U2, The Fly

Actually you and I probably found them about the same time. My first U2 experience was Under a Blood Red Sky so I got them with all that live energy. I adore the more lo-fi stuff off the first two records, I think October is marvellous, it's so tinged with melancholy and angst. But I do agree about 'Bad' and the Unforgettable Fire-era stuff. I think Brian Eno as a producer on records is very hit and miss, often he's terrible and what he does makes an album sound lumpen, but occasionally he catches the mood just right and with that one he took that echo-y guitar sound and make it into a vibrating landscape which captures a mood for the whole album. It's lovely.

U got a minute? ...I'll explain. I'm 32, so to say I was into U2 at the start would be untrue. My personal discovery of U2 came with the release of Unforgettable Fire. That albums cycles around into the "My Favourite" category quite often. In fact, there are three albums that share the privilege of being able to cycle into and out of the "My Favourite" category. The other two being War and Achtung Baby. So in short, (to answer your question), I'm passionate about all three of those albums depending on my mood. I'm sure you know what I mean. The new new stuff... mneh - it's for the Chardonnay set that fail to see the importance of the bands earlier work - it's for "families on a Sunday", and I understand completely why U2 go down the corporate path they have in terms of their 'Hit Singles' albums, ie. All You Can't Leave Behind and Atomic Bomb.

My fav songs (don't make me choose!!) are Bad, Wire, and don't laugh, because most people choke on their chicken after hearing it, I totally love Elvis Presley and America. It reminds me of (careful to avoid hyberbole here..) a great painter in full flight in front of a canvas, and watching from the start, a masterpiece being created, and whilst I (the observer) do not know what the painter is going with this progressive creation (and I refer to the beautiful but more or less illegible lyrics at the start), I am overjoyed in the knowledge I am watching (or in this case, listening) to something great, and something very personal being laid out before me. And the end is just so gorgeous and powerful. It gets me every time. (With the end, I refer to the drums becoming more defined, and the lyrics and vocals becoming clear, and everything falling into place). Beautiful stuff, not sure if it was intended that way.

I wish we had emoticons to use in comments cause I'm grinning.

So Eliasthefly, are you an early-era U2 man or a late-era U2 man? As great as I think Achtung Baby is, I don't think they ever ever matched the energy of the first 4 records. The Unforgettable Fire is my fave. I love the song "Wire" in particular.

yea, I was drunk when I wrote my review on The Fly by U2. Leave me alone..

Ok, not saying it's not a good song, cause it is, but have you ever heard another song? I mean, even another song that isn't by U2?

There really should be a legal limit established on the use of hyperbole.