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U2 - Zooropa/Pop - Thursday, Sept. 05, 2013
2 many dj's and order - Wednesday, Sept. 04, 2013
Towering Inferno - Kaddish - Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2013
Towa Tei - Sound Museum - Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2013
Tortoise - millions now living will never die - Monday, Aug. 12, 2013

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Thursday, Sept. 05, 2013 | 07:28

U2 - Zooropa/Pop

i remember really liking 'zooropa' when it came out. when i think about it now, though, i feel like it's just ok. listening to it, i think it has a bunch of good songs and some interesting experiments, but then it has "lemon". 'pop' has similar strengths and weaknesses--solid songwriting, experiments that don't quite work, etc.--but nothing as bad as that. neither does 'pop' have a song as good as "the first time".

when 'discotheque' came out in 1997, my son was a year old. he was already interested in music, though at the time i think it was mostly odd sounds that attracted him. in my never-ending quest for something new (at that age, these sounds and songs lost their novelty quickly), i picked up the 'discotheque' single with the dance mixes on it. what i wanted was an extended "boom-cha" bit, preferably moved to the beginning of the song, but none of them really had that. instead the mixes focus on the groove or the beat and not the vocal noises. not even the opening siren (which is great in stereo surround sound) got enhanced. listening to the single again while i write this, i want the constituent parts so i can try to stitch together the version i wanted to hear. i think it would open with the "boom-cha"s, then go into the regular song. the breakdown would be the siren. i might even throw that in before the choruses. i'd have to do something to change the rest of the song, probably strip back the music and expose the vocal, or add extended instrumental passages. i wonder how i could get my hands on those parts.

as with 'zooropa', i listened to 'pop' a lot when it came out. i was in college and i used the songs with driving rhythms to pump me up before going to class. i sang along to the anthems and ballads. i learned most of the words (which hurts the songs somewhat--these are not bono's best lyrics).

i've read that the band rushed the album and were never satisfied with the finished product. that's why the single mixes were different. i wouldn't be surprised if the inevitable deluxe edition came with a different mix of the album. i envision a three-disc version that has the original, the alternate, and the b-sides/remixes. they wouldn't have the live tracks from the "please" single or the soul assassins mix of "numb", but "pop muzik" would surface. with the single mixes on that alternate version you really could fit everything on three cds. alternatively, you could have just the album on one and the single mixes, b-sides, and some of the remixes on the other.

say what you will about 'zooropa' and 'pop', those were the last interesting albums u2 made. they retreated from the electronics and irony, but their sincerity was either too slickly produced or lacked the requisite bombast to make it interesting. worse, bono's lyrics, already sagging on 'pop', shifted into bland platitudes and generic lists. even when the music is interesting, the words sink songs like stones.

u2 has stopped challenging itself. it no longer has anything to prove and, say what the members will, they're sound like they're just going through the motions. they make new records to justify a tour, and that's where the real money is. it won't be long before they tour (yet another) hits package with a new song or two instead of a new album proper.

however ironic and cynical 'zooropa' and 'pop' are, they excited me that a huge band could take such risks. when they retreated, they were done.

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