What is the opinion of the Org on U2?

I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that there will be MANY opinions on U2, and that The Org as a whole will never be able to come to a consensus.

Personally, my opinion on U2 can be summed up in one word: "eh."

Don't love 'em, don't hate 'em. I've been crazy about some of their songs and albums in the past, and sometimes their music annoys the hell outta me. Bono irritates me, but I don't think he's an awful person and I wish more pop performers had stage presence like his.

So yeah. "Eh."

Rodya24 said:

Don't ask; don't tell.

Well, I'll start.

I love several of their singles, in particular from the '80s. But I think they are highly overrated.

Thoughts?

Anxiety said:

Wow. Sums about how I feel about them really, really well.

PFunkjazz said:

I joined last month, so have not had the opportunity to read threads on U2.

I am guessing the band generates extreme emotions?

BUMP.

I love their ZOO TV period and albums , everything before is pretty much over-rated , everything after ZOO TV is pretty good . Theyve been a great singles act but a lot of their albums leave me underwhelmed . I don't begrudge them thier success though , they're still huge aren't they .

moonshine said:

Yeah, I agree.

Though sometimes I have a love and hate relationship with their music.
[Edited 9/19/07 16:18pm]

I only own one album (the most recent one) but I like a good handful of their songs. They put on a good live show...

I might be the only one here, but I really like them. From what I've seen, they put on excellent shows and Joshua Tree is one of my favorites. Bono has, or at least had, an amazing voice with great range and power. I just love the emotion in his voice. And U2 had a very unique sound. I actually found them to be kind of slow when I first heard them, but they really grew on me.

waw2002 said:

I'll agree with that! Personally I think all of their 1980s stuff was top notch.
Achtung Baby was a totally different direction and I really dig that album, especially the many dance remixes of certain tracks like 'Even better than the real thing.'

After that, I tend to like the odd album/track but they can still make some pretty good songs and I agree that from what I've seen of their live shows, apart from Bono's soapbox moments (but hey, every artist/band from 1980s seems to do this now) they can sure as hell perform.

Darn org glitch

As I was saying..... I like U2

Rodya24 said:

love them! then continually release great songs and pretty consistant albums.

I enjoy certain songs rather than being a fan of the band itself.

More partial to some of the very early tunes like I Will Follow, Gloria, etc.
The initial attraction was to the rather unique (at that time) guitar sound of The Edge.


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

love 'em

Their last couple albums or so haven't done much for me, but I like the stuff before that! But I have to admit I've never been to a live show.

One reason people have strong feelings is down to Bono being all up in everyone's face with his social and political activities. I suspect some folks just got tired of him and by extension, them.

substance. sound. purpose. innovation. style.

just a few words that have to be used when discussing the band. yeah, a lot of people love 'em. yeah, a lot of people dislike them.

no other band of this generation has changed the way media is used in live performance. ZOO TV...the tour that made the world of live entertainment go weird. or is it wired? probably both.

no other rock band in this generation has brought so many social issues to the forefront of pop culture, be it apartheid in south africa or world debt and poverty or arizona's lack of celebrating martin luther king day. the band single handedly introduced millions of young college students to amnesty international and greenpeace by giving the organizations free ad space on every one of their records. ah, those records...

most importantly, the music. they may have championed great causes and made important social statements but its u2's music that has really brought people closer together. i know there are people who dislike their music, maybe even hate it (is that possible?). the mission of the music, though, stands up to the name. a U2 is a fighter aircraft and u2 is a fighter's band, fighting for the working stiff and, more importantly, those without voice. with sound, purpose, substance, style, and innovation, u2 have proven that rock n'roll really can change the world.

or something like that.
[Edited 9/19/07 22:57pm]

All time favorite band. Haven't released a bad (or sub-par) album yet. Saw them in concert and was completely blown away.

I respect them more than I like them.

I think I liked them without even knowing it as their music was the background for most of my formative years. I’d say one of my favorite bands but I’ve been slacking in my study of them the last several years.

I owned one of their albums back when I was like 14 years old. I guess I could still bear to listen to some of their cuts, but overall, I'm not very keen on the band.

"Eh" Is a good word for it

I have complete indifference towards U2.

u2 brings out alot of different emotions due to Bono and his activism and work like that, i think Sting brings similar emotions from people. U2 came from a time when there were still GREAT bands! You cant take anything away from that time period and the great "diverse" bands that came out of that very early 80's time. I do think u2 is still continuing its greatness and doing better music now then at other times, i think "all that you cant leave behind" ranks as one of the best records of this decade. So im not one of those people who think that artists "lose" something with age, most of them tend to gain something. As for Bono, well, he doesnt really care, and never has, he has that great 80's spirit of being able to "form events and causes" i dont see that coming out of very many people anymore, everytime there is some event or benefit i see the same people running it, Bono,mellencamp,elton etc... I also think that Bono has great opinions on things, he many times said that INXS and Michael Hutchence were the better band and he wishes he had that "charm" that Michael had, or back in 2000 when Bono said that he stole "Beautiful Day"'s catch phrase "Touch Me" from a-Ha's 1986 hit "sun always shines on tv" because he thinks they are still one of the best bands, just unrecognized here.

They've had some outstanding musical moments, the Zoo TV tour was amazing. But...but...Bono just isn't loveable. He comes out with some absolute shit in interviews. Non charisma masquerading as charisma. Plus, it's off putting how he always seems to have his eye on U2 being considered one of the greats. This self awareness ironically stops them from being so

To quote Prince closing a song during the June Xenophobia concerts: "I love U2, but not the band"

As for me ditto. Though the Joshua tree was OK. I've tried, maybe I need the live experience.

I like a couple of their songs

andymacfunky said:

or you're just not into their thing. there's a ton of greats that i just don't get into. hendrix, for one. dylan's another. i know they are great but i can't get into them. i've tried, it's just not my cuppa.

I love them. Their last album "How To Dismantle" was an incredible album. IMO. My absolute favorites are the 80s albums, especially "Boy" and "War."

I try to ignore what Bono's doing politically, though, because I have no interest in it. All I care about is the music.
[Edited 9/20/07 13:09pm]