![\"Bono](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Bono-U2-2017-Paul-David-Hewson-Singer-Musician-Far-Out-Magazine-1140x855.jpg\")
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(Credits: Far Out \/ Daniel Hazard)<\/p>\n
Sat 16 August 2025 0:00, UK <\/p>\n
If there\u2019s one thing U2<\/a> became known for, it\u2019s struggling to meet their own expectations.<\/p>\n This probably stems from their shared viewpoint that nothing is ever really finished, because that point doesn\u2019t even exist. It\u2019s like that old expression that art isn\u2019t ever done, it\u2019s just due. And, in U2\u2019s world, this is the mantra that simultaneously liberates them and makes them feel boxed in, as, ultimately, it\u2019s all about when to let go and when to shuffle just a little more to the edge to get even closer to perfection.<\/p>\n While you\u2019d think that this decision to relinquish control and let go would generate some of the more productive or collaborative working environments, it\u2019s quite the opposite. Even Bono once admitted that it\u2019s a blessing and a curse, often leading to fights and fallouts over the integrity of the band in a vicious, ironic cycle. Whenever they call it a day, it\u2019s because they need a hard reset. <\/p>\n \u201cWe had to shoot U2 in the head before anyone else did,\u201d Bono once said.<\/p>\n As an outsider, though, this seemingly impossible level of authenticity is often met with two alternative versions of U2: the respected purveyors of rock that earned their keep with masterpieces like The Joshua Tree<\/a>, and the iTunes monsters that offended every targeted music lover with the purest, most intrusive form of technological marketing. But what about the point where all that comes together, the ambiguous bit in the middle where experimentalism and perfectionism get in the way of real, U2-level art?<\/p>\n Unsurprisingly, this was the case with the divisive No Line on the Horizon. At the time, they\u2019d set out to make their most honest, most U2 album yet, collaborating in a way that felt like they were reaching beyond the limits of their own capability for something that felt unmistakably them. But without the right amount of time or space to make it work, as well as the unwritten agreement that this wouldn\u2019t be their usual bag, the record fell flat, and they knew it, too.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was conceived as a more fun, off-the-cuff type of work, but we realised towards the end that that doesn\u2019t exist for us,\u201d The Edge told The Guardian in 2014, adding, \u201cThere\u2019s no small album from us\u201d. An interesting reflection made even more interesting by the fact that he also said, elsewhere, that No Line on the Horizon was probably set up to fail from the get-go, namely with the way they promoted it in the moments leading up to release. <\/p>\n \u201cI think we probably should have said it\u2019s an experimental work,\u201d he said, \u201cThat\u2019s what it is\u201d.<\/p>\n In 2009, Bono said it was their attempt at the pop sensibilities on the album that didn\u2019t work in their favour, saying they didn\u2019t \u201cpull them off\u201d, while Larry Mullen Jr cut straight to the chase, saying that the whole experience and the aftermath \u201cwas pretty fucking miserable\u201d. He added, rather bleakly, \u201cIt turns out that we\u2019re not as good as we thought we were and things got in the way.\u201d<\/p>\n The weirdest thing about the entire project was that it\u2019s hard to pinpoint where it all went wrong and why. Maybe they\u2019d lost their spark. At least, that\u2019s what producer Steve Lillywhite said in so many words, arguing that their \u201cspirit\u201d didn\u2019t come across in the music, not like it did before. Or maybe it was what Brian Eno said\u2014they spent too long trying to get things right, going against their core principle that good art isn\u2019t immune to being butchered when the pretence of perfectionism creeps in<\/a>.<\/p>\n Perhaps, in the end, that\u2019s where they faltered the most, chasing something that hadn\u2019t even existed in the first place. Or worse, chasing something they knew they could attain, but trying to establish a process that wouldn\u2019t work in the long run, or one that would surely prevent them from reaching the standard they\u2019d reached before, but without all the inexplicable qualities that made it work back then. That allure that either existed or it didn\u2019t, and this time, it didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Related Topics<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"(Credits: Far Out \/ Daniel Hazard) Sat 16 August 2025 0:00, UK If there\u2019s one thing U2 became…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":72323,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[64,63,48781,134,56573,136,56574,45965],"class_list":{"0":"post-72322","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-bono","11":"tag-entertainment","12":"tag-larry-mullen-jr","13":"tag-music","14":"tag-the-edge","15":"tag-u2"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72322"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72322\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72323"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}