Bono apologises for iTunes album dump Bono has apologised for sending U2's latest album into every iTunes library in the world. The singer's apology came, ironically, in a video to promote the album to those who didn't get it for free in iTunes. That video, posted to Facebook features a Q&A session in which a fan asked U2 never to release an auto-downloading album …
You're making me waste most of this glofious morning trying to figure who these other nine could be.
Well, after hearing Bryan Adams interviewed on Radio 2 the other week that's perhaps one slot filled and perhaps another with that bloke from the Manics who turned up stoned to the station.
And now it's getting difficult.
So come on, suggestions. I think we have a new game...
Got to disagree on the James Blunt Card since this happened:
http://musicfeeds.com.au/news/james-blunt-has-a-black-belt-in-shutting-down-twitter-trolls/
Although one of my favourites was:
'pretentious twitter arsehole':
Oh my god, they;re playing James Blunt again, could things get any worse????'
James Blunt:
'James Blunt could start following you and tweeting at you as well?'
(the above may be paraphrased)
Well, I quite liked the idea of it
that bloke, what's his name, encamped in the Peruvian (Bolivian?) embassy or consulate in London, clearly. Yes, he's not as widely known a musical genius as Bono, but still ticks all other boxes, and then some.
If you're going that route I would hope a certain T Blair plays some sort of instrument too so I can include him. Air guitar, I think - can't see this man touch anything with real substance..
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If you're going that route I would hope a certain T Blair plays some sort of instrument too so I can include him. Air guitar, I think - can't see this man touch anything with real substance..
He has let a few pictures of himself with a Stratocaster be released. No doubt to show that he's cool and one of the people.
No dobut he'll soon claim that he played along with Jimi Hendrix in much the same way he used to watch Milburn play.
Oh, I have thought of another name: Lars Ulrich.
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Aren't we forgetting someone…? As much as I loathe Bono, I don't believe he's ever declared that "People who eat meat are worse than those who rape children" or "if Jamie Oliver loves meat so much, why doesn't he roast his kids…?!"
I don't think I need name names for the reason that even typing his initials makes me want to commit acts of extreme violence against inanimate objects. As far as I'm concerned, he's been an irrelevance since at least 1984 (if not earlier).
He's threatening another album this year - he needs to be stopped! Beginning to think the cancer was just a rouse to get the world to feel sorry for him (though he's Veganist. Jobs was Veganist. I believe that disease only occurs when you fuck around with your genetic dietary blueprint (the fact the UK is world's second fattest nation should be testament to that). Jobs had pancreatic cancer, the spread of which was likely aided and abetted by his 100% carb diet. Vegans have lowered immunity, and a compromised immune system, due to the lack of distinct lack of nutrition ins vegan diet (humans can survive without plants, but we CANNOT survive without meat, or at least not in good health)).
"I had this beautiful idea. We got carried away with ourselves. Artists are prone to that kind of thing. Drop of megalomania. Twitch of generosity. Dash of self promotion. And deep fear that the songs that we poured out life into over the last few years mightn't be heard. There's a lot of noise out there. I guess we we got a little noisy ourselves to get through it."
Just a drop?
What it is is either a massive dose of arrogance or an amazing disconnect between what they think people are cool with and what they actually are cool with.
Or both.
It's a free gift - why wouldn't anyone want that? After all, they can always throw it away but you're opening them up to something that you think they might like and otherwise might be ignorant of.
It seems to me the same kind of attitude of those who proselytise their religious beliefs, dropping pamphlets through mailboxes and onto windscreens or knocking on doors in pairs or handing out booklets in the street.
It's the idea that the thing they are offering is a fundamentally good thing that is relevant and valuable to people and they should be given the opportunity to see this thing because it would be unfortunate if they missed out through not knowing.
Actually, comparing U2 to religion is not that much of a stretch . . .
What's that one about the difference between God and Bono being that God doesn't walk down the street thinking he's Bono?
Show a little sympathy. It ain't easy trying to save the whole friggin' world, y'know.
Well, I got to give it to him - he DID stop clapping.. :)
I listened to the album. I thought it sounded like Snow Patrol, only with a worse singer, and worse songs. If U2 poured their life into this, at least it sounds like their cup is nearly empty.
I deleted the album; my own small effort to aid noise reduction across the world. U2 have become the new AOL, and Songs of Innocence is their digital coaster.
Only a few years ago the pretentious little lepricorn was harping on about the fact that their latest album was plastered all over the intertubes via torrent and how he wanted torrent BANNED, Banned then burned...
So it's probably the fact that their latest digital pile of aural excrement HAD to be pushed all over the sodding world, only this time via I-Tunes to get any bugger to listen to it...
Hmm.....
apology is all well and good but I have been sick with worry as my friends thought I had spent money on a U2 album.
I am setting up a class action to address the reputational damage caused to many people like myself who have been harmed by this thoughtless and unnecessary self-indulgent noise pollution.
Am I the only person in the world who went "ooh, cute idea, never seen that done before." Then listened to it and thought "meh, not bad.I'll keep it around for a change now and then."
Seriously... it's just a freebie. And if Apple want to give me free albums, paid for out of the huge amount of money I've spent with them over the years, then fine. Let's look on the bright side though - it could have been Coldplay. Or Take That.
Am I the only person in the world who went "ooh, cute idea, never seen that done before." Then listened to it and thought "meh, not bad.I'll keep it around for a change now and then."
Seriously... it's just a freebie. And if Apple want to give me free albums, paid for out of the huge amount of money I've spent with them over the years, then fine. Let's look on the bright side though - it could have been Coldplay. Or Take That.
No. Absolutely not. They could have set the price to zero in iTunes and allowed people the choice. Those that wanted it could take it, those that rather have an airport cavity search by someone with really big hands followed be y detailed IRS audit than listen to U2 could have ignored it.
By making this happen automatically they removed choice, and they removed control and U2 as well as Apple deserve a serious amount of stick for that. It still is my equipment, and *I* determine what data lives on that, not a 3rd party. Not to mention that I also intensely dislike people so keen on self promotion, but that's just my personal opinion.
Not got iTunes (preferring Android and Amazon) but the wife has being a Apple fan (iPad and iPhone) so we listened to the album on iTunes.
It's really poor, let's face it if it had been on the quality of the Joshua Tree, Rattle and Hum or Achtung Baby nobody would be moaning about a free copy but sadly it's not.
U2 is now irrelevant. I'm sure the music is nice and layered, polished up etc, but as I've said on many forums here relating to U2, they somehow lost something very real in their music. Maybe most rockers run into this as the money makes the angst go away. I guess the Rolling Stones fall into this category too... 20+ years of music production and not much to show for it. Rock and Roll is a young man's game.
Gary Numan and John Foxx are now both producing the best music of their careers. So I disagree.
(But to be fair both produced a really rank album about ten years after they started, Numan followed with an even worse one before getting back on track, whereas Foxx did gave up music and took up digital art for a few years, before coming back on form)
Also Johnny Cash's version of Hurt was pretty damn good.
Gary Numan and John Foxx are now both producing the best music of their careers. So I disagree.
Eh???
Cars, Are Friends Electric, Down in the Park to name a few of Numans frankly, fucking seminal bits of music. Although he went of the rails with the likes of radio heart and a few other odditys, i cant imagine he could ever top the quality of music he was pumping out in the 80's. But i will now open my archives up and have a listen to his newer stuff..
As for Foxx, "Underpass" HAS to be the tune i think of when i hear his name.
It wasn't automatically downloaded to me, I had to actually choose to get it.
It isn't dreadful. I have certainly paid full price for much worse.
It will be staying in my library.
However, it is wrong to download it without asking.
(Presumably it was added to some as a purchase, rather than offered to purchase for free.)
Apologies if this has already been said, no real interest in trawling through all of the comments so far, but:
I use iTunes due to having an old iPod and being too lazy to investigate alternatives, I have in the past (don't shoot me) enjoyed the occasional track from them so opened it up to give it a listen and see if there was anything worth keeping. With my setup it hadn't downloaded at all, I had to go into the list of purchased items and select to download it before it synced, without investigating at all I'm wondering if most iTunes users have their account set to sync everything without confirmation?
Still haven't bothered to listen to it though, but was it really worth all this fuss? They gave something away for free, if you don't want it just delete it. I can't help but wonder if the same level of fuss would have been made if the artist in question was a bit more popular.
I hear tim cook has a deal witg Simon Cowell to install all the x factor finalists onto every apple device on the planet, and then enforce a 20 listens rule before they can be removed.
He also has a deal with the record companies to insert tracks from Ricky Martin & Conwey Twittey's xmas duets album randomly into everyones playlists.
Enjoy your Apple marketing devices plebs. Couldn't have happened to a nicer demographic. I didn't think i could laugh any harder at them, but each year the apple car crash gets funnier, with thrir fanboys getting even more delusional and defensive over their premium priced hipster trash.
You can actually buy each song of the first finalist round, or a compilation of all 16 songs, if you like to do so. Actually, I think making the songs available for sale and then using the sales numbers to figure out into the next round wouldn't be a bad thing; at least people would have to put their money where their mouth is, and I think you can't buy the same song multiple times, so the results would be fairer.
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