Review: U2 scores a hit with Atomic Bomb
Elizabeth Raftery
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Irish rockers U2 have often been hailed as the greatest rock and roll band in the world. It appears that, with each new effort, they seek to reaffirm their title. Their latest release, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, is proof.
From the opening notes of the album's soaring first single, "Vertigo," as lead singer Bono counts off "Unos, dos, tres, catorces!" (literally "one, two, three, forty," but who's counting?), it is apparent that the members of U2 (Bono, guitarist The Edge, bassist Adam Clayton, and drummer Larry Mullen) have not lost their touch, even after nearly a quarter-century's worth of music.
It is clear that the band embraces its place in the hearts of fans, and thrives on the adoration it receives. The driving guitars of "Vertigo," the album's strongest track, create an energy that is irresistible. The chorus brings to mind the familiar image of the band performing to a sold-out stadium. Bono belts, "Hello, hello / We're at a place called Vertigo / Lights go down and all I know / Is that you give me something I can feel." The band has always been humbled by the fanatic adoration of its followers. As the song crashes through the final verse, Bono sings, "Your love is teaching me how, how to kneel."
The members of U2 have always been known for wearing their politics on their sleeves. One of their best-known songs, "Sunday Bloody Sunday," is a reference to the violent political climate in Northern Ireland. In 1985, as its popularity was beginning to grow, the band performed at the benefit concert, LiveAid. And, last year, Bono was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize for his work combating the AIDS epidemic in Africa.
The band's earnest message continues on Atomic Bomb, with tracks like "Love and Peace or Else." Bono implores, "Lay down / lay down your guns / All your daughters of Zion / All your Abraham sons," before repeating "Where is the love?" as the song draws to a close.
After exploring different musical genres from techno to disco throughout the 1990s, All That you Can't Leave Behind was said to be the album that began bringing U2 back to its original sound. On Atomic Bomb, the band has completed the cycle.
"Miracle Drug" marks Bono's return to the romantic, poetic lyrics a la "With Or Without You." He sings, "The songs are in your eyes / I see them when you smile / I've had enough I'm not giving up / On a miracle drug."
The Edge shows off "Where the Streets Have No Name"-esque fingerwork on "City of Blinding Lights." The song is a gorgeous contemplation of the band's rise over the years and, perhaps, all the things that they decided to leave behind them in the process. Bono sings, "The more you see the less you know / The less you find out as you go / I knew much more then than I do now."
The closing track, "Yahweh," leaves the band "still waiting for the dawn." It will also leave fans waiting to see what the reigning kings of rock and roll will come up with next.