U2 101
U2 looked to America, the inspiring and the infuriating, on their fifth album.
A publicity stunt gone awry, and a band reclaiming their soul
Less a return to form than the realization of a new one for the group
U2’s 11th album is a fine enough set of songs, which for a band of their magnitude didn’t feel like enough.
It was fated, I suppose. As much as a great deal of this series has…
An erroneously reviled album that found U2 showcasing their most experimental tendencies.
The beginning of a weird new era and the result of a creative tug-of-war.
The band’s fourth album found them emerging from their post-punk background and entering a bigger, boundless world of art rock.
The band’s close of their early post-punk trilogy opened them up to the heroic possibilities their later ’80s output would fulfill.
After the group’s landmark debut, U2 drew inward for maybe the only time in their career.
We’ve launched a new yearlong project on U2, starting with their post-punk origins.