by Steve Brennan

Created on: March 18, 2009

U2's new album arrived in 2004 with the kind of expectations usually afforded to a miracle-performing prophet on its shoulders. Coming on the heels of 2001's all-conquering All That You Can't Leave Behind, many had been wondering which direction U2 would take in such troubled times, as illegal wars raged in the Middle East, a Bible-thumping cowboy was elected (twice) as the leader of the western world, famine and disease swept through Africa like a biblical plague, and Robbie Williams continued to release records. They had never been a band noted for doing things the easy way or for getting stuck in a predictable groove, but over their career they had alternated between albums everyone in the world loved, and albums whose appeal was more "selective". The Joshua Tree's planet-straddling romanticism would make way for the roots-rock pick and mix of Rattle And Hum - still a good record, but the ill-advised movie's let's-all-hang-out-with-the-black-folks vibe invited critical sniggers, as did album tracks such as God Part II (writing a sequel to a Lennon song? No, Bono, lad).

Fearing a creative block, they crafted the stonking Achtung Baby, simply one of the best records of its era, which in turn gave birth to the beguiling ambience of Zooropa and the techno dalliances of Pop (half brilliant, half not). Very few bands have so totally re-invented themselves on record and on stage the way U2 did in the 90's. With All That You Can't Leave Behind, it seemed U2 had stepped backwards, dug out a copy of The Joshua Tree, and said to themselves, "Hey, this is really good. Let's make one like this again". It could have backfired, but instead they gave us a brilliant distillation of the whole U2 thang in one cracking package. So what did U2 sound like in 2004?

The answer is they sounded a lot like U2 in about 1984. How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb is one of their most raw, brash and in your face albums, relatively free from any experimentation, but it's also less immediately appealing than most of their previous works. At first listen, its clattering soundscapes and rough-edged back to basics song writing sounds lifted from the punk years, and its unpolished aura is initially off-putting.

But after careful analysis scientists have confirmed that most of this album does "sound like U2", and it is a crafty record - after a few listens it starts to worm its way into your affections, its melodies become more clearly defined, and you'll inadvertently find yourself humming to some

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