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Mark L

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I haven't bothered with U2 since The Joshua Tree. But hey, look at the publicity they're getting from this Apple tie-in

 

I had some 'business' cards printed before I went on holiday to Majorca. They had my name and Soundcloud link on them. My intention was to leave them lying around in the various resorts we visited whilst there

 

During our time in Majorca I completely forgot I had them. Doh!

 

I'm not very good at this self-promotion thang ;)

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I haven't bothered with U2 since The Joshua Tree. But hey, look at the publicity they're getting from this Apple tie-in

 

[...])

I bought Boy (first album) when it came out based on a few tunes on the radio and, after listening all the way through twice, gave the record to my buddy's kid, who traded it for a GBH album.

 

I'm very much not a fan. There was a phase at my local coffee house when about half the baristas were playing U2 all the time. That was when I realized how nice the sidewalk cafe section was...

 

 

I'm not sure a giveaway that turns mega-cyber-reverse-platinum was necessarily what they had in mind... wink_zpsa9897a65.gif

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Well let's be somewhat fair here. The connection between U2 and Apple goes back quite a ways. There were those special edition "Red" iPods with engraved signatures awhile back and Apple has worked with Bono on charity stuff in the past. So if they were going to pick a band to work with on this, U2 would be their obvious first choice.

 

As far as anyone personally being a fan or not? Whatever. That's just personal taste. Some people love 'em. Some people hate 'em. Most fall somewhere in the middle. Pretty much like every other musical act in the world. Personally, I fall somewhere in the middle.

 

U2's biggest failing at this point might be just never breaking up. How many other bands can say they've had the same original members for 38 years? That alone is a pretty amazing feat. ZZ Top might be the only band to do that for longer. And there's only 3 of those guys.

 

"Mysterious Ways" was playing over the speakers at the supermarket this morning though. Took me back to 1991-92 when "Achtung Baby" was huge. Great times. Great album. Saw that "Zoo TV" tour that year too. Great show.

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That stunt nearly cost him his life - as I understand it, it almost didn't hold his weight. He could have easily fallen to his death.

 

And FWIW, up to and including Achtung Baby, I generally like the band quite a bit. I bought their records and saw them live several times. War is one of my favorite albums, and Joshua Tree and Unforgettable Fire are both great records too IMHO. As far as Pop and the later albums, I just never really put any time into checking them out... which is probably not all that uncommon in this post-album Internet world we live in, and that, along with changing demographics and tastes, is probably at least partially responsible for their lessened popularity today.

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Don't forget the US Festival' date=' which provided big momentum to the band; the press corps were fawning and starry-eyed when Bono climbed around in the rigging or whatever he did. It was sponsored by Wozniak, I guess, and not Apple, but it was a connection.[/quote']

 

Yeah, Wozniak had left Apple the year before.

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And FWIW, up to and including Achtung Baby, I generally like the band quite a bit. I bought their records and saw them live several times. War is one of my favorite albums, and Joshua Tree and Unforgettable Fire are both great records too IMHO. As far as Pop and the later albums, I just never really put any time into checking them out...

 

I'm in the same boat as you, although I did check out their later stuff. They definitely took a deliberate left turn after "Achtung Baby". Which I thought was cool because it was deliberate, but it wasn't really my thing so I kind of lost interest in them after that. "All That You Can't Leave Behind" was just so-so, but I think the hit singles on that album were as strong as any they had done before, which is saying quite a bit for a band already 20+ years into their career at that point. Even if they were just kind of painting-by-numbers with the songs at that point.

 

"How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb". hmmmm....well, I think "Vertigo" was a really good single and still like that song a lot when I hear it.

 

"No Line On The Horizon". I didn't even know that album existed, so there's that post-album internet world for ya. It's possible I'd recognize one of the singles if I heard it, but the song titles don't ring a bell for me.

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I think some of the backlash may be due to the solopsistic nature of the internet these days. It's all about ME! It's MY playlist, it's MY iTunes account, and don't stick your fingers in there! Giving a free rock album away is a bit more reminiscent of the hippie mentality.

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I haven't bothered with U2 since The Joshua Tree.

I picked up The Unforgettable Fire when it came out. When The Joshua Tree arrived, I was eager to see how they could possibly follow up the brilliance of TUF, and discovered they hadn't. They'd pop-i-fied (like Genesis did after Hackett left) and I was very disappointed. I felt it was particularly an insult to all the powerful Northern Ireland political songs they'd done.

 

 

Mark, we hit Black Market Daydreams for the first time yesterday with our almost-complete band lineup. The guitarists (we have two) were having a lot of fun with it, and noted that it's critical to hit the verse/chorus transitions exactly right and perfectly together. Everyone loves it, and we're already talking about how we'll adapt it to our style.

 

We did record the practice, but I'm not going to post any of it because it has me on vocals -- we had a serious issue with our lead singer -- and my vocals make yours sound like Caruso. While I did "sing" it, my vocal range is severely limited and so it's either too low in the verse, or slightly too high in the chorus and way high for me in the middle 8. That of course is why the band has a real lead singer who isn't me. :lol:

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I picked up The Unforgettable Fire when it came out. When The Joshua Tree arrived, I was eager to see how they could possibly follow up the brilliance of TUF, and discovered they hadn't. They'd pop-i-fied (like Genesis did after Hackett left) and I was very disappointed. I felt it was particularly an insult to all the powerful Northern Ireland political songs they'd done.

 

 

Mark, we hit Black Market Daydreams for the first time yesterday with our almost-complete band lineup. The guitarists (we have two) were having a lot of fun with it, and noted that it's critical to hit the verse/chorus transitions exactly right and perfectly together. Everyone loves it, and we're already talking about how we'll adapt it to our style.

 

We did record the practice, but I'm not going to post any of it because it has me on vocals -- we had a serious issue with our lead singer -- and my vocals make yours sound like Caruso. While I did "sing" it, my vocal range is severely limited and so it's either too low in the verse, or slightly too high in the chorus and way high for me in the middle 8. That of course is why the band has a real lead singer who isn't me. :lol:

 

Ha! What makes you think I can sing my own songs? It's all done using smoke and mirrors, you know ;)

 

Well done to you for having a crack at singing it, and my thanks to you and the guys for covering it. I'm really keen to hear your arrangement :)

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Somehow this thread veered into a U2 thread… two things:

 

1) I think U2 is one of the most misunderstood bands. People are obsessed over Bono`s larger than life persona buts thats it: its all an act. His calling is towards serving humanity. I know many will disagree with that because they get sucked into the stage act. But the message in all their lyrics is about unity, reconciliation, redemption, etc… Lets face it, they are a Christian band. I can understand a non-Christian being annoyed or upset about their popularity. Some may deny this but I really do think the subtle Christian message in all their songs does get on some nerves. I also think this subtle message is why they are so huge still and why their concerts take on a church like atmosphere, church as in "charismatic"…. lying in the spirit sort of… if you will. Whether or not you or me like them, their popularity goes beyond the music. Sort of like the beatles… I know… blasphemy. But thats the thing… a guy like me who was an 80s child loves U2. This is the band that I have the most emotional connection with. They were the biggest band in the world and some would still argue that they still are. The fact that this is even still a conversation speaks volumes about how big they are and in my opinion, how important their music is to so many people. I love their songs. I wish I could write half as good tunes. The lyrics really resonate with my own philosophy and their music still gives me chills. Yes, like all popular bands there is the tried and true method of writing tunes but whats wrong with that? They`re spreading good energy throughout the world and yes, they are sometimes over the top with it but its well intentioned and at the end of the day, it makes peoples lives happier and better.

 

The backlash they have gotten over the free record is silly and it speaks volumes about where people are at these days. They want free music but then they complain that it was put on them unwillingly. I own Apple products from desktops, laptops, to cell phones, to iPods… not one device had the album on it. I had to voluntarily go to the site and download the album. I`ll probably buy the album too on vinyl when its released. This brings me to my next point...

 

2) And this is getting back to Mark`s idea of free music…. I completely disagree. I`m a rebel in this way. I don`t think its a good idea to give away anything for free when it comes to art. People can listen to my tracks on sound cloud as well but I don`t give them the option to download it. Yeah, if you really love the record, buy it. If you don`t want to take the time and mental energy to sit there and consciously listen to it then you are unworthy of the music in the first place. Maybe thats my huge ego talking but I put a lot of time and energy into what I do and I appreciate the effort that all writers and producers put into their projects even if I don`t like it. I will sit there and give it a listen, meaning, I will stop doing what I`m doing and actively listen to it. Everything is so disposable now that we have forgotten this little device called attention.

 

This is the product of the internet. We have everything we want a few clicks away and the problem is we cannot focus on just one thing so we`re off to another site, another product…. more music, more videos, more information, more "knowledge"…

 

The issue for me is getting back to active and conscious participation in music listening. How is this done? I don`t have an answer to that but thats what I`m striving for when I listen to something. I`m going to start a thread on this topic because I have more to say but I don`t want to veer this thread off into yet another direction. ;)

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Lets face it, they are a Christian band. I can understand a non-Christian being annoyed or upset about their popularity. Some may deny this but I really do think the subtle Christian message in all their songs does get on some nerves

 

 

 

 

I don't consider myself a Christian, but the way they subtly deliver their Christian message is one of the things I like most about U2. All of the stuff I like about Christianity without all the preachiness and exclusionary and fundamentalist tone that is so much a part of modern American Christianity.

 

Maybe that's because they aren't American? :idk:

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Downloads, that is

 

Well.....why not? :)

 

 

They may as well be free. Nobody makes any significant money in music anymore. I made my music free to download a few months ago and not many people seem interested, even though one of the albums had first ballot grammy nominations. I don't recommend that people quit their day jobs for music careers.

 

 

If anyone is interested in checking out the albums, go to

 

http://www.nimbit.com/kennybegun

 

This is not your typical cookie cutter christian music. Go ahead, it's free to download. I won't share your email with anyone (use a fake one if you want). If for no other reason, check out how quick Nimbit downloads onto smart phones. Each digital album took less than a minute and another minute to unzip. Elegant!

 

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