Nick ([email protected])
Thu, 20 Aug 1998 10:40:20 -0700
Buzz Andersen ([email protected]) said...
> While I would certainly agree that there could never be another band
> quite like U2, I think we have been too quick to dismiss Todd's
> excellent discussion topic. Perhaps we should clarify what we mean by > "the next U2"--are we talking about "the next band that will sound and > behave a lot like U2" or "the next band that will capture peoples'
> imaginations and carry music forward the way U2 has?" I vote that we
> discuss the latter, because the former is pretty obvious (nobody).
I remember reading an NME review of Radiohead's "The Bends" where
Radiohead were already called "the next U2." And indeed, I'm one of the
bandwagoneers who think that they are the band most similar to U2, both
studio and live. But there's one thing Radiohead is missing--a
charismatic frontman. I guess most people would consider Thom Yorke as
the leader, and while he has a voice that can match (and probably
surpass) Bono's, he doesn't have the stage antics (or the looks that
poor thing). So while I think that Radiohead will likely release genre-
bending albums, they won't move the boundaries of stadium shows as U2
did.
My only other bid to this debate is Pulp. They've released three
records in the past four years, each better than the last, and they've
been nominated for the Mercury Music Prize each time (winning it with
Different Class, which IMO is the best album of '95). Live they are
also a treat, largely due to Jarvis Cocker's bendy-wrist theatrics and
large repertoire of 70's disco moves. Pulp have shown themselves to be
fabulous both in the studio and on the stage, and I think that thould
they make it big in the U.S., they could be capable of following in U2's
footsteps. The only problem is that the band is relatively old (Cocker
himself is 33, and Pulp have been around for over 15 years), so their
time is running out. One can only keep his fingers crossed.
Thank you for your resounding indifference,
nick
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.0b2 on Thu Aug 20 1998 - 07:51:06 PDT