Somewhere along the line in the mid 1990s, The Edge said there might not be room for the guitar in U2's music anymore. After the heavily electronic Zooropa album and the Passengers project, the guitar was on its way out as the band members fell deeper in love with dance culture. The initial inspiration for what became Pop was to mix cold, electronic sounds with an emotional depth rarely found in dance and techno music. Upon its release, Pop and the PopMart tour just confused critics and the public.U2 booked the PopMart tour before they finished the album. With time ticking away to the kickoff of a tour that would dwarf ZooTV in its size and absurdity, the band was still trying to finish the songs. ZooTV was an incredible success that pushed U2 in a new direction, they simple pushed too far with PopMart. Nobody wanted to go along with them this time.
Pop is a great record despite its problems. As the tour wore on and the band was able to go back and re-mix the songs. If those re-mixes are any evidence, Pop could have been an incredible record. Contrary to The Edge's claims, there was still room for the guitar. And while the record did not alter club culture, it is emotionally volatile. Pop had the potential to be a heavy-duty album, but that this point in the game U2 has to have more than just potential.
The record opens with "Discotheque." What could have been an ultra-cool glossy first single is instead a murky mess. Near the end of the PopMart tour the band pulled "Discotheque" together as the flashy number that was perfect to introduce four grown men emerging from a giant mirrorball lemon.
"Mofo" and "Gone" are both highlights thanks to some sonic Edge guitar playing. That sound, like a 747 airplane taking off from his amplifier, is a moment of relish. "If God Will Send His Angels" is a worthy track, but seems out of place on Pop. "Staring at the Sun" should have been a huge. It is one of the few songs that goes back to what is immediately accessible, a simple, emotional Edge guitar riff. "Staring at the Sun" was a home run that only made it to third.
Instead of reveling in the club culture and the disposability of pop and dance music, Bono is in the trash looking for the light above. With Achtung Baby and Zooropa there was some joy in finding how low you can go. There is no joy in Pop. No wonder people did not understand Pop and PopMart. The record condemned everything that the tour put on display with a 165-foot video screen, golden arch and martini glass.
With each new album since Achtung Baby, the album and the tour are companion pieces that rely on each other. The new songs get a chance to breathe in front of live crowds; they either grow into something bigger or die on the vine. The best U2 become something new in concert. Pop songs never had the chance to grow; the band was still sorting through them.
Despite its faults, I have always personally loved Pop. Even though the PopMart Tour was not on par with ZooTV, it was fabulously ridiculous. I wish more bands would take absurd chances and put themselves on the line like that.
U2 took the criticism on the chin. With the 21st century on the horizon, U2 would turn back with its next album. The 1990's became a time capsule in U2's career. A lost weekend. With the next record, they were looking to wake up Monday morning without a hangover.
