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  1. Originally posted by vanquish:[..]

    It's not about taking you places.
    .[..]

    Thom Yorke's singing is rather undecipherable, and they are really too left field to be anthemic.

    A perfect example of an anthemic song is Streets or WOWY


    Okay, thanks
    In that case, nope Radiohead aren't athemic at all lol
  2. Arent those songs often hit songs, songs u might hate with great passion and hear 50 times a day on radio but still know the words too or somethin
    Like really popular songs that ppl know of really well just because of them being played so much etc.
  3. Originally posted by Xayide29:Arent those songs often hit songs, songs u might hate with great passion and hear 50 times a day on radio but still know the words too or somethin
    Like really popular songs that ppl know of really well just because of them being played so much etc.



    Yeah, I guess so
    So in U2's case that would be COBL, Vertigo, BD, Streets etc? I guess so
  4. Just Google it:

    Originally posted by UrbanThe term anthemic is not strictly a word, yet is used to describe music that has a particular presence to it/atmospheric feel.

    In hardcore/punk an anthemic band would be one who have plentiful singalongs and a tight, melodic, and often heavy rhythm section. Bands such as Bane and With Honor are a good example of this.
  6. The Killers are the only band I've ever heard even coming close to being anthemic like U2 are, and Coldplay after the Killers.

    "When You Were Young" is anthemic. It's powerful, catchy, and the lyrics connect to anyone who hears it.

    I think in order to write an anthemic song, you have to somehow write lyrics which everyone can find themselves in, you know, which mean different things to different people. I think Streets and Beautiful Day are two U2 songs which fit that example. Some of the Killers' more recent stuff like Losing touch and spaceman are also very anthemic, and I think we can all agree that the sounds in "Human" are U2 sounds, the Killers just happened to get there first. When You Were Young is very similar to Miracle Drug.

    Interestingly, the chords to Beautiful Day, When You Were Young, and viva La Vida are almost identical. If you put them in the same key"

    When You Were Young: C D Em G C
    Beautiful Day D Em G C G D
    Cica La Vida: C D G Em

    If you look those three, what they all seem to have in common is that it's an ascending chord progression. I think that must be a key component in writing powerful anthems. And when you look at U2, many of their songs do just that.

    The other component is using what I would say is the most fundamental chord progression: Am, F, C, G. Virtually every other anthem you can sing along to incorporates that progression somewhere. I'm not entirely sure why but something about that progression just makes it incredibly easy to write powerful vocal melodies which don't clash with the instrumental. Can anyone explain that one?
  7. I had to laugh, because i mocked Mr.Z for using this word to describe what he loved about so much of Coldplay's music.

    An anthem, if you think about the colloquial definition, is a song that a whole crowd can identify with and that is easily sung. One that makes you want to pump your fist in the air and sing along at the top of your lungs (so they lyrics have to be easy to sing, as does the tune) and say "YES, this song is about ME or for ME" And I would say much of what's on Viva La Vida falls into this category, as does much of Joshua Tree and, as much as it pains me to say it, The Killers ("I've got soul but I'm not a soldier")

    I'd say Green Day is pretty friggin anthemic too, but maybe I'm just a tad bias. What about someone like Bruce or John Mellencamp? I'd say Born To Run is an anthem, no doubt.

    Do I digress?
  8. To me, the defining idea of anthemic music is that of big sounds, and generally I associate the idea with stadiums/arenas etc., i.e. a big place that the music fills. Something like Pride was probably U2's first real anthem, although stuff pre-TUF had the capacity to have a similar effect. It's simply how the music is put together. I'd say that Coldplay have similarly anthemic music, e.g. Clocks, Fix You, but I don't think I'd class them in quite the same bracket as U2, although I can't quite put my finger on it - perhaps it's just that U2 have more anthemic music than Coldplay?
  9. Anthemic means also a 'defining' tune for an era, and also a song that is very well tailored to be played in the hugest stadium.
    example of anthemic song is Born In The USA by Springsteen
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Contribute to the U2 community with uploading photos or by telling us which shows you have visited.
Contribute to the U2 community with uploading photos or by telling us which shows you have visited.