It's been 8 months now folks and nary an in-depth analysis. Don't we owe the band something 'sides our dollars. How 'bout some collective critical project, where we plumb the depths of the album, as a sort of token of our appreciation for it. Ratings and rankings are for children and the public auctioneer/critic. Let's do something meaningful, create some-kind of brain-trust, to seperate ourselves from the common fan and the indifferent critic. This is a fan club right? C'mon brains, bring out yer wares! I'm bying here, but who's selling?

I'll start.

The opening track, for instance, seems to be a kind of "invocation the the muse." Normally, this type of gimmick is found in epic narratives, but who's to say U2 are not making a foray into the epic: they've always been the most "heroic" band in my book. The title of the album, the artwork, and the suggestion of the album originating in two EP's titled "Daylight" and "Darkness," before becoming the album we-all-know, lead me to believe that the band have at least partly attempted a conceptual-type album, meaning we have more than just 11 songs on album: we have a narrative potentially running through the music.

If this kind of analysis leaves a bad taste in your mouth, you know where to find the door. For rest, "c'mon ye people, stand up for your love." (Sexual innuendo intended for mass consumption.)




 

Number 2.

Bono stated that the album has 3 distinct chapters. We all know where the divisions lie. This fact ties in curiously with the fact that Get On Your Boots was the first single of the album, the official introduction to the album. In my mind, the album does not run linearly and the fact that the word "linear" appears at least twice on the album (once on the title track and the Corbijn film title) inspires me to think of the straight line and how it interacts with the album as a concept.
Remember "The Fly" from Achtung Baby? Smack dab in the middle like "Boots." They're even structured similarly. I love the comparison. The wicked, ear-searing solo from "The Fly" juxtaposed against the minimalist, tongue-in-cheek, eight-note fly-swat on "Boots." They both function as prologues in my opinion. The phone-call-from-hell vs. the panic-attack-hallucinogenic-revelation-from-the-carnival (epithet needed).

I sometimes think of the album beggining at "Boots" and branching-out. The middle chapter (Crazy-Boots-Comedy) is from the first-person pov and is likely the first chapter of the story, naturally flowing and continuing from the existing narrative thread from the two previous albums. "Crazy" and "Comedy" are lyrically alike, adding further ingredients to the compound of my theory.

The difference between boots and Fly was that the Fly, even if it shocked people, was this crazy, bad a** song that blew peoples minds, boots comes off as...a song...

by the way, i love when you say phone call from hell

The combination of the stream-of-consciousness lyric married to the subterranean-homesick delivery, the rat-a-tat speed of the affair, the crunching of the disparate sections a-la Happiness...is a Warm Gun, the "Let Me Sound" holy-art, holier-than-thou revelation, had me and still-has me in ecstasy. And I'm not easy to please. "Oh, my god! That pig has a curly tail!"

And don't get me started on that hash-induced vision of a video. Whoowee! Satyricon-nothing. "These boots were made for walking." Those boots, attached to those legs, can walk over me anytime. Roll-me right over. Beep-beep!

Number 3.

I wonder if the "characters" in NLOTH are just masks from the muses' gallery that he tries on, like in a dream ("I'm a traffic cop!"). Disguise can mean escape. There is more vitriol here than most of us give the author credit for. "Cedars" anyone? Just nod if you can here me. No escaping the war or reality for our man. At the end of his rope and our tether, down-on his luck (reporter my arse), at the latter end of the ethereal, a dust-bath for our narrator, note-pad in hand, gold-pan in hand (alchemist for hire), can you really find anything out here? Get out. Dial that number. Get out and take us with you. "Let me in the sound!" Don't you hear us, scratching at your door? Muse, oh-Muse, won't please answer the bell?

I dig the energy in the this thread by the thread starter....

NLOTH is really symbolically a "launching pad" to me for U2 to hit the worldwide stadium circuit for the next three years.  It can not be compared favorably to any of U2's best albums and stands alone as being over produced, with excessive knob turning and half baked lyrics.  It feels rushed and incomplete and without subtle restraint.  I am even willing to guess (not being a musician) that the time signatures for several of the Eno/Lanois produced songs are just not right for U2.  That is why the remixes and live performances are more interesting to our ears than hearing the exasperating intros to a song like "Magnificient"  (which on the album would be much better to just go into the song with Bono's soaring voice-like it is performed live).

By the way- I can't stand the song title for "Stand Up Comedy" and "I Will Go Crazy..."  It would have been much more U2 like to call them "Stand Up" and "Tonight".

NLOTH is U2's fingerprint smudged by Eno/Lanois excessiveness. 

Excellent post, Stoker.  You are clearly feeling this album.  I have to agree with you on most fronts.  I am still finding nuances to this album.  It feels complete to me.  The lyrics reveal themselves anew each time I listen.  Forgive the hyperbole, but I'm not getting the distaste some people have for this album.  It's spiritual, mysterious, joyful, fearful, raucous,- Shakespearean in its' emotional complexity. 

Folks, I'd rather not turn this into a likes/dislikes battleground. I hope to keep the inquiry as objective as possible. I need to know what this album is about so I can stop thinking about it and simply enjoy the textures and surfaces. The last time I had such difficulty with a U2 album was "Pop." Don't get me wrong, I like difficulty. I love a challenge. Simple equation: U2 puts in the effort, I try to match them. Pre-album hype was not hyperbole this time around. It was not what I expected. But why should it be? U2 is the artist; I'm part of the audience. My job is to decipher the communication. Rewards? I dunno. Let's find out. Any takers?

Lots of nuance, U2 yooper. Sonic and lyrical complexity. I would say Ulyssean in its complexity, not Shakespearean. That's just my personal taste though and definitely Ulysses-lite, still that's saying a lot for a U2 album. Bono has name-dropped Joyce as an influence for this album and also Cormac McCarthy. I wonder? As far as it being a "complete" album: that's a huge conclusion to draw and it's probably to early to say, if we are indeed in conversation here.

I find it funny that people without accolades, having achieved nothing of value, deservant of no reward, have the audacity to obstacle-drop people while simultaneously begging for alms: "Hey Christ, you b******, heal me!" Not refering to anyone or anything in particular. Just brainstorming.

Hey Stoker, I'm interested. Keep your thoughts coming. 

Number 2.


Remember "The Fly" from Achtung Baby? Smack dab in the middle like "Boots." They're even structured similarly. I love the comparison. The wicked, ear-searing solo from "The Fly" juxtaposed against the minimalist, tongue-in-cheek, eight-note fly-swat on "Boots." They both function as prologues in my opinion. The phone-call-from-hell vs. the panic-attack-hallucinogenic-revelation-from-the-carnival (epithet needed).

interesting how "Fly" is the phone call from hell and "Unknown Caller" is the phone call from heaven.

Very interesting thread. Appreciate your thoughts Stoker. I'm AWOL from my bed where I should be resting (got the 360 virus) so my brain isn't up to offering ideas tonight, but this is a great thread and should make for some very interesting discussion.

It's been 8 months now folks and nary an in-depth analysis. Don't we owe the band something 'sides our dollars. How 'bout some collective critical project, where we plumb the depths of the album, as a sort of token of our appreciation for it. Ratings and rankings are for children and the public auctioneer/critic. Let's do something meaningful, create some-kind of brain-trust, to seperate ourselves from the common fan and the indifferent critic. This is a fan club right? C'mon brains, bring out yer wares! I'm bying here, but who's selling?

I'll start.

The opening track, for instance, seems to be a kind of "invocation the the muse." Normally, this type of gimmick is found in epic narratives, but who's to say U2 are not making a foray into the epic: they've always been the most "heroic" band in my book. The title of the album, the artwork, and the suggestion of the album originating in two EP's titled "Daylight" and "Darkness," before becoming the album we-all-know, lead me to believe that the band have at least partly attempted a conceptual-type album, meaning we have more than just 11 songs on album: we have a narrative potentially running through the music.

If this kind of analysis leaves a bad taste in your mouth, you know where to find the door. For rest, "c'mon ye people, stand up for your love." (Sexual innuendo intended for mass consumption.)

Love your writing style, Stoker. Here's an excerpt from my album review. Still brainstorming on the meaning, but I think we are heading towards the pivot point of the whole album, which is "Crazy Tonight".


"This is not the sound of four men comfortably heading towards middle age, secure with their legacy in the music world.  This is the sound of four men searching for spiritual salvation, infinity, perfect love, magnificence in the mundane, new destinations, and hope. The journey is a varied one, through Middle Eastern port towns and French streets and gritty scenes of despair and doubt. But U2 never loses sight of U2, and they bring themselves along wherever they go.  Stopping just short of a "concept album", but retaining the feel of an epic, Bono and the boys aim for the loftiest of goals, wanting to blur the line between earth and heaven."

i dont think the turning point is crazy, but more in boots....

NLOTH-Crazy is just a natural progression that seems natural, then crazy ends on this beautiful note, when the heavy drums hit in and boots start everything changes for me