#originalsoundtracks1 — Public Fediverse posts

The bit that you skip #313: Passengers – Slug

After Zooropa, U2 had no direction, no purpose, no ideas left. The band had no brush to paint a new picture, and just a blank canvas. Brian Eno, having worked recently with U2, proposed they should loosen up. Eno had done the same for James in 1994. While recording for Laid, James used to jam as a warm up exercise. Eno heard a few good ideas and proposed the band record and experimental, abstract album. Wah Wah can be a tough listen, but it’s very rewarding, as you can hear the first draft of their massive hit Tomorrow.

U2 have a massive problem that has been evident since the undeserved failure of POP. They fear experimentation. Perhaps they aren’t happy moving away from a comfort zone. Perhaps it’s a confidence issue. Whatever the reason is, I feel the band never fully embraces the wild ideas they have. Whether it’s ego or something else that prevents them, only they know.

Still, Eno cajoled the band, who took the Passengers moniker and recorded Original Soundtracks 1. Although the ideas never venture fully into leftfield like James did on Wah Wah, U2 loosened up and came up with an album that plunders the intro to Zooropa (and possibly Numb and Dirty Day) and weaves an intricate album that befuddled U2 fans, pleased Eno fans, and somehow disappeared as fast as it arrived. Only lead single Miss Sarajevo, featuring Luciano Pavarotti, managed to hit the charts.

Two songs from Original Soundtracks 1 inspired me for a novel set in Tampico. It was a sequel (of sorts) for another book, and I wanted to loosen up my concept too, as I felt the first one was too constricted and there were leaps in logic as I wanted certain things to happen in the book, to the detriment of the story. This Tampico book starts with a character named Tocayo (from my 3 AM book) traveling by bus to Tampico. He can’t sleep due to all the bad stuff that happened on the previous book and has recurring nightmares. My inspiration was United Colours, the opening track.

Again, thinking of the book as a movie, I used Slug several times when I needed to depict longing and starcrossed lovers. There are two parallel stories of people in relationships who are will not get a happy ending. There’s also bank robberies, because, sure, why not? My issue as always is tacking on too many ideas, which makes editing as far from streamlined as possible. In total, there’s three main plotlines, all in parallel, all intertwined to a single criminal act in Tampico.

I abandoned this book when Amores Perros came out. There were many parallels, starting with the hobo with the secret past and ending with an open end with no clear cut resolution to some of our protagonists. Iñárritu did it well, I left this book in the “Sam the idea guy” pile.

I come back to Original Soundtracks 1 every Autumn. It feels like the correct time of year to indulge into its majorly downbeat, dreamy atmosphere. It’s a shame the experiment never was revisited, as I think U2’s sporadic release schedule after How to dismantle an atomic bomb is easily explained. U2 wants to paint with the same brush whilst ignoring their potential to do something more Enoesque than a lack of ideas. Having been disappointed by the leading singles of Carnaval de Luz, I just hope they do at least an EP of ambient stuff. They’ve got the knack for it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdoGAHwpcRs