by Steven Booth

Created on: July 05, 2009

U2's best material comes from their middle period, the period between "Achtung Baby" and "Pop". There is no denying the greatness of their early material, with "Joshua Tree" undoubtedly being a classic album. The later material, from "All That You Can't Leave Behind" on, pretty much rides on past glories. The recent "No Line on the Horizon" is a departure from the past two records, but it is still unclear where they go from there. The middle records show a band operating without a net, risking the popularity they won with Joshua. The clean three piece sound was gone, the lyrics and mood was darker, and the band took chances that a band as huge as they were has never taken. It almost destroyed their carreer, forcing a major artistic retreat on ATYCLB, but according to many critics and fans, is their most satisfying work to date.

"Boy" was one of those albums that made punk rock accessible. U2 came on with all the energy of the Sex Pistols, but with a cleaner sound and more introspective outlook. The Edge's chiming guitars replaced the fuzzed out Ramones-influenced sound the punks favored, while Bono's soulful singing was a deaprture from the militant screaming of the punks. What was the same was the energy. U2 was out to take on the world, and that energy made Boy a great record despite the band's limited musical and songwriting chops. They were blowing away audiences with their live show, and the word was out. The experimental "October" was a bit of a disappointment, due to a mix of Bono losing his lyrics, and the band's over-reaching creativity. "War" righted things with a leaner and meaner sound than "Boy", and more confrontational songs such as "Sunday Bloody Sunday". The band had this uncanny ability to strike universal chords with their songs. "I Will Follow", "Gloria", and "New Years Day" pulled the heartstrings of the listener without sounding syrupy or contrived. Saving it from schmaltz was the bare bones sound of the band, and the ability to keep the songs lean and mean. "The Unforgettable Fire" was another experiment, this time more successful than "October" but also showing the band torn between crowd pleasing anthems of "In The Name of Love" and more experimental stuff like "Wire".

"Joshua Tree", considered by many to be the band's best record, was a culmination of sorts. The band had developed as songwriters and musicans, and seemed to take the formula on "Boy" to it's logical end. Having Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois as producers added texture

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