U2
How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb
★★★★
ISLAND
The post-millennial U2 reclaimed commercial ground with the back-to-basics, if oversmoothed All You Can’t Leave Behind, and wanted to go harder with its successor. 2004’s How To Assemble An Atomic Bomb was rawer than its predecessor, not least with the Never Mind The Bollocks riffing of Vertigo, but a lot of material was left on the cutting room floor, now reclaimed as this standalone record (also included in a 20th anniversary deluxe reissue).
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The Who vibe is strong in both Picture Of You (X+W) and an earlier version of All Because Of You with different lyrics. Of the four tracks not previously released as bonus tracks or B-sides, Happiness is a stomper à la Franz Ferdinand’s Take Me Out, while Evidence Of Life even time travels back to 1980’s _Boy._All in all, it’s unpolished and energised stuff. If, as the group recently told MOJO, their next plan is to make a full-tilt rock record, this is a great reference point.
How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb is out November 29 on Island.
ORDER: Amazon | Rough Trade
Tracklisting:
Picture Of You (X+W)
Evidence Of Life
Luckiest Man In The World
Treason
I Don't Wanna See You Smile
Country Mile
Happiness
Are We Gonna Wait Forever?
Theme From The Batman
All Because Of You 2
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