 |
It's not cool to like U2. It's even worse to say they are your favourite band. It's almost the same as admitting that you like the new Destiny's Child track, or that Will Young isn't really that bad, is he? Meeting new people and learning how much they love obscure bands that you've never heard of means that when you confess your guilty pleasure you often end up an outcast. Not a real music fan. It's the worst kind of insult, and when the band in question has a new album out, it's not gonna get any better. Especially when said album turns out to be the best thing they have done in years.
"How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb" (snappy title!) has no right to be as good as it is. Supergroups like U2 should not be releasing good albums twenty-odd years into their career, far less ones that rank up there with "The Joshua Tree" and "Achtung Baby". It goes against the grain. (Look at R.E.M.'s dire latest release.) Especially when the album rocks in a way most new guitar groups would sell their granny to achieve. Kicking off proceedings with lead-off single "Vertigo", Bono's voice holds up well after years of belting out impossibly hard-to-match choruses, but it is The Edge's guitar that makes the song, and the album as a whole. He's back to using his classic trademark minimalist sound, even more so than on previous album "All That You Can't Leave Behind". Some people argue that U2 are going through a mid-life crisis, trying to keep up with rock's young pretenders. It's safe to say that they have clearly been influenced by the rapid rise of Franz, The Killers, Razorlight et al, but equally true is that the big tunes and big ideas have never really gone anywhere.
Many people will pick up on the fact that "Vertigo" is loud and noisy and essentially un-U2, and this is wonderful. It's wonderful because U2 have never tried to appease their fans by giving them another "Joshua Tree", and no other band with such a huge following has had the guts to try out new ideas, to tear up the rulebook and stick two fingers to their critics because they just had to make that dance remix and they just had to tour with a giant revolving lemon. That's why people love them. They aren't afraid to be uncool, and that means that their fans aren't afraid to be uncool either. This kind of f*ck-you attitude is more punk than the majority of corporate bands who claim to be "punk". Bono has called this album "U2's first guitar record", and he's right. "Vertigo" isn't the only track to display this new approach - there are companion pieces elsewhere on the album - "Love and Peace or Else" and "All Because of You" immediately spring to mind, and both are going to sound immense in stadiums next year. If you've heard "Vertigo" - and let's face it, by now who hasn't - and like what you hear, you will love this album. But if you don't want loud, guitar heavy tracks (not that we're talking Metallica here), don't worry. The ballads are still here and out in force.
"City of Blinding Lights" is the song to make Chris Martin weep into his Fairtrade cornflakes, because he knows he'll never be this good. "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" is a slow-burner of the kind we've all seen on past U2 albums, but this isn't a bad thing by any means. "Original of the Species" is piano-led verses wedged between huge choruses, and you're going to hear it all over the radio in the next year. It's not all perfection though - "A Man and a Woman" sounds suspiciously like filler, and "One Step Closer" never really gets off the ground, but these are minor failings.
If you don't like U2, this album isn't going to convince you otherwise. If you can't stand Bono's preaching on AIDS and world debt, then songs like "Crumbs from Your Table", with its "where you live should not decide whether you live or whether you die" refrain won't do much to endear him to your cold heart. And God help you if this is how you feel, because this album is going to be everywhere, as only new U2 material can be. By this time next year you will be begging for a break. But for those of us who admire Bono for being the ultimate pain in the ass, and who are happy to admit to being followers of the greatest band in the world, this is the best thing you'll hear this year. And next year too.
"How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb" (snappy title!) has no right to be as good as it is. Supergroups like U2 should not be releasing good albums twenty-odd years into their career, far less ones that rank up there with "The Joshua Tree" and "Achtung Baby". It goes against the grain. (Look at R.E.M.'s dire latest release.) Especially when the album rocks in a way most new guitar groups would sell their granny to achieve. Kicking off proceedings with lead-off single "Vertigo", Bono's voice holds up well after years of belting out impossibly hard-to-match choruses, but it is The Edge's guitar that makes the song, and the album as a whole. He's back to using his classic trademark minimalist sound, even more so than on previous album "All That You Can't Leave Behind". Some people argue that U2 are going through a mid-life crisis, trying to keep up with rock's young pretenders. It's safe to say that they have clearly been influenced by the rapid rise of Franz, The Killers, Razorlight et al, but equally true is that the big tunes and big ideas have never really gone anywhere.
Many people will pick up on the fact that "Vertigo" is loud and noisy and essentially un-U2, and this is wonderful. It's wonderful because U2 have never tried to appease their fans by giving them another "Joshua Tree", and no other band with such a huge following has had the guts to try out new ideas, to tear up the rulebook and stick two fingers to their critics because they just had to make that dance remix and they just had to tour with a giant revolving lemon. That's why people love them. They aren't afraid to be uncool, and that means that their fans aren't afraid to be uncool either. This kind of f*ck-you attitude is more punk than the majority of corporate bands who claim to be "punk". Bono has called this album "U2's first guitar record", and he's right. "Vertigo" isn't the only track to display this new approach - there are companion pieces elsewhere on the album - "Love and Peace or Else" and "All Because of You" immediately spring to mind, and both are going to sound immense in stadiums next year. If you've heard "Vertigo" - and let's face it, by now who hasn't - and like what you hear, you will love this album. But if you don't want loud, guitar heavy tracks (not that we're talking Metallica here), don't worry. The ballads are still here and out in force.
"City of Blinding Lights" is the song to make Chris Martin weep into his Fairtrade cornflakes, because he knows he'll never be this good. "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" is a slow-burner of the kind we've all seen on past U2 albums, but this isn't a bad thing by any means. "Original of the Species" is piano-led verses wedged between huge choruses, and you're going to hear it all over the radio in the next year. It's not all perfection though - "A Man and a Woman" sounds suspiciously like filler, and "One Step Closer" never really gets off the ground, but these are minor failings.
If you don't like U2, this album isn't going to convince you otherwise. If you can't stand Bono's preaching on AIDS and world debt, then songs like "Crumbs from Your Table", with its "where you live should not decide whether you live or whether you die" refrain won't do much to endear him to your cold heart. And God help you if this is how you feel, because this album is going to be everywhere, as only new U2 material can be. By this time next year you will be begging for a break. But for those of us who admire Bono for being the ultimate pain in the ass, and who are happy to admit to being followers of the greatest band in the world, this is the best thing you'll hear this year. And next year too.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment