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U2: War Criminals or Holy Warriors?

March 6, 2009 @ 8:18 am

Prompted by Brother Barney‘s memory of approval from Bono of his review of “Pop” by U2, I want to ask with plaintive and honest enquiry: What do people see in this band, our own scribble frat/sorority included. I have tried for decades to penetrate this mystery, alas in vain.

Every year or two I try to listen to “The Joshua Tree” and beyond its enjoyable if needy singles find it devoid of attraction. And now U2 have influenced at least one generation of bands, whose own freight of vacuity and tedium is paralysing.

People speak of the “passion” of U2. To me, The Smiths possess passion, The Replacements possess passion. Dammit, on a good day Daft Punk evince passion. But U2? The Edge is a tremendous technician, Bono is a fine singer, they all “rock”. I can’t see what it adds up, though, as album after sententious and winning album drops off the production line.

Enlighten me, let me not be lost in the outer darkness of endless replayings of Dylan’s “Not Dark Yet“, which is what U2 aspire to but couldn’t do if their royalties depended on it. I would have the Leprechaun Zeppelin shipped to The Hague to be tried for crimes against popular music but I know that most out there see them as noble warriors of rock. Save me!

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Comments (14)

14 Comments »

Always hated them. Hated that ghastly “widescreen” racket they made. Hated their grim, jerry-built anthems. But most of all, I didn’t fuck up most of my education only to start accepting lectures on politics/the planet/God etc. from that pompous wanker Bono.

Comment by Mark Pringle — March 6, 2009 @ 4:20 pm
I’m glad it’s not only me that has been totally pissed off with the coverage this band have been getting over the last couple of weeks.Did anyone see The Culture Show aka Smug Wankers Lovefest? Was it me or did the lothario bass player with a big knob squirm each time Bonio aka Robin Williams lost bastard son opened his mouth and promptly fell in it.The added bonus was that we got the other giant ego with negligible talent aka Bob Geldof to prattle on about how great and real U2 are.Getting a thumbs up from Wurzel O’Gummidge is about as appetising and credible as listening to a bootleg of outtakes by Juliette Lewis and the Licks.
PS-Is it true that Bono is in financial dire straits because of all the money he spends flying in private jets when he’s out there saving the planet.

Comment by Peter Makowski — March 6, 2009 @ 5:51 pm
Oh thank God someone else thinks Bob Geldof is a smug prick. I’ve encountered the man twice – 20 years apart – and both times he was an arrogant egocentric arsehole. It was somewhat galling at the Brits a few years ago to find myself quite enjoying the musicianship of his band.

Comment by Jonh Ingham — March 6, 2009 @ 5:58 pm
Years ago a great rock crit, Robert Christgau, intro’d a Village Voice piece on Live Skull (dig it up, crew! I cite it! with a brilliant downer on then-triumphant U2 and Bozo, sorry, Bono. I am reassured that some of my colleagues also disdain the pint-sized Messiah of the Emerald Isle. Fundamentally I find them boring and mediocre. And they’ve poisoned 25 years of music.

Comment by Jeremy Gluck — March 6, 2009 @ 6:14 pm
Another thing, while we’re bitching: I can’t stand how every time there is a doc about some rock n roll figure Bozo is there with his sage appraisal. An example is the otherwise excellent Strummer documentary: Who cares what Bono thought of The Clash? Why, purely due to sales, is he the Methuselah of Rock? Where the streets have no point.

Comment by Jeremy Gluck — March 6, 2009 @ 6:36 pm
I just had to write something about U2 for Uncut – okay, call me a shameless whore (“shameless whore! shameless whore!”) – and found myself reminiscing about my one and only interview with the former Paul Hewson and the former… fuck, I’ve gone blank on the Edge’s real name… and, well, you’ll just have to read my apologia for being suckered by those bonny Doblin charmers, though I offer a sneak-preview of a side-swipe at Brian St. John Baptiste LaSalle etc etc Eno’s Fruit Salts: “What a chancer the Egghead of Woodbridge is: an avatar of the avant-garde who yet contrives to snag points on some of the biggest multi-plat pop-rock records of the last three decades…”Do I basically believe U2 are the phoniest rock group of all time (excepting all their Snowplay/Killers of Leon spawn)? Why, of course I do.

Comment by Barney Hoskyns — March 7, 2009 @ 7:28 pm
I’d have more respect for Bono – and Bob G – if, instead of merely posturing and lecturing and spouting inane platitudes about world poverty/the planet, they actually donated even a hundredth of their annual income to their causes.

I quite like U2′s music when I block out the pomp. But people’s personalities are so integral to their art, so it’s difficult to separate the decent tunes from the big red agitating face.

Comment by Leyla Sanai — March 7, 2009 @ 10:00 pm
I hear ya, Barney. The Kings of Leon connection is telling. I recall my eldest daughter returning from her first big festival, where she had witnessed the band. On fire with the mission she marched me to HMV and asked to stand by while she bought their debut CD. I gently said that she would be better off spending her remaining cash on “Exile on Main Street” and hear it done properly. She heeded her wise father, and as she listened to the hoary album her expression as the scales fell from her eyes (and ears) was heartwarming.

Comment by Jeremy Gluck — March 10, 2009 @ 7:15 am
My heart is duly warmed. I didn’t mind early K of L (‘The Bucket’) etc but they’ve turned into something both po-faced and shamelessly grandiose. The guitar player so badly wants to be a kind of gothic version of the Edge it’s embarrassing. The spell of Exile never wears off, does it. I recently read Bob Greenfield’s book on Nellcote and the summer of smack and it only made me revere the record even more!

Comment by Barney Hoskyns — March 10, 2009 @ 8:57 am
I know. “Exile”s sound brings to mind a Pythonism: “…a vast bowl of pus”. In the case of the album, with floaters

Comment by Jeremy Gluck — March 10, 2009 @ 9:00 am
Whew… I’m gald there is finally a proper U2 backlash as I have never understood why they are alotted teh stsus they have. I just think they make forthe most part pretty crappy records. I’ve tried to “get” them and just think they are very souless for a band that is supposed to be all aout soul.

There is just not a single iota of the reckless abandon that the best rock and roll posesses. Everything is just way too calculated sounding. And the songswiritng os really bad too.. ONE is something that you would write as a pretentious school kid. I did the early guitar stuff because Edge was at least ripping off interesting people like Keith Levene.

Now don’t get me started on Coldplay.. music for people who hate music.

Comment by Bob Collum — March 10, 2009 @ 9:29 am
Bob, you’re all het up here but I could hug you. Ues, U2 are indeed U-One, a parody of rock. Not rock’n'roll, they couldn’t get there with a seeing eye dog and an Indian scout. No, basically their success is due to the fact that in this culture the mediocrity is the message.

Comment by Jeremy Gluck — March 10, 2009 @ 11:18 am
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.

Sarah

http://www.lyricsdigs.com

Comment by Sarah — March 10, 2009 @ 11:40 am
I just realized I am the Bono of typing!

Comment by Bob Collum — March 10, 2009 @ 4:20 pm