U2 'Songs of Innocence' Album // iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour 2015 Discussion

[***Flawless]

Pretty cool how they were able to keep this a secret and an entire album was just released with no release date being announced. In 2014 that's actually pretty awesome.

Yep, because that's not been done within the last year by anyone else...

Anyway, downloaded it because a free album is nice but it's U2 so I'm not rushing to listen.

Yep, and the fact that it's U2, one of the biggest bands in the world, makes it a little more surprising than most other bands.

Of course it's been done before, but that doesn't take away from the fact that they did it, and in the manner they did it.

Okay... I was just pointing out that it's not so unheard of in this modern day as the other poster pointed out.

What manner in which they did it?

[Black Sabbath]

Pretty cool how they were able to keep this a secret and an entire album was just released with no release date being announced. In 2014 that's actually pretty awesome.

Yep, because that's not been done within the last year by anyone else...

Anyway, downloaded it because a free album is nice but it's U2 so I'm not rushing to listen.

Yep, and the fact that it's U2, one of the biggest bands in the world, makes it a little more surprising than most other bands.

Of course it's been done before, but that doesn't take away from the fact that they did it, and in the manner they did it.

Okay... I was just pointing out that it's not so unheard of in this modern day as the other poster pointed out.

What manner in which they did it?

Right, I just wasn't sure if you were knocking it just because it's been done before, which is what some people have been doing that I'm reading on various sites.

As far as the way they did it: Announced at the Apple press release, which is huge to begin with, and essentially put right into people's accounts, rather than just saying "Hey, here's an album download if you want it." Yeah, they have to click on it to download, but people are likely more inclined to click on something already in their library and give it a shot rather than saying "Oh, U2 has a free download link for their album on their site? Maybe I'll check it out."

[***Flawless]

Right, I just wasn't sure if you were knocking it just because it's been done before, which is what some people have been doing that I'm reading on various sites.

As far as the way they did it: Announced at the Apple press release, which is huge to begin with, and essentially put right into people's accounts, rather than just saying "Hey, here's an album download if you want it." Yeah, they have to click on it to download, but people are likely more inclined to click on something already in their library and give it a shot rather than saying "Oh, U2 has a free download link for their album on their site? Maybe I'll check it out."

Oh no, not knocking it for that reason at all. Just wanted to clarify that they weren't the first of these current times to do so.

Yeah I get that, that's a great form of promotion for them. A fat paycheque from Apple (possibly) and free promo.

Edited September 10, 2014 by ***Flawless

[axlslash]

Good record. Nothing special, and very very forgettable. The songs blend together, and there aren't too many melodies that really catch and hook you. I love Raised By Wolves, but no other song really stands out. The Miracle is ok too, I guess. Glad it was a free record, it's definitely good, just not something I'll walk around humming for the rest of the day.

[Black Sabbath]

I don't think it's very forgettable, but it certainly does have a different feel to it. Maybe because there wasn't any promoted hype or anything and I'm still in awe I have a new U2 album as of yesterday? Not sure.

I do feel like the big kicker will be the next one, Songs of Experience.

Wonder if Songs of Ascent will be the end of a trilogy? This all has great potential...

[Streetchild]

It's way better than No Line On The Horizon, although that doesn't say much.

Seems like a pretty cool album, but I'll have to listen to it a few times.

"song for someone" and "Iris (Hold me Close)" are my favourites for now.

[Carlos Castaneda]

The fact that people still care about U2 albums is a testament how amazing the band continues to be. People stop caring about stones albums by the 80's.

[Mastodonny]

I love what danger mouse brings to the album. I hear a lot of stones and black keys in the songs.

[Dan H.]

For some reason the iTunes Store says I already purchased this and won't let me download it.

I guess I'll wait until it's on Spotify.

[maynard]

"Iris" gives me a weird "Discotheque" feeling. Completely different themes but Bono's low voice and dance-y drums make them similar. My favorite at the moment. This record is brilliant.

[Black Sabbath]

For some reason the iTunes Store says I already purchased this and won't let me download it.

I guess I'll wait until it's on Spotify.

You're doing something wrong. It shows that everyone has purchased it, you just have to click on it to download it.

Try following the link directly from U2.com. That's how I got to it.

[Dan H.]

Cool, that worked for me. I'm going to eat some mushrooms and check it out.

I'll let everyone know how all that goes, I'm excited, I'm a big fan of Dangermouse.

Anyone know if Flood or Eno were involved with this one?

Edited September 10, 2014 by LiveFromNormal

[brianthecrow]

Cool, that worked for me. I'm going to eat some mushrooms and check it out.

I'll let everyone know how all that goes, I'm excited, I'm a big fan of Dangermouse.

Anyone know if Flood or Eno were involved with this one?

Flood was involved in a song or two.

[luciusfunk]

For some reason the iTunes Store says I already purchased this and won't let me download it.

I guess I'll wait until it's on Spotify.

I had that problem, too. I clicked "show music in the cloud" and it popped up with a link to download it.

[ZoSoRose]

What a beautiful album, this really is everything I could have hoped "Songs of Ascent" to be.

Bono mentioned a follow up too, I know how that goes but I can hope! They really are one of the best bands of all time

[wasted]

It's just pretty watered down rock which is what is in the charts now. That chanting on Miracle is on ever pop rock song at the moment. Music is pretty soft at the moment and they aren't rocking the boat. It's prescription drug music for the masses. Elevator music in Carl's jr.

[Cosmo]

Wow. Loving this album. First three and last two songs are AMAZING.

[Subtle Signs]

Haven't heard anything yet but I'm definitely gonna check it out.

My first U2 show was POPMART 97 in Toronto. We slept outside of a local movie store in Buffalo to get the tix in February for an October show. We had sixth row center on the floor. I wish Oasis would've opened instead of whatever DJ played a set.POP was a classic for me right away. If God Will Send His Angels is probably my favorite song by them. My only regret from the show is we saw a few fans by the barrier talking to Paul McGuinness and he handed them all backstage passes.I doubt they were his friends or else they'd have been left at will call.It just seemed they were chatting away.

[Bono]

Pretty cool how they were able to keep this a secret and an entire album was just released with no release date being announced. In 2014 that's actually pretty awesome.

Yep, because that's not been done within the last year by anyone else...

Anyway, downloaded it because a free album is nice but it's U2 so I'm not rushing to listen.

Yep and every other band is as big and gets the the attention that U2 does when it comes to an album release. Fact is this was completely under wraps and nobody knew about it at all until it happened. Criticize and downplay it all you want if that's what you're getting at but the fact a band as big as they are pulled it off the way they did and get their music out to over 500 million people in the blink of an eye is cool regardless of what other bands have managed it. The reality is no other band has managed it this way though. It's a first.

I don't think it's very forgettable, but it certainly does have a different feel to it. Maybe because there wasn't any promoted hype or anything and I'm still in awe I have a new U2 album as of yesterday? Not sure.

I do feel like the big kicker will be the next one, Songs of Experience.

Wonder if Songs of Ascent will be the end of a trilogy? This all has great potential...

I don't find this album forgettable at all. I think there are some true new U2 classics on this album. Song for Someone, Sleep Like a Baby Tonight are classic U2 and Volcano is like the Numb of the album. California should be a hit on radio too I think.

I'm the same in that I'm still stunned I have a new U2 album and was driving around with it cranked in my car today. Like how many times have people on this and other GnR boards said how cool would it be to walk inot a store and see a new GnR album on shelves. That's essentially what just happened with U2. No inclination of an album when I woke up yesterday and by the time I got home after lunch U2 had released a new album. Like WTF? aha

It would be fantastic if Songs of Accent was still in the plans and this was the first of a trilogy. I wonder how long they plan to wait before Songs of Experience?

The fact that people still care about U2 albums is a testament how amazing the band continues to be. People stop caring about stones albums by the 80's.

This is true. I mean Stones fans(me) care but nobody else really. They don't get major media attention when they release albums anymore. They had a tiny resurrgence with Voodoo Lounge but they haven't had a #1 album in over 30 years. Every U2 album still hits #1..... we'll see if this one does though now that they've given it away for free.

Cool, that worked for me. I'm going to eat some mushrooms and check it out.

I'll let everyone know how all that goes, I'm excited, I'm a big fan of Dangermouse.

Anyone know if Flood or Eno were involved with this one?

Flood yes but Eno no. "with producer Danger Mouse (a.k.a. Brian Burton), then brought in additional help: Flood, their collaborator since 1987's The Joshua Tree, plus Adele producers Paul Epworth and Ryan Tedder."

Edited September 11, 2014 by Bono

[Bono]

It's just pretty watered down rock which is what is in the charts now. That chanting on Miracle is on ever pop rock song at the moment. Music is pretty soft at the moment and they aren't rocking the boat. It's prescription drug music for the masses. Elevator music in Carl's jr.

I disagree. They've become U2 in their mid 50s. Sonically it's not that huge a departure from albums like Achtung Baby, or Zooropa but they are older now and no band who's been around for almost 40 years and is in their mid 50s rocks the way they did when they were in their 20s. Bands like The Killers and Kings of Leon and 30 Seconds to Mars and Coldplay and whoever, whether you like those bands or not are heavily influenced by U2. So it's only natural that U2 tends to sound like them. Plus I don't get why everyone always complains that U2 albums aren't relly "Rock" albums. They've never really been "Rock" the way people on a GnR forum would like to hear. They have their moments on every album but U2 despit Bono's constant claims of punk rock roots has almost always been a pop rock band that has a sound that happens to appeal to the masses. Nothing has changed since The Unforgettable Fire. It's still big music with lots of atmosphere that appeals to a wide range of people. Do they do this consciously or are they just that way? Who knows, who cares. I like it.

[wasted]

They didn't used sound like The Killers. But they always change their sound to stay relevant. Which isn't a bad idea. I think they've been a rock band to most people since the 90s. Pretending they always sounded like Depeche Mode is a bit much. There's always been an 80s synth pop element to our band. They were leaders now they follow.

[Bono]

They didn't used sound like The Killers. But they always change their sound to stay relevant. Which isn't a bad idea. I think they've been a rock band to most people since the 90s. Pretending they always sounded like Depeche Mode is a bit much. There's always been an 80s synth pop element to our band. They were leaders now they follow.

They have evolved. Th Killers didn't sound like U2 either on their first album really and U2's sound has evolved since All That You Can't Leave Behind. The Killers album Battle Born is clearly influenced by U2 and has elements that you can hear on No Line on the Horizon which was released well before Battle Born. U2 is ina position now where like Facekicker said - "Unless Bono records his vocals through an organic potato and then has them played backwards while the Edge directs a greasy tramp to piss on his guitar while he wanks off Adam Clayton then it shall be dismissed on this forum as generic." - I don't know why people have this expectation of U2 to reinvent music every time they release an album. I sometimes think people just resent the fact these guys manage to stay true to themselves while at the same time incorporting a sound that keeps them relevant for the time. Odd though because if Axl Rose could do the same thing he'd be called a genius.

[wasted]

They didn't used sound like The Killers. But they always change their sound to stay relevant. Which isn't a bad idea. I think they've been a rock band to most people since the 90s. Pretending they always sounded like Depeche Mode is a bit much. There's always been an 80s synth pop element to our band. They were leaders now they follow.

They have evolved. Th Killers didn't sound like U2 either on their first album really and U2's sound has evolved since All That You Can't Leave Behind. The Killers album Battle Born is clearly influenced by U2 and has elements that you can hear on No Line on the Horizon which was released well before Battle Born. U2 is ina position now where like Facekicker said - "Unless Bono records his vocals through an organic potato and then has them played backwards while the Edge directs a greasy tramp to piss on his guitar while he wanks off Adam Clayton then it shall be dismissed on this forum as generic." - I don't know why people have this expectation of U2 to reinvent music every time they release an album. I sometimes think people just resent the fact these guys manage to stay true to themselves while at the same time incorporting a sound that keeps them relevant for the time. Odd though because if Axl Rose could do the same thing he'd be called a genius.

To me it just sounds like U2-lite. They are just making this record to fit in. They have always changed their style to fit in. Axl releases his influences 10 years later because he's making good music in spite of everything telling him not to, gets a beating for it. U2 jump on any bandwagon going, roll out some quasi spiritual platitudes on the back of the latest flavor of the month. If that's genius why did Van Gogh die before he got an iTunes deal? U2 are geniuses at selling out. They make you feel that buying is rebelling. Which color, blue, pink, orange, yellow?

[Bono]

When have U2 jumped on bandwagons? They were U2 in the 80s but what flavour fo the month did they jump on? What bandwagon did they jump on in the 90s? Sure as fuck wasn't grunge. They actually went the opposite way and created some of their best work ever. In the 0000s please do tell which bandwagon they were on? Did they go hip hop or something and try to be Kanye? What did I miss? In the 0000s they basically went back to their roots and now they put out an album that combines their work from the 80s, 90s and 00s and get shit on by people who think they sound like U2. WTF?

And to call a band like U2 sell outs for this because what? Record stores have died, nobody buys cds anymore, the music world is all about "artists" who can't really perform live, who don't care about albums and only release lame fucking singles and U2 comes along finds a way to distribute their music to half a billion people, put out a cohesive album with real lyrics and are yet again getting glowing reviews and what? They're sell outs? Because they try and find ways to remain relevent while stayying true to themselves and their fans? You do know they got paid for this album right? Does that mean they sold out or do you just not like that they let Apple give their album away? Every band gets paid to do anything.

Oh and for the record Axl gets shit on for doing NOTHING. If he'd actually take what he's influenced by and release albums he'd be much more respected by half the people on this board. Nobody bitches about Axl for trying to follow his influences they bitch that he doesn't release any fucking music. When's the last time he made good music? 2008 if you liked it. Before that? 19 90 fucking1. Axl gets criticized for doing nothing dude.

Edited September 11, 2014 by Bono

[wasted]

When have U2 jumped on bandwagons? They were U2 in the 80s but what flavour fo the month did they jump on? What bandwagon did they jump on in the 90s? Sure as fuck wasn't grunge. They actually went the opposite way and created some of their best work ever. In the 0000s please do tell which bandwagon they were on? Did they go hip hop or something and try to be Kanye? What did I miss? In the 0000s they basically went back to their roots and now they put out an album that combines their work from the 80s, 90s and 00s and get shit on by people who think they sound like U2. WTF?

And to call a band like U2 sell outs for this because what? Record stores have died, nobody buys cds anymore, the music world is all about "artists" who can't really perform live, who don't care about albums and only release lame fucking singles and U2 comes along finds a way to distribute their music to half a billion people, put out a cohesive album with real lyrics and are yet again getting glowing reviews and what? They're sell outs? Because they try and find ways to remain relevent while stayying true to themselves and their fans? You do know they got paid for this album right? Does that mean they sold out or do you just not like that they let Apple give their album away? Every band gets paid to do anything.

Oh and for the record Axl gets shit on for doing NOTHING. If he'd actually take what he's influenced by and release albums he'd be much more respected by half the people on this board. Nobody bitches about Axl for trying to follow his influences they bitch that he doesn't release any fucking music. When's the last time he made good music? 2008 if you liked it. Before that? 19 90 fucking1. Axl gets criticized for doing nothing dude.

Achtung Baby is well known to be U2 taking on the influences of UK dance rock (Stone Roses, Primal Scream) and the industrial stuff in Berlin. I watched a whole documentary about it with Bono going on about the Berlin wall.

Look I'm not saying I could do better. I'm not wanting to be as mean spirited. But when people are saying what genius artists they are when it's so glaringly obvious that's not what is happening here. Zooropa is my favorite album from them. But don't tell me they don't change style to stay relevant. And yes kind of that makes them sell outs. Just doing anything they can to stay relevant. Jump on the Killers bandwagon, do a deal with iTunes. "Sell outs" a bit strong but don't act like this is artistic genius. This is a solid rock band that's been surviving since the early 90s, exploiting trends.

I don't mind what they do, it's a bit gimmicky this time, that's all. This time round it's just more heavy handed and blunt. It's no necessary. That combined with doing a record to stay relevant again, and the point is not changing anything, not taking any risks, it's the same U2 but just done so it fits in with Coldplay or Killers or whatever that song is I hear in Carl's Jr. It's too much of a product. They have this massive platform and all they seem to do is find a way to suck even harder than before. Then Bono will turn up with a suitcase of money and start talking about some charity or political issue to promo it. What about all the worker suicides at Foxcomm making fucking iPods? Bad for business? Thought so. iTunes is built on slavery in developing countries. 6,000 techie hot shots in the US cream off the top and sign U2 to promote them while workers are jumping off the top of factory roofs cos they work 20 hour shifts to fufil the west's Christmas rush. Big deal. You scumbags. Axl just made the music he wanted to and because it wasn't delivered on everyone's schedule they set for him they shit on him. Just take another prescription pill and let Bono lull you to sleep.

Innocence is still a nice record musically, even lyrically, it's just the stuff driving it is so crass and it has no soul. It's just a bunch of lies. It's almost like the narrative of the release is more important than the music.