U2: Respect The Hype!

U2 can't get a break. They release a terrific new album,
go on David Letterman for a week, and host three nights of
radio shows to promote their record. Then the bloggers and
pundits accuse them of HYPE and overkill.

What are they supposed to do? Who the hell knows how to reach
music listeners today? Everything is so fragmented, from the
internet to a million cable TV channels. Do kids even listen to
terrestrial radio anymore?

I do. We have a fine new station in LA called 100.3 FM The Sound.
They are playing NO LINE ON THE HORIZON and talking about
the band . Even moldy old KLOS FM aired all three nights of the
U2 radio shows. It reminded of the old days when a band came to
town and everyone talked about it. Now the buzz is on the internet,
where an act can go from hero to has-been in an hour.

I love everything about the new U2 record.
The kind of album you can play coming home from a funeral as well
as heading out to spring break. I've done both.

"Unknown Caller", "Magnificence", "Moment of Surrender" and"I'll Go Crazy" are instant classics. When Bono and The Edge sing "I did not notice the passers by and they did not notice me" on "Surrender" I get chills down my spine.

Other tracks take some time to appreciate: the gorgeous "White As Snow" and the mysterious "Breathe" are like black and white foreign films, with beauty hidden among
layers of sadness. This is an old fashioned album, meant to be listened to as a whole,
while each song reveals itself to the listener.

I bought the album on iTunes and received two bonus tracks. The remixes of "Get On Your Boots" and the title track, both of which exceed the originals! The second "Boots" is a techno-pop joy which emphasizes the catchy chorus. The accompanying booklet is a treat for the eyes.

I loved watching them on Letterman all week long. The salutes to The Beatles and the Ramones were touching, and the new songs sounded terrific. Some called it over-exposure, five nights of U2 which cost absolutely nothing. I called it the entertainment bargain of the year.

Same with the radio shows which aired three nights in a row. The first was an interview that showed they are intelligent blokes with a good sense of humor. When asked what bands made them take notice, they said Nirvana, Oasis, Kings of Leon, Interpol. The Killers and the Fleet Foxes! I like knowing those kind of things. The next night each member was asked to play DJ.
Larry picked The Ramones "I Wanna Be Sedated" and joked that being in U2 "sometimes you want to be sedated." The Edge picked "Brown Eyed Girl" commenting that Van Morrison "started Irish rock and roll." Bono played "Hallelujah" by Leonard Cohen and urged everyone to go see the legend on his current tour. "Best live show I've ever seen" and you know he's seen a few.

On the final night they performed live in Boston and took questions from the crowd and Larry Mullen Jr. had this to say when asked about giving advice to a band starting out today.

"It's about writing songs and being creative. Part of that is the kind of unity you can create in a band that you can't get as an individual. You need to have a certain kind of democracy where everyone feels a stake in what you do. It's about your respect for the individual members of the band."

U2 is band who respects each other and its audience.
I loved it when it was TWO WEEKS OF U2 EVERYWHERE!
Because U2 lives up to the HYPE.