U2 - Pop
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Free Music Notes for Pop
Free Music Review: U2 go for the jugular! Tough but great...
Hit: 5 Stars
This is the album where U2 really let loose. Gone are the uplifting sonic vistas and anthemic choruses. Gone are the aesthetically measured guitar jangles and pleasing radio-friendly synthesizer loops. U2 tap into their collective Id, open a vein, and watch what comes out.
The result is a staggering piece of music: Pop is raw, pounding, intense, heavy, and unrelenting. It is U2's "dirty" album. Songs aren't as overtly about political awareness as on previous albums (e.g. songs like "Pride" or "Mothers of the Disappeared"), but more about personal conflict and self-doubt. Their previous two albums (Achtung Baby and Zooropa) dealt with similar themes, but mostly with detachment and irony, as if they were considering what it could be like to lose control, from an "artistic" perspective. On Pop, they take this one step further, and lose that detachment. Pop is sung from the depths of the soul, without trying to idealise what it means to be a human being in this day and age.
The themes are therefore often difficult, but intensely human, ranging from fear of complete burn-out ("Last Night on Earth") to loss of faith ("Wake Up Dead Man"), to general longing for a better world ("If God Will Send His Angels"). The lyrics are sometimes disturbing but ring true: "afraid of what you'd find if you took a look inside [...] I'm happy to go blind" - U2 have traditionally sung a lot about what's ugly, wrong, or beautiful in the world; this time, they sing about what's ugly, wrong, or beautiful inside their minds. In that sense, I've always felt this is an album that connects much more strongly with listeners than their other work. And sometimes too strongly!
"Discotheque", "Staring at the Sun", "Miami", and "Velvet Dress" also deal with the different facets of addiction and denial, ranging from drug-fuelled fun ("Discotheque") to near burn-out loss of reality ("Miami"). "MoFo" and "Do You Feel Loved?" deal with being lost in the world, "Playboy Mansion" deals with that feeling we've all had that the world just doesn't really make sense.
The resulting sounds are diverse and entrancing, ranging from a 90s techno beat (e.g. the Prodigy-like "MoFo", or the trance-like "Discotheque") to what is probably the most sensual song U2 has ever recorded ("Velvet Dress"), with a dab of spaghetti Western thrown in the mix ("Wake Up Dead Man"). U2 tap the musical zeitgeist of the 90s better than ever on this record. In a sense, U2 have surrendered themselves completely to their music on Pop.
Because U2 have surrendered themselves so entirely, the sounds are not homogenous, they can be chaotic and brutal, but the essence of U2 comes through like a locomotive in the recording. The songs are beautiful in a raw, desperate, and often fun-out-of-control way. Definitely worth investing into, but not the easiest listen in the world.
In other words, if you're a big fan of U2's pre-1991 and post-2000 work (i.e. the radio-friendly singles), this is probably not the best album for you (although in my humble opinion it is a valuable educational experience at the very least!). However, if you felt that Achtung Baby and Zooropa were genius and needed to be pushed a bit further, then by all means get this, you won't be disappointed.
For many people, this is a "love it or hate it" record, but it doesn't leave people cold. I'm definitely on the "love it" side, but I admit it took me a little while to get there!!
Free Music Review: Great Songs smothered by mis-matched production
Hit: 3 Stars
"Pop" was the third album in U2's reinvention trilogy (following "Acthung Baby" and "Zooropa"), before they finally came to the realization that being U2 was just fine without all the bending and twisting. Coming also at the lowest point in Bono's exasperating "I'm just a plastic pop star" phase, it means that moment-identifying production completely buries some amazing songs here.
Like David Bowie's "Earthling," released roughly the same period as "Pop," U2 drenched their album with the current drum'n'bass dance electronica that was sweeping England at the time. Not like U2 hadn't already dabbled in electronics (think "Zooropa"), but this time they took songs that would probably have stood better without the computerized bleeping and forced a date stamp that screams "1997!" Case in Point; "If God Will Send His Angels." In the kind of lost lover lament and religious intertwine that spans U2's best songs, "If God Will Send His Angels" begs for an acoustic treatment (and got one on the soundtrack to "City Of Angels"), but instead burbles along on "Pop's" machine generated drone.
Needless to say, if it weren't for the fact that "Pop" contains such brilliant work as "Last Night On Earth," "Staring At The Sun" "Wake Up Dead Man" and "Angels," the overbearing production would have crushed a lesser band. In fact, even the silly "Discotheque" (again with the wink-wink nudge-nudge video that accompanied it) proved that the band could loosen up and show a sense of humor.
So while I would not call this essential U2, I'll probably never dismiss it from my Cd rack. And since they redeemed themselves as rockers with the next album, it's easy to forgive U2 their desire to push at their "Pop"-velope.
Free Music Review: I really like Pop!!!
Hit: 4 Stars
Pop has some of my favourite U2 songs, Discoteque, Mofo, Staring at the sun & Wake up Deadman!!!
Another interesting story is that Bono doesn't like the album, but this is often misquoted. The real story is that U2 has already booked their Pop Mart tour and it was scheduled to begin before U2 could actually finish the album. So in a panic the band decided to rush the finish. For example the Last night on earth was supposedly rushed & not done to how U2 wanted it, yet this is a great song!!!
Therefore there are a few iffy songs like Miami & If you wear that velvet dress, but the rest though admittingly different (just listen to Mofo) are great & actually it is more like how U2 would approach hard Pop, very intersting & enjoyable listening, and oddly never ever sounding dated, unlike their more recent releases!!!
On Pop Bono said that it starts like a party but ends up as a funeral, that's exactly it, though I'd describe it more as starting in the light (the first three songs) whilst slowly fading into the dark, and the last song Wake Up Deadman certainly ends the album in a real darky merky place but actually it's one of my favourite U2 songs ever!!!
The big question is what happened after??????
Free Music Review: U2's third album and their best
Hit: 5 Stars
This album was originally released in 1983 to an awaiting newly established fan base. 'Pop' brought together for U2 a newer sound mixed with the introduction of techno anthem beats in a few of their songs. 'Discotheque' is a primary example of the mixing of U2's modern rock meeting anthem techno and the result is a positive song mix sound that is pleasing to the ears. The album has many new songs previously unreleased as well as reworked songs. 'Mofo', is another exploratory song by this band that brought together soft rock beats with a little European grunge flavour. The songs that standout in this beautifully designed album are 'Gone', 'Please' and 'If God Will Send His Angels'.
This album release is for any fan of this Irish 4 person band headed by the rock god 'Bono' himself. 'The Edge' on guitars is cutting edge and decent to listen to. Get the CD and add it to your U2 collection, you sure won't be dissapointed.
Free Music Review: U2's Hidden masterpiece
Hit: 5 Stars
Submerged into underground avant-garde art, Pop is U2's most inhuman and volcanic collection of songs they've ever done.
Living in a completely material era (U2 included by releasing ATYCLB and HTDAAB, iPod, buying at Grammies and all that bulls***) Pop has won the hearts and minds of a good few of us (your humble reviewer included, who found it extremely hard to remove from the CD player for a good few months).
Just listen to those melting chords, swelling guitars and haunting vocals, emotive climaxes and hushed comedowns, with tiny samples and electronic sounds hovering on the threshold of hearing.
This album does what very few bands can achieve. It makes you feel something. Unlike ATYCLB and HTDAAB Pop really has the ability to make you feel good, lonley, cold. Strangely fascinating.
I know this is a hard-listening album, but once you get to understand the music and lyrics, you get to like it, it's soft, hard, elegant, rude, ironic, euphoric, thundering, unidentifiable, controversial and even sad.
Absolutely breath taking!