Imagine walking into your living room and all your stuff is there, but itB次元官网网址檚 different. The sofa has moved, the bookcase is leaning on a different wall and the framed photos have swapped locations. ThatB次元官网网址檚 the feeling you get listening to U2B次元官网网址檚 new album.
B次元官网网址淪ongs of SurrenderB次元官网网址� is a B次元官网网址渞eimaginingB次元官网网址� of 40 songs from the Irish quartetB次元官网网址檚 deep catalogue, cleverly presented from B次元官网网址淥neB次元官网网址� to B次元官网网址�40.B次元官网网址� Think of it as a thrilling home makeover.
B次元官网网址淚 want to tear down the walls that hold me inside,B次元官网网址� Bono sings in the new B次元官网网址淲here the Streets Have No NameB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� lyrics that perfectly fit this sonic experiment. This version of the song is virtually unrecognizable from the one the band made famous in 1987.
ThatB次元官网网址檚 the point of this exercise led by Bono and The Edge. B次元官网网址淥nce we surrendered our reverence for the original version, each song started to open up to a new authentic voice of this time,B次元官网网址� The Edge writes in the liner notes.
There are triumphs and a few fumbles, but thereB次元官网网址檚 a growing realization that the architecture of these songs is strong indeed, even with some new lyrics. The new B次元官网网址淰ertigoB次元官网网址� has Middle Eastern instrumentations, while an acoustic guitar-driven B次元官网网址淪unday Bloody SundayB次元官网网址� sounds more like something from a coffeehouse open-mic night than a strident arena-ready demand. But theyB次元官网网址檙e both still gorgeous.
Some might even be improvements. One of the bandB次元官网网址檚 earliest hits B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址�11 OB次元官网网址機lock Tick TockB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� is smoother, slower and cleaner than the original. And would you believe the new B次元官网网址淭he Miracle (Of Joey Ramone)B次元官网网址� might be better than the one on B次元官网网址淪ongs of InnocenceB次元官网网址�?
Many reworkings are relatively straight-forward, like B次元官网网址淐edarwood Road,B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址淧eace on Earth,B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址淏adB次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址淚 Will Follow.B次元官网网址� Most have a stripped-down feel, which gives BonoB次元官网网址檚 voice little shelter amid moody keyboards or choppy acoustic guitar. B次元官网网址淓very Breaking WaveB次元官网网址� is cinematic, like something that should run over the end credits when an anguished drama has faded to black.
B次元官网网址淚 Still HavenB次元官网网址檛 Found What IB次元官网网址檓 Looking For,B次元官网网址� gets a cowboy vibe and unexpected honky-tonky electricity. B次元官网网址淒esireB次元官网网址� has Bono high in his falsetto against a strummy dulcimer and the effect is hypnotic.
B次元官网网址淕et Out of Your Own WayB次元官网网址� is remade as a Mumford & Sons tune, in a good way, and the new B次元官网网址淪tuck in a MomentB次元官网网址� is a folkish prayer, the structure holding. The new B次元官网网址淥neB次元官网网址� is a little marred by a choir effect, but it is such a beautiful song that it could be remade as a punk tune and it would still sparkle.
Listening to the new B次元官网网址淪ometime You CanB次元官网网址檛 Make It On Your OwnB次元官网网址� is like running into an ex who is barely recognizable. The reworked B次元官网网址淲ith or Without YouB次元官网网址� has an air of antiseptic menace.
One effect of the album is to put BonoB次元官网网址檚 lyrics under a spotlight, making his words and imagery more pronounced. The new B次元官网网址淥rdinary LoveB次元官网网址� emerges like a tone poem, the new B次元官网网址淚nvisibleB次元官网网址� reveals deeper pain than originally sang.
Some donB次元官网网址檛 work, as when the grimness of B次元官网网址淩ed Hill Mining TownB次元官网网址� is undercut by horns, effectively remaking it into a defanged childrenB次元官网网址檚 song. The new B次元官网网址淏eautiful DayB次元官网网址� is not an improvement over the original; it has been made lounge-y and meandering, despite some nifty new lyrics.
In a new B次元官网网址淧ride (In the Name of Love),B次元官网网址� BonoB次元官网网址檚 voice has been harnessed and tamed, losing the originalB次元官网网址檚 stridency and anger. And the new B次元官网网址�40B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� with Bono appropriately arguing B次元官网网址淚 will sing a new songB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� has been made limp and passive.
If youB次元官网网址檙e not a U2 fan, this collection will not convince you to embrace them. If you are a mega-fan, you will marvel at their mutability. And if you are a casual fan, you must admire a band willing to get in its own way.
B次元官网网址擬ark Kennedy, The Associated Press
