If you shout... said:
Well, there's really a whole hell of a lot that I'd change if I had the opportunity to do so... There's a thread I just started about the tracklisting for the album which proposes some rather radical changes. As for the songs themselves, I'll break it down like this...
"Vertigo"--You wanna' know the truth? I wouldn't change a damn thing except for the whole deal with Bono singing, "Unos," to kick her off. That doesn't actually mean "one" in Spanish, so I've a bit of a problem with that; maybe it was intentional, maybe not. For now, I'll not like it.
"Miracle Drug"--Good God...I hate the lyrics. I've read a LOT of posts in a LOT of places in which people seem to feel that this song is the second coming of Christ, but I would have to disagree rather forcefully. I'm glad that some people have expressed at least SOME dissent over this song in this particular thread. So, yeah--the lyrics suck ass. I also could have gone for a longer "solo" from the Edge, though I hesitate to even call it that...as a rule, I would have really liked a bit more true solos from the Edge on this "guitar-heavy" album. His riffs were stronger than they've been in almost ten years, but his playing is still more rudimentary than it has to be.
"Sometimes You Can't..."--This is probably my second favorite track on the album, and I can just say that I think the production gets a bit overblown as the song goes on. I still love it, I still love the way it sounds, and I pretty much dig on all the lyrics and the instrumentation...but when Bono starts wailing away towards the end of the song during that final chorus, it just gets too busy. Better yet, it's not just busy: it's sometimes impossible to decipher. Maybe it's just a shady .mp3, but it's all I've got. I also really don't like the "glossy" and atmospheric guitar stabs. If there were fewer of them, I'd be a happier man. They work, but not ad nauseum.
"Love/Peace..."--Maybe the opening is a bit too dissonant for its own good, but this is my favorite track on the album. I really love the roaring guitar, but MAN could this song have used an aggressive solo, you know? I'm all about finally retiring some of the older songs when the band plays live, and I'd love to see this song be good enough to replace the still OUTSTANDING "Bullet the Blue Sky;" I still love that song, but how cool would it be if the band finally topped it? That would be raw as hell. As with most of the album, I think that some of the lyrics could use a little work; thankfully, that laughable "Zion/Abraham" sequence is treated to a powerful-as-fuck vocal by Bono. Without that, it'd be hopeless, lyrically.
"City..."--Man...this is a great track, son! I like the piano to open the song up, but I don't like how processed it sounds. Way too slick, way too shiny, way too contemporary Eno/Lanois, regardless of how much of an impact they did or didn't have on the track. Bono's delivery is here my problem--while he soars REALLY high during the, "Oh, you look so beautiful tonight" portions, his vocal is muddled, forced, and silly when he sings, "Oh, and I miss you when you're not around, etc." It just feels a bit clumsy for me. The bass line is a little safe, as well, and I could have done with FEWER OVERDUBS. As with the last album, this whole affair just has a feeling of studio-ness to it which even albums like Pop managed to avoid.
"All Because of You"--Well, the lyrics are silly once again. ...Or I think so, anyway. And while I don't really dislike it, I think it's a bit shady that the band simply lifted the closing rock-out from the PopMart versions of "The Last Night On Earth" to end the song with. Bono's vocals also seemed to not quite match up with the song perfectly in all parts (I guess I agree with our German friends on this one); also: WHAT THE FUCK IS UP WITH THE DOUBLE-TRACKED VOCALS??? I don't like it.
"A Man and a Woman"--You want the truth? This one shouldn't even be on the album. Bad lyrics, bad and crazily overcrowded production, a bad melody, a boring vocal...the list goes on. This song is a sin. I'm serious, here.
"Crumbs From Your Table"--My biggest disappointment with this song is the fact that it isn't "Heaven and Hell" from my good old "Salome" sessions. There's that line, "You take cards from all over the table," and I had hoped and prayed that the band were revisiting that magical track. Even so, I again take issue with the double-tracking on the vocal, and that, "Cool down, mama," was so fucking stupid that I laughed aloud at first hearing it. It's still a good track, though--that I can't even try to deny. A nice, simple (maybe a little too safe) mid-tempo track not at all unlike a million U2 songs before it...."Walk On," "When I Look at the World," "Dirty Day," etc. A little over-produced for me, at times (I swear I hear bells during the whole "Sister Anne" spiel).
"One Step Closer"--Not all I had hoped for. I enjoyed its brevity, because some of the songs on this album seem to go on for just a few seconds longer than they should. Another disturbing trend has by now surfaced, though: too many of the choruses simply repeat the titles of their respective songs until the listener can't take it anymore. Some cumbersome lyrics ("busy intersection," you say?), but not too shabby. I like the vocal a good deal, but again...so many overdubs.
"Original of the Species"--The music box opening? Didn't work for me, but I did like the unprocessed piano which leads the song along. One more song, though, where the lyrics could have just killed me. I now fondly remember the days when Bono was comfortable SHOWING us something....now he simply TELLS us exactly what's what and what to feel, etc. Great ringing guitar on the chorus could have been louder. Again...feels a bit slick, doesn't it? Throw some dirt on the boys while they're playing or something...wasn't this supposed to be a rock'n'roll album...? PS: that "Do-do, do-do, do-do" shit is terrible.
"Yahweh"--Good stuff, no? I actually liked the lyrics, too...!!! Bono's calls of, "Yahweh!" sound an AWFUL lot like the way he used to sing the, "Midnight...MidNIIIIIGHT..!!!" lines from "Lemon" during the closing months of Zoo TV, do they not? I really liked the tone with which this song closed everything out. The album didn't grind to a halt, which was nice.
Phew...there you go. I hope somebody cares about this shit, cuz that TOOK A WHILE. Peace.