U2

How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (HTDAAB)

You can safely leave this album behind

Review Score:

(6/10)
I'm a long-time U2 fan; I've collected all of the official releases and a number of more obscure ones, and I've seen the band live eight times, going all the way back to the second show on the Joshua Tree tour in April 1987. So, I esteem myself as a reasonably qualified critic of this latest effort, which is a mediocre rehash with a few bright moments and a few numbers that are among the worst U2 have ever recorded.

I'll start with the good stuff. "Vertigo" may be an overdone throwaway that ages very fast, but it has guts and a catchy hook. And unlike the rest of the songs on the album, it doesn't sound identical for its first twenty seconds. "City of Blinding Lights" is brilliant until its lifeless and uninspired chorus practically ruins it; I cringe every time I hear the song, as it rubs my face in the seeming reality that U2 can no longer cap off great intros and verses with anything better than a chant-like, fist-pumping "Oh, you look so beautiful tonight." "Miracle Drug" is a winner both lyrically and musically, and "Yahweh," while a little hard to take for a longtime fan due to its showcasing of Bono's time-weakened voice, has that inspiring, uplifting quality that marks the band's best efforts.

Meanwhile, there are stinkers. Unfortunately, the fact that Bono sang "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" at his father's funeral doesn't save it from being a dull, plodding bore. Ostensibly catchy rockers like "All Because of You" and "Love and Peace or Else" are formulaic filler. And U2 have never unleashed a sonic turd anything like "Man and a Woman," which is even worse than its title, and an embarrassment to all that the band have ever accomplished.

A couple of five-star moments balanced by some one-star bombs and a lot of three-star filler average out to three stars. Look for it at the second-hand CD stores, which are are sure to have plenty of copies.

It is well known among U2 fans that this album was salvaged from sessions that the band had deemed to be sub-par. And while I wanted to love it, the fact is that it isn't very good. Please, guys, make your next album fresh and alive, and not something like this, which promises much but ultimately never rises out of the mire from which it came.

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