"Zooropa" is a good example of this, as this song is centered around a blurry guitar melody, a calm rhythm section, and a few radio voice recordings thrown in here and there. There seems to be a little bit more "playfulness" on this record the song arrangements are quite relaxing, chill, and euphoric. Lyrically, the album is mainly comprised of words related to the uprising of technology (also media) because of them adopting heavily to technology during that day and age (around 1992/1993), this would eventually grow to be reflected with the album's sound. Although guitars and the "trademark U2" might be nonexistent here, their interesting fuse of genres here work brilliantly and magically, something that is not attainable on any other U2 record (other than perhaps Achtung Baby in a few cases). Guitars on this record seem to creep in only when they're politely asked, while synthesizers, voice effects, and other electronic sounds run the show accordingly. Luckily, U2 pulls this off superbly and creates a hypnotizing masterpiece.Īs "exotic" and dazzling as the artwork is, the music is surprisingly held up quite well (face it, the artwork is a little ridiculous, or for some, straight up eye-candy). The synthesizer here is a prominent instrument, as the effects, noises, and flutters reflect solely back on this instrument.
Musically, the group's sound here is on a polar opposite instead of their common rock sound, we are met with electronic and alternative rock arrangements, setting a more exotic flavor for the album. Although somewhat disliked by the group (they've made plenty of comments and remarks claiming that they had mixed feelings for this record), I would honestly consider this album to be stellar. Toying with various genres such as electronic dance music, alternative rock, and nods of industrial rock, Zooropa is easily one of their most creative albums they've ever produced. In essence, U2's Zooropa is extremely similar to their predecessor, Achtung Baby musically. Review Summary: One snazzy, detail-oriented album that shifts away from the common U2 sound, and introduces a unique electronic sound