Altruism is dead, my friend criticized after listening to U2's latest CD How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, which by the way is one of the greatest titles of a CD ever.
Well...no one in rock today is U2. And no one does altruism like U2. In fact, U2 would be a fish out of water if they didn't dish out their themes of positive affirmations, selfless attitudes, the lost and searching soul, unquenched love/desire, roots of hatred, American materialism and global supremacy attitidudes and inclinations, to name a few.
What makes the lyrics of Bono and The Edge continuously relevant and endearing is that they capture truths about the human condition -- that we are a fallen and lost lot in search for hope, happiness, love, acceptance, and redemption -- and reveal them in slivers of poetic phrases and cliches that alight in us like the sun coming out from behind dark clouds.
We never feel like we're being drowned in sentimentality. Rather, we feel buoyed up and thrilled by their honest representation of real life. Call it pop-psychology or pop-spirituality, U2's voice is credible and beloved. The fact that this CD is one of the most anticipated releases of the year, thanks to a clever advertisment contract with iPod and that damn fine song "Vertigo," (and the fact that they are the only band of their era whose CD is not a comeback attempt), is mighty impressive evidence of this.
Dismantle is classic U2, with sounds reminiscent of The Unforgettable Fire, Joshua Tree, and Achtung Baby. It's a solid work. There are plenty of songs to sing to, a couple to dance to, a couple to get high to (if I believed in getting high), and quite a few to meditate to.
When it comes to U2, each new effort is under such scrutiny because of how successful and loved many of their previous songs have become. Some of my personal favorites are Mysterious Ways, With or Without You, One, Where the Streets Have No Name, Desire, Pride (In the Name of Love), Elevation, Pop, to name a few. With Dismantle, there are a few songs that would make my cut-- Vertigo (hands down), Love and Peace or Else, and Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own. But I also love All Because of You, A Man and A Woman, City of Blinding Lights, Miracle Drug, and Yahweh.
The song "Love and Peace Or Else" is this generation's new anthem of peace. Bring back the long hair and hippy chicks. This is the song of the movement; the anti-Iraq war song: "...the troops on the ground are about to dig in and I wonder where is the love?...We need love and peace." Great guitar riffs and lyrics make this circa-70's song one of the most hipnotic and best on the CD.
Track 3 "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" is a beautiful and highly singable ballad. Bono's voice on the higher notes is as clear and awe-inspiring as the blue sky in summertime.
Yahweh is a great conclussion to the CD, a pleading to the God of Mercy to help us conquer our hate and to find the light:
Take these hands
Teach them what to carry
Take these hands
Don't make a fist
Take this mouth
So quick to criticise
Take this mouth
Give it a kiss....
Yahweh, Yahweh
Always pain before a child is born
Yahweh, Yahweh
Why the dark before the dawn.
Yes, Dismantle is another one of those altruistic CD's, if you must describe it like that. Sit at the footstool of Bono's voice and listen. Maybe you'll pick up on a few gems that ring true, like: love can lift you to higher levels of awareness, that in order to succumb to love's impression you must first learn how to kneel, that freedom has a scent as fresh and new as a newborn babe's, that you don't have to go through life alone, and that pain often proceeds the blessing.
There is plenty in Dismantle that is memorable.
