“We’re not putting it out”: The U2 album Bono refused to release
According to both U2 and their producers, none of their albums are properly finished; they just come out. Even though they may have an idea of what a record is supposed to sound like, it’s customary for them to have some sort of deadline, or else they would spend most of their time chasing their tail trying to find out what a song needs and what ways they could overcomplicate things. Although Bono has had a habit of not practising self-restraint whenever he goes on long tirades onstage, he felt that the time was never right for an entire album to see the light of day.
But U2 albums are always about more than the catchy singles to the Irish legends. There are a million different ways they could spend time rewriting ‘Where The Streets Have No Name’, but looking at their body of work, they would much rather make albums with a singular identity than stick with the same formula.
The whole point behind War, for example, was light years away from where they were on The Joshua Tree, and even if the results were terrible, people could still remember the strange detours that they took on Pop. Around the late 2000s, though, the band got productive but never released any of their greatest hits on a proper studio album.
There would be unforgettable moments on songs like ‘Vertigo’, but listening to albums like No Line on the Horizon, it’s a wonder why they didn’t liven up the record with their song ‘Ordinary Love’ from around the same time. Then again, they might have been preparing for the moment they started their Songs of… series of albums.
Even though none of the albums are connected necessarily outside of their title, this three-album suite of records remains the most polarising piece of the band’s catalogue. On the one hand, it’s a great way to get them back to their roots on Songs of Innocence, but the minute that they stopped trying, a lot of the songs blend together and end up sounding like a mush of empty platitudes from Bono.
That’s not how it was supposed to go, though. According to Bono, there is another phase of this part of their career called Songs of Ascent, saying, “We have almost finished this album called Songs of Ascent, which we’re not putting out. We’re going to put out a rock ’n’ roll album. So we’re not putting this out, but I’m telling you it’s awesome. There’s pure joy. I’ll play one more. It’s amazing.”
Even though it might have a spiritual connection with all the band members, it might be for the best for that album to remain in the vaults. After all, their unplugged-style covers album Songs of Surrender is one of the most milquetoast things that they have ever put out, so if they carried on in that direction, fans shouldn’t be surprised if they are crawling towards the finish half the time.
While it remains unknown what Bono and the gang have in store for their next release, it might be time for them to go back to the heavy guitars and anthemic choruses. Those spiritual songs might work in the context of one album, but fans need to be reminded about the power behind the same band who wrote songs like ‘Pride’.
