Discography: U2 - Rock Period
All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000)
I still remember a friend calling me to tell about "Beautiful Day" the day it came out. It was back in the Napster era and I got right online to check it out. I must've played five times in a row at least. It was the best rock song I'd heard in years and it came from a band that had moved ever further away from traditional rock music over the preceeding decade. What is so amazing about All That You Can't Leave Behind is that it's a straightforward rock album yet still sounds like completely like U2. I think this, perhaps more than all the record sales and millions of fans, shows their impact on rock music. After 20 years, they make a consciously mainstream album and it sounds like them, because their influence on rock has been so pervasive. "Beautiful Day" is the one outstanding song in a sea of very, very good material. The only fault with the album is that it celebrates all that they've done, but doesn't break new ground as they'd done so often before. I also see All That You Can't Leave Behind similar to how I see REM's Monster. Like REM, U2's music became less rock oriented and I think they wanted an album where they could go on tour and just play the songs without trying to create a club effect.
Rating: 8/10
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (2004)
I don't know that there's much to say about this one that I didn't already say above. Even with "Vertigo" showing up in a commercial, I don't grow tired of it. The album is full of solid songs that once again show U2's impact on the rock world by being both mainstream and distinctly U2 at the same time. While I've enjoyed the last two albums, I'm curious to see if U2 will reinvent themselves yet again and take us on another ride into the future of rock and roll.
Rating: 8/10
I still remember a friend calling me to tell about "Beautiful Day" the day it came out. It was back in the Napster era and I got right online to check it out. I must've played five times in a row at least. It was the best rock song I'd heard in years and it came from a band that had moved ever further away from traditional rock music over the preceeding decade. What is so amazing about All That You Can't Leave Behind is that it's a straightforward rock album yet still sounds like completely like U2. I think this, perhaps more than all the record sales and millions of fans, shows their impact on rock music. After 20 years, they make a consciously mainstream album and it sounds like them, because their influence on rock has been so pervasive. "Beautiful Day" is the one outstanding song in a sea of very, very good material. The only fault with the album is that it celebrates all that they've done, but doesn't break new ground as they'd done so often before. I also see All That You Can't Leave Behind similar to how I see REM's Monster. Like REM, U2's music became less rock oriented and I think they wanted an album where they could go on tour and just play the songs without trying to create a club effect.
Rating: 8/10
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (2004)
I don't know that there's much to say about this one that I didn't already say above. Even with "Vertigo" showing up in a commercial, I don't grow tired of it. The album is full of solid songs that once again show U2's impact on the rock world by being both mainstream and distinctly U2 at the same time. While I've enjoyed the last two albums, I'm curious to see if U2 will reinvent themselves yet again and take us on another ride into the future of rock and roll.
Rating: 8/10
Labels: discography, rock
posted by bob_vinyl at 10:15 AM
3 Comments:
I know "Vertigo" has gotten on a lot of peoples nerves, maybe because it was overplayed in the commercial or something else, but all I know is that I really love the song and like you haven't grown tired of it.
And like The Beatles, they've seen fit to grow with the times and reinvent themselves, as you've pointed out. My feeling is that another rock album is on the way since the previous two have restored U2 in the eyes of the public at large, but you never know. I like their savviness and courage to change.
Jeff - It seems like there are just some songs that I never tire of no matter how many times I hear them. U2 has a lot of songs that fit into that group.
Ray - I think their growth over the years is amazing. The Beatles grew over a period of less than ten years (depending on when you count from) and the U2 have stuck it out almost three times as long and still remained vital. I don't know that anyone has done as much for so long.
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