Songs of _________________; New album discussion #7

[lightmyway91]

oh i'm not saying they didn't work - they absolutely did on 13 and Lights Of Home (but, alas, not on american soul as you said).

it's just really odd that there was zero mention of the songs being connected to the previous album. it's almost as if they didn't want people talking about songs of innocence...

I think the albums being called songs of innocence and then songs of experience made it clear enough there was a connection between the 2 despite the 3 year gap between them. Even the tours being I&E then E&I, I’ve read plenty of fans even referring to E&I as I&E getting them easily mixed up so the connection is hard to miss.

 

[The John Tree]

I think the albums being called songs of innocence and then songs of experience made it clear enough there was a connection between the 2 despite the 3 year gap between them. Even the tours being I&E then E&I, I’ve read plenty of fans even referring to E&I as I&E getting them easily mixed up so the connection is hard to miss.

Maybe I’m cynical, but I don’t think the average listener is even that invested. By the time SoE came out, I’d be willing to bet that most listeners didn’t even remember that the last album was called Songs of Innocence. Which is saying something, considering Apple uploaded it directly onto all of their phones.

I can’t speak for Europe, but U2 doesn’t really occupy that space in the public consciousness here in the US like that anymore. This isn’t a knock on U2 specifically, but it’s just the place they find themselves as a legacy act: I’m sure the average person knows Bruce put out an album two years ago. They might have even liked it. But I’d be curious how many casual listeners would be able to say “it was called Letter to You.”

 

[lightmyway91]

Maybe I’m cynical, but I don’t think the average listener is even that invested. By the time SoE came out, I’d be willing to bet that most listeners didn’t even remember that the last album was called Songs of Innocence. Which is saying something, considering Apple uploaded it directly onto all of their phones.

I can’t speak for Europe, but U2 doesn’t really occupy that space in the public consciousness here in the US like that anymore. This isn’t a knock on U2 specifically, but it’s just the place they find themselves as a legacy act: I’m sure the average person knows Bruce put out an album two years ago. They might have even liked it. But I’d be curious how many casual listeners would be able to say “it was called Letter to You.”

If they know the band enough though to listen to them and compare tracks from each album I think they’d be aware of the album titles as well. I can’t imagine someone has made the connection of repeated lyrics without making the connection of the albums being linked as well.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

i think it's less about knowing what the albums were called and more about how the average random schmuck has no idea who William Blake is and probably needs at the very least a memo

 

[lightmyway91]

i think it's less about knowing what the albums were called and more about how the average random schmuck has no idea who William Blake is and probably needs at the very least a memo

I wouldn’t say it’s vital to know anything about William Blake or how the album titles were inspired by his work to still know the albums are connected. If you see an album by a band called songs of innocence and you see another one called songs of experience the first thing you’re going to think is there’s a connection there.

 

[lightmyway91]

What are people’s top 10 or top few songs even they are looking forward to from the reworks. I’m looking forward to most of it, different reasons for different songs but my main ones would be

11 o’clock tick tock
Stories for boys
Out of Control
I will follow
October
Bad
The fly
Wake up dead man
Crumbs from your table
Miracle Drug
Moment of surrender
Breathe
(Ok that’s 12)

The first 6 I simply think will be better than the original album versions, same for wake up dead man. The last 4 are more an intrigue at what they can do with lesser played songs that aren’t as popular commercially. The fly is just the unknown that excites me, the version they did on the elevation tour has shown the potential with how they can change it and still keep it great at the same time.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

I wouldn’t say it’s vital to know anything about William Blake or how the album titles were inspired by his work to still know the albums are connected. If you see an album by a band called songs of innocence and you see another one called songs of experience the first thing you’re going to think is there’s a connection there.

oh, ok.

my bad.

 

[2861U2]

Most intrigued to hear:
1. I Will Follow - the original captures none of how awesome this song is live. Hopefully that can come through in an updated version.
2. Stories For Boys- this has been one of my favorites the last few months
3. Out Of Control
4. 11 O'Clock Tick Tock
5. Where The Streets Have No Name
6. Wake Up Dead Man
7. Two Hearts Beat As One
8. Crumbs From Your Table
9. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
10. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses

While I'm much more of a 90s/00s-and-beyond fan, most of the ones I'm most excited about are from the 80s, which makes sense. Bono's more mature voice and whatnot.

Also-
Songs that suck, that can only go up from here:
1. The Showman

 

[The John Tree]

I wouldn’t say it’s vital to know anything about William Blake or how the album titles were inspired by his work to still know the albums are connected. If you see an album by a band called songs of innocence and you see another one called songs of experience the first thing you’re going to think is there’s a connection there.

a.) I don't think that's necessarily true.

b.) Again - I don't think anyone is looking that deeply into it except for actual U2 fans. You stated earlier that "if they know the band enough though to listen to them and compare tracks from each album I think they’d be aware of the album titles as well." But that's the point - no one's comparing tracks except for us. They're just listening to the new album on New Music Friday. I'm sure there's a large amount of listeners who listened to 13, heard "there is a light..." and didn't even think of Song For Someone.

As an example: I'm a very casual Red Hot Chili Peppers fan. I listen to the new albums when they come out, but I don't frequent any message boards or dive into the back catalogue because I just don't care that much. I like them, but I'm not a diehard.

They dropped a new album last week that was a companion piece to their last album. If, hypothetically, this companion album was thematically linked to the last one and they'd repeated lyrics to drive home the theme (they didn't), I'd have *no idea.* I just put the albums on, listen, save the songs I like, and never think about the other ones again.

 

[lightmyway91]

a.) I don't think that's necessarily true.

b.) Again - I don't think anyone is looking that deeply into it except for actual U2 fans. You stated earlier that "if they know the band enough though to listen to them and compare tracks from each album I think they’d be aware of the album titles as well." But that's the point - no one's comparing tracks except for us. They're just listening to the new album on New Music Friday. I'm sure there's a large amount of listeners who listened to 13, heard "there is a light..." and didn't even think of Song For Someone.

As an example: I'm a very casual Red Hot Chili Peppers fan. I listen to the new albums when they come out, but I don't frequent any message boards or dive into the back catalogue because I just don't care that much. I like them, but I'm not a diehard.

They dropped a new album last week that was a companion piece to their last album. If, hypothetically, this companion album was thematically linked to the last one and they'd repeated lyrics to drive home the theme (they didn't), I'd have *no idea.* I just put the albums on, listen, save the songs I like, and never think about the other ones again.

The original point though was about repeated lyrics and that in doing so ‘we were all just supposed to know that it is a concept album’. That point wasn’t made by me. So my opposing view is pretty much what you’re saying that only u2 fans are looking deeply into it and if it’s only u2 fans looking deeply at it surely 99.99% of us know that the 2 albums are linked? For those that don’t know for whatever reason it doesn’t really matter because they aren’t aware of the repeated lyrics anyway. So I’m agreeing with you pretty much but explaining my point in a different way.

 

[lightmyway91]

Maybe there’s been a misinterpretation on my part, apologies if there has. I took the original point to mean that people could be listening to different songs with repeated lyrics and getting the impression that the band were just being lazy copying their own ideas whilst not being aware of the fact the songs/albums were linked. I was disagreeing with that point as I think if you’re listening to all the songs on the 2 albums enough to remember lyrical similarities you are very likely to know the names of the albums and therefore very likely to know they are linked. I would be surprised to come across anyone saying ‘didn’t they copy that lyric from song for someone’ and not know that the albums were linked.

 

[lazarus]

I don’t know that they think it’s any lazier than Bono using the word “heart” on like every song on both ATYCLB and The Bomb.

 

[dan_smee]

I don’t know that they think it’s any lazier than Bono using the word “heart” on like every song on both ATYCLB and The Bomb.

He’s been teasing his medical emergency for 20 years

 

[phanan]

Speaking of set-lists.. I wonder what American fans who hadn’t seen U2 since the Joshua Tree tour in 1987 thought of hearing 8 new songs in a row on the opening night of the ZooTV tour in February of 1992.

ZooTV was my first U2 show and I remember thinking it was crazy how many songs from AB they started with.

There were definitely people there who were like, what the fuck?

 

[macawaca]

Bono says in the Irish Times interview today that after the 14 date book tour that he wants to start recording the new album by the end of the year. That book tour only finishes at the end of November, so doesn’t leave much time before Christmas holidays to start any recording?

 

[Gonna Run 2 U]

Bono says in the Irish Times interview today that after the 14 date book tour that he wants to start recording the new album by the end of the year. That book tour only finishes at the end of November, so doesn’t leave much time before Christmas holidays to start any recording?

Start recording?! 2025 the earliest

 

[lightmyway91]

Bono says in the Irish Times interview today that after the 14 date book tour that he wants to start recording the new album by the end of the year. That book tour only finishes at the end of November, so doesn’t leave much time before Christmas holidays to start any recording?

I think he’ll be meaning finalising the tracks, which will still take a long time for this band but the plan according to u2songs is for the new album to be released late next year with a tour in 2024. This is the album of new material just to clarify not the reworked songs album.
I’m excited by the bit he says they’re planning something extraordinary to celebrate Achtung Baby, but not a tour.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Here's an extraordinary CD of live tracks of all the Achtung Baby tracks, only 10 months late

 

[lightmyway91]

Extraordinarily late lol. I’m thinking a performance is on the cards, not a tour doesn’t rule out a one off live streamed performance or even the rumoured vegas dates, that’s not a tour either really.

 

[The John Tree]

“Something extraordinary to celebrate Achtung Baby.”

6 months later: A remix album! Woooo!

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Extraordinarily late lol. I’m thinking a performance is on the cards, not a tour doesn’t rule out a one off live streamed performance or even the rumoured vegas dates, that’s not a tour either really.

That's a good point about Vegas - it does make perfect sense for a possible ZooTV redo.

 

[JamietheEdgefan]

Full interview here:

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/...e-looking-for-the-blessing-of-father-figures/

"What’s next? The band wants to make an “uncompromising, balls-to-the-wall, transcendent rock’n’roll album, with unreasonable guitars, like properly aggressive as the times deserve”, he says. He wants the next album to recreate the band’s live experience in the studio. He wants to start recording by the end of the year, after a 14-city US and European book tour. The Edge, he says, is “as restless as me now”. He believes the band may still have their best album in them, but getting it out might “cost us a lot”."

Yet more talk of a rock album is hardly surprising given their trajectory, but I'm wondering if he means more songs in the vein of The Miracle, American Soul, The Blackout etc, or something heavier.

I'm curious what he means by starting to record this year. I agree with the post above that it's probably finishing recording, or writing the songs then recording them from scratch to give a more live feel - kind if like they supposedly did for SoE.

 

[phanan]

Unreasonable guitars?

Bring it on.

Please.

 

[super fly guy]

Unreasonable guitars?

Bring it on.

Please.

We can only hope.

 

[mikal]

I wonder if this means that they scrapped the new album that supposedly finished or if they’re just going back to the studio to add some heavier guitars.

 

[Hollow Island]

Maybe the Achtung Baby thing will be an online multimedia thing.

Iirc, the Vegas dates are booked in line with shows in other cities, so it's pretty unlikely they'd put on an Achtung show in the middle of or just before a regular tour, if only because they'd have to learn to many songs and cues and such. And it would require an expensive set that they'd only use a handful of times.

 

[zoocarolina]

I wonder if this means that they scrapped the new album that supposedly finished or if they’re just going back to the studio to add some heavier guitars.

It’s so hard to interpret what Bono means at times, feels like a misdirection to surprise us with a new album next year and I would venture this is recording it with a heavy rock angle and trying to recreate that live experience is what he means. Was a great interview!

 

[lightmyway91]

I wonder if this means that they scrapped the new album that supposedly finished or if they’re just going back to the studio to add some heavier guitars.

Bono mentioned a heavy rock album a few years back so I don’t think they’re starting again. I don’t remember ever hearing they had an album finished though except the reworks album.

 

[DeVaul]

I wonder if this means that they scrapped the new album that supposedly finished or if they’re just going back to the studio to add some heavier guitars.

“These fucking guys” - Eno

 

[DeVaul]

That's a good point about Vegas - it does make perfect sense for a possible ZooTV redo.

The venue *is* the production, would be an easy fit