MARK'S NOTCAST Ep 46 : U2's "Pop" ... (or "Shouting At God").15 Jan 2021.
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- Опубликовано: 15 сен 2024
- Mark's Notcast Episode 46 : U2's "Pop" ... (or "Shouting At God"). This time round a deep dive into U2's flawed, fascinating tenth studio album*, the failure of selling 7 million albums, mid-life crisis, the use of classic Pop/Art imagery such as Warhol, Munch and Lichtenstein, the lyrics and narrative structure of the album, CD Bloat, Directors Cuts, why the worst songs of every U2 album are named after places or countries, "The Crunch", music as a brand, the McDonalds Arch of Pop, Pop/Mart, the premature nostalgia of "Discotheque", the greatest U2 gif on the Internet, the remixed/re-recorded and revised versions on the singles and the compilations, and the best Jarvis Cocker quote there is.
I remember very well when this came out. I had a sneaking suspicion that the band were going for their "Sgt Pepper". The mid 90's was bursting with creativity in the Arts, especially in the U.K. Tracy Emin, Damien Hurst, Ok Computer, Urban Hymns, Howard Marks, Chemical Brothers, Raves, Trainspotting.. the list is practically endless. The fact is the album was well received in the press at the the time, the band did very well on door receipts. But they weren't the cool kids, and that stung.
The band also got the shock of their life when they found out that Americans were yet to experience and embrace rave culture, from memory I think they called the it U2's Electonica" album, and I think that and solely that frightened the bejaysus out them.
U2's only saving grace was that before POP, America embraced them without reservation. The U.K rag press have tried to bury the band since 1982, so when they thought they'd lost America, they reverted to type.
POP is a very brave album. I also remember Liam Howlett turning the band down for production duties. That would have been an unbelievable paring and would have punctured the U.S market better as Fat Of The Land was a U.S smash hit. At the time, POP did sound very unsexy and stiff compared to Howlett's soul punk groove, ironically, in 2022, POP is a beautiful listen and FOTL sounds incrediblly dated.
My preferred running order :
01. Discotheque (2002 Mix)
02. Mofo
03. Do You Feel Loved?
04. Staring At The Sun (2002 Mix)
05. If You Wear That Velvet Dress
06. If God Will Send His Angels (Single Mix)
07. Gone (2002 Mix)
08. Last Night On Earth (Single Version)
09. North And South Of The River
10. Please (Single Mix)
11. Wake Up, Dead Man
I've always felt "Your blue room"would have worked well.
@@theartistformallyknownasdi5338 Yes, it would've been ideal to replace "If You Wear That Velvet Dress", I think.
Brilliant. P🍋P still sounds new to me and doesn't date. Gonna check out the singles tomorrow not listened to them for a while👍 completely agree about Please, needs to be played again.
crazy that u2 we're so huge at that time they made an album that took the piss out of themselves and I still love it 😂. u2s ability to keep reinventing for decades is ridiculous. one of the All time great musical acts
My top 5 would be:
1. Achtung, Baby
2. The Joshua Tree
3. Zooropa
4. All the Things That You Can’t Leave Behind
5. Pop
POP is a masterpiece. It gets a slow start with Mofo and Do You Feel Loved but after that it’s a masterpiece. Just listened to the finale Velvet Dress, Please, Wake Up Dead Man wow what a record.
I get why a lot of fans don’t like Pop, but it is one of my favs. It is a little rough around the edges, and there are a couple of weak tracks; ‘Do You Feel Love’ feels half baked and ‘Playboy Mansion’ feels lazy. I don’t mind ‘Miami’ at all, I think it’s a groovy interlude on the album...reminds me of that other much maligned track ‘Elvis ate America’ on Passengers. ‘If God would save his Angels’ is I think a lovely track, which seems to have found renewed appreciation recently after U2 VEVO finally uploaded the Phil Joanou video for it.
I think the best studio versions of the songs are on the album itself - the new mixes are I think quite awful. ‘Discotheque’ for example feels like the buzz and energy has been zapped out of it. The single mix of ‘Please’ is ok, but feels overproduced - missing the trippy feel of the album original.
I think when U2 released Pop, they were satisfied with it, but somehow convinced themselves the songs were unfinished once the ‘poor’ sales figures and feedback rolled in.
You’re right third best. U2’s best is War Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby and POP. The best album after the 2000s is How to Dismantle. I really don’t understand how POP was so negatively received yet All That You Can’t Leave Behind was a multi Grammy Winner. That album had a few great songs but it was mostly filler.
Hi Mark, I have recently discovered your channel. Wow what a great and informative review you provide! Excellently and enthusiastically presented you back opinion with fact. For a a die-hard U2 fan who have followed through the thick and thin you have given a great insight into the much maligned ‘Pop’ album. I agree with all of your points specifically that the band tried to hard with this recording. There was simply too much going on and the ‘wrapping’ or the shop window of the tour suffered in its initial incarnation. I once read that U2 work in three album ‘arc’s’ and this I feel is what happened here. There was never going to be a top to Achtung Baby/Zooropa and the whole ZooTV experience. Pop carried that trajectory and the bubble burst - ‘Pop’ indeed! Not withstanding there are as you point out some real gems in there and during the tour these did shine through. I suppose without it and the lessens learnt we would not have had the U2 today, maybe not even a U2 at all, as All that you can’t leave behind, was the much needed return to form, not in experimentation but the discipline and focus of old. A great review - I have subscribed and can see there is a prolific out put to get stuck into
I'll run out of albums... eventually. I think I have about 80 future ones in mind as is. Yikes! Good thing I don't get bored of the sound of my own voice.
SEVEN MILLION RECORDS.....
FAILURE.
That's the U2 standard right there folks. That's really all that needs to be said about this band. You know your fucking massive when you sell 7 million records and it's called a "failure"....Holy. Fucking. Shit.
Now, I love U2. LOVE them. And Pop might, quite possible, be my favorite U2 record. And Popmart.....Is fucking INSANE. In a good way. Cheers.
Looking for to save my, save my soul..... Lookin' for the flowers where no flowers grow......
Yes, I agree one of their greatest. What came after was disappointing. It was experimental and not for the masses.
What came next.... I pull no punches when I get there! (that'll be next week)
Great video and a sublime album. Shame it was rushed and you explained it well. The songs grew so well live. I know you’re not keen but Miami blew me away when I saw them in Leeds on that tour. Completely different from the album version. Keep up the good work.
"Miami" was much better live than on record - I talk a little about it in the PopMart episode. :)
I saw them at Leeds too and ‘Miami’ was the surprise track for me...very powerful sound that boomed around the park. Great stuff.
Pop Art...Pop Mart....Pop Mark....Pop Marketing....brilliantly brilliant.
A great album underrated...I love it!
Here's a remix/re-edit I made of "Mofo" a few years ago, by the way. www.mixcloud.com/mrmarkreed/u2-mofo-mfrr-extended-remix/
'Pop' has such variety, it's overblown but it was meant to sound that way.
Pop is a great album that could of been even better
Very true - throw in the single mixes, whack out "Miami" and "The Playboy Mansion" and stick "North And South Of The River" instead.
I love Gone!
Wow ... i've ruined my POP TourBook ... to frame the midle foilled poster .... i love the result of the frame ... but as a collector ... i cry that i did it !
That Tshirt !!!!! Its EVER U2 Favourite Tshirt Bought it in the POPMart Tour in LIsbon ... that and the Brazil "soccer" shirt ....
eheheh ;)
its said to be the incomplete U2's album ... but i love it ....