Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
- dimejinky99
- what on earth am I talking about
- Posts: 39789
- Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 12:35 am
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
I didn’t appreciate songs of innocence being forced into my phone without my consent. Ironic title in that album.
I’ve never experienced songs on experience audibly or otherwise.
Deliciously ironic.
The SoI tour was amazing though. Best/ cleverest spectacle / set up since Zoo tv.
I’ve never experienced songs on experience audibly or otherwise.
Deliciously ironic.
The SoI tour was amazing though. Best/ cleverest spectacle / set up since Zoo tv.
Calibrate your enthusiasm
- Kevin Davis
- tl;dr
- Posts: 9312
- Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 6:06 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
My rankings of the post-Pop albums:
No Line on the Horizon (A)
Songs of Innocence (A-)
All That You Can't Leave Behind (B)
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (B-)
Songs of Experience (C-)
I think "No Line" is one of their best albums bar none, not as sonically bold as the "Achtung"-"Zooropa"-"Pop" run (their clear creative peak, in my opinion), but structurally and compositionally more inventive than anything else in this standard U2 template, certainly moreso than anything else this century.
"Songs of Innocence" is a very strong album that suffers for leading with its weakest track. With a little replacing and resequencing it's a fantastic listen.
"All That You Can't Leave Behind" and "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" are average albums with some great highlights. "Songs of Experience" is a weak album with fewer highlights.
Overall if you like U2 it's worth listening to these albums. Perhaps only "Experience" fails to justify its existence; everything else adds at least a few essential tracks to the canon.
No Line on the Horizon (A)
Songs of Innocence (A-)
All That You Can't Leave Behind (B)
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (B-)
Songs of Experience (C-)
I think "No Line" is one of their best albums bar none, not as sonically bold as the "Achtung"-"Zooropa"-"Pop" run (their clear creative peak, in my opinion), but structurally and compositionally more inventive than anything else in this standard U2 template, certainly moreso than anything else this century.
"Songs of Innocence" is a very strong album that suffers for leading with its weakest track. With a little replacing and resequencing it's a fantastic listen.
"All That You Can't Leave Behind" and "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" are average albums with some great highlights. "Songs of Experience" is a weak album with fewer highlights.
Overall if you like U2 it's worth listening to these albums. Perhaps only "Experience" fails to justify its existence; everything else adds at least a few essential tracks to the canon.
-
opsopcopolis
- A Return To Form
- Posts: 105
- Joined: Sat February 09, 2013 5:02 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Side 2 of SoI is fantastic. Such well written stuff all around. Very ethereal in a way U2 doesn't write much anymore. Same goes for side 2 of No Line. Cedars of Lebanon and all that...LetMeSleep wrote:Check out Side Two of Songs of Innocence. Start with Volcano or Raised By Wolves
- LoathedVermin72
- The Master
- Posts: 33839
- Joined: Sun May 25, 2014 9:32 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Downloaded the Achtung Baby, Zooropa, and Pop run last night, and my early impressions are that this is the era of U2 I will respond to the most.
- tragabigzanda
- Production Police
- Posts: 51634
- Joined: Tue September 24, 2013 5:56 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Last edited by tragabigzanda on Mon January 12, 2026 4:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- VinylGuy
- jeeeesus relax already
- Posts: 42772
- Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 5:10 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Its by a wide margin my favorite era.
Bono's voice, the production, The Edge riffs, electronica, the darkness, the sexiness of all...amazing era of this band.
Their clearly peaked here.
Even songs like "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" are among their best work.
Bono's voice, the production, The Edge riffs, electronica, the darkness, the sexiness of all...amazing era of this band.
Their clearly peaked here.
Even songs like "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" are among their best work.
BONE FUCKIN´ TOMAHAWK.
- tragabigzanda
- Production Police
- Posts: 51634
- Joined: Tue September 24, 2013 5:56 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Last edited by tragabigzanda on Mon January 12, 2026 4:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- VinylGuy
- jeeeesus relax already
- Posts: 42772
- Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 5:10 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
It has my favorite U2 songs from all time " Stay". Their masterpiece.
BONE FUCKIN´ TOMAHAWK.
- tragabigzanda
- Production Police
- Posts: 51634
- Joined: Tue September 24, 2013 5:56 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Last edited by tragabigzanda on Mon January 12, 2026 4:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- dimejinky99
- what on earth am I talking about
- Posts: 39789
- Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 12:35 am
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
LoathedVermin72 wrote:Downloaded the Achtung Baby, Zooropa, and Pop run last night, and my early impressions are that this is the era of U2 I will respond to the most.
You should look up the making of Achtung baby doco, From the sky down.
It’s fantastic.
Calibrate your enthusiasm
- dimejinky99
- what on earth am I talking about
- Posts: 39789
- Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 12:35 am
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
tragabigzanda wrote:Yeah it’s a top-5 U2 song for meVinylGuy wrote:It has my favorite U2 songs from all time " Stay". Their masterpiece.
Stay is easily top 5. It has no right being that good and it’s an outlier and almost contradicts their style at all points up to that. They tried to redo it several times afterwards and failed.
Stay is a simple beautiful masterpiece
Calibrate your enthusiasm
- LetMeSleep
- Posting (live)
- Posts: 17987
- Joined: Wed February 06, 2013 2:47 am
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/
- Location: Scooby Doo
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Very true guys. It's 2 or 3 for me.
Exit
Stay
UltraViolet
Exit
Stay
UltraViolet
- VinylGuy
- jeeeesus relax already
- Posts: 42772
- Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 5:10 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
I hate the fact that they dont play it live.dimejinky99 wrote:tragabigzanda wrote:Yeah it’s a top-5 U2 song for meVinylGuy wrote:It has my favorite U2 songs from all time " Stay". Their masterpiece.
Stay is easily top 5. It has no right being that good and it’s an outlier and almost contradicts their style at all points up to that. They tried to redo it several times afterwards and failed.
Stay is a simple beautiful masterpiece
BONE FUCKIN´ TOMAHAWK.
- LetMeSleep
- Posting (live)
- Posts: 17987
- Joined: Wed February 06, 2013 2:47 am
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/
- Location: Scooby Doo
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
It wouldn't translate to the back row.VinylGuy wrote:I hate the fact that they dont play it live.dimejinky99 wrote:tragabigzanda wrote:Yeah it’s a top-5 U2 song for meVinylGuy wrote:It has my favorite U2 songs from all time " Stay". Their masterpiece.
Stay is easily top 5. It has no right being that good and it’s an outlier and almost contradicts their style at all points up to that. They tried to redo it several times afterwards and failed.
Stay is a simple beautiful masterpiece
- dimejinky99
- what on earth am I talking about
- Posts: 39789
- Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 12:35 am
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Saw them play it acoustic at Slane but it was just edge and bono not the full band
Calibrate your enthusiasm
- PHATJ
- 10Club Complaint Department
- Posts: 15145
- Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 2:02 am
- Twitter: Tweet this *points to your cans*
- Location: Gigatown
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
I like Stay but I have never loved it to that length or put it on such a high pedestal. It might be in my U2 top 40, but I digress. The Achtung-Zooropa-Pop run of albums and shows is about as good as it gets. That era of U2 is the reason I haves loved the band for so long and have spent outrageous amounts of money to see them in concert several times. U2 is an experience unique to itself. An experience with significant substance thanks to those middle albums.dimejinky99 wrote:tragabigzanda wrote:Yeah it’s a top-5 U2 song for meVinylGuy wrote:It has my favorite U2 songs from all time " Stay". Their masterpiece.
Stay is easily top 5. It has no right being that good and it’s an outlier and almost contradicts their style at all points up to that. They tried to redo it several times afterwards and failed.
Stay is a simple beautiful masterpiece
- dimejinky99
- what on earth am I talking about
- Posts: 39789
- Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 12:35 am
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
I will definitely be attending the inevitable Achtung/Zoo tv 30th anniversary tour
Calibrate your enthusiasm
- Jorge
- NYUCK NYUCK NYUCK
- Posts: 36493
- Joined: Tue January 01, 2013 3:35 pm
- Location: Buenos Aires
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
"Stay" is a good song but the lyrics are real silly
Anders wrote:I do not have a «neoliberal assessment of geopolitics», so please stop writing that I do.
- tragabigzanda
- Production Police
- Posts: 51634
- Joined: Tue September 24, 2013 5:56 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Last edited by tragabigzanda on Mon January 12, 2026 4:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- tragabigzanda
- Production Police
- Posts: 51634
- Joined: Tue September 24, 2013 5:56 pm
Re: Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread
Last edited by tragabigzanda on Mon January 12, 2026 4:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.