OK, let's get this out of the way. U2's latest is not War, The Joshua Tree or Achtung Baby. But second tier U2? Absolutely. It can stand confidently alongside The Unforgettable Fire, Boy or Zooropa. It is also one that gets better with repeated listens.
The lead off single, "Get On Your Boots," is easily one of the worst songs in U2's repertoire. Fortunately, it stands out on this album like a sore thumb and does not represent its sound or mood at all. ("Stand-Up Comedy" is the other stinker here). Why on earth didn't they pick "Breathe" as the lead single? "Breathe" rocks as hard as anything they've released and is catchy as hell. Bono delivers machine gun fast lyrics that remind one of a great Bob Dylan diatribe (more in vocal delivery than lyrical greatness, but still, very cool.) The glorious "Magnificent" would have also been a fine single.
NLOTH is their most sonically interesting and experimental record since the Achtung Baby / Zooropa days, and it is not suprising that Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois produce most of the songs and are so involved that U2 has become essentially a six-man band at this point. The great, morphing "Fez-Being Born" is as experimental as U2 has been on their mainstream projects. Ignoring the crappy middle of "Get On Your Boots" and "Stand-Up Comedy," this is a very moody record, touching on emotions and sounds that they've largely avoided since the early 90's. Not that it sounds too much like it overtly, but I really find that this new record is most akin to the wonderful Unforgettable Fire in spirit.
The only weakness that is evident is in Bono's lyrics. But to be honest, U2's never been about Bono's lyrics to me anyway. I've never viewed him as a particularly strong lyricist. Some of these lyrics sound quite tossed off, though, as if he could hardly be bothered with taking a break from negotiating peace at the United Nations to drop by the studio to write. Too bad, because the sonic care that Edge, Mullen and Clayton put in is top-notch U2. Bono's silly lyrics almost ruin what is one of their catchiest songs and melodies in "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight." The same complaint can't be made about his singing, though. While he can't reach those powerful high notes anymore, Bono's voice explores many colors, nuances and characters here. His best vocal outing in 15 years.
Funny enough, to these ears, they save the best for last. "White As Snow" is the prettiest song they've released since "Stay." It is also lyrically very interesting, but tellingly while the rest of the album's lyrics are credited to Bono, on "White As Snow" the lyrics are credited to 'U2, Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois.' I've already talked about the rocking "Breathe," and they close things with the brooding "Cedars of Lebanon," the most Unforgettable Fire-type song on the album.
My buddy JMW and I had a discussion last night about U2 and the state of rock and roll in general. U2 used to be more than a band, they were almost religion to many fans in their heyday. Post-Achtung Baby, they've come down to earth, album by album. Their previous How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb was bad. But No Line on the Horizon, while not returning them to the peaks of yesteryear, at least lets them return to the mountain and makes them relevant as artists again. It is their most interesting and best record since the early 1990's.
**** out of *****
9 comments:
Hmm. From the scraps I listened to on iTunes, I'm not sure I buy this. The Unforgettable Fire? I thought you loved that record! And now you're comparing it to Zooropa and this new stinker? Weird.
Per our conversation the other night, I think Bono did walk a very fine line lyrically, even when the band was at its peak. Now, I think he's lamer than lame.
I'll have to stream the whole thing online somewhere. Either my ears deceived me, or you should be applying for jobs at Rolling Stone.
I do love 'Unforgettable Fire.' as I said in the review, it doesn't overtly sound like TUF, but it still echoes it in mood and other respects. I'm a big 'Zooropa' fan too, so that's a compliment from me.
Rolling Stone gave it five stars (their highest rating possible) and called it a "masterpiece." I did not go nearly that far. But, it is a solid U2 album, which is always something to celebrate.
The radio around here has been playing nonstop U2--both from the new album and from the past albums. so I've been thinking more than I usually would (not at all) about Bono's lyrics. Desite what you two idiots have to say (I mean...umh...) I think he's often a very good lyricist. He gets away with stuff that would sound cliched in the throat of a less talented and less sincere vocalist--no doubt about that. But, at least for me, he often writes some great lines. I think almost all of "Achtung" contains strong writing ("One" I think is the best song they ever wrote) and so does a lot of "Rattle and Hum" (an underrated album). "Silver and Gold", "When Love Comes to Town", "Angel of Harlem"--them's good lyrics.
I'll admit he can pen some clunkers. And it's when Bono's off that I find U2 hard to bear. (I care about lyrics a lot more than I probalby should). So I'm worried by Dez's review. "Good music but crappy lyrics" usually means an album for me to avoid.
Tim, your line about him "getting away with stuff" is exactly what I meant by the fine line. I agree that he hasn't always been a bad lyricist. I think he's one now, though.
And I'm not sure the music on this record is so great either.
They have been playing a few tracks on satellite radio and, granted, one of them is one that Dez pans, I find the songs very forgettable. I mean literally. I can't remember anything about them. I hope the rest of the album is better
I think my last post had 45 typos in it. I guess I shouldn't blog after 10 AM. By that point in the day, I've already had so much tequila that typing is just too much.
-Tim
One of the pitfalls of trying to get a review out ASAP is that sometimes your views change once you've had some time to digest the record. While my overall **** out of ***** review still stands, some of the reasons why have altered slightly. On repeated listenings, "Magnificent" is not so magnificent after all. But, my favorite song on the album is now a tune that I did not even mention by name in my original review.
The title track ("No Line on the Horizon") really works its way into your head after awhile. It is one of those more abstract yet charging tunes in the tradition of "Where the Streets Have No Name" or "Sort of Homecoming." That is my revised highlight of NLOTH. Also "Moment of Surrender" has really grown on me as well.
If anything, after a week with the record, my **** review is even stronger. Great U2 record we have here.
OT: Dez, your thoughts on this?
Hoodlumman: that trailer is awesome. I think it looks great and can't wait to see it. Hope Dez blogs on it.
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