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nathanrufo · 6 years

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Thoughts of Experience

A new U2 album is out - Songs of Experience - which can mean only one thing: it’s time to dust off this old tumblr account so I can post my thoughts on social media without annoying my non-U2-loving Facebook or Twitter friends too much. And believe you me, nonexistent reader: I have thoughts on this new album.

As you may recall, I really liked Songs of Innocence. Some of my takes were laughably wrong (I was way too wrapped up in “The Troubles,” which is a pretty song but not “one of the best U2 songs ever.”). And, after a few years, I will admit that Songs of Innocence seems to me a much less quality album front-to-back. I find myself skipping a decent number of tracks (California, Cedarwood Road, Volcano, Sleep Like a Baby), and the bonus tracks don’t do anything for me (except Invisible, which is a hidden track). I still think “Iris,” “Raised by Wolves,” “This is Where You Can Reach Me Now,” and “Every Breaking Wave” are great songs, some even U2 classics, and I even love “Song for Someone” when I’m in the mood. But, it’s a much more uneven album for me.

After SoI, there was a lot of uncertainty surrounding the band. I waited for months, and then years to finally hear the follow-up/sequel. Every interview was, “It’s almost done” - in true U2 fashion. Truly, I had no idea what to expect from the album. My hope was that, after revisiting their post-punk vibes in SoI, that Songs of Experience would reflect more of the Unforgettable Fire-Joshua Tree-Rattle and Hum timeframe (my personal favorite U2 - ephemeral, moody, music that envelops you).

I can say that, aside from a few songs, that’s exactly the type of music that U2 went for on this album. I’ll say up front that my initial reaction is that I love this album, and I think it’s probably their best and most consistent work since Zooropa, if not Achtung Baby. Lyrically, there are two very obvious and somewhat intertwined underlying themes: 1) Bono’s musings on his own mortality after having what was apparently a huge health scare; and 2) the U.S. election of Donald Trump. I think both of those probably served to push the album back a bit from what they’d originally expected; but at the same time, the album came out 3 years later, which is short for late-stage U2 - so I think they also wanted to be timely.

The songs, lyrically, are simple - some may say too simple, too on the nose. I mean, some of the titles are “Get Out Of Your Own Way,” “Love Is Bigger Than Anything In Its Way,” “The Little Things That Give You Away.” There’s very little double meaning there. Bono talks in the liner notes about how, after he had his health scare, he got the advice to “Write as if you’re already dead, and you only have this last chance to tell everyone how you feel and what you think.” I think that’s very evident when going through the album. A dead man doesn’t have the luxury of playing cutesy with ironies and creative titles; he needs to get his point across well enough that people will understand even if he’s not around to explain it to them. (If he were in an Indiana Jones movie, his advice would be “Pick the wooden cup!” - a less interesting, but far more useful bit of advice than the cryptic clues often offered).

It’s obvious that this lay heavily on Bono’s mind; along with the thoughts of what kind of world he’d leave behind. The anti-Trump message is obvious, even when he’s not being obvious about it (which he does - a lot - sometimes cringingly so).

So lyrically, while this might not be the most artistic of Bono’s word choices (though to be honest, many U2 lyrics have been too “artistic,” to the point of meaninglessness), it’s certainly the most earnest.

So, I’ll go track by track with my thoughts. You obviously don’t need to follow along. (Spoiler alert: you don’t need to read this at all!)

1. “Love Is All We Have Left”

I love this to open an album. It’s moody and atmospheric. I personally love the use of vocoder - I think it adds to the song. I’ve seen old school U2 fans complain, but I think it’s great. Obviously straightforward lyrics.

2. “Lights of Home”

Another great song. Bono singing about death and dying; “Oh Jesus if I’m still your friend,/What the Hell/What the Hell you got for me?” Musically great, heavy; a big difference from the opening track. I love how the backing vocals drop in and out. This song would be right at home of How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, I think. I like the inclusion of the outro from “Iris” - the first of a few SoI callbacks on the album. This song was co-written with Haim, which is a cool tidbit.

3. “You’re the Best Thing About Me”

This is a song that I have mixed feelings on. I absolutely love the verse; I especially love the bassline and how it interacts with with electronic flairs in the second verse. I’m not as enamored with the chorus or the breakdown in the middle, or the lyrics. Still, it’s a solid pop song.

4. “Get Out Of Your Own Way”

This is a song that could very easily fall into the wayward lyrical cutesiness of “Get On Your Boots” or “Elevation.” But in this song, I think it works - even the shoutout to “Lincoln’s Ghost.” I think this song is more political - the first really political one on the album - imploring Americans to stop shooting ourselves in the foot. “I can sing it to you all night, all night/If I could I’d make it alright, alright/Nothing stopping you except what’s inside/I can help you but it’s your fight, your fight.” The chorus of this could sound HUGE live. This is one that could fit easily on ATYCLB.

5. “American Soul”

I...am not in love with this song, to say the least. I like the Kendrick Lamar-beatitudes riff in the beginning. The groove for the verse is okay, and I like the reuse of the “Volcano” breakdown as the chorus; but the addition of the single guitar note seems a little out of place. This is the most egregious “Bono-ism” on the album, with “Refu-Jesus.” That’s a great play on words...if you lead up to it in any way. It’s presented seemingly randomly and it just doesn’t work for me. I’ve already started skipping this one on most of my listen-throughs.

6. “Summer of Love”

This song has a great vibe. It feels like an updated ‘60s song; Edge’s guitar reminds me of “Three Sunrises,” a song that I really like. The lyrics are great, too, a rumination on the Syrian civil war; “I’ve been thinking bout the West Coast/Not the one that everyone knows.” Apparently was a OneRepublic song that he gave to U2; they did a great job with it.

7. “Red Flag Day”

War. That’s what immediately sprung to mind when I heard the opening of this song. It would fit perfectly on War, from the subject matter to the post-punk vibe. Probably the closest they get to that era on this album, and they do it well here, though it’s not one of my favorites (just a style thing).

8. “The Showman (Little More Better)”

I’ve seen this listed as people’s favorite song. I don’t get that. It’s kind of an interesting, fun song; I do like Bono’s slightly-begging tone throughout, as if he’s begging you to love him, which is sort of the undertone of every showman. Still, to me it’s “just a song” - a decent album cut.

9. “The Little Things That Give You Away”

THIS. I said it on Twitter and I’ll say it again here - and I’m much more confident about this than I was about “The Troubles” - this is a top-10, if not top-5 U2 song of all time. It starts slow instrumentally, but Bono’s vocals soar from the outset. Eventually, it transforms into an epic, sweeping piece, full of hope and despair at the same time - a hallmark of a great U2 song. I heard this live on piano during the Joshua Tree tour and really liked it; but that version doesn’t do this song justice. I can imagine fans singing along with this like at the end of “Pride” or “Bad.” This is going to sound HUGE in an arena. Easily my favorite song on the album. It could slide right into the Joshua Tree.

10. “Landlady”

A really pretty, soulful, moody song. Maybe my second-favorite on the album. Lyrically, just as good. When I first heard it, I thought the “Landlady” was God in Bono’s eyes; but he wrote it for his wife, Ali. Either interpretation works, I think. I’m not a man of faith but I can appreciate it either way all the same.

11. “The Blackout”

One of the three that was released before the album. I really, really like this song until the very end when he repeats “When the lights go out” about 12,000 times. Overall I think it’s a great vibe and really reminds me of Achtung Baby. The pre-chorus is one of my favorite segments of the album.

12. “Love is Bigger Than Anything In Its Way”

Great, catchy song. I like the electronic melody. Simple, direct, but true.

13. “13 (There Is a Light)”

A nice, lowkey song to end the album. I like the repurposing of “Song for Someone.”

Bonus Tracks (Deluxe Album)

“Ordinary Love” has been around for a while. It was in the “Mandela: Walk to Freedom” movie and has been remixed a bunch of times. Lady Gaga sang it on tour with the band (and she was actually great for it) and helped them produce this version. I like the song a lot, this version is okay.

“Book of Your Heart” hasn’t really made an impression on me one way or the other.

The string version of “Lights of Home” is really, really good.

The Kygo version of You’re The Best Thing...I couldn’t really get into it. Cool as a dance remix I guess.

Overall

Overall...I really, really love this album. I think it’s their strongest work since at least All You Can’t Leave Behind, and I think I like it better than anything since Achtung Baby. I would place it behind Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby, and Unforgettable Fire. Probably in the same stratosphere as War and All That You Can’t Leave Behind.

That’s it. Those are my thoughts. The end.

#u2 #u2songsofexperience

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