There are several reasons the U2 and Brian Eno side project - Passengers: Original Soundtracks 1 - is worth picking up. The number one reason is Luciano Pavarotti's contribution to "Miss Sarajevo." The song is one of the best U2 has ever put to tape. Gorgeous. But when the maestro opens his voice it becomes otherworldly. He sings:Dici che il fiume
Trova la via al mare
E come il fiume
Giungerai a me
Oltre i confini
E le terre assetate
Dici che come il fiume
Come il fiume...
L'amore giungerΰ
L'amore...
E non so piω pregare
E nell'amore non so piω sperare
E quell'amore non so piω aspettare
[Translation of the above]
You say that the river
finds the way to the sea
and like the river
you will come to me
beyond the borders
and the dry lands
You say that like a river
like a river...
the love will come
the love...
And i don't know how to pray anymore
and in love i don't know how to hope anymore
and for that love i don't know how to wait anymore
There was a Miss Sarajevo beauty pageant. Girls would promenade across the stage as shells exploded in the sky above. The event was absurd but poignant.
Anti-pop songs surround this perfect pop song. U2 gave ambient Eno the reins. He acted as bandleader and producer. He even conjured up fake films for the band to play to. The liner notes include synopses of the real, and fake, films the music supports.
In between the ambient pieces are a few songs that are slightly more traditional. Even with Eno calling the shots, elements of U2 still shine through. "Your Blue Room" is a seductive ballad, and a victory for a band that is rarely sexy or seductive. This might be their one chance.
Ambient music is often cold and unemotional. Sequencers, synthesizers and mixers appeal more to the brain than the heart. Brian Eno is a very esoteric, brainy guy, and his influences run rampant across the album. However the human element in each song takes it somewhere special. Pavarotti of course. Anything The Edge touches, specifically his organ playing on "Your Blue Room." Bono's quiet vocals. Adam Clayton's big fat bass notes. The string arrangements are incredible. Craig Armstong arranged "Miss Sarajevo." Paul Barrett arranged "Always Forever Now," one of the ambient-driven tracks, but a beautiful one.
Commend U2 for using the 1990s to both embrace and puncture what a rock and roll band should be, not to mention the stuffy history and self-importance of rock and roll. "Elvis Ate America" is at once a biting satire, and an appreciation, for the king of rock and roll and his absurd life.
This album flew under the radar for casual U2 fans. Only "Miss Sarajevo" has lived on in any capacity. Been to a U2 show in the last decade, you would think the band took the '90s off after Achtung Baby. That is a shame. When U2 became the alternative to what is on the radio - as they did during grunge - they are a perfect balance of what makes them a great rock band, as well as what makes them great creative artists. Much of that comes from a willingness to fall flat on their faces. A destination they would soon find themselves with the release of Pop.
