I understand your point of view on this Parton - we just seem to differ in opinion on the quality of their recent output. Fair enough!

I think they've a lot more capability in them than making one more great album though... look at Sonic Youth - they turned a huge corner with "Murray Street" in 2002 and have knocked out another 2 cracking albums since. I'd love to see U2 do the same.

true but the major difference is that U2 (well bono anyway) has to be relevant and mainstream popular all the time......

Sonic Youth knocked out Sonic Nurse which i loved but sure it sold peanuts.....

perhaps thats the roadblock...constant reafirmiming this "biggest band in the world thing"..but then many would argue that that is what makes them who they are..

Achtung Baby sold by the truckload. It's U2 for goodness sake, they could release a blank CD-R with Bonos smiley head on it and it would sell a decent amount of copies. No-one else is in the same position nowadays, they are commercially successful, yet can easily afford to take more risks without damaging that success greatly. They can get truly original records into the homes of millions worldwide, but don't take full advantage of that situation nowadays and thats sad.

I couldn't have put it better.

Hi all. All sounds very buisnessy to me. Don't really understand it. But sounds like someone is cashing in. anyway as a sideshow here are; My veiws on U2, whilst listening to How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb and singing to a tapping beat and as high as I can go. Its pretty sad. Its very sad. Get my family out of my head and this house. I have quit my job and my boss was kindof creepy. I can rise. I'm falling. I want to feel. Keep singing. Disect so much till you can't feel. Sing into microphones for the shock of your life. Sing badly live and when your voice cracks on the pivotal high note, start laughing in a childlike way. Its sad. I can make it work!! Escapism leads nowhere. Confusion abounds. I can't remember a song I've heard all day. Every contact with PEOPLE you have ever experienced. How can people have too much condfidence? Huh Bono. Kindof happy. Otherworldly??? I need to sing higher!! What have I become these days. Sing Higher! This has to sell. This must be meaningful. Bono can raise his hands to the skies. I don't understand this!! Sing higher. I can't sing any higher!! Laughter removed. She was f**king right all along, and I thought I knew. NO self-abasing words. I believe. Petty feelings of not understanding and i don't like it must be risen above by singing higher. Stop this doubt! I've heard this too much maybe. Must sing higher. This is something else. Words are artful and cunning - very bad!! This music is just TOO good.
Too long maybe. Do you remember? I feel tired. Got three tracks left yet.

Whadyou think. Good music journalism? I'm not gonna come down.