U2's "Get on your Boots" Reviewed

Sure enough, as I look around at reviews and comments on U2's new single, people are pretty mixed in their response.  Lots of people don't know what to think.  Some U2 haters predictably think it is crap.  Others who want another "Beautiful Day" react badly. My view is when they go in a different direction, when they've hit an innovative stream in their art, then it will be worth sitting up and paying attention. I'll share a few thoughts, but first some of the more interesting takes I've seen out there.  Each is an excerpt so click the link to read the whole review.

"U2's new single: Is 'Get on Your Boots' any good?" by Rob Brunner, Entertainment Weekly.Com

"So it was with somewhat low expectations that I sat down to check out their newest single, "Get on Your Boots," the first track from the upcoming album No Line on the Horizon. (You can hear the song here.) Sure enough, things start unpromisingly: a generic heavy metal guitar riff quickly gives way to a shameless rip-off of "Subterranean Homesick Blues," with Bono chanting about "love and community" and "candy floss ice cream."  But just as I was about to shut down the computer, a funny thing happened: the bridge kicked in, and "Boots" suddenly took off. A wash of vocal harmony sets things up nicely, and then Bono comes soaring in, insisting (to whom? who knows?) that "you don't know/you don't get it do you/you don't know how beautiful you are." It's one of those great U2 moments, the kind of thing that has kept fans on board for more than 30 years now."

U2 ‘Boots’ up: Irish megaband broadens its ‘Horizon’ By Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald

Unlike the band’s play-it-safe singles “Beautiful Day” and “Vertigo,” “Boots” is U2 at its most eccentric. Bono’s vocals swing wildly between the detachment of his old alter egos the Fly and Mephisto and the big, passionate bombast of “Rattle & Hum.” The Edge’s guitar is full-frontal once again with riffs as jagged and distorted as “Zoo Station” and snatches of layered, echo-y leads recalling “The Unforgettable Fire’s” “Wire.” The rhythm section follows Edge’s lead by blending “Wire” thump with the fuzz and jerk of “Zoo Station’s” rock electronica.

"U2's New Boots Made for Rockin'" By Darryl Sterdan, Sun Media, Winnipeg Sun

As I expected, "Get on Your Boots" is definitely upbeat. But it's not one of their serious, soaring anthems. Rather, it's a cheeky electro-rocker that shucks and jives along the line between retro and futuristic. Larry Mullen lays down a hipswivelling go-go groove flecked with percussion and handclaps. Adam Clayton holds down the bottom end with a funky bassline. The Edge supplies some glam-metal riffs along with his usual scritchy licks. Daniel Lanois and Eno layer on plenty of colourfully swirly production. And Bono delivers a talky, rhythmic vocal that owes a tip of the hat to Elvis Costello's "Pump it Up," except with lyrics about Satan and war and bomb scares. There's an instantly addictive chorus, a slightly psychedelic Beatle-pop bridge, a twitchy breakdown and a ringing one-finger guitar solo. In short, it's big, bold, brash and pretty freaking cool. Needless to say, it's also a far cry from the stripped-down arena-rock they've been dishing out lately. And a lot more fun than some of their more annoyingly self-indulgent outings. Of course, it's just the first single. Now we have to wait and see if the rest of the album is worth losing sleep over.

And the best review I've seen, one that I think nails the song, is:

Snap Judgement: U2's New Single 'Get On Your Boots'" By Ann Powers, LA Times

"GOYB" is sharper-edged than "Mysterious Ways," faster than "Elevation" and more non-linear than "Vertigo." It's dance-rock with a few small, tricky changes: a very Eno-esque bridge to nowhere, based on the phrase "you don't know how beautiful you are" that drags out the beat like Silly Putty, and a break near the end that has Bono rapping "let me in the sound" over a muscular Larry Mullen Jr. drumbeat that yells "I love rock and roll!"  As usual, modern rock's beloved grand uncles have been absorbing the lessons taught by their progeny. "Get on Your Boots" is quick and multi-layered, more like the dance rock preferred by kids who grew up on electronic music than a baby-boomer boogie fest."

"So what is sexy about donning boots, in a song whose cheerful tone and other lyrics about forming community and growing up hardly suggest a pair of stilettos? To turn a phrase that once belonged to the increasingly irrelevant Paris Hilton, it's hot right now to ponder cleaning up a mess. And that's what "Get on Your Boots" means to inspire us to do. This is U2's celebratory announcement of a new historical moment, one in which America and the world confront the catastrophes of the recent past and bust out some elbow grease to make things better."

My take? Well, here's some initial thoughts:

I thought all along that the song, talked about for at least six months on fan sites and music magazines as a possible first single, would be about putting on marching boots.   Bono loves that image. Just google "Bono marching boots" and you'll see that it is a stand-in for him in talking about social activisim.  For instance, when asked if the Product RED campaign could replace activism, he said in an editorial for The Independent(UK):  "For anyone who thinks this means I'm going to retire to the boardroom and stop banging my fist on the door of No. 10, I'm sorry to disappoint you. We have to keep our marching boots on and hold our leaders to account for the promises they have made to Africa - and get them to promise more."  Lots more examples here.  

And musically I think they are on this interesting continuum between 'heart on your sleeve' earnestness and ironic playfulness.  Both are serious spiritually and socially, but the means of musical and lyrical delivery is delightfully different.  The obviousness example here is the transition from The Joshua Tree to Achtung Baby.  So what does Get On Your Boots portend?  Where are the echoes in their work?  Sure, The Fly might be a musical point of connection, but so is Love and Peace or Else, both musically and and lyrically, but GOYB is a more playful, less intuitive lyric.  So, to quote my favorite review thus far, this is "U2's celebratory announcement of a new historical moment, one in which America and the world confront the catastrophes of the recent past and bust out some elbow grease to make things better." GOYB!

anon and peace,

Chris

Comments

[Matt K]

Chris, thanks for this - always enjoy your thoughts on U2. There's another fantastic review of this song that you might want to check out at http://www.scribblescribblescribble.com/blog/2009/01/19/please-allow-me-to-extricate-myself-some-thoughts-on-get-on-your-boots/ that hits on some of the connections in imagery between GOYB and Vertigo.