Reconstructive surgery?

Review Score: (8/10)
I do have to admit that for a while, I thought POP had sunk U2. Recent times and re-exploration of the disc has actually brought it up much higher in my assessment of the U2 catalogue. Pourquoi?

1) There is quite a bit of rattle and hum that goes unnoticed when the album is not listened to via headphones. It is extraordinarily complex. First three seconds of "Mofo" - absolute brilliance!

2) The more minimalist remixes of "Discotheque", "Gone", and "Staring at the Sun" on the new U2 compilation album show the songs for what they are - REALLY GOOD SONGS. Stripped of some of the dance beats, the guitar line in "Discotheque" is perhaps the most exciting moment of mid-90s U2.

I think this album deserves a lot of reconsideration. It is far from perfect, yes. "The Playboy Mansion" and "Miami" are rubbish, yes. But there are some giddy high points hit by this album. Different production could have made this a much-less maligned album - it is dark, it is complex, but it is still really good.

I would be really interested to hear ALL the album tracks (Miami and the Playboy Mansion included) remixed - could be even better! Still, in some ways it's good that this album proved the dark night of the U2 soul for its having pushed "All That You Can't Leave Behind" to become what it was.

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• The bad, rockier, non mainstream U2.
• Missing something
• What a masterpiece is Pop now !!!!!
• The Metamorphosis
• pop goes the weasel
• Too cute for their own good
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• Techno? No. U2? Yes.
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• U2 that Actually Rocks
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• U2s best album to date.
• Let's Go! Let's Go! Let's Go!
• One of U2's most daring albums...
• A natural successor to "Achtung Baby" and "Zooropa"
• Takes a While
• Eletronic meeting
• Rejected For All The Wrong Reasons
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• Lame attempt by U2
• Best album since Joshua Tree
• Excellent Album
• Unusual U2 album mixes slow stuff with techno
• Extremely Strong Album
• Horibly Underated
• A Rich Landscape Of Experimentation.
• Don't know how well it will age, but ...
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• No it's not their greatest but it has a couple of stand outs
• sliding out from under
• Worst of U2's catalog. Without exception.
• Very underrated
• Experimental U2
• MOST UNDERRATED ALBUM EVER
• U2's uncelebrated classic
• U2 speaks from the head
• A masterpiece, SO SHUT UP CRITICS!!
• Good album
• There's Gems, but the experiment doesn't work so well..
• A good(ish) album
• The Lovers, The Misunderstood, and Me
• As essential as the others.
• Taking Steps That Make You Feel Dizzy....
• Techno Rock - Is it heck
• DISAPPOINTING
• U2's Pop is a half finished Masterpiece
• ahead of its time
• U2 at their best!
• Great U2 album!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
• My opinion
• A Rich Blend of Rock and Techno
• Sweet
• Technical But Nothing U2 Fans Ultimately Couldn't Appreciate
• I love this Album
• Good If Not Quite Over The Top
• underrated is an understatement
• one of the most underrated albums of all time
• have it
• The most underrated, most prophetic album of all time
• This is the same band that wrote "Pride," right?
• Staying Ahead
• "Lookin for to fill that God-shaped hole..."
• U2 at thier best
• Boom Cha,Discotheque! (Whatever That Means...)
• U2-Pop
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• The most underated U2 album
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• To say "Pop" grows on you is a HUGE under-statement...
• This album is better than you think - just give it time!
• The U2 album for people who don't really like U2
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• This is a Bunk and Roll and Rhythm and Blues . .
• Good CD, Although That's Not Exactly Original
• POP el mayor fracaso de U2
• Very underrated album
• Truly a monumental album.
• A piece of sheat
• U2's best album.
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• Proves U2 has the guts!
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• Mind Opening Music for Songcraft Aficionados
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• It's U2 in your face!
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• I thought it was somewhat underrated
• pretty weak
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• WAY BEFORE ITS TIME
• the best U2 cd ever!
• one of my favorites