Days Of Ash EP
by U2

U2 is a superb band, one of the best ever; this is real music.

I'm torn on this project. On the one hand, I've long since accepted that U2 will not bow out gracefully from the music industry and will likely keep making progressively more mediocre music that inspires very little praise, while continuing to make serious money playing their greatest hits on tour. On the other hand, even in their mid-sixties, U2 will continue to drop incredible songs that fill me with annoyance as to why they can't seem to put together an album's worth of them. Case in point - The Days of Ash EP. Most of the album is easily forgettable pop music that is probably the wrong medium to handle protest songs about ICE, Palestine and Iran (a mistake they haven't corrected from 2017's nadir, Songs of Experience). The Ed Sheeran song is fascinating as instead of Ed Sheeran featuring on a U2 song, it strikes me more as U2 featuring on an Ed Sheeran song, which is never something you want on an album of your own material. The interlude piece, Wildpeace, while not something I would ever listen to in my free time, calls back to other seemingly pointless interludes on 1984's The Unforgettable Fire, though I would rather they channel the energy of that album rather than much of their work in the 21st century. The Tears of Things is easily the best song on the album - it's a protest song without being too specific to date the song, features a beautiful arrangement, interesting chord changes, a powerful vocal from Bono and the type of religious imagery as social commentary that only he can provide. In other words, it's one of the best songs they've written since the 1990s. However, it isn't enough to carry an otherwise mediocre album. I'm equal parts curious and deeply afraid for what they'll offer on the album they plan to release later this year and that's never a position a fan should be in.