Published on Nov 23, 2004
I am not one who subscribes to the “cult of U2” and thinks
they’re bigger than Jesus, Allah, Buddha and Donald Trump combined.
Yes, I think they’ve made some great music in their 20-plus year
career, and they’ve earned some accolades they most definitely
deserve. But I don’t sit around and worship
The Joshua Tree as if it’s one of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Hell, I have yet to listen to, much less buy, U2’s last studio
effort
All That You Can Leave Behind.
In a sense, this works to my advantage when approaching U2’s
11th studio disc,
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. I enter this one with zero
preconceived notions, zero expectations, and – believe it or not –
zero bias. Diehard fans may have trouble treating this one as its
own creature – and I can’t say I would do any different if I were
in their shoes.
But after spending a good chunk of the weekend listening to this
disc online (legally, mind you – U2 did the smart thing and
streamed the whole disc a week prior to its release), I came away
thinking that Bono and crew had made a very enjoyable disc, though
it does seem to have a lack of one thing. That thing is permanence
– and that may not be a bad thing in the long run.
The first single (and lead-off track) “Vertigo” is an okay start
to the show, but it dares to hint back to the days of
Pop and “Discotheque,” a period of time that both U2 and
their fans desparately want to forget. Make no mistake, it’s a
catchy song, but after repeated listens (and I’m not talking about
all the commercials for Apple’s iPod), it’s one that doesn’t have a
lot of staying power. “Miracle Drug” is the first song that
suggests that Bono and crew are entering some sort of mid-life
phase, declaring “I’m through with romantic love / I’d give it up
for a miracle drug” but seems to be looking for a deeper connection
into someone’s psyche. This isn’t to say that U2 can’t come up with
some cornball lyrics (example: “Freedom has a scent / like the top
of a newborn baby’s head.”)
What is striking about
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb is that U2 seems to do a
two-step occasionally on this disc. On one side, they’ll make a
solid musical statement that does tend to harken back to their
“glory” days, such as on “Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own,”
only to slide into a bit of mediocrity the very next track (in this
case, with “Love And Peace Or Else”. It almost seems at times that
the band is searching for a niche they can call their own without
seeming overblown or pretentious.
Fortunately for the band, they do seem to find that magical
mixture. It starts to develop on “City Of Blinding Lights,” a track
which does hold out some promise but falls a little flat in the
end, but then leads into a solid one-two punch of “All Because Of
You” and “A Man And A Woman”, two songs which equally hold promise
to be killer follow-up singles. On one hand, “All Because Of You”
is a powerful rocker which is some of the best U2 in this vein I’ve
heard since “Mysterious Ways”. On the other, “A Man And A Woman”
carries a surprisingly powerful payload despite featuring a more
laid-back sound – something I do wish the band had utilized more on
this particular disc.
Regrettably, U2 can’t keep that momentum going; “Crumbs From
Your Table” is a step backward, lacking any real direction or focus
musically. (I do, however, like the guitar work from The Edge
coming out of the choruses – simple, yet powerful, something he’s
done his whole career.) That focus is re-discovered one song later
with “One Step Closer,” a more gentle and introspective number
which again calls to mind some of the more quiet moments of albums
like
Achtung Baby or
Zooropa, and even has hints of “The Unforgettable Fire” to
the structure. Yet this one is pleasing without sounding like a
copy of any previous song (and, to the zealots who take any
possible negative comment about U2 as blasphemy, I’m not saying
they copied any song of theirs). That mood is continued with
“Original Of The Species,” a track which almost has a Dusty
Springfield-type vibe at times – something I actually thought fit
the band well in this outing. The more I listen to this track, the
more I believe it is the best on the album.
The closing number, “Yahweh,” seems to be the strongest evidence
of the link between the music and the death of Bono’s father a few
years back; the track almost seems like it’s commending his father
piece by piece – strengths and weaknesses – to God while looking at
life ahead of him. If only it had a little more of a punch to it –
either in terms of anger or sadness – but it does tend to lose some
focus in the chorus (though the question, “Why the dark before the
dawn?” does express a hint of some anger).
In the end,
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb is a disc which demands to
be seen on its own strengths and weaknesses, refusing any expected
links to previous successes like
The Joshua Tree. This particular disc is certain to both
please and confound long-time fans of the band, though it’s by no
means a dive off the deep end like
Pop was. If anything, this focuses on a band who recognizes
they’re growing older, but still have something to say musically.
In that regard, they have succeeded.