U2's Manager Calls Radiohead Experiment A Flop

Paul McGuinness tells BBC6: *We should all be aware that Radiohead’s honesty box release of their album to some extent backfired. Even though it was available on their own website for no money at all, if that was what you preferred to pay - 60 to 70% of the people who downloaded the record stole it anyway even though it was available for free.*

U2's new LP is due out in early 2009.

MP3: U2 - Beautiful Day

'The Joshua Tree' Gets A Facelift

Billboard's got the scoop: *To celebrate the 20th birthday of its landmark album "The Joshua Tree," U2 is reissuing the set in four different incarnations on Nov. 20 via UMe. The album will be available as a remastered single CD, a 2-CD set, a 2-CD/1-DVD collectible box and a double-vinyl package.

The single-disc will be housed in a jewel case, but the 2-CD set comes in a hard back case. The 2-CD/1-DVD version has a base and lid to accommodate the discs as well as five portfolio prints. Band members have contributed new liner notes for the package. Of most interest to fans is the inclusion of rare material on the expanded editions. Although details have yet to be announced, "Joshua Tree" demos, alternate versions and B-sides from the period are expected to appear. The DVD is understood to comprise a July 4, 1987, show at the Paris Hippodrome, as well as the documentary "Outside It's America." Produced by Brian Eno, "The Joshua Tree" shot U2's commercial fortunes into the stratosphere. The album's first three tracks were huge singles, with both "With or Without You" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" hitting No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.*

MP3: U2 - I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (live)

Bono & Eddie Izzard To Play Couple In New Film

I love it!

Via Uncut: U2 front man Bono is to star in a bizarre sounding new rock'n'roll movie, "Across The Universe."

The Commitments' writing duo Dick Clement and Ian Le Frenais have scripted the film, and the script's plot sounds, ahem, a bit bonkers. "Across The Universe" is directed by Julie Taymor, whose previous credits include Frida and the Broadway version of Disney's The Lion King, and is an intense love story set in the 1960s.

Following two lovers, Jude (Jim Sturgess) and Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) and their musicain friends from Liverpool to Vietnam via a riot-torn Detroit and a psychedelic Greenwich Village - "Across The Universe" intends to explore emerging anti-war and counterculture movements.

Bono is taking on the role of Dr. Robert and comedian Eddie Izzard plays the part of Mr. Kite - both charcaters act as the star-crossed lovers guides on their travels. The film is due for simultaneous release in the UK and US on September 28.

MP3: U2 - City Of Blinding Lights

Win Butler Shoves It To Mick, Noel & Bono

What's with all the catfights lately?

Didn't The Arcade Fire open for U2 two years back? I guess they won't be doing that again anytime soon.

NME reports: Arcade Fire have criticised the marketing strategies of band's like U2, Oasis and The Rolling Stones. Speaking in the new issue of NME, frontman Win Butler had a go at bands who aggressively force feed their music to fans.

Butler said: "It's not like we shun success, but at the same time we don't' want to shove it down people's throats. In the UK there's this kind of rock star competition. "I don't know if U2 started it, or The Stones or Oasis but a lot of bands think in terms of: 'I'm going to be the biggest band in the world.'

'Fuck all those bands who've got no ambition'. I think that's a total crock of shit. There's nothing less interesting to me than the idea of marketing the fuck out of something so people are forced to like it. Some bands are just manipulating people to buy music. That's how 90 percent of the record industry works! It's basically the same as selling a fucking toaster or a cruise package."

MP3: The Arcade Fire - I'm Sleeping In A Submarine

You heard it first, Win Butler is comparing the record industry to a kitchen appliance!

Jay-Z & American Idol Runner Up Beat The Beatles & U2 On US Charts!

Whoa, across the Atlantic and the same holds true!

Over the weekend, we were stunned to find out that Westlife beat The Beatles & U2 on the UK album charts (for all of their debut weeks). Seems like neither megagroup could topple Daughtry (I guess he removed his first name, Chris, for some sort of appeal, not mine) or the 700+ debuting Jay-Z 'comeback album'.

Not only that but the latest edition of Now also faired higher than the big boys this week!


Here's how the top 5 round up (sales in parantheses):
#1 Jay-Z: 708k
#2 Daughtry: 301k
#3 NOW 23: 298k
#4 The Beatles: 280k
#5 Snoop Dogg: 274k

U2's U218 didn't even crack the top 10! They'll have to settle for #12. Although that could be because they have way too many greatest hits releases as it is. Only The Cure has more (seriously, 5 best-ofs with the same 12 songs over and over? Come on!)

Thoughts on all of this? Predictable? I don't know why it shocks me, but it does.

MP3: U2 - Acrobat (one of my favorite U2 tracks)

Westlife Tramples The Beatles, U2 & Oasis On UK Charts!

Westlife have beaten off Oasis, U2 and The Beatles to win the battle for Number One in the album chart tonight (November 26). The boy band's new studio covers 'Love Album' beat off all three 'Best Of' collections released on November 20 on what was declared "Super Monday". Oasis were in at Number 2 with 'Stop The Clocks' closely followed by The Beatles' classic re-workings 'Love' album at 3 and U2's '18 singles' LP at four. (via NME)

Is anyone as shocked as I am?

MP3s: The Beatles - Revolution + U2 - Beautiful Day

was this the girl?

was this the girl who was all up on bono??

search the internet(s) long enough and ye shall find.











also, let's play 'WHERE'S SADIE?'

READY.

go.

keep an eye out for dudes with beer! ha!

so i saw U2 at the garden...

and Jen is making me post the following from my email. what a b*tch.

...ok, back to last night - the best night ever. first, road trips are fantastically fun aren't they? we arrive in the city sans delay. we find rock star parking two blocks from the garden and meet the wonderful Happy real quick like around 6pm(she had work at banana). following her departure, we look for that pub debs suggested. insert call to deb here. we finally find it exactly where it should be, but opt for the stage deli/restaurant place next to it on the corner. after pickles, coleslaw, and a v large hero we head over for Keane. keane rocks. our seats don't, but i feel like there really aren't any bad seats in the garden. it's so small. much cuter than i had imagined. we have a go at one of the guards on the floor for access to the vip inner circle on the floor. said guard will here by be called Our Tony (his real name was possibly Jose, but nevermind that, he looked like a tony). so tony says he can get us in later. RAD. we return, super stoked, to our seats and WAIT. as we wait, we enjoy the lovely wait music at the garden. everything from killers to gorillaz. ALL OF A SUDDEN, the arcade fire's 'wake up' comes on (!!!) and the house lights go down. i am going nuts b/c it's fucking arcade fire AND because the fact that U2 has selected arcade fire for their special intro. the entire stadium seems to be singing the chorus and it's magic. just magic. the lights go dark, and i go nuts. one by one, U2 enters the scene. to be honest, i don't even remember what they opened with. crazy i know, but you must remember it was like i was high. after the second song, we decide to give our tony another visit. he tells us it's early yet and recommends we return around the fifth song. after the sixth song, we give it one last go. tony says he can't get us in, but he gives us two seats in the first section to the right of the edge. we'll take it. it was amazing - U2 in life size! from then on, just madness. the madness was heightend by the drunk stoner i befriended next to me. he offerred me his extra beer and a toke - an excellent concert partner indeed. they played Miss Sarajevo! and bono sang pavoratti's italian bits! they played for something like 2.5 hrs. the stage was beautiful with these curtains of lights that splashed all kinds of wonderful things. during some song i didn't know (for shame!) bono pulls up this black chick and she is dancing ALL UP on bono. the man doesn't know what to do. it was awesome. she had some fucking balls. they played two encores which made us, including drunken stoner and the v wee fuck-off-i'm-rockin-to-U2-in-a-three-piece-suit indian guy by us, extremely happy. fyi - drunken white men dancing to white music is the most hysterical thing. oh, and larry mullen jr. (the drummer) has a mullet. fuck it, rock the mullet larry!