Any "reviews" on the new U2 CD? (1 Viewer)

[Richard Travale]

I am thinking about buying this but I don't want to waste $20 for just one single that I enjoy.
Can I get some opinions from anyone who has bought the album and maybe how it compares to other U2 albums?

 

[Ron Reda]

Richard,

Try here:

http://www.musictap.net/Reviews/U2AtomicBombCD.html

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

Here's one from the National Review:

http://www.nationalreview.com/commen...0411230823.asp

 

[Ted Lee]

not sure if you're aware or not, but you can hear the whole album for yourself from the u2.com website.

it's pretty mellow...but i'll probably pick it up.

 

[Richard Travale]

You're right Ted, I wasn't aware of that. Thanks.
Thanks Ron and Dennis for those review links.

I think I will be buying this one.

 

[Angelo.M]

Having heard it streamed several times now, I find it uninspired and, with a couple of exceptions, somewhat bland.

Best cut: "City of Blinding Lights."

 

[SarahG]

I've been wondering too. I'll be checking out the site right now.

*edit*...actually, how do you hear the album from the site?

 

[Tim Hoover]

Sarah, if you scroll down the news tidbits on the right hand side, you'll find a link to listen to it. You'll have to provide some minor "target market" info to hear it, but it's no big deal IMO...

Being a big-time U2 fan, I can't believe I completely forgot to pick this up yesterday. Of course, my car died and I was most annoyed, but still...

 

[Robert_eb]

I just picked up the CD/DVD version of this for $9.99.

I havn't listened to it yet and I'm looking forward to it tonight.

 

[Aaron_Mum]

I picked it up last night and have listened to it several times now. I'm still not sure about it! I am a big U2 fan so I am willing to give it time. For sure it is a "grow on you album".

It is really thought provoking as well, you have to sit with it and think about it and then it becomes more enjoyable. I think some fans are really going to dislike it and at the same time others will think it is very good. I don't think it belongs among the great U2 albums however.

Still have to check out the DVD. Should be a nice bonus to the CD.

 

[Tim Hoover]

Okay, I finally picked this up and gave it a spin in the car during all my errand running. It's not as mellow as I'd previously felt, and it does have a strong War-esque vibe running through it. Overall production is above average, which is very good for a U2 album.

The bonus DVD is rather interesting. It features a version of "Vertigo" with solo banjo accompaniment and the doc has some good stuff too, the most notable being a short snippet of "Vertigo" with a doubled lead vocal which kicks ass. Why this didn't make the album I'll never know.

There's also some good stuff from the ever-quotable Larry Mullen Jr: "I don't remember anything about that song [Crumbs]. I'll have to look into that. It's very disturbing."

 

[Tim Hoover]

The more I listen to the album, the more I start to really dig it. I'm completely retracting my earlier Sting comparisons and now saying that this is one of the most gut-wrenching albums I've heard in recent years. "Miracle Drug" is, in particular, absolutely astonishing. It seems that every song has an amazing power behind it, and you get the feeling that each band member is pouring every bit of his heart and soul into this record...

 

[Will_B]

Is there a multichannel version of it out yet, or must we wait?

 

[Angelo.M]

Tim, I'm right there with you, and I'm doing a 180 on this thing myself. The record is really starting to stick in my craw--and I like it. The first few tracks, from "Vertigo" to "Miracle Drug" to "Sometimes..." to "Love and Peace" to "City of Blinding Lights," are really powerful (and make for a great, short jogging program for the iPod).

Best track: a toss-up between "Miracle Drug" and "City..."

The record has some of the flavors of War, JT and ATYCLB.

 

[Tim Hoover]

There's definitely a War vibe on the record, especially with regards to the high-pitched backing vocals like those found on "Surrender". I can see some of the other comparisons as well, as the band seems to be using ingredients from every phase, but the overall feel of the record is unlike anything they've ever done before. Although some of the typical U2 things are there, this album does not feel like U2 at all.

Will - oh man, don't I wish. I would snap this up on hi-rez in a heartbeat, along with the rest of the band's catalog...

 

[Haggai]

I got a Depeche Mode vibe from "Love and Peace." A "Personal Jesus" vibe, to be specific.

 

[Evan S]

I'm not a huge U2 fan by any means, but I picked it up on Friday and spun it a couple times over the weekend and I liked what I heard. It's definately got some solid tunes on it for sure.

 

[Ted Lee]

follows tim and angelo....

i'm with you guys as well. i've listened to it only a couple of times, but it's really rockin' my world. it's hard to describe. this album certainly isn't a balls-to-the-wall rock album, but the ... i dunno ... melodies (?) are so catchy.

it will absolutley be getting some heavy rotation for now.

ps, did anyone have any probs ripping it? i used cdex and got a few errors...i still have to see what the deal is.

 

[Angelo.M]

Ted:

I had no problems ripping to AAC w/ iTunes. I will check, for grins, w/ CDex tonight.

Speaking of which, which LAME encoder version are you using w/ CDex? I just 'upgraded' to 3.96.1. Seems faster than the previous, and sounds the same to me (using -alt-preset-standard, now known as V2). Also, you might try re-ripping using Paranoia, Full.

 

[Ted Lee]

thx angelo!

i'm using cdex v1.5.1. not sure how to tell which lame encoder i'm using. when i go to the encoder tab, my description reads "lame mp3 encoder (version 1.30, engine 3.92 mmx)". whatever that means. if i should upgrade, how do i go about that?

i'm only using the normal mode (q=5). i've never even tried any of the other alt-whatever settings. should i use those instead? what are the benefits?