U2 | Songs of Innocence

[Jorge]

I don't know if it's due to the kind of people and publications that I follow on Twitter, but it feels like everybody's shitting on this album.

http://www.stereogum.com/1704542/premat ... valuation/

[McParadigm]

http://www.cultofmac.com/295084/u2-apple-event/

It's unquestionable that iTunes, and purchased music in general, will watch their role shrink significantly as time goes by. But this is an exaggerated bit of forecasting.

For a good while, iTunes was essentially THE primary way to access music online without stealing. Oh, there were other services and options...but iTunes was fairly unchallenged and represented an insane percentage of the whole. Now, streaming has reached the point of being able to deliver a quality, consistent service, and some of the digital sales pie is going to get taken away. That's all that's happening here. Keep the economic realities of the last 10 years in mind as you repeat the line about digital tracks falling for the first time this year...the first time. What a market digital music must be, eh? And feel free to not bring up that statistically insignificant drop in digital album sales. Thanks.

There will long be an audience for whom streaming is not the preferred method, or for whom issues prevent consistent service. This is especially true for some of iTunes other services...audiobooks, podcasts, etc. All that will happen next is the nature of service will change, adapting to a more niche delivery while also incorporating more streaming options.

I don't know if it's due to the kind of people and publications that I follow on Twitter, but it feels like everybody's shitting on this album.

It's seemed that way to me, as well. Too bad, since it's a pretty good record from a band who I wouldn't have expected to ever hear a good album from again.

But, again, no two brands come with more built-in cynics than U2 and Apple. Put them together, and you can probably reach zeitgeist.

[epilogue]

Ah, the difference a day or two makes.

I opened this thread when it first popped up and people seem thrilled with the new album. I wanted to post, "because it's good or because it's free?" But I thought it was a bit nasty and unfair. Why spoil everyone's good time for a dumb joke?

This is a swift backlash.

I still haven't listened to the thing. Does anyone know, will it disappear as magically as it arrived if I don't login to iTunes until after October 13 (or whatever day it gets an official hardcopy release)?

[Heathen]

Why spoil everyone's good time for a dumb joke?

You're... weird.

[McParadigm]

it's good

[epilogue]

Why spoil everyone's good time for a dumb joke?

You're... weird.

I know, right? Manners? Courtesy? On the internet?! It's my own private revolution.

[epilogue]

it's good

The Abrams gap aside, I'm gonna trust you on this, McDig'em.

[dimejinky99]

Beating up on U2 or defending them, is the most reductive thing you can do on the internet. They're an easier target than anyone, but only 'cos they put themselves in that position. No other band or artist is in a more lose-lose/cannot win situation than they, and nowhere does that hammer fall harder than here in Ireland. The only thing left for them to do is just make the best music they can at this point and hope that gets covered, rather than the hoopla about the method of its release.
And that's not happening. All i'm hearing on the radio(reading online) is about the release method and the motivation($$$$) behind it...NOT talking about the music, at all!! they get cut to pieces before that, the music doesnt even get a chance!! then they cut to an old song!

I almost feel bad for them.

I'll keep listening to this one. Want to at least give it a fair go before I jump on the bandwagon and start slating them.
If it does actually have a second act(songs of experience?) i'm all the more intrigued.

[Bammer]

I got this free download. Will probably listen to about 70% of the album one time and then forget about it.

[tommymtcom]

The eagerly anticipated new episode of U talkin' U2 to me? is up.

http://www.earwolf.com/show/u-talkin-u2-to-me/

[McParadigm]

it's good

The Abrams gap aside, I'm gonna trust you on this, McDig'em.

It's a fun listen. Inexplicably, Bono writing about himself comes across as far less self-absorbed than Bono writing about the entire world.

Actually, now that I say it that way, it probably makes sense.

[surfndestroy]

http://www.cultofmac.com/295084/u2-apple-event/

It's unquestionable that iTunes, and purchased music in general, will watch their role shrink significantly as time goes by. But this is an exaggerated bit of forecasting.

For a good while, iTunes was essentially THE primary way to access music online without stealing. Oh, there were other services and options...but iTunes was fairly unchallenged and represented an insane percentage of the whole. Now, streaming has reached the point of being able to deliver a quality, consistent service, and some of the digital sales pie is going to get taken away. That's all that's happening here. Keep the economic realities of the last 10 years in mind as you repeat the line about digital tracks falling for the first time this year...the first time. What a market digital music must be, eh? And feel free to not bring up that statistically insignificant drop in digital album sales. Thanks.

There will long be an audience for whom streaming is not the preferred method, or for whom issues prevent consistent service. This is especially true for some of iTunes other services...audiobooks, podcasts, etc. All that will happen next is the nature of service will change, adapting to a more niche delivery while also incorporating more streaming options.

I agree. When the time comes I'm sure Apple will be able to leverage iTunes into a streaming service. Apple has never been big on creating new markets and being loss leaders for years. They tend to innovate, re-design and slowly conquer markets that others spent the time and money establishing. The ipod wasn't the first mp3 player but it quickly ruled the market. When iTunes moves to a streaming music service, I have no doubt it will do the same.

The last five songs on the U2 album are all worthy of a listen or two. They're better than anything I expected at this point in their career. I kind of feel that the distribution method of Song of Innocence is really just a form of marketing for the tour tour and the eventual album you'll have to pay for, Songs of Experience. So much of the complaints I see about the album and distribution method have nothing to do with the album or dstribution method. Just seems like jaded internet blather.

[Heathen]

Beating up on U2 or defending them, is the most reductive thing you can do on the internet. They're an easier target than anyone, but only 'cos they put themselves in that position. No other band or artist is in a more lose-lose/cannot win situation than they, and nowhere does that hammer fall harder than here in Ireland. The only thing left for them to do is just make the best music they can at this point and hope that gets covered, rather than the hoopla about the method of its release.
And that's not happening. All i'm hearing on the radio(reading online) is about the release method and the motivation($$$$) behind it...NOT talking about the music, at all!! they get cut to pieces before that, the music doesnt even get a chance!! then they cut to an old song!

I almost feel bad for them.

I'll keep listening to this one. Want to at least give it a fair go before I jump on the bandwagon and start slating them.
If it does actually have a second act(songs of experience?) i'm all the more intrigued.

There's no reason to feel bad for them. I'm sure they knew exactly what they were going into and that this never was about the music or about U2, and that it was all about Apple.

[lowlight79]

The eagerly anticipated new episode of U talkin' U2 to me? is up.

http://www.earwolf.com/show/u-talkin-u2-to-me/

yes!

[Norah]

Spotify Premium streams at 320 kbps (Ogg Vorbis).

Yeah but we were comparing free options.

[BurtReynolds]

Giving an entire album away in the Spotify/youtube era is meaningless. Giving something with no value away for free isn't that impressive anymore, especially when that stunt has already been tried.

It's not meaningless if you care about sound quality. I'd take lossy itunes files over spotify/youtube streams any day.

I was excluding the three people who care about that, but they're probably buying the vinyl anyway.

[dimejinky99]

Beating up on U2 or defending them, is the most reductive thing you can do on the internet. They're an easier target than anyone, but only 'cos they put themselves in that position. No other band or artist is in a more lose-lose/cannot win situation than they, and nowhere does that hammer fall harder than here in Ireland. The only thing left for them to do is just make the best music they can at this point and hope that gets covered, rather than the hoopla about the method of its release.
And that's not happening. All i'm hearing on the radio(reading online) is about the release method and the motivation($$$$) behind it...NOT talking about the music, at all!! they get cut to pieces before that, the music doesnt even get a chance!! then they cut to an old song!

I almost feel bad for them.

I'll keep listening to this one. Want to at least give it a fair go before I jump on the bandwagon and start slating them.
If it does actually have a second act(songs of experience?) i'm all the more intrigued.

There's no reason to feel bad for them. I'm sure they knew exactly what they were going into and that this never was about the music or about U2, and that it was all about Apple.

Apples day in the sun is probably coming to an end anyways. No doubt some company is looming on the horizon about to unseat them.
Tie ins usually mean the end or close to it, don't they?

[BurtReynolds]

I'm sure some people will use Jobs' death as an excuse to jump off the bandwagon, even though it's the same company it was before. The media can't pass up such a narrative.

[epilogue]

Sure. But the stalled innovation must surely be part of that narrative.

[McParadigm]

So a music record came out as part of this, I guess.