U2 - How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
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Free Music Notes for How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
Free Music Review: The curse of putting out diverse music of high quality.
Hit: 5 Stars
I never write reviews. I think they're useless. People browse through reviews until they find the opinion they're looking for. Needless to say, that opinion is exactly the one that matches their own. So why am I writing a review? Mainly, not to express my opinion, although I will in the end, but to put an end (yes, I'm this presumptuous) to some blatantly false affirmations that some people might have taken for facts.
The following is a list of stupid things/concepts I have come across while reading several reviews of U2's latest album from different sources:
- U2 need to retire.
This is one of the funniest. Which are the requirements for retirement? Maybe I'm not familiar with them, but I think that if you're currently one of the 30 best bands in the world (I've chosen a deliberately high number) when it comes down to put out new music, calling it quits seem a little bit out of place.
- U2 fans are mindless zombies.
It's been suggested that U2 fans would love everything from the band, even if it's crap. That they have no criterium and they're nothing but pathetic Bono worshippers. Some people think that U2 fans can't recognize quality. If somebody likes a song by U2 from the last four albums, it's not because the song may be good by itself, but because the band has tricked them into thinking it...
Good point. Very good point. :p
All I have to say is that "All That You Can't Leave Behind" was a disappointment, for me, and I like this album better.
- U2 are fakers.
These days must be spiritual days. It's the only explanation I can come up with after seeing how many people is demanding Bono to lead an spartan life just because he happens to be concerned about the main social problems in the planet. "Mild" positions are not allowed: "live under a bridge or shut up" is the essence of what they don't like about Bono. Well, at least, he's trying, you morons.
- U2 are musicians, not politicians, so blah blah...
Ok, to the guys who think like this: if I ever see your house in flames, I won't do anything, because I'm not a fireman.
- U2 play it safe and live on their past.
For a band who has experimented so much and so successfully along the time, some respect is due. They could even release two more standard albums and this criticism would be unfair. And by the way, U2's two latest albums mark the beginning of a new sonic era, where songs are more important than sound.
And now, my opinion about the record (if anybody cares):
The most striking thing is that is one of the least accesible by U2. If you've listened to Vertigo (yes, you have) you will be wondering what the hell am I saying, but it's true. Every song takes more listens than usual. Even Vertigo, that seems a little bit silly and inoffensive at first, ends up revealing itself like a powerful rocker. Other tunes go through similar stages: "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" goes from formulaic to achingly beautiful, "All Because Of You" goes from filler to stomping rocker, "Crumbs From Your Table" goes from self-ripoff to new guitar ground exploration and "Yahweh" goes from a song with a rough chorus to a classic.
About the sound, it could be described as 35% Achtung Baby, 25% All That You Can't Leave Behind, 20% The Unforgettable Fire and 20% something new. Achtung Baby contributes mood and guitars, ATYCLB contributes his radio-friendly generic production, The Unforgettable Fire contributes some abstract sounds, and the new things, you'll have to find out for yourself.
I think the album has no weak moments. Maybe "Love And Peace Or Else". But you know how rewarding is a weak moment in a U2 record.
The only complaints are two: first, the production, that devoids the album of some personality, the result is not as disappointing as with ATYCLB, but it still shows; second, Bono's voice, it's undeniable that it's getting raspier than ever. Remember that clear singing in 'Gloria'? Forget it, it's gone forever.
Song by song:
- Vertigo. (9,5). Be patient. It matters more than you think. I still haven't get tired of it. Oddly enough, it keeps growing on me. I think it should last longer, and that's a good sign. The riff is killer. Period.
- Miracle Drug (9,75). One of the gems. Except for the production, this one could have been in "Achtung Baby". The bit before the last chorus is, simply put, one of the best things U2 have ever written.
- Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own. (9,25). Another "Achtung Baby" reminiscent song. As calculated as heartfelt. It sticks with you, and includes a pair of lovely lines who will drive people crazy when performe live.
- Love And Peace Or Else. (7,75). Catchier than you may think at first listens, but it's lacking something I can't tell. Maybe a more defined chorus would have helped. It sounds like the missing link between 'Rattle And Hum' and 'Achtung Baby'.
- City Of Blinding Lights. (9). One of those songs you like too much at the first listen, suspecting it will wear thin soon. Although it doesn't happen, there's nothing like the first times with this one.
- All Because Of You. (8,75). One of the most rocking U2 songs ever. The fact that is a song by U2 is misleading. Listen to it carefully: this tune rocks more than 10 nu-metal bands put together. This is rock.
- A Man And A Woman. (9,5). It sounds like nothing U2 has written. It's not groundbreaking, but it's difficult to find an U2 song that relates to this. It's tender, well constructed, well sung and the verse is so good that is almost a chorus.
- Crumbs From Your Table. (8,75). Another "hard to love" song. At first listens it sounds like a B-Side, until you start noticing the guitar work beneath. It's a little bit acid. Great midtempo. A grower.
- One Step Closer (8). This feels like a "Zooropa" song. Although the chorus is very simple, the verse is very beautiful. Quiet in a very good way.
- Original Of The Species (9). Depending on the day, this song is the best in the album or the weakest. It's another "new ground" song. It grows, and grows, and grows, and grows. Everytime you think you've reached the chorus, you're wrong. I think I would have rated this song 10 if certain moments would have been cut. Could've been the best.
- Yahweh (9,75). Gorgeous, no matter what people say. It makes you love life. I'm an atheist, but after listening to this I feel like praying. It has a perfect closing quality, the one that makes you feel like playing the CD again. By the time Bono sings the "oh oh oh" near the end, the album comes full circle and you feel you haven't had enough. The chorus might sound annoying the first times. Be patient.
To sum it all up: U2 is a band that has gone through so many different eras that it's gathered an audience so big and diverse that each time is more difficult to keep it satisfied as a whole. One reviewer pointed the fact that this album, after hundreds of reviews, positive and negative, was the one with this web's lowest rate of the band, and that it was a clear indication of what to expect. Well, I think that it's an indication about the fact that U2's audience keeps growing and growing. And I haven't even talked about how cool is to hate U2 nowadays.
The only thing I can say is that I'm a critic U2 fan, and I recommend this album a lot.
Free Music Review: U2 confronts the Great Divide
Hit: 5 Stars
Good Lord! Look at all these bad reviews. Look at all the good reviews placed here to combat the bad reviews! What is it between these two groups? Good Heavens! Oh no. Could it be? Could it be U2 is at last confronting the Great Divide, the Great Generational Divide?
Some of these bad reviews, many of them seem written by honest to god well intentioned music loving punks! That isn't meant in a bad way at all. U2 started out as a bunch of well intentioned music loving punks. They started out by wanting to cut through the pretense and artifice of 70's era corporate rock. Now they are the very embodiment of that beast, and a generation with the very same values as this band are starting to reject them.
Reading these reviews it looks as though there is a mini drama being played out here between people who are trying to fight the good fight against a corporate rock act, and other people who are trying to fight the good fight to save the last of the great bands that still has some control of it's destiny and *isn't* a corporate act. As Bono himself once observed giving the keynote speech at a U of Penn graduation "Sometimes the best way to serve an age is to Betray it." So, three cheers to those fighting the good fight against U2... only WHY pick on U2?
What about Joss Stone. Ok voice. Attractive... but? Come on... if she were not attractive? What would there be to listen to? An "Ok" voice? You know how many discs are out there that you've probably skipped through and forgotten because of "Ok" voices?
Corporate rock is stuff that couldn't or wouldn't have survived without a marketing department.
*Sigh* Trust me gang... that ain't U2. U2 have been at this since they were in their teens. They toured their buts off all across America for YEARS before they had any kind of hit in the USA. Heard of "The Joshua tree?" They had 4 albums and a live disc before that. They worked their butts off to build an audience with their talent and energy. Did they play their cards right in the business world too?
Sure.
Guess what, so did the Beatles.
Would U2 have mattered and found an audience withOUT that business world? In a heart beat. They were new and different 25 years ago before anyone had started copying their style to make beer commercials. There was a time when no one in the world sounded like U2, and that's the reason you've heard about them this many years later.
Yes there is corporate rock. Yes U2 is on top of the music business, and yes they are past their prime (sorry fans)... but come ON! YOU will pass your prime too someday. We all do. People cross the Great Divide, and become older. What makes this disc worth defending is that they are still out there doing it, and they are still on the road. Ok... fine, as one reviewer has pointed out there are better bands out there such as Pearl Jam. True... and besides Pearl Jam? Green Day?
Yeah "Ok" band... but they aren't going to be able to keep their foot in the corporate door to prevent it from getting slammed shut on rock. Oh... sad sad thing young ones. No one had ever heard of Green Day until Kurt Cobain killed himself and central casting over at corporate needed to hire another scruffy melodic punk band to keep cashing in. Oh sad irony. Sure Green Day is a band... but they didn't make it on to TV without a major dab of corporate Vaseline.
They didn't fight there way up or pay their dues, they were thrown into a spotlight.
Sorry folks. If you are trying to fight the good fight to keep rock alive don't choose Green Day to have your back in a street fight. Pick a band that grew up with the Stones in their prime, that collected New York Punk records the way Jagger& Richards listened to old Chess Blues cuts. Pick a band that know what they are fighting for, and who know what Rock can be if it can stay alive until another generation finds some part of it that hasn't been plastic wrapped. Is U2 in plastic wrap now?
Maybe... but they are keeping alive the idea that Rock shows can happen in arenas. Pearl Jam can do that. Radiohead don't want to. Coldplay were only charming when they reminded people of the young U2. And the rest?
The Killers? Franz Ferdinand?
Maybe someday, after they have toured their butts off, and released their first four albums and a live disc. But until they get there, someone has to keep the lights on. Someone has to keep the idea of rock alive in a world of Britney.
Attacking this band for being corporate is like smashing a greenhouse for rare trees because it's not part of the forest. These guys are keeping the lights on for rock. They have their foot in the door, and they are waiting for you, they are begging for you punks to get yer stuff together in time so you can join them and push that door open. THEN you can leave them behind, and they will be cheering you on as you go. Maybe this album is a placeholder, but what a place worth holding!
If you chop U2 down... do you think that means that corporate music will be dead?
Prop them up so that other acts will be able to stand even higher on their shoulders. Different things happen when people cross the Great Generational Divide. Some people get cynical, and try to grab as much as they can for themselves. Some think about what they will leave behind, and try to make things better for those that will follow.
Rock isn't five bands in a basement. Its five *busses* full of fans going from your town to a concert in another. It's not about corporations, it's about populations, it's about meeting each other, and it's about things way bigger than the room you listen in or the headphones you have. It's about letting people know it's ok to get together... and maybe miss a few days... or weeks of work.
That's rock.
If you get to see it, you'll have these guys to thank for holding the door open before it could be closed.
The Generational Divide is just the crack open of the door between those who have, and those who are on the outside. Fighting the good fight against corporate rock? And just how many people has corporate rock killed? There are bigger fights. There are bigger pictures. U2 isn't any kind of enemy. They are trying to stay large enough so that the enemy can't shut big music down. Young punks want to fight, but they haven't been around long enough to know WHO to fight. U2? These guys aren't sell outs. Stop throwing stones at them. You are on the same side.
Free Music Review: Dismantling Expectations
Hit: 5 Stars
Reading these reviews yields interesting results. It looks as though a lot of people here aren't really reviewing this disc. Instead they are locked in a very heated and passionate debate over U2, and whether they have, or haven't "sold out".
There are a lot of one star reviews here, which is just silly. At the end of the day, this is a disc performed and produced by a group of musicians who have played together their entire adult lives. Think about it, unless they were recording garage rock in an actual garage with a car running, and damaging their brains with carbon monoxide, the idea that this group of pros would actually produce an album worthy of just one star is a bit ridiculous.
It's not as though they can't figure out how to tune their instruments and play.
So there is something else going on for the people in the "one star" review category, and after reading a few of them, it looks as though most feel disappointed that U2 has made an album which sounds so much like... um... U2.
Ok... if that doesn't seem to make much sense, read the reviews. "U2 used to push the boundaries and now they are trying to cash in on a simple retread of their early '80s sound". That captures the gist of most of the one star reviews. People seem to feel really let down that U2 hasn't reinvented itself the way they did with Achtung Baby.
There seems to be this preoccupation with the idea that U2 must have had no other motivation for sounding the way they did when they were 19 than to make a ton of money. That point of view struck me as interesting, and as I kept reading it got mixed with another observation being made here. Several of these reviews mention that Achtung Baby reinvented the band, and that this album deserves one star because the band didn't reinvent itself again.
U2 sometimes thinks conceptually with their albums, as when they tried to announce popmart at a Kmart and make some sort of Meta statement about "commercialism". (Reach exceeding the grasp I suppose). They have also tended to challenge their audience with bold reinventions, as with Achtung Baby, so the fact that this album sounds like a throw back to one of their first three discs threw me for a loop when I first heard it too. Where is the complexity? I wondered while listening to it. Where is the subtext? The comment on commercialism, the big worldly statement to live up to such a heavy handed title as "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb"? Jeez.
I was also kind of bumbed with this disc ... *until* I read all these one star reviews.
Then I got it.
All these one star reviews are critical because this album doesn't "reinvent" the band again. That was my thinking too, but as I read it spelled out for me here, it began to make less sense. After all, is constant reinvention really desirable or healthy?
Does this album sound like the U2 of "Boy?" Yes. Who would have thought that would be a bad thing!
When Neil Young puts out an album that sounds like his early work people cheer he's gotten back to the source. When U2 do it there is an uproar they have sold out. How did it turn out that every step U2 makes has to be a grand statement? Why aren't they allowed even the benefit of the doubt that in their forties they might sincerely start to get back to their roots. How did they come to be cursed with such superhuman, which is to say "inhuman", expectations?
Back in the 80s when U2 got massive "the first time" people got on their case for "marketing idealism".
That's what made Achtung Baby so powerful. The band saved itself by running from itself. They presented the press and the world with a moving target, and proved they were too sharp to be taken down for standing up for the things they believed in. But there is a thin line between being a moving target and being constantly on the run.
The fact that so many people are willing to give a *thoroughly* enjoyable album like this one just one star is a perfect example of how U2 may have painted themselves into a corner with the promise of radical "Achtung Baby" sized reinvention with each album. Could it be, that by going back to the sound of their first discs it's this very expectation which has caused some fans to explode that the band is trying to dismantle? Could the promise of constant reinvention and with it the danger of constant self alienation, be the Atomic Bomb of the title?
If so... then there is indeed a subtext to this album... a "Big message" just as large as anything they did in the '90s. If that's the point of the album then maybe it's just like "Pop" and "Achtung," albums which most fans found needed a few listens before they made their purpose plain.
It's strange, but the negative reviews here are so thoroughly ridiculous with their "I can't stand this album because it doesn't reinvent my life the way 'Achtung Baby' or 'The Joshua Tree' did" perspective have really helped raise "How to Dismantle..." in my eyes.
This is a simple straight forward album with songs about basic human emotions and experiences. There are songs about a son grieving for his father, and about people just wondering what comes next. This stuff is all very straight forward and human. The idea that some might miss out on this disc's honest thoughts and simple truths, because they are looking for "reinvention" suggests they are actually looking for escapism, and avoiding real lives lead by real musicians who might not be interested in constantly reinventing themselves.
The search for something constant as opposed to explosive change may actually be what U2 is taking on with this album. Perhaps with a few more listens from this perspective, it will turn out that U2 really are on to something here, picking up on a mindset which would really need to be dismantled in order to dismantle forces as destructive as an atomic Bomb.
Perhaps this album isn't simple so much as it's about the power that can come from keeping things simple. For those fans disappointed by the absence of any bells or whistles, consider this, your expectations might be just what need dismantling. They are, after all, getting in the way of your enjoyment of a very fine album.
Free Music Review: U2: How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
Hit: 5 Stars
Another u2 Masterpiece? Could very well be. It might not be at the level of "Joshua Tree" or "Achtung Baby," but its an extremely strong album with no weak tracks, unlike its predecessor ATYCLB. The 2000 album was very strong, but a couple mistakes made it one step away from a "masterpiece" which a lot of people said it was. However, I found that this album takes a few listens to grow on you and really appreciate. This will explain why a lot of people will give it 1-2 stars after a couple listens, or of course those u2 haters that haven't even heard the album. This album has so many different sounds coming from everywhere (layers of guitars, great double & backing vocals, heavy bass, etc.) This album is another reason why they will be inducted into the Rock n Roll hall of fame in 2005, first ballot.
1. Vertigo: excellent first single and great opener for the album. U2 just doing an exciting track, loaded with great guitars by Edge and heavy bass by Adam Clayton. Hit written all over it. I could have done without the "turn it up loud, captain" line, but in the end it's just a fun song (9/10).
2. Miracle Drug: Almost perfection in every aspect. The first verse is slow, with stunning vocal delievery by Bono, but then jumps at you when the chorus hits. The highlights of the track are done by Edge, who does a phenomenal slide guitar solo, and then sings the following verse by himself. Chills...Incredible song (9.5/10).
3. Sometimes You Can't Make it On Your Own: I think this is one of the most emotional songs u2 have ever recorded, very confessional lyrics. The "and it's you when I look in the mirror.." line sung in falsetto is breaktaking, the chorus is undeniable, and the understated, brilliant guitar work underneath it is perfect. I think the bridge might be a little overdone, but this is a big future single. (9/10)
4. Love and Peace or Else: Is this u2? Who said this album didn't have the usual experimentation? This track has masterful production as u2 do their best Nine-inch Nail impersonation. Simply stated, this song rocks! And to tell you the truth, it had to with Bono serving the only political lyrics on the album. Supersonic, dark, evil, distorted riffs from Edge throughout, and great solo to close off the song. A couple corny lines bring the grade down a little (8/10).
5. City of Blinding Lights: Epic u2. Beautiful build-up with the piano and guitar start this very 80s-sounding tune. I think Bono owns this track, great lyrics and delivery, and an addicitve chorus which will be a big hit on the next tour. "Time won't leave me as I am, but time won't take the boy out of this man". How can I hate on a song with a line like this in it? (8.5/10)
6. All Because of You: The best song on the album. The intro makes me want to cry it's so good, the Edge let loose and running wild! It's just a stomping, sing-along rocker with Bono yelling and bouncing you off the walls. It's like the Who made a cameo on the record, very 60's rock here. The way Bono yells the bridge ("I'm alive, I'm being born..") is one of his greatest moments, and Edge's guitar solo is one of his finest(11/10)!!!
7. A Man and a Woman: Now is when the album will require multiple listens. This tune is the epitome of SOUL, people will think it's too R&B but that was the goal of this track. Bono wanted to make "a summer Marvin Gaye" tune, and listening to this makes me wonder if they were signed to Motown all these years. The dominator: Adam Clayton. Incredible bass completes this sing-a-long tune that grows on you more and more (8/10).
8. Crumbs from Your Table: Biggest surprise of the record, it is pretty brilliant. Edge swallows the track and dominates it with his guitar work. Bono's delivery makes this chorus amazing, very catchy..the lyrics are very strong, especially the second verse. Very nice surprise, a lot rawer and harder than I expected (8.5/10).
9. One Step Closer: People say it's the weakest track on the record but I can't understand that. It has such incredible vocal delivery by Bono and fits the music and theme of the song to perfection. It really would have been a good fit on "Zooropa". The Lyrics are just genius to me, and maybe they could have done something more with the chorus, but it has this wierd feeling which grows on you. Took many listens to feel all this, keep in mind (8/10).
10. Original of the Species = Although I absolutely love this song, I have the most trouble with it because of what it could have been. First off, this the closest anyone has ever come to sounding like the Beatles. It is incredible, great piano and its place on the album is perfect. My problem is the over-production, what a mistake! There is too many things going on here, especially the strings. It should have been more stripped down, it would be far more intimate. And get rid of the "doo doo doo" line by Bono, ugghhh (7.5/10).
11. Yahweh: Despite the wierd-sounding title of the song, this has geniunely great lyrics and ends the album very well. The chorus is a little annoying, but the last half of this track is perfect. One of their stronger album closers, but definetly a grower (7/10).
Here's a statement of how strong this record is: the only real mistake was not adding "Fast Cars" to the regular edition! It is pure brilliance, u2 at their most experimental. It is a middle-eastern influenced tune with Arabic guitars by Edge and hip hop style vocals by Bono. What a gem, they left it off the album and I could see it being a single. "I know these fast cars...will do me no good." One of the best on the album.
u2 arent changing music history here. I don't know why some u2 fans want them to do this with every release. It is just a very strong rock record filled with songs I can't wait to hear live. Because as good as their album work is, their songs come alive on tour. A new masterpiece? Only time will tell, but it takes time and multiple listens to really fall in love and appreciate this great record.
Free Music Review: 2005's Best Album of the Year - Ignore the Critics, this is U2's Best
Hit: 5 Stars
The band U2 has reached a point in their careers that when they release a new album, it is going to be greeted with great anticipation. Earlier in their career albums such as "The Joshua Tree" and "Acthung Baby" brought them not only commercial success, but critical acclaim. In the 90s, they expanded on the experimental mode that had started with "Acthung Baby" got mixed results with "Zooropa" and "Pop". When U2 released, "All That You Can't Leave Behind", many felt that U2 went back to the basics. Once again, the critics were embracing U2 and they were selling big albums. In a way, "All That You Can't Leave Behind" elevated U2 to an elite status in Rock music history. In fact, I don't think one is going out on a limb when you put U2 on the same tier as the Beatles. Thus, when U2 was getting ready to release "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb", the level of anticipation for this album was perhaps as high as any Beatles album. The band would also heavily promote that album - and that would spurn great sales. While this album didn't have as many critics as "Pop", there were some critics. However, I completely disagree with those critics. U2 backs up the high level of anticipation that they created for "Atomic Bomb". This late 2004 release would the album that would produce some of 2005's best music - therefore is my pick for 2005's Best Album.
Like "All That You Can't Leave Behind", U2 goes back to basics. For the most part they employ a classic rock formula (with the possible exception of "Vertigo" and to a lesser extent "A Man and a Woman"). Much of the music is going to be centered around The Edge's guitar and Adam Clayton's Bass. While Larry Mullen takes a prominent role on this album on drums and percussion, like most U2 albums Mullen isn't going to provide ferocious drumming (i.e. he's no Neil Peart). This isn't a knock on U2 or Mullen - it's just that this is the way U2 has always made use of Mullen's drumming. In fact, in some cases - it almost feels that U2 went back to the 1960s and used brought a 1960s Classic Rock sound into 21st Century Music. Of course, Bono's vocals are as strong as ever - even 25+ years into his career.
Here is a track by track look at this collection:
"Vertigo": This song was probably the song that had the least Classic Rock feel and most mainstream music feel. The unique thing about this song is that it was a hit among Modern Rock, Classic Rock, and even Adult Contemporary fans. The Edge's guitar and Clayton's bass are in rare form here - and combined with Bono's vocals the band is clearly having fun. I think Edge's background vocals and the bits of Spanish really help with this broad appeal.
"Miracle Drug": We get some rare background vocals from Larry Mullen on this track and The Edge even gets a chance to sing lead for a small part of the song. This song, while not the strongest on the album has more of U2's trademark sound. Edge's guitar takes on more of a classic feel.
"Sometimes You Can't Make it On Your Own": Another song that has a Classic anthemic U2 feel. The Edge provides some terrific guitar work with some great keyboards. This song does a great job at "switching gears" at the right time and it the final product really comes together.
"Love and Peace or Else": This song has a modern rock sound, but I can also hear a slight Blues influence to the beat and it will give this modern sound a Classic Rock influence. Edge provides some nice piano to compliment some riveting guitar work. Mullen also stands out with some great drum work.
"City of Blinding Lights": This is a masterpiece. Everything comes together for this song. It has the Classic anthemic U2 feel to it - especially in the guitar chords. There is some great the piano work by Edge and Bono. Bono really takes it up a notch when he sings "Oh you look so beautiful tonight". This is the band's tribute to the big cities and how the band still loves to go there.
"All Because of You": This song might have a title more like a pop song than a classic U2 anthem, but don't underestimate this. U2 is in high gear throughout this whole song. Edge's guitar perhaps never sounds better - and I think the same can be said for Clayton's Bass and Mullen's Drums. I think the real star here are the vocals - Bono's lead with some outstanding background vocals by Edge. The guitar work has a Classic Feel (even reminds me a bit like The Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction").
"A Man and a Woman": Another great track. While it has a 2000's music feel to it, the classic natural guitar sound is really what gives this song its charm.
"Crumbs From Your Table": Mullen provides some great highlights with his drumming on this song. Bono's vocals this time gave this song a bit of Classic Rock feel.
"One Step Closer": Underrated track on this album. This song has U2's classic slower sound here and almost has a trance feel. Bono's vocals are aren't a cappella, but they are close.
"Original of the Species": Another underrated track. The chorus has a classic 1960s Rock feel. It has some synthesizers and it creates some great sounds.
"Yahweh": This is U2's tribute to God. This song could easily have been a Christian Contemporary hit. I found it a very uplifting song. Edge once again shines with guitar and background vocals.
The liner notes contain all of the lyrics, songwriting, and musician credits. There are also some black and white photos of the band. The bottom line is that this album lives up to all the hype. A must have.