a thing. I'm rambling....lack of sleep will do that.

 

[Nick66]

I think the problem is that most fans here are too smart to invest themselves in genre descriptions for a new U2 album. It very rarely pans out, and as such, the descriptions are often vague, hyperbole, or premature. A song title is nice, albeit a generic title, but there's just not much else to say about this "news" that hasn't already been said.

Well, yeah that's sort of my point. When there was no news at all about the new record, people whined when the thread strayed to other topics. No that there's just a sliver of news...there's still nothing to talk about. I just never understood the periodic complaints about getting off topic when there's nothing to discuss on topic at the moment.

 

[mikal]

Well, yeah that's sort of my point. When there was no news at all about the new record, people whined when the thread strayed to other topics. No that there's just a sliver of news...there's still nothing to talk about. I just never understood the periodic complaints about getting off topic when there's nothing to discuss on topic at the moment.

Yeah, with the new news, I guess for me there's just not much to discuss. We have a new song title and some hints of what it will sound like, but I take that with a grain of salt.

I too don't mind the off topic stuff as well, as long as it's not about Rush.

 

[Registered Dude]

who knows if we'll even ever get to hear Invisible.. so often these songs change..

anyone remember this RS article? came out just a month before Beautiful Day was released.. and is pretty off-the-mark in retrospect

News: U2 Stirring Their Souls in the Studio

 

[U2DMfan]

who knows if we'll even ever get to hear Invisible.. so often these songs change..

anyone remember this RS article? came out just a month before Beautiful Day was released.. and is pretty off-the-mark in retrospect

News: U2 Stirring Their Souls in the Studio

We'll likely hear the music to Invisible either way. Maybe some slight changes with different lyrics. Or it's done and will be left alone. Either way, I'm not too concerned about a song I've never heard. Always, Jubilee, Stir My Soul, it's all basically the same song.

In retrospect, and without ever hearing the previous versions (aside from Always which is somewhat different musically), I'm betting Beautiful Day was a better choice than all of them.

I don't really long to hear those previous versions of known songs. (ETA - now that I've thought about it, there are some that would be interesting to hear)
I'd definitely like to hear unique songs that have never seen the light of day.

 

[ahittle]

Always, Jubilee, Stir My Soul, it's all basically the same song.

So did BD show up that late in the process? I know the basic story that Eno took some Bono improv and that became the hook for BD, but I could never figure out the timeline for that.

Pretty crazy to think that BD almost didn't happen.

 

[jeevey]

Well, yeah that's sort of my point. When there was no news at all about the new record, people whined when the thread strayed to other topics. No that there's just a sliver of news...there's still nothing to talk about. I just never understood the periodic complaints about getting off topic when there's nothing to discuss on topic at the moment.

What, back so soon? We knew that New Year threat was crazy talk.

 

[SeeLoganRun]

Maybe. We'll see.

 

[The Slow Loris]

We'll likely hear the music to Invisible either way. Maybe some slight changes with different lyrics. Or it's done and will be left alone. Either way, I'm not too concerned about a song I've never heard. Always, Jubilee, Stir My Soul, it's all basically the same song.

In retrospect, and without ever hearing the previous versions (aside from Always which is somewhat different musically), I'm betting Beautiful Day was a better choice than all of them.

I don't really long to hear those previous versions of known songs. (ETA - now that I've thought about it, there are some that would be interesting to hear)
I'd definitely like to hear unique songs that have never seen the light of day.

Big chorus aside, I find 'Always' to be a more interesting song. The verses and melody line are less forced, more organic, and consequently more emotive as well....I wish there had been a way to blend the verses into 'Beatiful Day' somehow, or put them together like Coldplay did with those two songs on Viva la Vida.

 

[The_acrobat]

Big chorus aside, I find 'Always' to be a more interesting song. The verses and melody line are less forced, more organic, and consequently more emotive as well....I wish there had been a way to blend the verses into 'Beatiful Day' somehow, or put them together like Coldplay did with those two songs on Viva la Vida.

This is exactly how I've always felt about Always/Beautiful Day, I just didn't realize it until you said something! The melody of the verses in "Always" is far superior. The lyrics of BD are such a mouthful.

 

[Steve_Bono]

Until there is a confirmed album release date with the day rather than just the month, were still in the rumor period. Take everything with a grain of salt.

 

[Registered Dude]

Look! It's Bono's uncle, the plumber, Steve Bono!

 

[trevgreg]

The lyrics of BD are such a mouthful.

People on here have given that criticism of Stuck before, and I'm not quite sure I totally understand it. Okay, maybe people don't like the melody or whatever, but does every thing have to be a three-syllable lyric line as a result? It might work for stuff like WOWY, but it's not a 'be all, end all' so to speak.

 

[LemonMelon]

All I know is that I find Always entirely abysmal. Terrible lyrics, weak vocal, transition between the verse and chorus is sloppy, non-existent bridge...I don't know how anyone can prefer it. People take for granted how well written Beautiful Day is.

 

[corianderstem]

Yeah, I'm with you on that one.

 

[An Cat Gav]

All I know is that I find Always entirely abysmal. Terrible lyrics, weak vocal, transition between the verse and chorus is sloppy, non-existent bridge...I don't know how anyone can prefer it. People take for granted how well written Beautiful Day is.

Couldn't agree more. The only positive I can possibly think of ggarding Always is that it's better than the other BD b-side, Summer Rain, but that's not saying much.

Beautiful Day though, to my ears anyway is near perfection.

 

[last unicorn]

Agree, Always is a very weak song.

 

[Galeongirl]

Don't forget, Always wear a safety belt!

 

[YBORCITY]

Look! It's Bono's uncle, the plumber, Steve Bono!

 

[Registered Dude]

I wonder if Guy O will get U2 on Reddit for an AMA.. Madonna did one last spring. The redditors would try and tear em apart, but I bet the boyos could bite back.

Also, I notice our new Manager rarely tweets these days.. up until October he was tweeting quite regularly..

 

[jeevey]

He's gagged.

 

[Steve_Bono]

Look! It's Bono's uncle, the plumber, Steve Bono!

Yep, that's me. I still have to go over to my nephews house to unclog his toilet pipes sometimes. The boy still uses too much paper.

 

[Steve_Bono]

Couldn't agree more. The only positive I can possibly think of ggarding Always is that it's better than the other BD b-side, Summer Rain, but that's not saying much.

Beautiful Day though, to my ears anyway is near perfection.

Wow, I must say I disagree. I consider Always and Summer Rain to be some of the best B-sides U2 has ever done. Better than most of the songs on POP and you could argue they should have been on ATYCLB, although Always would have been a bit redundant given it similarities with Beautiful Day.

 

[Galeongirl]

He's gagged.

Heh....

 

[Hewson]

Yep, that's me. I still have to go over to my nephews house to unclog his toilet pipes sometimes. The boy still uses too much paper.

 

[Registered Dude]

Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Eminem, Justin Timberlake, Beyonce, and the year in music - Grantland

This is why the release of Beyoncé was so ingenious: The window of time to talk online about any record, no matter how popular, is quite small. Interest in 2013's biggest albums was normally exhausted by the time they were finally released. But to tweet about Beyoncé, you had to buy it immediately, just like you have to see a movie opening night or watch a TV show "live" as it airs. Every other pop star in 2013 tried to tailor their records for an audience they wish still existed; Beyoncé fashioned her music for the audience she has (even if it was sort of an accident)

your move U2/Live Nation. release the single (or better yet) album digitally to correspond with the Super Bowl announcement (if this is still the plan) or watch as your best-laid plans amount to nothing.