Did I just dream this, or is U2 really attempting some sort of “new rock” restyling?

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I caught the tail end of a commercial the other day, possibly an ipod commercial, featuring a new single by U2. The guitar sound was carefully sculpted into some sort of Jet/Vines/Edge fusion, which is to say as “new rock” / “garagey” as it could get without forfeiting U2’s traditional fluffy grandiosity. At the end of the clip Bono was doing stand-kicks with his mic and going “yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!” The whole thing had a vague Boris Yeltsin quality to it.

Okay, not that this is really surprising, and not that I have any faith in U2 or anything, but I thought they were too rich to need to do stuff like this? I always thought they’d just turn into Aerosmith, cranking out a big pompous ballad every now and then for a movie soundtrack.

― nabisco (nabisco), Friday, 15 October 2004 15:46 (twenty-one years ago)

They already did that phase ("Hold Me Love Me Tickle Me Elmo" or whatever that was from Batman Forever).

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 15 October 2004 15:50 (twenty-one years ago)

They could, alternately, have done a "back to basics" phase, or pulled an REM and done mellow acoustic junk for a while. Possibly the former would have been a little too cool for them. But really, what they're doing now is just silly. (And it totally harms the credibility of our humanitarian policy toward Africa.)

― nabisco (nabisco), Friday, 15 October 2004 15:57 (twenty-one years ago)

wasnt the last album hailed as a back to basics U2 sound - I didnt think it was, but thats what they were saying, wasnt it?

― AaronK (AaronK), Friday, 15 October 2004 16:02 (twenty-one years ago)

BACK TO DO BASIX

― seahorse genius (seahorse genius), Friday, 15 October 2004 16:28 (twenty-one years ago)

single blows.

...and I do have time for them usually esp. around Achtung Baby era, and 'Beautiful Day' was great, they actually succeeded at what they said they wanted to do, which is pretty rare for such mainstream old farts I'd say.

Also remember feeling pretty moved by the (live broadcast) of that concert they did in Sarajevo.

O/T - GREAT TIME TO GO LICKING BLAIR'S ARSE! Children dying in Africa and Iraq, which one could Blair have done more to prevent happening eh?

wtf Bono?

― i lurk on ilm (i lurk on ilm), Friday, 15 October 2004 16:40 (twenty-one years ago)

The whole thing had a vague Boris Yeltsin quality to it.

best description ever.

i like when u2 gets a little freaky.

their last album sounded really cynical to me. like it really was their version of the aerosmith big ballad thing.

― tricky (disco stu), Friday, 15 October 2004 17:51 (twenty-one years ago)

And the best part is that when Bono counts in Spanish in the beginning, he is literally saying, "one, two, three, fourteen." What a piece of poop.

― Isaac, Friday, 15 October 2004 20:07 (twenty-one years ago)

They could, alternately, have done a "back to basics" phase
Wasn't that called Rattle and Hum?

Here's what I think happened. U2's going along their merry career recording their stuff. Then they go and record that Pasengers album with Eno. The problem is that Eno saps all of the good of U2 for the purpose of 1 album and they are left non-creative drones. It's a well know fact that he's a mad scientist obviously using dark Nazi secrets for the purposes of "avant-guarde" music.

Since then their only inspiration has been shiny objects and extra Jello with the fruit in it from whatever institution they are secretly held in. But Island doesn't want us to know this because they know plenty of folks will still pick up the latest U2 album with some kind of sick hope. In fact most of what we see is computer graphics and fancy Muppets-style puppet work, like Yoda.

The reason they've become like cartoons of themselves is that they ARE cartoons of themselves, I tell you!

― Mike Salmo (salmo), Saturday, 16 October 2004 02:51 (twenty-one years ago)

U2's best albums have been released post '90!

― Gear! (Gear!), Saturday, 16 October 2004 02:54 (twenty-one years ago)

Rattle & Hum wasn't back to basics, it was "let's immerse ourselves in America, for better or worse".

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 16 October 2004 02:55 (twenty-one years ago)

"let's reveal that Larry has never seen Spinal Tap"

― manthony m1cc1o (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 16 October 2004 03:04 (twenty-one years ago)

"let's inspire Scott Stapp to start Creed"

― manthony m1cc1o (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 16 October 2004 03:05 (twenty-one years ago)

"Let's reveal that Edge doesn't enjoy shaving."

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 16 October 2004 03:06 (twenty-one years ago)

Man, I think I've seem more copies of 'Under a Blood Red Sky' in charity shops than any other record, except perhaps that Kristofferson and Streisand album. I've seen a lot of Rattle and Hum too.

― Kevin Gilchrist (Mr Fusion), Saturday, 16 October 2004 03:09 (twenty-one years ago)

I actually listened to Under a Blood Red Sky last week.

"Hey, This is Red Rocks!"

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 16 October 2004 03:10 (twenty-one years ago)

OH you didn't!!!!

Holy...wow that's...a piece of vinyl I don't have in my posession at the moment. Not with me. It's at my parent's house. Let's see, let me call an airline right away...

― Bimble (bimble), Saturday, 16 October 2004 04:09 (twenty-one years ago)

Who the hell cares about U2 anymore? That's like getting excited about a new Rolling Stones album. And expecting it to be any good.

― pharquar, Saturday, 16 October 2004 09:32 (twenty-one years ago)

well, couldn't a new stones album be good actually ? i mean, many bluesmen/folksmen kinda get better as they get older (like dylan in a way)... maybe that could happen to the stones (ok, i haven't listened/cared about a stones album since some girls...).

― AleXTC (AleXTC), Saturday, 16 October 2004 10:54 (twenty-one years ago)

I'd be more optimistic about a new U2 album than a new Stones album. But either would be preferrable to a new Radiohead album.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 16 October 2004 17:56 (twenty-one years ago)

Do any of the cocksuckers like *anything* anymore? (Besides cocksucking, a noble pursuit, admittedly). U2 are what they are...they were always pompous and uncool, but bitching at them because Bono tries to use his fame constructively is the sort of knee-jerk cynicism that was tiresome in the paleolithic age (speaking of the Stones).

― Vlad the Impala, Saturday, 16 October 2004 18:54 (twenty-one years ago)

i like the new u2 song

― big chaki (chaki), Saturday, 16 October 2004 20:50 (twenty-one years ago)

they just wanted some free ipods, probably.

― Kim (Kim), Saturday, 16 October 2004 21:02 (twenty-one years ago)

But either would be preferrable to a new Radiohead album.

Wow, I'll file that under sad but true.

― Bimble (bimble), Sunday, 17 October 2004 02:14 (twenty-one years ago)

I wish they'd get back to "Charles Manson stole this from the Beatles we're stealing it back."

― Aaron W (Aaron W), Sunday, 17 October 2004 04:24 (twenty-one years ago)

Say what you want about U2 but that new song actually sounds pretty good at loud decibels in a club.

PS- Vlad the IMpala: best new login name in a dog;s age? I knew a guy who used that as his DJ name on a college readio station.

― o. nate (onate), Sunday, 17 October 2004 05:55 (twenty-one years ago)

i was wondering how jaded i was feeling about U2 at the present moment, and then my reaction to the phrase "free ipods" gave me my answer. ehhhhhhhhhhh

― Dave M. (rotten03), Sunday, 17 October 2004 18:50 (twenty-one years ago)

I wish they'd get back to "Charles Manson stole this from the Beatles we're stealing it back."

The only thing that'll impress me is if they put out a CD covering "LIE" in its entirety.

― A Million Talking Hot Dogs (AaronHz), Sunday, 17 October 2004 18:52 (twenty-one years ago)

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