Surprise EP Release - Days of Ash - All Discussion Here

[cobl04]

Tears of Things is a grower but really falls into the category of "Song I Want To Like More Than I Do".

 

[deltau922]

As of right now, does anyone think Days of Ash as a whole is better than any of their albums? I don't, but curious of others.

To me it is certainly better than their last album, and possibly better than Hutdab

 

[deltau922]

Tears of things gets more epic with every listen, a career high point for me. Better than most of SOE for sure.

Yes. I keep waiting for it to wear off but instead it becomes more and more moving with every listen. On the YouTube comments a very common reply was that it’s their best song in 20 years, and it got me to thinking how far back you’d have to go to find a U2 song in this class. I’d say Please, 29 years ago ..

 

[DeVaul]

Unfortunately, I just spent a rack of money on Springsteen tickets, so I'll have to wait for 2027 dates to catch a Metallica Sphere show.

And then realize U2 will also be touring in 2027 and shake my your fist at the sky.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

One Life At A Time has a bit of a Broken Bells feel. It's kind of how I expected a full Danger Mouse produced album would have sounded.

 

[lazarus]

My exact thought is it's the kind of song that plays on the PA system in your company's all-staff meeting where the CEO cringe-dances on stage before they announce a rebranding that's the equivalent of adding a new punctuation mark to the logo.

 

[dan_smee]

Tears of Things is a grower but really falls into the category of "Song I Want To Like More Than I Do".

It’s funny because after hearing it a couple of times and reading through the lyrics I thought “now this sort of writing reminds me of Nick Cave, historical/biblical narrative imagining conversations as allegory for real world atrocities , some clever lyricism culminating in a gut punch line like ‘when people go round talking to God is always ends in tears’”. No accounting for personal preferences, but I immediately thought of you and thought this might be the tune that brings you back in.

 

[mediaman44]

What I’ve been hearing on the last few records and on this EP is something…I dunno, beige. Evenly paced. Overly resolved. Buoyant. It sounds more Train than R.E.M. It’s not bad. It’s just domesticated. And that’s the sting.

To me I get slate gray for No Line through SOE. I like crazy but it's not the orange of AB, or the purple of Zooropa, the yellow of pop, the sky blue of ATYCLB or even the red of bomb. I see a Sienna Brown for Days of Ash. Not quite color but not drab either. I love the "unpolished sound" but it leaves me unsatisfied. Maybe that's what they wanted to achieve. An appetizer before the main course. That being said I am listening to it on repeat. I personally don't like the poem. It was good to hear once but it's a definite skip for me.

 

[DeVaul]

The boys are indeed back

 

[PookaMacP]

On the politics question, do we think Bono is talking to himself on One Life at a Time? I've read what he said in the Propaganda interview (about what "one life at a time" means as a concept), but it strikes me that lyrics like, "You say you want to change the world / Well, how's that gonna happen here?" are a reckoning with his position on Gaza. At the very least, it would seem he's thinking through his position.

 

[dan_smee]

On the politics question, do we think Bono is talking to himself on One Life at a Time? I've read what he said in the Propaganda interview (about what "one life at a time" means as a concept), but it strikes me that lyrics like, "You say you want to change the world / Well, how's that gonna happen here?" are a reckoning with his position on Gaza. At the very least, it would seem he's thinking through his position.

I think he touched on this in the Esquire interview. The idea that his diplomatic method of progress working with both sides etc doesn’t work any more. There used to be reasonable voices on the right and common ground where empathy and compassion could bridge the divide. But how’s that gunna happen here?

 

[2861U2]

Funny, I was going to suggest perhaps October as well due to its weaker moments, but I just played the whole thing on a long drive and man, it’s high points are pretty damn high.

With a Shout (Jerusalem) is such an underrated gem. Gloria, of course. Rejoice, Fire, Tomorrow, October.

That’s a pretty strong 6.

I don't know why, but October clicked for me recently. For almost all of my U2 fandom, I had October as my least favorite album. But I recently went back and listened in full to all the albums, and not only is October not my least favorite (R&H), it might not even be my second-least favorite (maybe TUF). It's still well into the lower half for me, certainly, but I appreciated the songs in a way I hadn't before. That middle stretch from Rejoice through With A Shout is right up there with any string of consecutive songs.

Granted, I still think I Fall Down and Stranger are among their 10 worst album tracks, but even a song like Is That All that I usually discount I found myself enjoying in a new way.

 

[clerks]

Bono is always talking to himself or about himself. That's what I enjoy. You can feel it coming from the human heart.

A lot of musical artists do this and fail. And a lot of them don't do this at all just write generic love songs or other song writers write them and they perform them.

People used to ask me -- you want to be Bono don't you? And I always said -- no -- I want to be Bono's wife.

 

[dismantlemyfly]

Okay, so after a week, some thoughts:

1) American Obituary: Meh. Terrible title. I like hearing a lot of guitars despite the "dumb rawk song" that they think they're REALLY good at pulling off. I think if they had time, they should have re-recorded the vocals so that the "Can. You. Stop... a bulletinmidair" part wouldn't sound so improvised.

2) Tears of Things: Yup. This is the song. Nice, slow build up, each member gets to add their own unique parts as the song grows. Glad that they didn't trim it down to the "perfect" pop length of around 3:00 and just let it go. The "I was made for worship/ Before I spoke I sang..." ending is just

3) Song of the Future: Another dumb title, however very catchy. For whatever reason, I'm reminded of This Is Where You Can Reach Me Now. I'll admit I looked up what it's about and now I feel a bit weird tapping my foot to a song about a teenager beaten to death by her own government.

4) Wildpeace: Meh. Segue track, although I do like when they add things like this to add a bit more art to the project.

5) One Life at a Time: Nice production, nice atmosphere. The John Lennon-esque "doubled" vocal is a nice approach. The guitar solo is made better by the propulsive rhythm section that kicks in; nice to see Larry adding a lot of fills. When they repeat this for the finale under some very urgent sounding vocals is pretty dope.

6) Your Eternally: Yep, it's a Coldplay track. Feels like they're putting in effort to sound upbeat, positive and radio-friendly. I'm not a huge fan of their collabs, and while Ed Sheeran seems inoffensive, not sure what he adds that's special other than his name to the credits

 

[PookaMacP]

I think he touched on this in the Esquire interview. The idea that his diplomatic method of progress working with both sides etc doesn’t work any more. There used to be reasonable voices on the right and common ground where empathy and compassion could bridge the divide. But how’s that gunna happen here?

Ah, cool. I'll dig that out. Whatever anyone thinks of his politics, it takes an intelligence to confront the limitations of his thinking.

 

[The John Tree]

3) Song of the Future: Another dumb title, however very catchy. For whatever reason, I'm reminded of This Is Where You Can Reach Me Now.

Yeah I wish they would have just called this one "Sarina." Would have been more memorable, obviously due to the catchy hook, and it would probably have encouraged people to go "who the **** is Sarina?" and look it up.

As for the comparison to This Is Where You Can Reach Me Now, I hear what you're talking about and, for me, the connecting factor is Adam Clayton doing his homework and laying down a very nice bass line. A lot has obviously (and deservedly) been made of The Edge's sonic contribution to U2's sound and what a distinctive sound he has, but the real secret weapon to this band is and always has been the incredibly versatile and unorthodox rhythm section. I'm not sure what other band has a rhythm section as unique and distinct as Adam and Larry.

 

[clerks]

Okay let me bitch! It's fun!

Now I'm re-listening to NLOTH and still confused by the entire album. My two favorite tracks by far on it are Crazy Tonight which they refused to play normally live and Breathe. I don't understand FEZ being born. I don't get the title. I don't understand any of it overall. Some good songs, but it's all over the place. It's just trying so hard and it's such a downer from the previous albums.

Magnificent it's a song that I think should be a hit, a great U2 song and I try so hard to love it and I'm listening to it right now and it just never gets there.

And I have great memories of getting the album in March 2009 and walking around NYC listening to it non stop trying to get more into some of the songs I couldn't.

I'm proud that this wasn't the end of the them because they still had a massive tour. But other bands might have said, **** it, no more albums.

I thought SOI and SOE were awesome!

So to be in 2026 and get 5 songs even worth talking about from a band from 1976 is crazy!!!! tonight.

Man it's much easier to complain than be positive. No wonder the right does it.

 

[lazarus]

Now I'm re-listening to NLOTH and still confused by the entire album. My two favorite tracks by far on it are Crazy Tonight

 

[clerks]

Never use Frank Oz against me.

*Super Fly Guy on my list.

 

[david]

The boys are indeed back
View attachment 24399

Fast forward one hour and ten minutes into their podcast as that’s when they actually start talking about the EP…

 

[super fly guy]

Never use Frank Oz against me.

*Super Fly Guy on my list.

What have i done??

 

[tlt29]

Yours Eternally = a re-worked Songs of Ascent concept.

 

[Fly-2000]

On the politics question, do we think Bono is talking to himself on One Life at a Time? I've read what he said in the Propaganda interview (about what "one life at a time" means as a concept), but it strikes me that lyrics like, "You say you want to change the world / Well, how's that gonna happen here?" are a reckoning with his position on Gaza. At the very least, it would seem he's thinking through his position.

Yeah, and some of it pointing to previous stuff he's written. Medium has a pretty interesting article on the EP here that touches on this: https://medium.com/@u2isable2/u2s-days-of-humanity-a-deeper-dive-into-days-of-ash-08be3fd3db8d

“One Life At A Time” asks the question “If there’s no law, is there no crime?” as the killing of Hathaleen still has not been prosecuted. It also revisits a lyric from “I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight” from 2009’s No Line On The Horizon: “And perfect love drives out all fear.” The line, taken from 1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”

The song is questioning how that perfect love — how not living in fear — can happen in in a place where lawlessness abounds. While this song was inspired by Gaza, the same can be held true for Tehran, Minneapolis, and the other locales on Days of Ash.

The innocence of “I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight” of “she’s a rainbow and she loves the peaceful life” speaks to the wartime experience of feeling dehumanized (“a peaceful place is never still”) in “One Life At A Time”: “What you’re feeling shapes all you see to find the map and lose the territory is our story.” The enthusiastic hopefulness “It’s not a hill it’s a mountain as you start out the climb…but we’re gonna make it all the way to the light” has shifted to having “faith to crawl up every hill…every hill.”

 

[DeVaul]

Fast forward one hour and ten minutes into their podcast as that’s when they actually start talking about the EP…

blasphemy

 

[lazarus]

Fast forward one hour and ten minutes into their podcast as that’s when they actually start talking about the EP…

If you do that you’ll miss multiple episodes of “Is Scott Glenn In Species?”

 

[RUBIKSCUBE]

Fast forward one hour and ten minutes into their podcast as that’s when they actually start talking about the EP…

I find these guys painfully unfunny on this podcast.

 

[DeVaul]

I find these guys painfully unfunny on this podcast.

What is this, an episode of “These Guys Are Painfully Unfunny”?

 

[Irvine511]

new EP highlight for me: the falter/waver in his voice when he sings “God” in Tears in the now Interference-famous “always ends in tears” line.

That song coironies to unfold for me.

SOF has grown on me.

 

[mikal]

So, I play music live as a little side gig to my otherwise crazy life. And I always cover “For What It’s Worth” and I discovered a really cool way to snip it “The power of the people are so much stronger than the pedo in power” at the very end of the song.

 

[Maroon Bells]

Yours Eternally = a re-worked Songs of Ascent concept.

And I'd bet that American Obit is a re-worked-to-fit-the-times concept from the "loud, uncompromising, irrational guitar album" that would not have fit on the "defiantly joyful" album they're working on.