21 July 2001
Blur had a surprise US hit single in 1997 thanks to ‘Song 2’. With its “Woo hoo!” hook and crunching rock chords, ‘Elevation’ sounds like U2’s attempt to have a bit of that same ‘Song 2’ stuff for themselves. I’m not a fan of ‘Song 2’, Blur, or U2. I won’t keep you long here.
‘Elevation’ is also U2 trying to have a bit of light-hearted fun, and I’m all for people having fun. I even had fun myself once. However, if you’ve seen Rattle And Hum you’ll know that fun is way outside U2’s comfort zone. Okay, Bono’s clumsy doggerel—“a mole / living in a hole” and what have you—is a welcome break from religion, social commentary and bad aphorisms. But, as with many U2 songs of this era, the mid-section literally comes to a halt as the band run out of ideas. Musically the track is crushingly basic. Also, this is another of those ‘feel-good’ All That You Can’t Leave Behind stadium pop anthems which must shoulder the blame for Coldplay. Woo hoo.
