Screwtape2 said:
U2 trying to make a double-album when with just eleven songs they had stuff like One Step Closer and AMAAW?
I respect your POV but the difference is that the Peppers have stuff left in the tank and a little youth left. U2 isn't in the peak of thier music lifespan anymore. They can make great albums but not ones that are up there with TJT, AB and thier other classics.
AAAAAAHHHHH!!!
IMO, TJT is one of U2's *least* creative albums! All the songs flow right into each other (barring a few exceptions). It's basically one long album of Bono at his most operatic and preachy, Edge with echo in high gear and Adam doing simple bass lines (I have no Larry complaints on JT).
Yes, despite that, there is some brilliant music there. I won't deny this at all. JT is still the best album of 1987 and one of the best of the 80's. "Streets" is a classic for all time, IMO. One of my favorite U2 songs ever, "One Tree Hill" is there. And I love the idea of "Exit". "With or Without You" will always be a fan favorite "love song" (even though it really isn't a love song at all). But really, this album is hardly popping with original sounds and ideas.
So please don't tell me U2 are well past their "creative peak" because they aren't making TJT or AB any more.
I will agree U2 were a bit "safer" with the last two albums - but safe in the sense that they experimented with their own sound! Nothing wrong with a band actually sounding like themselves. The RHCP have done that for ages! The Beatles had a comparatively short span as a band, but just as their first few albums were similar, so were their last few. There's nothing wrong with a band experimenting with their signature sound.
That said, I too would want U2 to branch out some, and we were hearing it on HTDAAB with "Fast Cars" and "Love & Peace" and even "Vertigo"! And while "Mercy" was also a very U2-sounding song, it echoed of a rarely heard sound, which I think we all enjoyed.
If U2 can continue in this vein, I feel we will have something we all enjoy - some classic U2, yet some more innovative and creative U2. Can't ask for more!