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  1. It should be minus one billion. Quite possibly the poorest U2 song ever recorded.


    Originally posted by AllBecauseOfU2I'll Go Crazy



    To quote one of my favourite people on this site 'Isn't that a bit harsh, Nicole?'

    I liked the song a lot more because of the remixes on the remix album.

    ''Cos three out of six ain't bad'' (apologies to Jim Steinman and Meat Loaf).
  2. Originally posted by drewhiggins:[..]

    I really do like the album. Not just saying that as ''OMG it's a new album'' hype thing but I really do think it is right up there with at least the 90s work.


    Yeah I think you've listened to it long enough for the new hype thing to wear off if it was not up to the mark.


  3. Was there even much hype around it to start with?


  4. No there wasn't but I mean the "This is new and it's U2 so I really, really want to like it" kind of hype.


  5. Personally, I think Winter and Window in the Skies are fighting it out for that dubious honour. But Magnificent is a strong contender.


  6. It will come as no surprise to you that I like all three of those songs.


  7. They tried very hard to generate a lot of hype, with the BBC non-stop promos and the Letterman residency etc. I sometimes wonder whether this had something to do with the lack of sales. It did smack of trying too hard, a bit of sweaty desperation.

    But the music mags hyped it too, with both Q and Rolling Stone rating it very highly.


  8. Oh yeah - of course there was some of that. Why wouldn't there be? If I couldn't wait for HTDAAB and ATYCLB and was a bit disappointed come a few months later, then this should be no less of an exception. It isn't any less of an exception - still love the album.

    I think what kept a lot of people away were the numerous editions of the album, the first single - my reaction was something like ''Sexy Boots - what the fuck? Is this a joke'' and the strange cover. Granted, all people had to do was turn it over if they weren't sure to see four dudes standing on a beach and then they'd know ''Well, it's U2''. So maybe that's what went against them.

    Then falling off the charts entirely, music videos almost nowhere to be found - funny as it may sound, some base success and failure on chart success alone. There is so much new music out there that didn't even chart but is damned fantastic and better than the crap being churned out recently and in the past. I wonder if Discotheque did the same thing - ''Boom cha!''. People surely would have been absolutely confused and wondering ''What happened to that rock and roll band called U2? That's right, they've gone techno and dance forever!!''

    As we know, that isn't the case. And then you have some that just hate U2 in general because of Bono. Hey - there's three other guys in the band!!! I've gone well-OT now, but that's just how I felt at the time.



    Originally posted by sonia_lastregaThey tried very hard to generate a lot of hype, with the BBC non-stop promos and the Letterman residency etc. I sometimes wonder whether this had something to do with the lack of sales. It did smack of trying too hard, a bit of sweaty desperation.

    But the music mags hyped it too, with both Q and Rolling Stone rating it very highly.





    Because I've always known if music is truly great or if a movie is truly great, people want to see it or hear it. No matter where you, how long you've been away, or whatever the situation is. You know, greatness is greatness and if you really do a great job on what you're doing, people want to hear it. Or they want to see it. You know, it doesn't matter, It really doesn't. Long as you're an innovator and a pioneer, you know. And that's the most important thing. Give them what they want to hear.


    That was taken from a radio interview in 2001 and almost sounds similar to the situation with No Line.



    It was kind of inevitable Q and RS would give No Line great ratings. First RS and Q were in on the album sessions and talked to the band and published numerous articles from interviews with them and Eno and Lanois and Lillywhite and whoever else was involved.

    Could you then imagine if they gave it one star or 20 per cent? I couldn't.


  9. Fortunately differences make the world go round, but I honestly, honestly don't get the appeal. The lyrics (esp Winter and WITS) are as banal and contrived as anything they've ever written, and it's not even like the music is especially outstanding or wonderful. I'll grant Magnificent works live (I even sang along!), but the album version owes more to disco than anything on Pop. Instead of a working title of 'French Disco Song' it should have been 'Biblical Cliche Disco'.

    But I won't think any less of you for liking them so long as you don't mind I think they reek.

  10. Originally posted by sonia_lastrega:[..]

    They tried very hard to generate a lot of hype, with the BBC non-stop promos and the Letterman residency etc. I sometimes wonder whether this had something to do with the lack of sales. It did smack of trying too hard, a bit of sweaty desperation.

    But the music mags hyped it too, with both Q and Rolling Stone rating it very highly.


    Make no mistake it's a been a critical success. All the respected publications have done nothing but adore it (well at least admire/enjoy it). But that doesn't necessarily translate though does it? One of my other favourite bands (Counting Crows) had a brilliant follow-up to their wildly popular debut album and received critical acclaim but it pretty well died in the arse compared to their first.

    But let's take a step back a bit. It did shoot to number 1 in more than 30 countries and how many copies has it sold so far? I don't know but it's probably a number many bands would be more than satisfied with.
  11. Originally posted by aussiemofo:[..]

    Make no mistake it's a been a critical success. All the respected publications have done nothing but adore it (well at least admire/enjoy it). But that doesn't necessarily translate though does it? One of my other favourite bands (Counting Crows) had a brilliant follow-up to their wildly popular debut album and received critical acclaim but it pretty well died in the arse compared to their first.

    But let's take a step back a bit. It did shoot to number 1 in more than 30 countries and how many copies has it sold so far? I don't know but it's probably a number many bands would be more than satisfied with.


    Definitely critical acclaim and sales/popularity aren't at all synonymous. I'm actually surprised NLOTH hasn't sold more; it's certainly not a worse album than ATYCLB or HTDAAB and they moved a metric fuckton. I imagine that's what the band's wondering too.
  12. Originally posted by aussiemofo:[..]

    Make no mistake it's a been a critical success. All the respected publications have done nothing but adore it (well at least admire/enjoy it). But that doesn't necessarily translate though does it? One of my other favourite bands (Counting Crows) had a brilliant follow-up to their wildly popular debut album and received critical acclaim but it pretty well died in the arse compared to their first.

    But let's take a step back a bit. It did shoot to number 1 in more than 30 countries and how many copies has it sold so far? I don't know but it's probably a number many bands would be more than satisfied with.




    Indeed. Even if a media publication loves it that doesn't mean anything for sales. It could fall flat on it's arse. Like that Counting Crows one people are always going to hold perceptions of the previous work and that it has to beat that or be better or more different - if not it doesn't do as well.

    Even the sales of Pop compared to ATYCLB for something supposedly panned are not bad.

    2.5 million at last count for worldwide and climbing - any band would be happy with that and U2's successes this decade and last. Compare that to the last albums - nine million (HTDAAB) to 12 million (ATYCLB). In this decade an album is lucky if it sells a quarter of that. Remember this isn't counting legal downloads - what if five million people have downloaded it but never bought it?





    Lars Ulrich from Metallica knows what's good anyway. And look at #23 - how right Lars is.

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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.