U2 – No Line On the Horizon (a J!-ENT World Groove Album Review)

March 3, 2009 by Dennis Amith 

“U2 shows no signs of slow down or lack of enthusiasm for their 12th album ‘No Line On the Horizon’.  A solid and absolutely wonderful album!  Another carefully crafted masterpiece that was worth waiting five years for!”

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BAND: U2

ALBUM: No Line On the Horizon (Digital Version)

LABEL: Interscope

DURATION: 53:29

RELEASE DATE: March 3, 2009

1. No Line On the Horizon
2. Magnificent
3. Moment of Surrender
4. Unknown Caller
5. I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight
6. Get On Your boots
7. Stand Up Comedy
8. FEZ-Being Born
9. White As Snow
10. Breathe
11. Cedars of Lebanon

When it comes to U2, it’s always a day of celebration as there is this sense of excitement. And for their 12th album “No Line On the Horizon”, what a highly anticipated this album has become.

It’s been five years since the release of their last album “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb” and the process for this album was quite long as the group had written over 60 songs but the process from initially was working on album with Rick Rubin and then switched gears to work with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois gave the group the freedom to express their music as evident with the track on the album.

And what musical expression do we get for “No Line On the Horizon”?  U2 fans can be sure that they will be hearing the band’s use chiming guitars with bulging chord progressions, heavy bass, melodic keyboards, cool to dynamic percussion and of course Bono’s charismatic vocals.

The album kicks off with the title track “No Line on the Horizon”.  A combination of beautiful guitar from Edge and Bono’s trademark “whoa-oh” but its the style of the song that U2 fans can just be passionate about.  Absolutely beautiful!

The following track “Magnificent” is like an ode to classic U2.  The vocals and music shows how this band has not regressed in the twenty five years since I first discovered them and still, Bono is able to belt out the vocals beautifully with the guitar playing of Edge, bass of Adam Clayton and percussion by Larry Mullen Jr.  This track is magnificent!

Of course, there are (can call them “experimental”) tracks that took awhile for me to warm to such as “Get On Your Boots” which is so different from any of the tracks on the album.  But after listening to the song several times, I have to admit that I enjoy the craziness in the song and the overall energy of the musical transitions.

But there are other songs of brilliance on the album that resonate to your soul such as “White As Snow”, “Breathe” and “Cedars of Lebanon” and songs that capture that enthusiasm of the band with tracks like “Stand Up Comedy” and “FEZ-Being Born” which are two tracks that are completely different musically but both are quite enjoyable.

The album was released in six different formats: Standard, digital, LP Vinynl, Digipak, magazine and box format.

Just a side note:  The album’s cover features a photo of the sea and skyline taken by photographer and architect Hiroshi Sugimoto.  The photo is a dedication to Rob Patridge who signed the first record deal and passed away from cancer in 2008.

“No Line On the Horizon” is definitely an album worth waiting nearly five years for.  As a big fan of “War”, “The Joshua Tree” and “Achtung Baby”, despite all their albums doing quite well (despite the critical reviews of 1997′s “Pop”), U2′s music has evolved and  2004′s “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb” is a perfect example of it, it was an award winning album but I suppose unlike everyone else, there was a part of me that longed for that feeling of listening to a U2 album and being awestruck by the music and lyrics that I felt long ago.

So, when I heard that the band would collaborate with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois again for a U2 album (since both were involved with “The Joshua Tree”), I was definitely excited.

And now, I can’t help but feel a sense of happiness and this proud and confident feeling that “No Line On the Horizon” is another musical masterpiece from U2.  Everything comes together quite well for this album.  The vocals, the music, the lyrics and I have listened to this album a good number of times already and not even tired of it.

An absolutely wonderful album and with only 11 songs featured on this album, it makes me wonder how the other 50+ songs written by the band and with Bono announcing that those songs will be on the next album, I’m looking forward to that.

But as for this album, “No Line On the Horizon” is just awesome.  Highly recommended!

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