Review of U2's "Achtung Baby"

It certainly marked a change in direction for the band, as they reversed direction and moved back towards their alternative roots. The result is an album that sounds like a junkie's worst nightmare. The swirling guitars and spacey production makes even the sober seem slightly dizzy. Those under the influence, on the other hand, may feel that the world is about to end.

While this sound consistently runs throughout Achtung Baby, what does change is U2's ability to present it effectively. Quite a few of the tracks- and good examples include 'Zoo Station', 'Until the End of the World', 'So Cruel' and 'Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World'- are an unfortunate triumph of mood over melody.

This does not make them bad songs, but their limitations are exposed by those instances where the reverse is true- that is where the melody comes to the fore. This demonstrates that the band know how to write good music but, for whatever reason, can't seem to make a successful mould in these instances.

Still, there are many times where they do succeed. 'Mysterious Ways', 'Even Better than the Real Thing', 'Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses' and the very cool 'The Fly' are proof of this.

[On an interesting sidenote there is a section of lyrics from 'Mysterious Ways' which, quite amusingly, is often misheard. While Bono actually sings "If you want to kiss the sky/Better learn how to kneel...(on your knees boy!)", many people mistake it for "If you want to kiss this guy/Better learn how to kneel...(on your knees boy!)."]

The exceptional track off this record- both because it is the best song and because it sounds different from the others- is 'One'. It is a ballad that slowly builds up, getting bigger and bigger. This is Bono's best vocal performance especially where he implores "Love is a temple/Love the higher law/You ask me to enter/But then you make me crawl". It sounds different because the drums and guitars are not as loud or dominant as it is on the other songs, which allows the lead singer to be at the forefront. Perhaps if the rest of the album had adhered to this rule it may have sounded better, though this is just speculation of course.

After balancing up the strengths and weaknesses of Achtung Baby, ultimately a positive picture emerges. There are a quite a few really good contributions and while some

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