Pop [Orange 2 LP]

by U2

Overview

No matter which way you look at it, Pop doesn't have the same shock of the new that Achtung Baby delivered on first listen. Less experimental and more song-oriented than Zooropa, Pop attempts to sell the glitzy rush of techno to an audience weaned on arena rock. And that audience includes U2 themselves. While they never sound like they don't believe in what they're doing, they still remove most of the radical elements of electronic dance, which is evident to anyone with just a passing knowledge of the Chemical Brothers and Underworld. To a new listener, Pop has flashes of surprise -- particularly on the rampaging "Mofo" -- but underneath the surface, U2 rely on anthemic rockers and ballads. "Discotheque" might be a little clumsy, but "Staring at the Sun" shimmers with synthesizers borrowed from Massive Attack and a Noel Gallagher chorus. Similarly, "Do You Feel Loved" and "If You Wear That Velvet Dress" fuse old-fashioned U2 dynamism with a keen sense of the cool eroticism that makes trip-hop so alluring. Problems arise when the group tries to go for conventional rock songs, some of which are symptomatic of the return of U2's crusade for salvation. Pop is inflected with the desire for a higher power to save the world from its jaded spiral of decay and immorality, which is why the group's embrace of dance music never seems joyous -- instead of providing an intoxicating rush of gloss and glamour, it functions as a backdrop for a plea of salvation. Achtung Baby also was a comment on the numbing isolation of modern culture, but it made sweeping statements through personal observations; Pop makes sweeping statements through sweeping observations. The difference is what makes Pop an easy record to admire, but a hard one to love. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	10/11/2019
Label:	Island
UPC:	0602577928123

Album Credits

Performance Credits

U2   Primary Artist
Steve Osborne   Keyboards
Larry Mullen, Jr.   Loops,Percussion
The Edge   Organ,Guitar,Vocals,Keyboards
Flood   Keyboards
Bono   Guitar,Vocals
Howie B   Keyboards,Turntables
Marius de Vries   Keyboards
Adam Clayton   Guitar (Bass)

Technical Credits

Bono   Composer
Steve Osborne   Producer,Mixing,Engineer
Larry Mullen, Jr.   Composer,Programming
Ben Hillier   Programming
The Edge   Composer
Flood   Mixing,Producer
Gene Clark   Composer
U2   Composer
Mark Fisher   Artwork
Mark "Spike" Stent   Mixing,Engineer
Richard Rainey   Mixing Assistant
Femio Hernandez   Assistant Engineer
Anton Corbijn   Photography
Brian Eno   Composer
Denise Milan   Composer
Howie B   Mixing,Engineer,Producer
Howie Weinberg   Mastering
Rob Kirwan   Mixing Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Roger McGuinn   Composer
Nana Vasconcelos   Composer
Nellee Hooper   Photography
Adam Clayton   Composer
Alan Moulder   Engineer
Cheryl Engels   Supervisor,Post Production
Andy VanDette   Digital Editing
Joe O'Herlihy   Monitor Engineer
Des Broadbery   Programming
Shaughn McGrath   Design,Treatments
Candida Bottaci   Assistant Producer
Anja Grabert   Photography
Conal Markey   Mixing Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Steve Averill   Design
Stephane Sednaoui   Photography
Deborah Mannis-Gardner   Sample Clearance
Robin Ball   Mixing Assistant
Nikolai Lankov Kaoufmane   Composer
Simon Pike   Composer