Zooropa: U2 тобының студиялық альбомы

1993 studio album by U2
the album

Zooropa is the eighth studio album by Irish rock band U2. Produced by Flood, Brian Eno, and the Edge, it was released on 5 July 1993 on Island Records. Inspired by the band's experiences on the Zoo TV Tour, Zooropa expanded on many of the tour's themes of technology and media oversaturation. The record was a continuation of the group's experimentation with alternative rock, electronic dance music, and electronic sound effects that began with their previous album, Achtung Baby, in 1991. U2 began writing and recording Zooropa in Dublin in February 1993, during a six month break between legs of the Zoo TV Tour. The record was originally intended as an EP to promote the "Zooropa" leg of the tour that was to begin in May 1993, but during the sessions, the group decided to extend the record to a full length album. Pressed for time, U2 wrote and recorded at a rapid pace, with songs originating from many sources, including leftover material from the Achtung Baby sessions. The album was not completed in time for the tour's resumption, forcing the band to travel between Dublin and their tour destinations in May to complete mixing and recording. Zooropa received generally favourable reviews from critics. Despite none of its three singles—"Numb", "Lemon", and "Stay (Faraway, So Close! )"—being hits consistently across regions, the record sold well upon release, charting in the top ten of 26 countries. The album's charting duration and lifetime sales of 7 million copies, however, were less than those of Achtung Baby. In 1994, Zooropa won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album. Although the record was a success and music journalists view it as one of the group's most creative works, the band regard it with mixed feelings.

U2 regained critical favour with their commercially successful 1991 album Achtung Baby and the supporting Zoo TV Tour in 1992. The record was a musical reinvention for the group, incorporating influences from alternative rock, industrial music, and electronic dance music into their sound. The tour was an elaborately staged multimedia event that satirised television and the viewing public's overstimulation by attempting to instill "sensory overload" in its audience. The band finished 1992 with one of their most successful years, selling 2.9 million concert tickets and reaching 10 million copies sold for Achtung Baby. Their 73 North American concerts from the year grossed US$67 million, easily the highest amount for any touring artist in 1992. The group concluded the North American "Outside Broadcast" leg of the tour on 25 November 1992, leaving them with a six month break before the tour resumed in Europe in May 1993 with the "Zooropa" leg. Rather than use the time to rest, lead vocalist Bono and guitarist the Edge were keen to record new material. Following a hectic year of touring, the two did not want to settle back into domestic life. Bono said, "We thought we could live a normal life and then go back on the road [in May 1993]. But it turns out that your whole way of thinking, your whole body has been geared toward the madness of Zoo TV So we decided to put the madness on a record. Everybody's head was spinning, so we thought, why not keep that momentum going ?" The Edge also wished to distract himself from the emotions he was feeling after separating from his wife during the Achtung Baby sessions in 1991. The other members, bassist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen, Jr., ultimately agreed to join them for recording.

After handling audio engineering for the recording of Achtung Baby, Robbie Adams was invited by U2 to manage sound mixing on the Zoo TV Tour. Adams also recorded the group's tour soundchecks. In January 1993, the band asked him to compile these recordings and create loops of interesting parts that they could play to in the studio. After Adams spent a few weeks assembling loops, the group entered The Factory in Dublin that February to begin composing rough demos. Bono and the Edge were most involved during this initial demoing process, which lasted six weeks. Audio services company Audio Engineering installed recording equipment at the Factory that included a Soundcraft 6000 mixing console, an Otari MTR100 multi track recorder, and four Neve console modules. The company also provided outboard gear such as a UREI 1176 Peak Limiter, a dbx 120X DS subharmonic synthesizer, two Summit and two LA compressors, a Focusrite 115HD equaliser, a Yamaha SPX1000 multi effects unit, Lexicon PCM 70 and AMS RMX 16 reverb units, and Yamaha NS 10 and EGV monitor speakers. Similar to the Achtung Baby sessions, Eno worked two week shifts. The group often gave him in progress songs to adjust and to which he could add his own personality. Initially, the band did not have a clear plan for how they would release the material being written. Much like they had for the Achtung Baby sessions, the band split work between two studios at once; Adams operated a Soundtracs mixing console at The Factory, while Flood used an SSL console at the newly relocated Windmill Lane Studios. Flood recorded the material, while Eno alternated between performing with U2 and joining Flood in the control room. At the end of a given week, Eno and Flood compared their notes and compiled the week's best jams onto a cassette for the band to listen to. The producers edited together their favourite sections of the jams and then discussed the arrangements with the group. U2 suggested alterations and added lyrics and melodies, before performing to the edited arrangements.|align=right|style=padding:8px;
Songs originated from and were inspired by a variety of sources. "Zooropa" was the result of combining two separate pieces of music together, one of which the band discovered while reviewing recordings of tour soundchecks. Throughout the sessions, U2 were undecided on a unifying musical style for the release, and as a result, they maintained three potential track listings—one for the best songs, one for "vibes", and one for a soundtrack album. Bono suggested editing the best segments of songs together to create a montage. As May's "Zooropa" tour leg approached, U2 continued to record while simultaneously rehearsing for the tour. Their time limit prevented them from working on live arrangements for any of the new songs. Despite the sessions' rapid pace, the album was not completed by the time they had to resume touring. Moreover, Flood and Eno had to begin work on other projects. The Edge remembers everyone was telling the group, "Well, it's an EP. You did good but there's a lot more work needed to finish some of these songs." Clayton called the process "about the craziest thing you could do to yourself", while Mullen said of it, "It was mad, but it was mad good, as opposed to mad bad." The group simultaneously used three separate rooms at Windmill Lane to mix, overdub, and edit. Adams said the hectic approach meant "there was never anybody sitting around waiting or doing nothing". Eschewing console automation, the engineers adopted a "live performance" attitude to mixing, based on past experiences with Lanois. The band and production crew sat in on the mixing and offered encouragement, creating, as Adams put it, "a kind of cheerleader thing. It all induces a nervous energy in you and creates a lot of pressure, and gives the whole thing a performance feel. "—for the extra level of responsibility he assumed for the album. Twenty songs were recorded during the sessions, but ultimately 10 were chosen for the final track listing. Other tracks that were left off the album included "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me", "If God Will Send His Angels", "If You Wear That Velvet Dress", and "Wake Up Dead Man". The first was later released as a single from the Batman Forever soundtrack in 1995, and the latter three were included on the band's following studio album, Pop, in 1997.

With an even more "European" musical aesthetic than Achtung Baby, Zooropa is a further departure from the group's "rootsy" sound of the late 1980s. Much like how the group embraced technology for the Zoo TV Tour, they utilized technology as a musical resource to a greater extent on Zooropa. The record exhibits additional influences from alternative rock, electronic dance music, and industrial music—it is more synthesised than U2's past work, featuring various sound effects, audio loops, and use of synthesisers. The Edge's guitar playing on Zooropa marks a further shift away from his trademark style, highlighted by a heavier reliance on guitar effects The instrumentation of the closing song, "The Wanderer", consists primarily of a synthesised bassline and was described by the group as resembling the "ultimate Holiday Inn band from hell". The song was sequenced as the final track because U2 wanted to end the album on a "musical joke". The industrial influenced "Numb" features a noisy backdrop of sampled, rhythmic noises, including "arcade sounds", a Walkman rewinding, and a Hitler Youth boy banging a bass drum in the 1935 propaganda film Triumph of the Will. The vocals on Zooropa are a further departure from U2's previous style. As Jon Pareles described, Bono "underplays his lung power" throughout the record, in contrast to his impassioned, belting vocals from past work. Two tracks feature other people on lead vocals: for "Numb", the Edge provides lead vocals in the form of a droning, monotonous list of "don't" commands;

Bono is credited as the sole lyricist for eight of the ten songs, while the Edge received sole credit for "Numb". The duo share credits for the lyrics to "Dirty Day". Technology is a common theme on Zooropa, inspired by the group's experiences on the Zoo TV Tour. Jon Pareles wrote that the songs are about how "media messages infect characters' souls", In the song's introduction, background voices ask, "What do you want?" In contrast to the technology inspired lyrics of many songs, others had more domestic themes. "The First Time" was Bono's interpretation of the story of the Prodigal son, but in his version, the son decides not to return home. "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" is a love song written for an abused woman. Bono described the song as an "antidote to the Zooropa manifesto of uncertainty", and he believes it presents a possible solution to the uncertainty expressed earlier on the album. The cover features a sketch of the circle of stars from the Flag of Europe with an "astrobaby" drawing in the center. The illustration, created by Shaughn McGrath, In the background is a montage of blurred images, similar to the arrangement of images on Achtung Babys sleeve. The images include shots of a woman's face and mouth, as well as photographs of European leaders, including Vladimir Lenin, Benito Mussolini, and Nicolae Ceauşescu. the multinational that purchased Island in 1989. Although the group were free to sign a new contract elsewhere, their strong relationship with the label and its founder Chris Blackwell prompted the band to remain with Island/Polygram by signing a long term, six album deal in June 1993. making them the highest paid rock group ever. At the time, the group were cognizant of several emerging technologies that would potentially impact the delivery and transmission of music to consumers in the following years. Author Bill Flanagan speculated, "Record stores could become obsolete as music is delivered over cable, telephone wires, or satellite transmissions directly into consumers' homes." With uncertainty over the future of these technologies and the implications of entertainment and telecommunications companies merging, the band negotiated with Island that the division of their earnings from future transmission systems would be flexible and decided upon at a relevant time. U2 toyed with the idea of releasing Zooropa as an interactive audio video presentation in lieu of conventional physical formats, but the deadline imposed by the Zoo TV Tour prevented the band from realising this idea. U2's delivery of Zooropa in late May caught PolyGram somewhat off guard, because they were not expecting a new album by the group for several years. The music video was directed by Kevin Godley. The song peaked at number seven in Australia and number nine in Canada,

Zooropa was released on 5 July 1993, during the Zooropa leg of the Zoo TV Tour. The single peaked at number six in Australia It was the album's most successful single, topping the Irish Singles Chart

In October 2011, Achtung Baby was reissued to commemorate its 20th anniversary; CD copies of Zooropa were included in the "Super Deluxe" and "Über Deluxe" editions of the release. Continuing a campaign by U2 to reissue all of their records on vinyl, Zooropa was re released on two 180 gram vinyl records on 27 July 2018. Remastered under the Edge's direction, the reissue included two remixes to commemorate the album's 25th anniversary: "Lemon (The Perfecto Mix)" and "Numb (Gimme Some More Dignity Mix)". Each copy includes a download card that can be used to redeem a digital copy of the album.

Zooropa finished in 9th place on the "Best Albums" list from The Village Voices 1993 Pazz & Jop critics' poll. At the 36th Annual Grammy Awards, it won the award for Best Alternative Music Album. In his acceptance speech, Bono sarcastically mocked the "alternative" characterisation the album received and used a profanity on live television: "I think I'd like to give a message to the young people of America. And that is: We shall continue to abuse our position and fuck up the mainstream." Zooropa was also nominated for Album of the Year at the 1993 GAFFA Awards in Denmark.

The album performed well commercially, debuting at number one in the United States, United Kingdom, In the US, the album spent its first two weeks on the Billboard 200 at the top spot, staying in the top 10 for seven weeks. The album reached the top 10 in 26 countries. Despite reaching impressive peak positions, Zooropa had a shorter stay on the music charts than Achtung Baby did. In total, Zooropa spent 40 weeks on the Billboard 200, 61 fewer weeks than Achtung Baby. Zooropa spent 34 weeks on the UK Albums Chart, nine of which were in the top ten, but it charted in the UK for 59 fewer weeks than Achtung Baby. According to Nielsen Soundscan, Zooropa sold 1.8 million copies in the US in 1993, the 22nd highest total in the country that year, and by February 1997 sales in the US had reached 2.1 million copies. The album has been certified 2× Platinum in the US by the Recording Industry Association of America, 3× Platinum in Australia, Platinum in the UK, and 4× Platinum in both New Zealand

The band began the Zoo TV Tour in February 1992 in support of Achtung Baby. In contrast to the austere stage setups of previous U2 tours, Zoo TV was an elaborate multimedia event. It satirised television and the viewing public's overstimulation by attempting to instill "sensory overload" in its audience. The Zooropa album was released in July 1993, halfway through the Zooropa leg of the tour. Of the 157 shows the band played during the Zoo TV Tour, approximately 30 of them were after the release of Zooropa. Many of the album's songs found permanent places in the shows' set lists. "Lemon" and "Daddy's Gonna Pay for Your Crashed Car" were performed with Bono in his MacPhisto persona, during encores of the Zoomerang Leg of the tour. "Dirty Day" was also played on this leg after the acoustic set. "Numb" was performed with the Edge playing guitar and on lead vocals, with Mullen performing backing vocals while drumming. "Zooropa" was played only three times and "Babyface" twice more at the same shows on the Zooropa leg, but they were cut out of the set list after the band were displeased with how they sounded live. "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" was performed acoustically for the Zooropa and Zoomerang legs.

Quote box|width=25em|quote="The songs are not classics but they are more experimental and interesting than classic pop songs. This is something we don't necessarily care to do anymore. We don't go down the road with a piece of music just because it's unusual. That's not enough for us now. We want something that's potent and some of these songs are not particularly potent. "|source=—The Edge The Edge said that he did not think the songs were "potent", further stating, "I never thought of Zooropa as anything more than an interlude but a great one, as interludes go. By far our most interesting." After the release of Zooropa, David Bowie praised the band, writing, "[U2] might be all shamrocks and deutsche marks to some, but I feel that they are one of the few rock bands even attempting to hint at a world which will continue past the next great wall—the year 2000." In 2023, Steven Hyden of Uproxx echoed Bowie's sentiments in a 30th anniversary retrospective on Zooropa: "U2 dared to imagine something that in the present moment seems to be of little common interest: the future I mean the future as it stood in the '90s, when people looked beyond the 20th century and envisioned a radically different world emerging from a period of political and cultural uncertainty." Hyden felt that U2 had been guided by uncertainty for the record, calling it "artistically successful in that it set out to evoke an increasingly incoherent world by making anyone who heard it also feel incoherent". He believed that unlike other alternative rock albums from 1993, Zooropa was even more relevant in 2023 than when first released, and that it had not become dated: "And that's because the world U2 thought they were commenting on in 1993 was in reality just coming into existence, and it's the world we're living in now." He added, "Above all, Zooropa summons the modern desire to unplug from the grid and reconnect with something 'real' or 'authentic.'" Edna Gundersen of USA Today said in 2002, "the alien territory of Achtung Baby and Zooropa cemented U2's relevance and enhanced its cachet as intrepid explorers". Neil McCormick wrote about Zooropa, "It feels like a minor work, and generally U2 don't do minor. But if you're not going to make the Big Statement, you're maybe going to come up with something that has the oxygen of pop music." In 2013, the magazine published an article by Rob Harvilla that called Zooropa the album that almost killed U2's career. Harvilla referred to the album as "a weird blip best understood as a portent of the burps that followed, a mega band dipping a big toe into murky art rock waters before belly flopping completely with Pop and its subsequent crass, costly, cred depleting tour misadventures." While lamenting the band's latter career creative output, he added: "Mark this record, then, as a celebration of a time when U2 was still musically daring; give 'Lemon' credit at least for successfully trolling you. It is the maddening, befuddling, discomfiting, somewhat ill advised, occasionally inspired sound of very famous, very difficult men trying on some ill fitting clothes." In 2011, Rolling Stone ranked the record at number 61 on its list of "100 Best Albums of the Nineties".