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Peter: This is a special one for me.

Tyler: Well, I reckon we should hear about it.

Peter: I bought this on cassette in 1991. It was the first U2 album I ever owned. My brother was a big fan but he’d just left for college.

I actually called him today to talk about this!

Tyler: Well hell’s bells, I hope a fine conversation was had.

Peter: It was great, but we got off on some wild tangents.

It’s hard to appreciate how jarring this album was when it first came out.

It was a real departure from their ’80s output.

Bono said it was “the sound of four men chopping down The Joshua Tree.”

Tyler: That damn Bono.  What a line.

Peter: U2 really reinvented themselves here, adding elements of industrial and dance music to their sound as well as adopting a more ironic, detached point of view lyrically. It could have been a huge disaster. Remember when MC Hammer embraced gangsta rap?

Tyler: “Pumps And A Bump!”

Peter: Nailed it!

It wasn’t good.

Were you familiar with Achtung Baby?

Tyler: It was on my radar when it was released, but I was eight, mystified by “Mysterious Ways” and “One,” which were everywhere for quite some time.  I have a brief but vivid memory of hearing Kurt Loder discuss the album title, as well.

Peter: It was huge.

Radical reinvention is tough to pull off but they really nailed it with this album. I also think they picked the perfect time to do it. It was a really special time for music. Nevermind dropped a couple months before AB, and the times they were a-changin’.

I love this album. It’s in my top 20 or so. I like all the songs. I don’t skip any of them.

Tyler: Yeah, they crushed it.  It’s a little long—55 minutes—but they earn that.

Peter: It is long. I didn’t get through this 7 times.

Tyler: By the transitive (?) property, then, you like Ringo the 4th more than Achtung Baby.

Peter: Spotify thinks I love Ringo the 4th and Dirty Work. It’s not ideal.

Tyler: Your Spotify Wrapped is going to be a special thing.

Peter: It’s true!

Okay, let’s do this! Achtung Baby, baby!

“Zoo Station” kicks off the proceedings.

Tyler: And it is some discordant shit.  How in hell must have this sounded to the casual U2 fan?  The devoted fan?  I fucking love “Zoo Station,” but, yeah, things had changed.

Peter: Exactly. It’s a radical departure. It was a big deal! It was risky.

Tyler: But in some ways it was necessary, no?  Rattle & Hum was a bit of a critical disappointment.

Peter: Right. There was some backlash around that album.

I mean, they could have recorded The Joshua Tree Part 2 and it would have gone multi-platinum, but this is much more interesting. I think that was part of it. They were evolving, Tyler!

Tyler: By George, I think I’ve got it!

Peter: Full disclosure, I just said I don’t skip any of the tracks on this album, which is true, but if I did skip one it would be “Zoo Station.”

“Zoo Station” feels like a song that could only exist as an album opener. It’s here to introduce the album. As if it’s a concept album. It’s like “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.”

Tyler: That’s a very deft assessment.  “Zoo Station” is a launching pad.

Peter: Which is fine! I do listen to it. I like it. But, it’s just the menu. The food is to come.

Tyler: That, then, makes the next track our first course.  “Even Better Than The Real Thing.”

Peter: It’s terrific.

Tyler: Yeah it is.  It soars.

Worth noting here are the presence of some breathy, carnal deliveries from Bono.  Had a touch of that in “Zoo Station,” and they continue here.  Sex is far more foregrounded on this album than on previous U2 LPs.

Peter: Right. Good point.

Tyler: We’ve come a long way from “With Or Without You.”

Anyway.  “Even Better Than The Real Thing” is a happy triumph.  This album is about to get real dark, and it’s delightful to have a kind of upbeat table-setter.

Peter: “One” has to be their biggest hit?

Tyler: Huh.  I think you might be right.  It was inescapable.

Peter: I never get tired of it.

Tyler: It’s remarkable, how familiar it feels after decades of only intermittent listening.

Peter: It’s one of those songs that sounds like it has always existed, but still sounds fresh.

I love it. I also love our next track, “Until The End of The World.”

Tyler: Just one killer after another.  Great song.

Peter: Bono playing Judas here. “In the garden I was playing the tart. I kissed your lips and broke your heart.”

Tyler: He spikes a drink in this one, too.  Dark times.

Peter: It is dark. Great production here from Daniel Lanois with help from Brian Eno.

Tyler: What a dream team that is behind the boards.  Sweet Jesus.

Peter: I never would have come up with them as a great combo, but it totally works.

Next up is “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses.” It’s another favorite of mine.

Tyler: Love it.  Just, love love love it.

Peter: The guitars! So great!

Tyler: Bono just belting the chorus.  And a fine chorus it is.  “Who’s gonna ride your wild horses” is a cryptic and fantastic refrain.

And the break.  “Don’t turn around,” and then some.  Gorgeous.

Peter: Yes! Let’s talk about that!

The middle-8s or bridges or whatever are so great on this album.

Tyler: Rock-solid song construction all around.

Peter: Agreed. This is just a great bunch of tunes.

Tyler: Every word in its right place, every note placed with care, yet nothing feels fussed over.  All this noise and clatter sounds somehow natural.

Next up: “So Cruel.”  I don’t know this one as innately as I do the others.  No shade on it.

Peter: My wife likes this one. It’s great.

I keep saying everything is great. It is. It’s all great.

It’s Achtung Baby!

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