Jason Kinzer ([email protected])
Tue, 04 Aug 1998 17:31:25 -0500
I've relatively new to the Wire, though I've been a faithful fan of
U2 for years. I became interested in them when Achtung Baby came out,
but have since acquired their whole collection of albums, to include
that confusing and somewhat humorous passengers album... but I digress;
I'm a huge fan, love their music, and have nothing but praise to speak
of the band...however:
What I've seen these past few weeks and furthermore for the past few
years is an obsession with Paul Hewson, David Evans, Lawrence Mullen Jr.
and Adam Clayton. Notice I didn't say U2...just four men, no more human
than you or I. No less deserving of privacy and respect as you or I.
My first concert ever was to see U2 at the Summit in Houston. An
amazing show to say the least, but one thing that stands out in my mind
is when Paul addressed the crowd to ask for his notebook back. It had
been stolen from his hotel room, undoubtedly by someone in the crowd
that night...needless to say no one ran up to the stage and apologized.
It wasn't *Bono* who'd been stolen from, but rather a thirty-something
musician from Ireland whom had traveled far and wide to perform in a
foreign country...some return treatment he received!
I remember something that Dave said in the movie Rattle & Hum: When
asked what the movie was about, he replied "It's about music...I
hope..." How important it is to remember that U2 are not your personal
friends, or family, or for most of us, even acquaintances...rather, they
made some very special sounds which we pop (excuse the pun) into our CD
players and enjoy.
The love that we have for them, even the obsession...it should all be
about "Music...I hope..."
So much has been circling around about U2's newest album. So what?
If somehow I got a phone call from Bono himself saying, "Right, here's
the set list, here's the lyrics, this is where we recorded it, here's a
transcript of the argument that Larry and Edge had, etc..." and if I'd
told all I knew about it:
1) I'd still be unable to prove anything, causing more doubt and
confusion, and
2) More importantly, the album would still be released when planned,
and the general public would still have no real idea about what to
expect until they bought the CD and listened to it...
What a wonderful idea it was to spread the rumor that the 'new'
album would be titled "Expect Nothing..." I couldn't think of a better
title for the fictitious album that the hungry fans out there were
waiting for, wanting it so bad they'd beLIEve anything...
How many of us have fantasized about meeting our favorite member in
person? How many times have we chosen the perfect few words to say if
and when we get the chance? It's understandable that we would do so,
but at what point does the interest become unhealthy? Is it when we
wait outside their suspected hotel all night long? Is it when we travel
abroad, only to linger at the gate of their home? Where does it stop?
The point I'm trying to make is that the less we pry into the inner
workings of the U2 machine, the less we sneak into their lives (and
hotel rooms), and the more time we spend searching for the secrets we
hold amongst each other and within ourselves, the better off we'd be.
Face it, you and I are possibly more attractive to others as individuals
as Paul, Larry, Dave or Adam...
I might be misunderstood, ignored, or even hated for writing all of
this, but as a last resort, I'll leave you all with this:
Be obsessed with U2. Buy the posters, the t-shirts, write all you
can on the internet about how much you love them, or how much they've
changed your life; debate what direction they'll take, argue over which
was their best "silly" song versus their best "party" album; write poems
inspired by their music, write songs that are a dead knockoff from
theirs...but at the same time, remember that "they" are artists, and as
interesting as the individuals may be, it is the ART with which we were
originally seduced, and it should only be the art with which we continue
to carry on this torrid love affair...
Thanks for listening,
2LT Jason Kinzer
--You're a vampire/or a victim/it depends on who's around --
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.0b2 on Tue Aug 04 1998 - 15:31:11 PDT