U2: Live - Under a Blood Red Sky
U2: Live - Under a Blood Red Sky
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Monday, 29, Sep 2008 10:52
Universal-Island Records, out now.
In a nutshell...
A reminder that U2 were once a relevant contemporary band.
What's it all about?
Featuring live versions of tracks from all of U2's first three albums, this was the moment U2 simultaneously proved their formidable live reputation and were finally seen to conquer America.
Who's it by?
U2 - surely you've heard of them? When this EP was originally released, not yet an all-conquering rock behemoth but a prodigiously talented bunch of rock upstarts out to prove their musical chops.
As an example...
"There's been a lot of talk around this next song. Maybe a little too much talk. This song is not a rebel song... " - intro to Sunday Bloody Sunday
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
At the time, surely that was the aim, casting U2 against the classic American backdrop of the Rocky mountain foothills and proving they were much more than "that punkish band from Ireland". Since then they've won nine Grammys and counting...
What the others say
"Anyone interested in retracing U2's meteoric rise - in relocating what made them an 80s touchstone at a time when their flirtations with earnestness came across more as combativeness rather than self-righteousness - would do well to start here." - Pitchfork
So is it any good?
The simultaneously reissued DVD of Live At Red Rocks could be seen as a more complete representation of U2 at this time, but it is also decidedly more of a time capsule. Live Under a Blood Red Sky, however, allows the opportunity to revel in the sheer excitement of early U2 as they really hit their stride - without the distraction of Bono's always dubious mullet concoction, his drunken-auntie-at-a-wedding dance moves or The Edge's plaid waistcoat and still-in-denial ever-thinning hair.
The EP actually has very little to do with the Red Rocks concert (only two of the eight tracks were recorded there) but this is its masterstroke. The recordings set out to build a new legend - from the iconic silhouette cover onwards (watch the DVD - the sky was actually less red than distinctly grey). The sequencing is a part of this genius, sprinkling end-of-set highlights amongst other lesser-known songs, culled from three different shows, to create a truly visceral and consistently exciting listen. Even Party Girl, a throwaway B-side whose nonsense pop never suited U2, just about gets away with it, swept along on the general swagger of the surrounding tracks.
The Edge, in particular has rarely, if ever, sounded better. On I Will Follow it sounds as if he is discovered the song for the first time, audibly thrilled by the opportunity to lay his trademark chords over every breakdown. The Electric Co. is another surprise highlight with its angrily yelped chorus and extended, triumphant guitar coda.
Some of the acclaim surely must go to the producer. Jimmy Iovine had previously worked on Springsteen's Born To Run and would go on to 'discover' Eminem at early live shows. This is a man who knows something about the importance of stage presence. Opening the album he makes the 4,000 at Red Rocks sound more like 40,000. Rising out of the crowd the plangent guitar intro actually echoes Joy Divison - possibly the 'coolest' U2 have ever sounded. Where the previous album, War, was far too flat, Under a Blood Red Sky still sounds vital - a mix of great production and the sheer self-belief U2 put into every note.
Under a Blood Red Sky does what you may have thought impossible: reminds the listener that U2 were once a relevant contemporary band. One of its greatest assets is its freedom from accepted U2 legend - this is before Live Aid, before The Joshua Tree - and, as such it is carried along by the evolving band's desire and sheer enjoyment. It never trades on mass-accepted past glories, as U2 themselves have now fallen into the habit of doing. Every track is a proving ground and every note deliberate.
Forget the first four albums - this is probably the only early U2 you really need. The only release where they really sound like they still matter.
8/10
Stephen Braund