irish.lemon

once again, many thanks to getmusic in australia for “unintentionally” leaking the new U2 album.  i’ll tell you all right now, for those of you that only marginally like or casually listen to U2, you’re likely not going to enjoy “no line on the horizon” very much.  for the U2 purists, especially those like myself who find the best era to be early 90s U2, this album is truly a gem…

no line on the horizon-

immediately, tonally, this song echoes the airiness best defined by zooropa.  the bass line retains a pedal quality and drums are fairly subdued.  bono’s vocals are hard to distinguish; not quite able to put my finger on it, but the overexaggeration is unmistakably similar to much of what we’ve heard in the joshua tree.  edge brings us back to achtung baby with his incredibly simple riffs and when we reach the bridge, we’re thrown into a wail similar to “with or without you” crossed with that from “electrical storm”.  a strange track that i can’t quite place, let alone discern how i feel about it.  it’s very constant and flowing, but not to much of a crescendo like we’re used to, just steady and galloping,

magnificent-

undoubtedly the BEST song on the album.  all you hear in the first few seconds are a pounding bass drum and powerchord 10 times over, slowly layering a bassline, synthesizers, and a snare that brings the whole thing to a head in a burst of melodic delay that makes you feel like you’re running while standing still.  after the intro, we hear a clap track and congas…yes!  congas!  definitely influenced by the riad in morocco.  the song persists between lulls in the verses, climbing and clawing, running away ahead of you with the words of “only love could leave such a scar”.  likely a song devoted to god, (“my first cry, it was a joyful noise”) and the difficulties of understanding the ways of the world therein; thankfully, U2’s lyrics always leave open ends and interpretation.  the edge’s solo near the end is so incredibly similar to those on achtung baby, and again, i think that’s just the effect of morocco on the band’s creative dynamic.

moment of surrender-

very slow to start, almost dreamy and again, similar to the synthesized ambient music associated with achtung baby and zooropa.  it takes on a new personality when adam’s bass and a clap track come in to mirror the pedal of the keyboard.  bono’s vocals are incredibly harsh when they arrive (“i tied myself with wire to let the horses run free/playing with fire ’til the fire played with me”) both in content and in delivery.  relatively distinguishable about a relationship gone horribly wrong, leaving an open wound an a lament to either the other person as well as god…again, god theme, but that’s U2.  the song is a reminder of the inner struggle we all go through at some point and try like hell to find our way back, as futile as the fight may seem.  incredibly heavy song, and chillingly suited for the times most of us are having – in the US at least.

unknown caller-

my least favorite song on the album, reminding me strangely of pink floyd mixed with seargent pepper – there’s french horns…yes, you heard me – however, innovative in it’s own right.  the chorus is a bit stiff and incredibly awkward chanting praises to put yourself out there and respect yourself.  the combination of organs, synthesizers, french horns, and U2 make for an odd duck.  but then again, this entire album is an odd duck.

i’ll go crazy if i don’t go crazy tonight-

quite possibly the sweetest song on the album.  another of those semi-psychotic stalkerish themes meshed with social awareness and begging for change.  the lyrics literally pull you in every direction, and i think that’s exactly what it was going for.  definitely one for further analysis of it’s ambiguity.  the edge’s use of pinging delay and melodic arpeggios are familiar from “how to dismantle an atomic bomb” and they suit the song well.

get on your boots-

i know my initial assertions of this song were incredibly negative, but take away the somewhat ridiculous 60s groove and “candy floss/ice cream” and you have an incredibly anxious and socially concerned song.  once again, definitely one to be analyzed further.  it’s like unwillingly looking into a mirror and how everything fits in the world; what comes first and will we all make it out alive.  “let me in the sound” is most definitely a reference to drowning, and take that as you will…the bridge is the ballsiest part of the song and echoes the theme more than the rest of the track.  listen to it three times…once to hate it, twice to tolerate it, thrice to interpret it.  you’ll be surprised.

stand up comedy-

my favorite song on the album…funky as hell and bono’s begging you to stand up is infectious.  i can see this being incredible live.  in all my years, i’ve never heard U2 bring the funk and they’ve done it here.  edge definitely echoes tomo morello and you’ll hear some nuances similar to rage against the machine.  best verse overall, “i could stand up for hope, faith, love, and while i’m getting over certainty, stop helping god cross the road like a little old lady/come on people, stand up for your love”.  more religious allusion, but it works incredibly well.  to put it simply, this song kicks ass.

white as snow-

the album takes on a more somber and – for lack of a better word – hopeless turn at this song.  hauntingly crafted and beautiful, it’s another reflection (notice a trend) and reminds me of this album’s version of “sometimes you can’t make it on your own” but a bit more elusive.  “love” is a central theme, and it flows like a prayer.  the french horns show up again.  it starts to take on a quality similar to “love is blindness”.  incredibly strange and unnerving.  provides an awkward shift to the album, but the theme fits.

FEZ – being born- 

heavily echoing zooropa in the beginning, it will bring back fond, but suspicious memories of the zootv tour when bono was switching through all the different tv stations.  the band bursts in with an equally paranoid and anxious entrance with the edge playing single notes, chiming with his signature delay, building to bono literally screaming his guts out like a dying man.  even when the wails ease into words, they’re frantic and terrified.  anyone that has heard the sountrack for “million dollar hotel” will find a lot of similarities.  absolutely brilliant, and in need of further investigation.  this one’s relatively unique while maintaining qualities from both the 80s and 90s.

breathe-

another awkward one, bono seems to be channeling both dylan and lennon simultaneously while edge is hard up on the ramones without the speed.  very assertive, but i lost interest when bono refers to a “cockatoo”…i just laughed.  however, socially aware and religiously-based, aside from the opening verse, it’s an effective song in bringing out a rebellious attitude from the listener.  it has it’s charm, and i’m still in search of it…

cedars of lebanon-

incredibly heart-wrenching and if this song doesn’t tear you down before building you back up, then you have no human emotion.  i can’t fully review this one for the simple fact that it echoes different emotions and experiences for each person.  i don’t think this will ever be a big hit, but it’s another one of those hidden treasures in U2’s catalog that will be cherished, though reverently, for the true fans…

so there it is, i’ll post a list of songs to listen to beforehand as a guide for what i hear being taken from old stuff and incorporated in a new way…this one’s a winner, and definitely worth the wait, although 5 years was a bit much