HelloAngel
ONE love, blood, life
By Carrie Alison
Chief Editor
2004.09
The long road to the Nov. 23rd release of the feverishly-anticipated new U2 album found a sweet roadside oasis on Sept. 13th with the official announcement of the album's title, "How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb," on U2.com. The band offered no explanation or comment on the complex and, as journalist Neil McCormick put it, "difficult" title.
Rumored to be influenced by British artist Damien Hirst, "How To Dismantle…" will blast onto an already explosive, war-weary world stage. Always a political band, U2 has shied away from overt statements in recent years preferring to take a more composed demeanor, presumably to help Bono's work on behalf of DATA, or to put on a more non-partisan face in complicated times.
Whatever the case, "How To Dismantle…" is at once a shocking title full of historic imagery (atomic bombs are no longer in development), but also a title that hints at an education of sorts—how do you dismantle an atomic bomb indeed. Will U2 offer us diplomatic advice? Relationship advice (1991's "Achtung Baby" explored the breakdown of a romantic relationship to heartbreaking effect)? Or perhaps an inside peak of what must have been a arduous recording process (this being the first U2 album since 2000's wildly successful "All That You Can't Leave Behind")?
Predictably, U2's obsessively-opinionated and devoted fan base reacted with astonishment, enthusiasm and uneasiness to the new album title. Many voiced fears that U2 was making a ploy for attention with the striking title or that U2 was setting itself up for pun-laden album reviews along the lines of "U2 Drops Its ‘Bomb,'" "U2's Album is 'The Bomb'" or "U2's Album is a Bomb."
"To me, this title has balls," stated U2 fan Clayton on Interference.com's Feedback message board. "It sounds [like] 'Bullet the Blue Sky' in my mind's radio station. Right away when you stack it up next to 'All That You Can't Leave Behind' you can't help but feel that 'All That...' [as a title] has no balls."
Indeed, the new album title has guts, whereas "All That…" referred to a growth process, the act of picking up and moving on, dusting one's self off and trying again, embracing life with experienced but forgiving eyes. Song titles for "How To Dismantle…" even sound voraciously different than songs on "All That…"—comparatively, we have "Vertigo," the first single to be released off of the new album versus "When I Look At The World." Are the members of U2 giving us a peak at their current worldview – one of dizziness and constant disorder, compared with personal reflection of one's quiet discomfort with the world?
"It's a takeoff/biblical reference to Ecclesiastes, 'beating swords for ploughshares' is now 'HTDAAB," mused U2 fan starsgoblue. "The only way to trump an item of destruction = love. That's the theme, love is a revolution in it's own right!"
Other fans were not as quick to accept the album title.
"I will reserve full judgment until I have seen the artwork/theme on the sleeve and heard the album," offered fan Blue Room. "Off hand, I don't care for the title, although I also remember in 1987 saying the same thing when 'The Joshua Tree' was announced as the title so it will probably grow on me. I think U2 are just trying to be different and make sure the title stands out. 'Vertigo' would have been a decent title but seems pretty obvious."
The next few months will see a flurry of activity and press overload for the "biggest band in the world"—magazine covers, television appearances, interviews, radio airplay and reviews followed by a 2005 world tour. The biggest trophy of all, however, is the arrival of "How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" to U2 fans in late November, just in time for the all-important holiday shopping season. U2 fans are a hungry sort, and eat up every morsel of information they can find on their beloved Irishmen, even if it means sitting through endless radio marathons or straining to hear music playing in the background of a very badly recorded bootleg of a new song.
"It's not a title that we should [have] expected from a band that's been around for 25 years and have conquered the world a lot of times," said U2 fan Ricardo. "There's an idea behind this title, it suggests that it's not a protest album but an album with... suggestions to dismantle the atomic bombs that we see everyday (AIDS, terror, war and so on), and if the suggestion is love I don't see anything wrong in that."
Chief Editor
2004.09
The long road to the Nov. 23rd release of the feverishly-anticipated new U2 album found a sweet roadside oasis on Sept. 13th with the official announcement of the album's title, "How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb," on U2.com. The band offered no explanation or comment on the complex and, as journalist Neil McCormick put it, "difficult" title.
Rumored to be influenced by British artist Damien Hirst, "How To Dismantle…" will blast onto an already explosive, war-weary world stage. Always a political band, U2 has shied away from overt statements in recent years preferring to take a more composed demeanor, presumably to help Bono's work on behalf of DATA, or to put on a more non-partisan face in complicated times.
Whatever the case, "How To Dismantle…" is at once a shocking title full of historic imagery (atomic bombs are no longer in development), but also a title that hints at an education of sorts—how do you dismantle an atomic bomb indeed. Will U2 offer us diplomatic advice? Relationship advice (1991's "Achtung Baby" explored the breakdown of a romantic relationship to heartbreaking effect)? Or perhaps an inside peak of what must have been a arduous recording process (this being the first U2 album since 2000's wildly successful "All That You Can't Leave Behind")?
Predictably, U2's obsessively-opinionated and devoted fan base reacted with astonishment, enthusiasm and uneasiness to the new album title. Many voiced fears that U2 was making a ploy for attention with the striking title or that U2 was setting itself up for pun-laden album reviews along the lines of "U2 Drops Its ‘Bomb,'" "U2's Album is 'The Bomb'" or "U2's Album is a Bomb."
"To me, this title has balls," stated U2 fan Clayton on Interference.com's Feedback message board. "It sounds [like] 'Bullet the Blue Sky' in my mind's radio station. Right away when you stack it up next to 'All That You Can't Leave Behind' you can't help but feel that 'All That...' [as a title] has no balls."
Indeed, the new album title has guts, whereas "All That…" referred to a growth process, the act of picking up and moving on, dusting one's self off and trying again, embracing life with experienced but forgiving eyes. Song titles for "How To Dismantle…" even sound voraciously different than songs on "All That…"—comparatively, we have "Vertigo," the first single to be released off of the new album versus "When I Look At The World." Are the members of U2 giving us a peak at their current worldview – one of dizziness and constant disorder, compared with personal reflection of one's quiet discomfort with the world?
"It's a takeoff/biblical reference to Ecclesiastes, 'beating swords for ploughshares' is now 'HTDAAB," mused U2 fan starsgoblue. "The only way to trump an item of destruction = love. That's the theme, love is a revolution in it's own right!"
Other fans were not as quick to accept the album title.
"I will reserve full judgment until I have seen the artwork/theme on the sleeve and heard the album," offered fan Blue Room. "Off hand, I don't care for the title, although I also remember in 1987 saying the same thing when 'The Joshua Tree' was announced as the title so it will probably grow on me. I think U2 are just trying to be different and make sure the title stands out. 'Vertigo' would have been a decent title but seems pretty obvious."
The next few months will see a flurry of activity and press overload for the "biggest band in the world"—magazine covers, television appearances, interviews, radio airplay and reviews followed by a 2005 world tour. The biggest trophy of all, however, is the arrival of "How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" to U2 fans in late November, just in time for the all-important holiday shopping season. U2 fans are a hungry sort, and eat up every morsel of information they can find on their beloved Irishmen, even if it means sitting through endless radio marathons or straining to hear music playing in the background of a very badly recorded bootleg of a new song.
"It's not a title that we should [have] expected from a band that's been around for 25 years and have conquered the world a lot of times," said U2 fan Ricardo. "There's an idea behind this title, it suggests that it's not a protest album but an album with... suggestions to dismantle the atomic bombs that we see everyday (AIDS, terror, war and so on), and if the suggestion is love I don't see anything wrong in that."
