Topic: The Joshua Tree (Read 6632 times)

Durin · « **on:** 30 Apr 2010, 16:09 »

So I was listening to "The Four Chord Song" by Axis of Awesome which features a snippet of the U2 song "With or Without You". This led to me downloading The Joshua Tree. I began listening to it. This led me to this thread where I will say, "Hey this is kind of good." I mean U2 is actually good. They have a bad rep among people my age and even I thought they kind of sucked based off of my limited sampling. But older people seem to really dig them, or at least my dad did, and he was a man whose musical opinion I always respected. And I can definitely see why people liked U2 with this album.

So I guess my point is: what gives?

Zingoleb · « **Reply #1 on:** 30 Apr 2010, 16:15 »

After a few albums of the same fucking thing you start to get the point and go "Okay that's enough."

BeoPuppy · « **Reply #2 on:** 30 Apr 2010, 16:23 »

U2 was okay ... riiight up to The Joshua Tree. After that ... meh, not so much.

Damnable Fiend · « **Reply #3 on:** 30 Apr 2010, 21:59 »

Didn't they have one album that was supposed to sound kind of different, because they were angry about relationship problems at the time?

edit: sorry, I can't remember the name though, and wikipedia's not helping me.

David_Dovey · « **Reply #4 on:** 30 Apr 2010, 22:17 »

Basically every record they produced in the 90s was a marked departure from the sound they were known for, and are known for now.

Bearer · « **Reply #5 on:** 30 Apr 2010, 22:43 »

Go watch the rockumentary "Rattle and Hum" it will blow your mind. Case and point: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVjTOHIkJgE

Compared to that, the stuff U2 recently puts out is pretty much garbage.

A Wet Helmet · « **Reply #6 on:** 01 May 2010, 02:15 »

I'm going to have to agree with BeoPuppy on this one.

Boy, War, October, and Under a Blood Red Sky, were all decent in their day --and certainly sounded different than everything else on the radio at the time. When Joshua Tree came out... Damned in the whole school didn't go U2 crazy right then and there and I thought the whole album sounded like cats fucking. I haven't cared for much of anything they've done since. I think REM was the next band this happened to, then the Cure, then came grunge music...

Thrillho · « **Reply #7 on:** 01 May 2010, 03:39 »

I hate U2, they are one of the very few bands who I would define as a guilty pleasure to myself. But I do have a couple of their records that I really like.

The first is Rattle And Hum, which is the sound of a band at an utter loss of what to do with themselves. It's half-arsed live tracks, some of which suck, and some random new songs that mostly sound nothing like anything else they ever did, such as 'Van Diemen's Land' which is my favourite song of theirs. I love the album for its sloppiness and un-U2-ness.

The other one I have is All That You Can't Leave Behind, which is U2 in excelsis - it's just a flawless pop record, and 'Beautiful Day' is an amazing tune no matter what people say. I love both of these records and a few more of their songs but them aside, I really hate U2 and would never consciously seek out any more of their catalogue I suspect.

Thrillho · « **Reply #8 on:** 01 May 2010, 10:54 »

Yeah I heard No Line, that is truly terrible.

Alex C · « **Reply #9 on:** 01 May 2010, 14:57 »

Ahaha, yeah. Tommy took the words out of my mouth; I stopped the clip immediately upon the Bono's skinny suspenders sighting. The clip couldn't possibly make me any happier, particularly since U2's music is prominently involved. The band's half assed bass is a huge, huge problem for me and overall I've always felt like their sound is too thin. U2 fans always seem to use adjectives like "soaring" and "majestic" when describing the band but frankly I've always felt that they sound kind of anemic and are clearly missing something. That something is an entire fuckin' rhythm section.

Inlander · « **Reply #10 on:** 01 May 2010, 18:37 »

Tommy, do you mean this guitar effect?

RallyMonkey · « **Reply #11 on:** 01 May 2010, 19:09 »

I watched the documentary This Might Get Loud. The Edge seemed like a pretty nice dude, also, he was quite upfront about what's going on guitar wise underneath all the effects. There was a long segment of him going "This is what the song sounds like" and then "This is all that it sounds like without the effects".

U2 still sucks, though.

Jimor · « **Reply #12 on:** 02 May 2010, 09:21 »

Just now going through old shoeboxes of stuff, I came across my ticket stub to the Joshua Tree tour when U2 played at the Cow Palace in SF. Amazing energy to that show.

The Duke · « **Reply #13 on:** 02 May 2010, 15:20 »

I quite like U2, and I found the Joshua Tree to be a wonderful album.

I also found several songs on No Line On the Horizon to be reasonably good.

KvP · « **Reply #14 on:** 02 May 2010, 23:39 »

The Joshua Tree is inexorably tied up with fond memories from my childhood. It's dramatic, and I like that. I don't think I've liked anything they've done since.

Dazed · « **Reply #15 on:** 05 May 2010, 14:57 »

I like a couple U2 songs.

For the most part though I can't get over how godfuckingawful their rhythm section is.

pwhodges · « **Reply #16 on:** 05 May 2010, 15:02 »

My favourite U2 album. I first listened to it (on cassette) standing on a deserted railway platform in Munich, overlooking the airport.

Scandanavian War Machine · « **Reply #17 on:** 05 May 2010, 17:13 »

Quote from: KvP on 02 May 2010, 23:39

The Joshua Tree is inexorably tied up with fond memories from my childhood. It's dramatic, and I like that. I don't think I've liked anything they've done since.

this right here

Alex C · « **Reply #18 on:** 06 May 2010, 12:55 »

Quote from: Dazed on 05 May 2010, 14:57

For the most part though I can't get over how godfuckingawful their rhythm section is.

Yeah, I could forgive the Edge for merely doing effects laden guitar work that's only there for atmosphere if there was anything else at all going on with the music other than Bono.

KvP · « **Reply #19 on:** 06 May 2010, 13:04 »

Quote from: pwhodges on 05 May 2010, 15:02

My favourite U2 album. I first listened to it (on cassette) standing on a deserted railway platform in Munich, overlooking the airport.

I listened to it on a Florida beach. There were thousands upon thousands of little blue sea anemones that had washed up onshore, torn up from the sea floor by the storm off the coast of Cuba. We'd go out swimming at night with high tide. During the day we watched The Matrix, which had just come out on DVD.

Yayniall · « **Reply #20 on:** 06 May 2010, 15:38 »

The only U2 song that matters

Nodaisho · « **Reply #21 on:** 11 May 2010, 12:13 »

I've got to admit that I don't really get the hate for them. I think a lot of it is probably Bono rubbing everyone the wrong way, which I can understand completely.

I don't remember the Joshua Tree album, but I bet I would have some pretty strong associations with it, since I know my mother loved it and had it on tape, so it probably is linked to some early childhood moments.

boneykingofnowhere · « **Reply #22 on:** 11 May 2010, 19:39 »

I like Beutiful Day, Where the Streets Have No Name, and Sunday Bloody Sunday, but a lot of their other stuff (especially Vertigo) has got to be some of the worst garbage ive ever heard.

october1983 · « **Reply #23 on:** 12 May 2010, 01:45 »

The only musical opinion I respect less than "I like U2" is "I hate U2, but I don't mind Joshua Tree..."

It's like judging which of Bono's shits smells best.

Inlander · « **Reply #24 on:** 12 May 2010, 02:06 »

I heard Hitler liked U2.

BeoPuppy · « **Reply #25 on:** 12 May 2010, 02:23 »

Yeah ... he really enjoyed the Unforgetable Fire.

dancarter · « **Reply #26 on:** 12 May 2010, 04:43 »

I love U2 up to Achtung Baby; Love is Blindness being one of a few favourite ballads from them I really adore. Post Achtung, I've gone from being laughingly disappointed (Lemon? C'mon...that shit just makes me giggle), to the new sort of ham-fisted, anthemic arena pop they seem to be making now. Bono does rub people the wrong way. It was pointed out by a music journalist here in Canada that you always know when a new U2 record is coming out, as it usually correaltes with Bono tub-thumping some cause or another he's backing. Great that you want to help out and everything, but...that's just curious timing.

E. Spaceman · « **Reply #27 on:** 12 May 2010, 06:27 »

I quite enjoy the U2 album Zooropa.

Thrillho · « **Reply #28 on:** 12 May 2010, 17:48 »

That does have a magnificent song on it sung by Johnny Cash called 'The Wanderer.' Beautiful tune.

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Author Topic: The Joshua Tree (Read 6632 times)

Zingoleb