Nov 03, 2001 12:55 PM
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(Updated Nov 03, 2001 12:55 PM)
I admit. I myself was something of a latecomer to U2. Achtung Baby was the album that got me into them. I first had a cassette copy of it when it was released in 1991. Then later on when I upgraded to CD I bought Joshua Tree and later Achtung Baby.
Achtung Baby was the first album U2 released in the 1990s and the first of three that would feature them delving into electronic and industrialized sounds. While this experimentation did alienate a few older fans and would eventually lead to a dead end of sorts (although they did break out of it brilliantly with All You Can't Leave Behind) on here it pointed them in a fresh direction and established them as a force to be reckoned with in the coming decade.
Achtung Baby surprised some older fans with its new direction. Although guitars still feature prominently in the mix, there is an increased emphasis on electronic and industrial sounds. The result is a sound that at times recalls both David Bowie and T Rex. But is distinctly U2.
The album begins with ''Zoo Station''. This song sums up the new U2 sound quite well. The song features bursts of sharp guitar distortion mixed with the synth beat and drumming. This is the song that most recalls T Rex as the beat is similar in a way to the one on ''20th Century Boy''. But the minute you hear Bono's vocals you know its U2. Bono sings ''I'm ready for the gridlock/I'm ready to take it to the street...ready to let go of the steering wheel.''
The next track ''Even Better Than The Real Thing'' begins with a wah-wah like riff mixed with electronic effects and then the pulsating bass line kicks in. The song sounds especially good on the dance floor. Bono sings ''The heart is where it's always been/The head is somewhere in between/Give me one more chance/Let me be your lover tonight/You're the real thing/Even better than the real thing''. According to a story I read a while back, a soft drink company attempted to co-opt this song for an ad campaign to compete with Coke. If such an offer was even made then U2 definitely refused.
''One'' is a classic U2 ballad. Over a simple acoustic guitar line Bono sings: ''Is it getting better/Or do you feel the same/Will it make it easier on you know/You've got someone to blame''. The song could be about a variety of things. The two most commonly suggested possibilities are that it's being sung from a young man who is dying of AIDS to his father or that it's being sung from a hurt lover to the one who jilted them. I myself always leaned more toward the second possibility. Either way, it's a great song. Listen to it and take from the lyrics what you will.
''Until The End Of The World'' was featured prominently in the Wim Winders film of the same name. The song opens with a sharp and extended burst of feedback and then the drumbeat starts before the full backbeat kicks in. Musically the track carries a sort of Bowie influence. The lyrics seem to be about love and betrayal: ''I took the money/I spiked your drink...Lead me on with those innocent eyes/You know I love the element of surprise...In my dream I was drowning my sorrows/But my sorrows they learned to swim/Waves of regret/Waves of joy/I reached out for the one I tried to destroy.''
''Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses'' begins with a synth sound, and then the rock backbeat starts. Lyrically Bono utilizes a lot of metaphors to describe the woman who left him (''You're an accident waiting to happen/You're a piece of glass left on the beach''). In the second verse he gets brutally direct singing: ''Well you stole it/Cause I needed the cash/And you killed him/because I wanted revenge/Well you lied to me/Because I asked you to/Baby/Can we still be friends?'' One of the best breakup songs ever recorded.
''Mysterious Ways'' was another big hit off Achtung Baby. The song is another one that sounds good at a party. The lyrics have a spiritual vibe to them (''It's alright/It's alright/Alright/She moves in mysterious ways''). In the second verse Bono drops a sort of tribute to the late Jimi Hendrix by singing, ''If you wanna kiss the sky/Better learn how to kneel''.
''The Fly'' has a menacing, industrial groove to it. Bono warns that: ''Every artist is a cannibal/Every poet is a thief...A man will rise/A man will fall/From the sheer face of love/Like a fly from a wall.''
Other great songs are the ballad ''So Cruel'' and the trip-hoppish ''Trying To Throw Your Arms Around The World''. ''Love Is Blindness'' ends the album on a disquieting note. Bono begs for the woman in question to ''wrap the night around me''.
Achtung Baby was one of the best albums of the 90s, one of the best albums of all time and one of 4 U2 albums (The other three being War, The Joshua Tree and All That You Can't Leave Behind) that are definite classics. An emotionally striking album of perversity and pain is the best way to sum it up.
