Seeing as how we're really poor right now, there hasn't been a whole
lot of extra coin to spend on fun stuff. Like CD's. Now, I'm fine with
this, for the most part, but I really wanted this CD. So, the husband, being the master of BitTorrent that he is, downloaded it for me a few weeks ago.
Do I feel guilty about stealing this music?
Not one little bit. I've given a big chunk of change over the years to U2. I've bought their CD's. I still have "Under a Blood Red Sky"
on vinyl. I've even seen them in concert. Plus, I'm giving them some
free PR here, so I think they can't forgive me this one download.
Besides, Bono has already forgiven me:
"It's never nice to have a thief in charge of your release campaign," lead singer Bono told Reuters in a recent interview."However, it's up there. Bootlegs are fine if you're making a few of
them for your friends, but if it's big business, bad-ass crime, I don't
think you want to be a part of that and that's what this is." Some
commentators have suggested that publicity surrounding the loss, and
speculation that the release date of one of the year's most eagerly
awaited albums may be brought forward, could boost the record's success
rather than dent it.
...it's damn good!
For me, it's a logical continuation of All That You Can't Leave Behind. U2 has never been afraid to evolve with the times. If they hadn't been, well, we'd still be getting albums that sounded like Boy.
They're not afraid of going someplace new. They listen to the music
around them, pilfer bits and pieces, adapt it to their original style
and create something new in the process. Something that's still
entirely U2, yet different. Think about the jump from The Joshua Tree to Achtung Baby! Bomb is different in that, they're revisiting some of their old styles and then are taking that
to someplace new and exciting. Mr. H. is of the opinion that the album
as a whole is fairly mellow. I would agree with this. It is mellow, and
if mellow U2 bothers you, well, this isn't the album for you. Here's
the song by song takedown:
1. Vertigo: Rockin'! This song, while great on its own, reminds me a lot of "Mysterious Ways" from Achtung Baby! in that it takes no prisoners.
2. Miracle Drug: A little mellow, but still a wee bit edgy.
3. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own: or as I like to call it, Stuck in a Moment: Redux.
Yet another song devoted to telling people that it's ok to ask for help
when they're depressed. Nice message and all, but I'm not really all
that hot on this song and have a habit of skipping it. 4. Love and Peace. Or Else: This is one hot song. Man. Edge
starts off with a riff straight out of Texas. In comes Larry with the
drums, then instantly they just let Adam go nuts with his bass. It
blares and thumps and it sounds so damn good. Just as you're enjoying the music, Bono comes in and gets down and dirty. I'm not easy on my knees. No, Bono, baby, we know you're not easy on your knees, which is why we love you admitting it. This harkens right back to Rattle and Hum for me. Yet, Bono finally learned how to sing the blues without screaming. This is how he should have sung When Love Comes To Town.
5. City of Blinding Lights: Yet another mellow song with a nice melody, but it's definitely a harsh comedown after Love and Peace. Or Else. As a result, I hate to say it, but it's somewhat forgettable.
6. All Because of You: Edge does a guitar riff similar to the one on Where the Streets Have No Name, and while it's much shorter, it still takes you right back to The Joshua Tree, yet that's where the similarity stops. The song is very pop and is somewhat bouncy.
7. A Man and a Woman:
The song tells the tale of love, and how hard it is to understand what
each sex is thinking. It's laid back and melodious, with Bono sounding
a wee bit like a lounge singer on the chorus, but it totally fits.
8. Crumbs From Your Table: Somewhat sultry. I adore Bono
singing "Cool down, Mama." Pretty much has the same theme as the
previous two songs, so it fits well.
9. One Step Closer: Beautiful melodious beginning. There are
hints of guitar twang blended with a gorgeous Lanois-style keyboard
excursion. Since I don't have the actual CD, well, I can't tell you if
Daniel himself played, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out that he
had: it sounds like him. The visual that comes to me when I listen to
this song is one of Bono, sitting on the front porch of a ramshackle
house in the desert, singing solo, while lightning flares in the
distance. 10. Original of the Species: Soft start with a pickup in tempo and sound toward the chorus.
11. Yaweh:
This is the proverbial nice white wine with a light finish. Bono and
Edge share the verses. This automatically makes it softer because Bono
adjusts his vocal stylings whenever he sings with Edge so he doesn't
drown him out. And yes, they're talking about God and being good people
because He asks it of us. It's a fairly religious tune, and I wouldn't
be surprised if the Evangelicals didn't jump all over it. Go and buy
it. It's obvious which songs I liked better simply by the word count.
Yet, if you're going to come back at me and say, "hey, Kath, you didn't
like most of them," I'll say this in reply: bad U2 is better than "good
anything else" six days out of seven. This isn't bad U2. It's just not
previous albums. It's different. If you're a U2 fan, of course you'll
like it. If you're a sometime U2 fan, and their "weirder" stuff turns
you off, this will probably please you quite a bit. If you're expecting
every song to sound like "Vertigo," well, I'm sorry to say it, but
you're screwed. They're definitely mellowing as they get older. I don't
exactly know what this means for the next album, but for now, it's all good.