Achtung Baby

Really enjoyed relistening to this album after last hearing it a million years ago. This album was one of those first albums I really got into when I was young and first establishing music that was MY music. Interesting as I listened to The Joshua Tree not terribly long ago, and while that album is an undeniable classic and huge album, I wasn't as into it as I once was a million years ago, most of the tracks being so familiar that, while great, don't move me whole lot, not in a fresh kind of way. Surprisingly, Achtung Baby is like really doing it for me! I mean, this album is also very familiar to me, but it's hitting me in a zesty, refreshing kind of way, while also getting at me emotionally. There's themes here that I definitely relate to more than when I was 12. This album is vibrant and colorful, but there's beautiful melancholy here as well. It feels like a turning point after a long duration of separation when you start to pick your head up, start opening the blinds and letting light in again. There's sadness, there's longing, but life has color and is still there to be embraced, there to welcome you. I dunno, just stuff I'm feeling as I'm listening. Very surprised by my reaction but I dig it. Also got Lanois and Eno on deck, which never hurts. Great album. Love it.

Difficult to taste an album what's you know so many of the tracks, and that have bitten used in so many places.

Ok, I know it's easy to hate U2. They can be preachy and maybe a little conceited. But they definitely had a string of some excellent albums back in the day, including this album. It's a definitely change of style for the band with subtle influences from electronic and industrial artists. It's perhaps not their most easily accessible album. It's also maybe their most daring album (which I'd give to their flopped disco album 'Pop'). But it definitely achieves a lot, including some of the band's best songs, like "Mysterious Ways" and "Better Than the Real Thing". The legacy of this album would later be revisited in a tribute album called "AHK-toong BAY-bi Covered". Covers were provided by the likes of Nine Inch Nails, Patti Smith, Depeche Mode, Jack White and others. That impressive line up is the proof that this remains an important album.

own

No. 54 Really cool listen. Some highlights and no song I really disliked.

U2s radikaler Stilbruch: düster, elektronisch, emotional. Songs wie „One“ und „Mysterious Ways“ zeigen die Band auf dem Höhepunkt ihrer Kreativität. Der deutsche Titel? Eine ironische Hommage an Berlin, wo das Album entstand – und ein Augenzwinkern zur eigenen Neuerfindung.

4 только благодаря песне One, больше ни одна не понравилась.

Edited. Not a 5

Fantastic defining sound of U2

Absolutely killer album. Does Bono's bravado grate on me at times? Sure. But the production and songs on this album are SO good. Could've lost a song or 2 to make this truly legendary, but I struggle to find bad things to say about this record. 9/10

There are a few U2 songs that make me weep, "One" among them. Don't know what it's "really about" nor do I care all that much. As a U2 fan, I can't say this is my favorite album of theirs. They basically frosted over the things that made them great: the rhythm section sounds flattened and is mixed into a shoebox, the muscular guitar lines are buried under effects so thick you can only barely ascertain the guitar at all, and say what you will about Bono - you gotta respect his passion and commitment to the job - but on this he is (of course) devolving into the crooner all rock singers think they should be. What U2 are good at is building an emotional vignette from the constraints of the four-piece rock convention. When they deviate like they do on Achtung Baby, it's a little disconcerting. They're clearly out of their comfort zone. But a band like this (hugely successful), at this point in their career (past their prime and entrenched in the mainstream), is in a damned if you do, damned if you don't position. Experiment and try something different, and your fanbase is repelled. Keep doing the same thing you always have and you're seen as lazy, tired, behind the times. The former is the natural thing musicians want to do, but riskier. The latter is a paycheck but a high-speed train to irrelevance. And U2 wants to be relevant more than anything else. Although U2 don't seem to tire of playing I Will Follow or New Year's Day a million times, they did decide to go the riskier route on this album, with mixed results.

Hadn’t heard this side of U2 much before, only their more recent albums. Like the rest of their stuff, I see why they hit it big, and this album seems rougher around the edges in a good way

Very easy to listen to but not as interesting or exciting as The Joshua Tree. The influences from industrial and electronic music are clear. It's pretty consistent and I enjoyed listening but I don't think there are any songs I want in regular rotation.

surprised me a lot. thoroughly enjoyed

Very good album. It would be even better if I had not heard all these songs before. I feel like they've all been released as singles.

Amazing album

Standouts - Until the end of the world - The Fly - Ultra Violet This album is way more experimental than I was expecting from a U2 album, I actually ended up really enjoying it. It feels like a sonic youth album at times. There are some really generic songs in here which brings it down a lot. low 4

Good stuff. I like this earlier version of u2. Had never really heard these tracks

Favorites: Even Better Than The Real Thing One Until The End Of The World So Cruel The Fly Mysterious Ways Ultra Violet (Light My Way) Acrobat Love Is Blindness

I like these guys and it's probably the best album I've heard by them. I vastly prefer the side one songs that sound less like normal U2 over the side two ones, which are much more what you expect. The production and songwriting are welcome departures, and the song "One" is as good as they're ever going to be. But I still have this thing about U2 where I don't go back and listen to their records that often. They give you everything the first time, and there's not that much mystery to uncover afterwards.

Great! Love their sound. Some great songs.

Excellent album by a band with incredible staying power. I feel like they took more risks on this album...had more of an...edge 😅

oh. But anyway u2 is also an Irish band. anyway idk wether this is just a coincidence or something else. And yes, we know that you fucking hate pop rock and we know you think that bono is pretentious. But even the most pretentious music nerds from rate your music decided to give this a 3.7 out of 5. And it completely don’t sound like the stuffs they put out before no matter you are comparing with war or the Joshua tree. The atmosphere is visibly darker and guess what? Our dear friend Brian Eno worked on this. And he handled the atmo pretty well! TLDR: u2 are overhated and this album is one of their best. 4/5

She Moves In Mysterious Ways 1001 Albums Generator 176 (12/4/2025) Achtung Baby is the final U2 album that has seen consistent praise from critics, and it's not unfounded. This album, especially its first half, is made up of some really nice pop/rock songs. The biggest hit is by far "One", which is actually one of my least favorites here. Songs like Even Better Than The Real Thing and Until The End Of The World are absolutely huge. Edge gets dismissed as a guitarist because he uses delay pedals a lot, but the guitar on this album is consistently great. Who's Gonna Ride Your Horses is perhaps the most similar to U2's 80's style of Big Music, but its got a bit of a heartland/Springsteen thing going for it too. So Cruel is my least favorite song on the album. The almost trip-hop beat is just dated and not great. However, The Fly is like proto-shoegaze and Mysterious Ways is one of the most danceable songs on the album. Unfortunately, after this, the album is largely forgettable and starts feeling way too long. Besides Acrobat, the last four songs all blended together for me. Achtung Baby was a pleasant surprise for a guy who has always dismissed U2, perhaps unfairly, but the album has some glaring issues, especially in its second half. 3.5/5, rounded up to a 4. Favs: Until The End Of The World The Fly Mysterious Ways Least Fav: So Cruel

Extremely rare instance of the opening track being the worst on the album instead of the best. That’s how full of themselves U2 were at this point in their career. Biggest band in the world for sure! First album from my birth year? What a great year for music ‘91 was. Now I wanna hop down the rabbit hole and find my top ten from that year. This could make it but might fall closer to top 20. This is a definite 4.5 so for the moment I’m gonna give it a 4 and may edit to a 5 if I feel like later.

(9/12 liked songs = 75%) Liked it a lot more than I was expecting.

Damn it, I think I like this

The last great U2 album.

have had a pretty standard distaste for u2 since the itunes preload debacle. very pleasant surprise was this album!!

I hadn’t listened to this album in a long time. Subsequently I’ve grown to enjoy Brian Eno’s solo music, which I hadn’t heard before. You can see his influence on this album.

This is an album with a big sound. There are some quieter songs like One and Trying to Throw Your Arms Around the World, but there's also some harder rocking, more experimental ones. I think this may be where the reputation for bombast may have started. All in all, not my favorite U2 album, but still very good.

Enjoyable album, none of the songs that I know U2 for and still had a good time listening and was pleasantly surprised.

As a guy with Irish heritage, I’m surprisingly not the most familiar with U2. When I was a kid, we had a single U2 CD my parents would play in the car. Whatever record had “Elevation”, that’s the only track that stuck with me all these years later. I suppose I could easily just look that up on Spotify and see if I remember the other tracks, but I’ve never really cared to do so. It wasn’t really all that impactful of a memory, just a very old one I have. Anyway, I didn’t recognize any of the tracks on this album, hits included. I know about the reputation this album has though, and I know about the reputation Bono has nowadays. His portrayal on South Park as well as the whole forced album on Apple phones thing really fucked the band as a whole in the public eye, didn’t it?? All that being said, I guess I’m a fan of U2 now. This was nowhere even remotely close to what I remember them sounding like. This album is damn near a 5 for me. The electronic elements are stellar, as are the guitar playing and Bono’s iconic singing. I enjoyed just about every song here. The only thing keeping it from being a 5 is that, despite all the ways I enjoyed this album, I still don’t think anything stood out as truly incredible. Fantastic, yes. But not incredible. The closest song to true perfection I thought was “Even Better Than The Real Thing”. This is a really good album and it’s currently first place on the list of albums I may go back and change to a 5 if I feel like reranking a bit. I know this is considered by many to be their magnum opus, so I’m curious to see what I think of their other albums on this list. Really good first impression with this one.

Good music U2 is a good Irish band ☘️🙏🏻🇮🇪

Das klingt nicht wie das U2, das ich aus dem Radio kenne. Das ist gut. Solide 4 1/2 Sterne.

A decent album from an above-average band. Not all of the tracks are bangers, but a handful of them really stand out from the rest. U2 consistently provides a solid rock sound and this album seems a bit more exploratory then staying true to their previous compilations. Well worth a listen.

This was the beginning and the end of U2. The “new” beginning where they succeeded in reinventing themselves without destroying what was unique to themselves. I don’t think the reinvention was anywhere near as compelling as their earlier incarnation, but I understand that there’s only so many times you can write a song to Jesus (thinly veiled as being sung to a woman) while playing the same three chords until you need to try something new. But it’s also the end of U2. This is the first album where they start to parody rock stardom and the last before they lose themselves in the joke. The album itself is actually quite strong, with lots of familiar songs, and other interesting compositions (which sway a bit too far into the pop lane for my personal taste) that are good. Listen, any album that has One and Even Better Than the Real Thing has got to chart just on those, right? The rest of the album holds up and works well.

U2 really began developing their sound on this album — you can hear traces of what's to come in most tracks on this album. Amazing that "One" was initially improvised in the studio, especially with it being one of the band's most popular songs. What surprised me the most about this album, depsite listening to U2 since I was probably 3 years old, was the lyricism! With lines like "in my dream I was drowning my sorrows, but my sorrows, they learned to swim" and "... you left my heart empty as a vacant lot / For any spirit to haunt" there's more meaning to Bono's lyrics than I realized. This is coming from the guy who sings "uno (1), dos (2), tres (3), catorce (14)" a decade later on How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. Song picks: "One", "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses", and "Acrobat".

I remember not being a fan of U2 when I was younger, but I surprisingly enjoyed this album a lot. I love the 90s alt rock vibes and the 'edgy' album cover and name. Standout tracks for me are One, Until The End Of The World, Ultra Violet, Acrobat, and Love Is Blindness. Prior to this, I only knew Jack White's cover of Love Is Blindness, so it's cool to hear the original. I like the band's sound and really like Bono's voice. 8.5/10.

of all U2 Albums, the consensus is that this was their magnum opus, U2 At theri absolute best. Whilst im not neccessarily the BIGGEST fan of this one,(Not from a "they sold out" stance like some people seem to hold), I appreciate this album, as it was good sense of the direction Alternative was going in the 90s (amidst the chaos of that small band in Seattle). 4/5. (probably a 5/5 but that Songs of Innocence stunt was unforgiveable ngl, unfair or not.)

Solid. 4.35 stars

2025 is the year of finding out I would've been a U2 fan when they were still around

Not the biggest fan of U2 as individuals or musically but they do have some fantastic songs. I find that some of the songs on this drift by relying on the ´U2 sound’ without any strong melodies or riffs underpinning them. However, I think ‘One’ and the final three tracks are sensational. Special mention to ´love is blindness’. The whole song is great but I love the guitar solo especially - it is visceral and broken at the same time, which captures the mood of the song perfectly. I loved it so much it was played at our wedding reception - which would prompt a good discussion on the least appropriate songs to play at a wedding.

I’ve flip flopped as to how to rate this album. On the one hand, some of the tracks are a little overplayed (it shouldn’t necessarily be punished for it but hard to disregard hearing ‘one’ for the thousandth time), and I don’t think it is necessarily as transformative as others insist it was to their sound. On the other, it’s a really solid album and, from front to back, one of their best with very few weak tracks on it.

A grudging 4. Theres no denying that this was an epic reinvention of a band and that the album is full of great tracks. My dislike of the band and particularly Bono shouldn't really colour the review, so a 4 it is.

Un cambio importante en la sonoridad la banda. 4/5

This was Even Better Than the Real Thing.

Mid-career U2. This should be fun. Zoo Station - 7/10. Harder than a lot of what we heard on War. Solid musicianship, as we expect from U2. Even mediocre U2 is good. Even Better than the Real Thing - 7/10. Interesting start to this song. This has the smooth vocals and slick instrumentals I expect from U2. One - 10/10. This is one of the all time great U2 songs. Until the End of the World - 7/10. Good stuff. Not much to say, it's typical U2. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses - 7/10. I hate to put it like this, but it's generic U2. It's exactly what you would expect from U2 outside of the big hits. So Cruel - 6/10. Solid U2. Good music, good vocals, nothing to really stand out. Could stand to be about a minute and a half shorter. The Fly - 8/10. This is a hidden gem. I like this one. A little more edge to it than the "generic" U2. Mysterious Ways - 9/10. This is one of the songs I think of when I think of U2. That said, it's a step beneath songs like Sunday, Bloody Sunday, or One, or Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For. Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World - 7/10. Smooth and silky. Ultra Violet (Light My Way) - 7/10. Solid. Acrobat - 7/10. Again, it's good "generic" U2. Love Is Blindness - 7/10. Solid, but not standing out. Overall Rating - 3.71/5 (7.42/10).

C'était bien sympa, mais rien non plus de fou j'ai trouvé juste bien dans la longueur.

Wanted not to like this but fair play.

8.2

Bueno

Ikke hørt så mye på U2, men dette var bra!

I knew it had good tracks in it but it was actually even better as an album than I expected.

I like U2, and I liked this album

An exceptionally cool album from a now very uncool band. Darker than they would have made up until this time and with songs like One it can’t be a bad album. Loved it.

So so good.

Hating U2 doesn’t make you cool

I dismissed it in the day, I guess because it wasn’t Joshua Tree. But just now I gave a serious listen, and I get it.

It’s ok. To be honest, could be just me, but many of their songs are just something playing in the background..but +1.5 stars for “one”.

Sounds pretty much exactly like what you’d expect a U2 album to sound like, and Mysterious Ways is such a banger. I know people love this band but I still don’t fully understand the appeal, even if I am giving this a higher rating.

I’ll never understand all the hate towards U2

Enjoyed it a lot. ★★★★

U Talking U2 2 Me???

Good stuff.

I've never listened to this album (36). Boring band, but great album.

Quelques excellentes tounes. Je dois dire que mon écoute a pas été ultra attentive (écoute d'auto avec la famille), mais je trouve que plus ça avance, plus le style de jeu de Edge est un peu "gimmicky", voire "showoff/regardez comment je suis original". Perso, War a été mon pref, suivi de Joshua et lui.

I've been patiently waiting to review Achtung Baby, as it's the only U2 album I own, and I think it's some of their best work. I haven't listened to all of this album in a long time, but the times that I have listened to it, I've really enjoyed it. Now that I've listened to the other three U2 albums on this list, I'm curious if I'll still hold this in higher regard than The Joshua Tree and War. While I enjoyed listening to Achtung Baby, it’s a bit short of five stars for me. Now that I’ve listened to more of U2’s discography, it was really interesting to listen to this album as their follow-up to The Joshua Tree, and the band’s attempt to reinvent their sound a bit. I enjoyed hearing U2 incorporate elements of alternative rock, shoegaze, and dance music into their sound. Even with that new approach, they still sound like themselves, with their trademark arena rock sound. I think that moody melodies were a part of what made War and The Joshua Tree so great, but this album seems to have more emphasis on rhythms and broader sounds. The thing that holds Achtung Baby back for me, is that I felt like U2 recycled a lot of guitar sounds and lyrical themes over the course of this album. There were more than a couple of songs that dealt with difficult romantic relationships, and I just don’t think that’s something that the band was able to emotionalize through their music, and I got tired of hearing them sing about it. Achtung Baby is still fun to listen to, but I don’t think it can justify its nearly hour-long runtime. As far as individual songs are concerned: I loved the crunchiness of the guitars on Zoo Station, and the tin-pan drumming sounds. I've knew heading into this album that it was a shift for U2, but I'd never picked up on the influences of late eighties shoegaze and dance music before today. This leadoff track felt like it was ushering in a new Europe, post Berlin Wall. The overall sound is industrial, but it still has that shimmering guitar that U2 is known for. I loved that ticking sound that they incorporated into this song too, and I thought the rhythms were excellent. The guitar on “Even Better Than the Real Thing” is great too, as was the bass line. Songs like this are a reminder that I just enjoy listening to U2. I have to admit that I’m not a huge fan of “One.” I do like the soft crescendo it builds to, and the lyrics and sound are good, but it's just not super high on my list of U2 songs. Something about it just feels insincere to me in a way, but I felt that way about a lot of the love and relationship songs on this album. I loved the guitar on “Until The End Of The World,” and the bass groove was excellent too. “Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses” is one of my favorite U2 songs, and I think it’s one of their most underrated songs too. I loved guitar playing and the drumming. The sound creates this wide-open atmosphere, that goes along perfectly with the imagery of riding horses. “So Cruel” was the best song on the album about relationships. The lyrics are incredibly brutal, which is not something I’m used to from U2. I loved the piano, and the strings were incredible too. It’s such a beautiful song, and the sound contrasts really well the dark lyrics. I love the vocal distortions on “The Fly.” It's like a preview of “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me,” which I really love. I liked the industrial sound of the guitar and drums too. “Mysterious Ways” is another one of my favorite U2 songs. I love that it’s really rhythmically driven, and it has such a great groove to it. The guitar playing is excellent, and it’s very effective as supplementary to the percussion and bass. The vocals are great too, and I love singing along to this song. I enjoyed revisiting Achtung Baby today, but now that I’ve reviewed all four U2 albums on this list, I’ll have to go with War as my overall favorite.

Should get more consideration as a contender for U2’s best album.

U2 reinvent themselves after breaking/discovering America. They are now the house band in the Blade Runner universe, it's raining- it's always raining in this fucking town, isn't? Cats, dogs, piss, tears, spit, water-based lube it's coming down in buckets. No men. It's not raining men. Fuck me. I pout. I take one last drag before the rain finishes it off. I throw my half-finished cigarette in a puddle of shit brown water. Some young man comes out of some club with a corny name like 'On the Edge of Forever' I hear; 'She Moves in Mysterious Ways' playing for a second. I walk towards the club. I pull on the heavy door- it pulls back. Once in I get lost forever at least that's what I want them to think.

I know it's no longer hip to like U2, but they had their sound and it was epic and cool at the time. I still like them and this is one of their best albums - and with a great album name to boot.

This is way longer than I remembered…takes a long time to get to the hits I love. Really fought the urge to skip. Love the production, probably amazing live. But felt surprisingly samey. Bass part stood out more once I got bored of Bono’s voice. The musicality of these guys isn’t questionable. Just feels like there’s far too many fillers.

Cracking Monday listen, probably first full u2 album I’ve listened to start to finish. One is such a great song but littered with interesting songs throughout

U2 is not bad at all after all.

Pas le meilleur de U2 mais ça reste très bon tout de même.

Didn’t think I would see the day. This is actually a solid album with a lot of recognizable songs. I enjoyed this. 3.5 but in the 4 side.

Not as good as there earlier stuff but still an excellent album. Four stars

More interesting than most u2 songs I’ve heard - this isnt really a four though, more like 3.5

Achtung Baby was definitely U2 but with a newer and decidedly different sound than we had gotten used to in the 1980’s. Part alternate, part industrial. (Spoiler alert, it a sound they’ll lean into even more over time). While they did have several radio hits off this album it was “One” they was an absolute SMASH.

Too much nostalgia in this album. Many amazing songs. I've listened to the Deluxe version. Even the remixes are good. Still not their best but still wonderful.

classic U2. their best era. that and Rattle and Hum. or Joshua Tree.

In my mind, U2's best album. Layered and textured, memorable hooks and melodies. Warm despite the electronic turn.

Is it possible to have a masochistic relationship with a band and its music. Because I came into this project with a sense of apathy for U2. If I’m ever listening to the radio and U2 starts playing, I change stations. It’s like that for me. I guess it has to do with a sense of pretentiousness I have with them. All the shit with Bono and whatnot. I still remember that whole iTunes album shit, like they just thought forcing an album onto everyone was a gift. I mean, Jesus. Now, I have gotten The Joshua Tree generated and… I thought it was good. Didn’t awaken anything in me, but I didn’t despise it. But I thought that it was because it was the Joshua Tree. Then came this album. Surely, I would be more critical over a lesser album…. Yeah about that. Look, like Joshua Tree, I’m not going head over heels for this album. I still can’t tell if I think Bono’s voice is enduring or annoying and there some forgettable shit on here. Hell, I don’t even like Mysterious Ways at all. Fuck that song. But, god help me, I kinda… liked a good chunk of the songs. I think One by itself helps make this album easier to swallow. I’m not a fan of U2 of any regard. But I’m not coming onto this project to dump on anything without given it a fair chance. I’m not going to dismiss an album because of the singer’s ego or if half the site hates the mere thought of U2. And I have to say, I liked this one. Sorry. Favorite track: One Other hits: Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses, Even Better Than The Real Thing, The Fly, Until the End of the World

solid album. still like the older stuff.

In spite of Bono, still a fan. Not their best, but not far off. Forgot how good it was tbh.

Even if this is not up to the standards of War, it is still an amazing listen. Some stellar moments on this opus. One is a standout on its own.

Loved it to death when it came out. Haven’t heard it in a while. Let’s see what happens.

Honestly I like Joshua Tree more. Some of this kinda drug on (last half). Still a great album, just not their best so no 5.

I don't think this is one of their stronger albums. got some swings & misses. yes, they're trying some new sounds & sometimes it works then others not. Until the end of the world & Wild Horses are two excellent tracks & bump it from 3.5 to 4 just for those alone

pretty solid, classic with or without you.

I've always struggled with this album. I just don't hear what others hear. Maybe it's because I didn't grow up with this one like I did other U2 albums. It's good, even great, when I'm listening to it. I enjoy it. But after the fact, I have a hard time remembering the songs. This isn't a new problem, I've listened to this album several times over the years, it's the same every time. I'm gonna give it four stars, cuz again, great album, but for me it's not a must-listen.

I love this earlier stuff. I remember hearing these singles on the radio when they first came out. Super nostalgic. Great tones and vibe. This is a solid album

Good album overall, good songs. the best song is One

8.7 One Ultra violet Until the end of the world

This LP was the followup of their previous album Rattle and Hum. It's also shows they were trying to get away from their signature sound. Pretty good album with some nice cuts on it. Mysterious Ways, One, Even better Than The Real Thing.

Probably that last really good U2 album. They swapped America for Europe and came up with quite a varied set of tracks from gritty to melodic and this packed a lot of hit singles too. The Fly really cuts through and So replaced 40 as their live closer. I liked revisiting this one.

Bono is kinda cringe but this album went hard. One is in my top 100 favorite songs of all time. And the second half of the album was pretty good. Don’t kill the part of you that’s cringe, kill the part that cringes

Strong. Loved One, second half was pretty consistent

I liked it!

Not my favorite U2 album, but it still has some solid hits. I'm also impressed with this era, since they went out on a limb and explored a new style (to them). Not as edgy as albums past, but it's certainly not something a lot of artists do. Most are stuck in their ways a bit. If it works, stick with it. Not our Irish lads, however. Bonus point for that.

Ok Bono, you’ve won me over for now

The press has a lot to answer for. That's a very ambiguous statement, but in this case, I mean that they have a habit of overemphasing the newness of something they like. To be fair on them, U2 had a famously po-faced image (especially after Rattle and Hum, a.k.a. the album where they 'took back' Helter Skelter from Charles Manson), and finding out that Bono had the capacity for sarcasm and irony must've blown their minds. That all being said, the main musical differences are the bass becoming more prominent (and more co-writing credits for Adam), more synths and more pedals for The Edge. They continue to wear their hearts on their sleeves, despite also having fun. It's just a solidly good album which also just happened to spawn one of the greatest tours of all time. It's no secret at all. Tangent: That aforementioned tour gave the world Mr. MacPhisto. You've all made him very famous and he thanks you. Favourite Song: Acrobat/Even Better Than the Real Thing Least Favourite: Tryin to Throw Your Arms Around the World

This was a more enjoyable U2 project to me. I thought it was pretty charming.

Not my favourite of theirs, but a lynchpin one for them - changing their sound and direction completely and the single list on it is hard to deny. Solid album like them or not

I used to like this more than I do now. Joshua Tree feels like such a complete album and every song fits into a cohesive whole. Achtung Baby feels more like a collection of songs made at the same time with little that links them. There's a few very good ones on the album, and some others. A generous four.

Ah crap, I have to admit there is some great songs on here... I can't really stand U2 for the most part too...

no cool! erkennbar U2, aber chli ufgmischt, weniger theatralisch.

I wasn’t expecting to like this album. The previous U2 album I listened to from this list I thought was really pretty boring and I was expecting the same of this album. however I think there was some great tracks on here. The fly is an all timer and all I would listen to earlier U2 with less scepticism 4/5

I’d consider myself a U2 fan, but I hadn’t listened to this album outside of the couple hits on it. Good stuff pretty much top to bottom. Best Track: Mysterious Ways

U2:s bästa. Sedan gick det bara utför, även om spinoff-skivan Zooropa har sina ljusglimtar. Känns som varje låt var en singel. Ett, nog nödvändigt, stilbrott från gruppens 80-tal. Acrobat är värd att lyftas fram. En stark fyra.

Some classics, I kinda liked it, much to my surprise.

Nice snare drum sounds.

For a post-punk 80s band like U2 and after the huge commercial success of The Joshua Tree, it was a difficult job to make an unique and succesful album again, but they did it with Achtung Baby. It's a great album, which cemented the greatness of the band (actually this was their last truly great album). My personal favourite from this album is the incredibly catchy Mysterious Ways.

Some classic hits on this album and doesn't disappoint with the flare that U2 brings to their music.

So this album is the division bell for me with regards to U2. Every album before this one was pretty good, and The Joshua Tree is still my favorite U2 album, but Achtung Baby is excellent. Every album after this one got progressively worse in my eyes, and I think a lot of hardcore U2 fans can't deny that. But enjoy this album for what it is. Excellent. Way too many bangers to list on this one, but if you must listen to one song on this album, it needs to be "One". and So Cruel. ;-) 3.83 / 5 stars.

Surprisingly good for being U2.

Feels hard to quantify exactly what I'm looking for in an album. I know my favorite albums have songs that touch my soul, but is that from the chords, the lyrics, or the point in my life when I heard it? Loved lots of songs here, especially Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses. Will definitely listen to it again!

This is soooo fun! It sounds very different from Joshua Tree, but still fantastic! U2 always sounds very.... "larger than life". I love it. So much fun! Actual rating....4.5. Liked Songs: "Even Better Than The Real Thing" , "One" , "Until The End Of The World" , "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses" , "So Cruel" , "Mysterious Ways" , "Ultra Violet (Light My Way)" , "Acrobat"

Another great one by U2. Not quite on the same level as Joshua Tree but still damn good

“One” is one of the great songs of its era. I don’t enjoy the other singles *quite* as much, but “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses” and “Mysterious Ways” are damn good, too. Bono’s aching vocals pair so well with the album’s darker lyrics/mood. Is this a four- or five-star album? I could argue that either way. If the album were just a little tighter (one or two fewer songs, maybe?), the choice would’ve been clear.

Nice

My husband's favorite band is U2 so I'm familiar with the album. I like it but wouldn't say I love it.

Jag hör några klassiker här!

Andra U2-albumet för oss, efter The Joshua Tree. Detta kändes bättre!

A great album that saw U2 reinvent themselves. The ethereal vocals and sonic experiments with distortion (bordering on fuzzbox abuse) probably influenced a lot of bands in the mid-90s. They were clearly ahead of their time. I already knew this album from back in the days – but I didn’t own the CD, so I think I never managed to listen to it from start to finish. It’s much bettter and much more creative than I remembered. I used to think the album just had a couple of good tracks, but I actually really enjoyed most of the songs, including the less famous ones. Ideally I’d give them a 3,5*, mainly because it’s still a tad too pop-ish for me... but I’ll add half a star for the legendary "One". I think I actually had my first kiss on this song at a house party (as a good part of my generation probably did...).

This is a great album from a great band rediscovering themselves. Not all of it works, but the hits land so hard you can’t help but follow along.

Made me change my mind about U2. Such a solid album which proves U2 isen't just pop-esque soft rock

Never been a big U2 fan, but credit where it's due, this is a great album. Probably my favorite of theirs, and definitely think it's their most creative. Every song sounds like it could be on a different album, which keeps it really engaging. The three song run of One - Until the end of the world (great guitar work by The Edge) - Who's gonna ride is elite. Also love The Fly. Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno on production makes up for Bono and his often mediocre lyrics, it sounds terrific

That brief point when U2 were the biggest band in the world.

My brother had this on cassette when I was younger. Being not too aggressive, it was allowed to be added to the rotation on road trips. A true honour. My dad famously survived 18.47 seconds of RunDMC (yes, we timed it). I will be honest, I'm not a U2 fan. I have not listened to this album in at least 20 years and it doesn't get a lot of radio play, bar 'One'. I did however enjoy 'Zoo Station's, nice harmonies, loved the driving bass in the chorus. Edge has his ambience in the guitar. Bono's wails aren't terrible. I was hopeful. 'Even Better than the Real Thing' delivered too. The riff feeling like it could be home on a 60s album. Bono's voice was starting to grate on me. I remembered reading about this album. How it was incorporating dance beats in and moving away from a rock record. The tour was huge too. Cementing them as a stadium band... Perhaps why I hadn't ever seen them live. Ha. As if that isn't the only reason. As a kid I had a soft spot for 'One', catchy. My favourite performance of this one is actually in the Irish comedy, 'The Stag'. I won't explain the joke. But it's quite well done. The album felt more 90s as it went on. Bono's lyrics got pretty awful: 'In the garden, I was playing the guitar. I kissed your lips and broke your heart...' Yuk! And did he not just mention spiking a drink?! Edge comes through with tasteful guitar to distract though. He's the real hero here. It seems. Love is blindness is a pretty lame way to go out. Did it hold up? It's probably the best U2 album. They tried to break ground. And, I think they did. Am I sold on the band? No. But it's a good jaunt in the park. 4 stars.

A plesent listen.

yet another u2 album that comes at a pivot point in their career that i dont understand cuz im not familiar with u2 lmao...tho i do know enough about the general perception of rattle and hum to understand the ways in which this sharpens and hardens what was beginning to be perceived as bloated and overly soft. in that way ig its maybe not quite the winding floaty Sincere To A Fault stuff that most hits my personal buttons as far as U2 goes, but a slightly less lush and dreamy u2 album is still p lush and dreamy by most ppls standards, and i like this! as per usual, its more an instinctive and vague feeling of enjoyment then anything that grabs me by the throat (so fucked up of me that Coldplay is the disciple of U2 that most does that!), but this flew by with panache in my ears. since i dont buy into any of the larger aesthetic objections to U2, if i was gonna hate them it would have to come down to their actual music, and while ive never heard a U2 record ive loved i havent heard one ive hated either. how can u turn down the icons of everyones favorite genre, The Big Music....

I did listen to all the early U2 albums and wanted to like them I guess, but they never made a lasting impression! This was one I liked more than the rest ENO always adds something extra to whoever he works with.

Great hits from this album. This was very hooky and catchy. U2 has figured out how to eke every dollar out of the radio here. It's a great rock-pop album. Or is it pop-rock? I still don't get the fervent fandom of U2, but whatever. My Rating: 4/5

In my opinion, U2 is highly overrated. This is, however, an album that I used to enjoy, and their last good one, although I liked a couple of songs off All That You Can't Leave Behind. I really like One, Mysterious Ways, and Love is Blindness.

the first album i ever bought! still very close to my heart; still good.

p671. 1991. 4 stars. Bono might be a pretentious wanker, but in their prime U2 were arguably one of the greatest bands ever. This is packed with fabulous songs, let down occasional lapses into Bono fuelled hysterics.

This was a good album! I want to listen to more U2 albums in the future. I only know a handful of their songs. The only 2 songs I knew from this album were One and Mysterious Ways.

Not my thing yet I enjoyed it! Something about the vocals...

The best U2 will ever get. Bar was never high.

83% Best: Even Better Than The Real Thing; Until The End Of The World; So Cruel; Mysterious Ways; Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World Must-Hear? Sure

As much as I hate U2, I have to admit... this is a pretty fucking great album. A little irony can do you a world of good.

This album hits differently when you're a European of a certain age. The fall of the Berlin Wall, the dissolution of the Eastern European block, Glasnost, the siege of the Kremlin with Yeltsin climbing tanks. Achtung Baby captured that zeitgeist - and I don't think anyone expected U2 to be the band to do that. An absolute classic.

U2s distinct pop/rock. Good or bad it was fine to listen to. A few really good song on this album- One,mysterious ways etc

Very familiar with this album. U2 is at the height of their popularity here, arguably. Lush production values, memorable songs, iconic and classic.

How do you follow The Joshua Tree? This is how. You expand your sound. You get out of your comfort zone a bit. The songs on Achtung Baby feel more personal and sound more energetic.

I was 21 when this album came out. I was a massive U2 fan right from the first notes of Boy in 1980. And I adored every album up to this point. When this came out I was really disappointed and considered it the end of U2 as I had known them. I didn't like the change in sound. And then Zooropa confirmed that this wasn't an anomaly, it was a whole new direction. I gave up on them Looking back on that and re-listening to this album now makes me realize that I was just an obnoxious 21-year-old elitist fanboy. This is a fucking awesome album full of incredible songs! Your favorite band evolving with the times is a GOOD thing. With that said, I still can only give it four stars (9/10) because even at this point I don't think it was as groundbreaking as most of their previous albums. But I'll probably listen to it 6 times through today!

This album is the transition point for me, from 5-star classic 80's rock-U2 to 3-star 90's pop-U2. Enough winners in here to hold the line above 4 though.

This almost gets a 5. Some very catchy songs and nice melodies but too many songs have a similar vibe. Needs a change of pace

I wanted to listen to U2 for a while now so I’m glad this album came up. As soon as i heard the first song i knew that I’m going to like it. Every single song i thought wow im adding it to my playlist. Not just because its sounds good but the lyrics are also so good. The last song was actually such a good closing song im in tears. But the hate on this album is absurd lol.

U2. Not a fan. I can see the attraction just not for mec

A solid early 90 alt rock album. One, Who’s Going to Ride Your Wild Horses, and Ultra Violet were the stand out tracks for me.

I still think Joshua Tree is a better album but this was still a good album. Was tempted to give it an extra star for all the Bono haters out there 😃 but I’ll save a 5 star for Joshua Tree.

Quite a change musically compared to their previous records, but it worked well for U2. Several great classics on it, and the rest is not far below.

I once had a dream about this album. I was running over a field of frozen lava. It was rocky terrain and ran across it effortless without falling or getting hurt. The song Ultra Violet was playing. I don't love every song on this thing but I have trouble remembering 1991 or 1992 without it. I remember skateboarding to it.

I kind of loathe U2 most of the time, though this is one of the two U2 albums I ever spent my precious Columbia House/BMG pennies on (the other being its follow-up, Zooropa, which I adore; an opinion that I've discovered is out of step with the U2 core fanbase.) I'm fairly certain I owned this on cassette and then re-purchased a used copy of the CD later on. So, like all albums from about 91-94, there's a ton of nostalgia here since these songs made up at least some of my coming-of-age soundtrack, and "Mysterious Ways" was in the alternative MTV rotation by the time "Smells Like Teen Spirit" came to obliterate my small-town-Iowa worldview and forever change me. Anyway, the first half of this album (plus "Mysterious Ways") is big, anthemic rock at its absolute finest. Banger after banger after banger. The second half (minus "Mysterious Ways") is meandering and overproduced. It's the same production that takes the songs in the first half into the stratosphere, but since the melodies aren't strong, the heavy handedness becomes both meat and potatoes. I've often wondered what a Rick-Rubin-Wildflowers-era version of U2 would have sounded like. "Tryin' to throw your arms…" and "Ultra Violet" especially feel like they would have benefitted from taking the foot off of the arena-rock/KROQ-hit gas. But also, "Mysterious Ways" is on here. So, four stars I guess?

I was not into this kind of music back then, but for some reason my girlfriend at the time had this CD and I latched onto it pretty hard. This is still a damn good album

At first it aged really well, but now it's really old and some of the low points are really low. I massively respect them for trying something totally different even if it was a bit out of their lane.

Pretty good stuff from U2. Feels a bit more subdued and subterranean and dark compared to some of the arena rock sounding albums. Lyrics are really quite pretty here too. 7/10

Lot of bangers that flow seamlessly between genres moods and sounds.

Oh man, I remember hearing that guitar riff that opens “Mysterious Ways” from an adjacent room and running over to see where that awesome, previously-unthinkable sound was coming from. Nothing I’d put on the turntable, but revolutionary nonetheless.

After weeks of unlistenable garbage, it was nice having something that wasn't a challenge to get through. Somehow, I had never listened to this, despite it being huge in my youth. I would have said it seems like a safe, adult alternative album, but given its release date, I guess it was sorta a pioneer in that space. So, I suppose it would be more appropriate to credit U2 for helping to create that genre instead of just lazily parking there. Whether that's good or bad is up to the listener, I guess. It's probably a 3, but I'll bump it up for being what it was when it was (plus, I've always had a soft spot for 'One', which came out during an impressionable age).

not a big U2 fan but this one ain’t so bad

Easy to mock, harder to admit they're actually extremely good at writing overwrought anthems that work on you despite yourself. After an incredible run in the 80s this is a re-invention for a new era, but since they reinvented themselves to be the omnipresent bland wallpaper of a slowly fading genre (radio friendly pop rock), it's their last good album. Three huge hits are great, most of the rest is decent unobjectionable stuff, but there's a lot of it to get through - they really are a greatest hits band. The less said about the Fly the better though - a vehicle to launch Bono's new persona as 'guy with a big pair of sunglasses', what a twat. Like the much better War album, this bears the marks of its time and place, 1990 Berlin; it's the soundtrack of an earnest optimisitc post-coldwar liberalism anticipating the end of history, celebrating universalism, unification one-ness. One especially - the rest has a bit more ambient darkness and introspection to it. Daniel Lanois has them sounding great - huge, sweeping, polished - pure bombast. The rhythms nod toward acid house as they're starting to adopt some electronica elements here they'd soon dive way deeper into. The guitars are bright and chiming with a bit of break up scuzziness, some wah wah wildness, all echoing through the mix with that distinctive Edge AC30 tone and melodic phrasing.

It’s not Joshua Tree, but it’s okay.

I love U2, do you too?

This album took a while to grow on me, but it's a regular favorite now

Starts off strong, second half boring

I tried extremely hard to listen to this album without nostalgia creeping in, but difficult. Truly is a great original album though, one that I seem able to listen to in its entirety any time it’s on barely skipping any tracks. If you have hatred for Bono/U2 (…?), forget about that, and just listen. Not quite a 5 though. I think it will be 4.5 in my main app.

I know that U2 is beloved, but I have never been a huge fan of them, at least not nearly to the level of a lot of my friends were. I liked a decent amount of their songs (New Years Day, Angel of Harlem, etc.) and have seen them live (Innocence + Experience tour, great show), but I've never owned a lot of their music, nor do I ever find myself saying that I feel like listening to some U2. That said, I've listened to most of this album before. Everyone's heard One and Mysterious Ways, both of which are excellent songs. The Fly was a cool single as well. Some of the other singles - Even Better Than the Real Thing and Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses - I was less enamored with. The rating on this album from me was, as a result, always going to come down to the non-singles and how they hold up. Zoo Station is kind of a sleepy opener in my opinion. It just kind of sits there and never really diverges too much from the same centrally located notes. I did listen to it a few times and it did get better with different listens, but it's yet to register with me as a great song. Until the End of the World is a lot better. Lots more range, lots more heft to this tune. Really good. So Cruel and Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World I liked as well. Neither is truly amazing, but both change things up enough to be interesting. Ultra Violet (Light My Way) had some cool lyrics and I loved the guitar sound in this one. I liked Acrobat for similar reasons. Finally, though this album's closer, Love Is Blindness, starts out pretty slow, the guitar work on this really carries this home. This song is almost haunting in some ways and it builds well. It doesn't quite pay off in the way that I would hope, but it's still an excellent tune. All in all, this is a really, really good album that has a lot of interesting aspects to it. Probably better than The Joshua Tree in total, but it's been many years since I listened to that album. Regardless, this is a worthy listen for anyone.

Classic

I can see why U2 are such a huge band now. This LP had some seriously listenable songs that I really enjoyed, namely 'One' and 'Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses'. It brings back a sort of childhood nostalgia for me, as my mum listened to a compilation album of them. I could see myself revisiting this album every once in a while.

I used to think of U2 as generic, non-offensive music for the masses. Their success speaks for itself so that might be true, but I was pleasantly surprised by the range of sounds across the album. Definitely super produced and some of the vocal effects seem dated now but overall I thought this album sounded super relevant despite being almost 35 years old.

We're One ! Pivotal album Sweet spot for Acrobat.

This album is a mix of lot influences, sometimes in a good way, sometimes even better and sometimes I don’t like it. Thanks to « One » track, it deserves 4 stars otherwise I would just rate 3 stars. Nice sound, nice music , nice melody on some tracks but they did even better album than this one

Most funky album from the Guys from Dublin. Back on track again thanks to Fred.

I’m one of those people who had a hard time accepting the big shift in artistic direction that started with this album. And yet, I have to admit the production on Achtung Baby was really innovative for 1991. This album is still incredibly relevant today, and overall, I think it’s a very solid record and one of the best U2’s effort. Paradoxically, at the time it came out, it’s also the album where Bono’s voice finally wore me out and pushed me to stop following the band.

Revisiting this was surprisingly enjoyable and almost made me forget about the dull and insufferable times to follow.

Used to listen to this cd with my dad, special place in my heart for Achtung Baby

A suitable reboot. Best tracks: "Zoo Station" and "The Fly"

Some of these songs are still amazing all these years later, others insufferable in their fake sincerity

I always forget how much I like U2. This isn’t one of my favorites of their albums but Mysterious Ways is such a good song that bumps it up a bit

Pleins de souvenirs d’adolescence. Encore un bon album, j’avais oublié plusieurs chansons.

Really enjoying it so far, moreso than Joshua tree! It feels more flushed out, the drums are a bit better, it feels the band came more into themselves at this point. I like. A lot of what I’ve heard, if it came on I wouldn’t be mad.

A really well made & interesting record

Probably my very favorite album by this band. Soon after this they’d be swapped by their size, creative stagnation and Bono’s grandstanding neoliberal bullshit that betrayed the social conscience they evidenced in the 80s. But here they are in the throes of a creative ecstasy, where all possibilities seemed open- this and Zooropa are the last 2 albums anyone needs to hear by these guys.

Great album, but I think Joshua Tree is better

Being such a big fan from Boy through Joshua Tree, I hated this when it first came out thinking they’d sold out. It has since become the album I come back to and listen to the most. The songwriting and production is brilliant. From The Fly where the Edge shreds to the gorgeous ballad So Cruel, the band shows their range not shown by today’s bands. This album does not age. It sounds as edgy and fresh as when it first came out. U2 announced their recreation with the ballsy proclamation Achtung Baby!

This one's tricky. I have never loved all this albums. And maybe I have never loved any of it. I have liked/thoroughly enjoyed/admired much of it - especially some individual sonic moments too long list. There's a number of good songs (even very good to great). But I don't know that I would trade any of them for the u2 songs i grew up with. This arrived mid college (as opposed to the pre Joshua Tree high school years). I never engaged emotionally with this album that way I did an album like Unforgettable Fire. Empirically Achtung Baby is a better album. Emotionally - nothing can change first hearing UF at the age of 14. I was not the same person 7 years later. And U2 were not the same band. Thats a good thing as it allowed them to be culturally relevant for the next 20+ years and escape being an 80s band. Empirically a 5. Emotionally a charitable 3. Let's call it a 4. PS. I remember reading an interview with Bono , upon hear Pride in a bar setting and watching people attempt to dance realizing - that is not something you could do to a U2 song. It took a couple albums but they did at the very least address that issue.

I listened to this song sporadically, but I enjoyed most of the songs.

Classic U2

I’ve always said I don’t like U2 but I got The Joshua Tree about a month ago and I really enjoyed it, even gave it 5 stars. This is my second album from them and while I didn’t enjoy it quite as much, it’s still bloody good. The line between a 4 and a 5 is razor thin. Top Track - I do hate going for cliche choices but it’s gotta be One. I need to work out at what point do I change my tune and say I like U2 lol.

I was familiar with several of their albums and a few of the songs off this one but had never listened to the whole album. It’s fantastic! Great mix of styles and moods with edgier music than what I’m used to from them.

Achtung Yeah Baby

4.2

"One" is great, of course! As is "Mysterious Ways". 4/5

Maybe more nostalgic than good...

U2 enters the 90’s with a bang. Right off the bat with “Zoo Station”, you can tell this is going to be a very different album for them. Everything is a lot drier and close mic’ed; there is a lot less reverb on this record, fuzzier guitar tones, and a bit more experimentation in general, and the results are great. I think that Bono is such a great, unique vocalist that even when there’s such a huge stylistic shift within the band, they still sound like themselves. Achtung Baby may not sound like War, The Unforgettable Fire, or Joshua Tree, but it does sound like U2. And that’s not just his voice: it’s his melodic and lyrical writing and the band as a whole. Clayton is such an awesome bassist that when you hear something like “Mysterious Ways”, it definitely checks out that this is U2. And man, that track is so damn cool, simultaneously so dirty and rocking, but also groovy and melodic. The aforementioned “Zoo Station” is a killer opener, and makes for a great 1-2 punch with “Even Better Than the Real Thing”. “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses” is probably the closest they get to emulating their 80’s sound, and I think they do a great job with it. And then you’ve got two all-time ballads in “One” and “So Cruel”. I like every song on this record; there are a few songs I don’t *love*, so it stalls out at 4 stars for me, but it’s definitely a higher 4 stars, and it would almost certainly make my top 10 albums of my birth year, 1991. 4/5

So good.

There are so many good songs on this album! I really enjoyed listening to it again. Love “one” and “ mysterious ways”.

Not all the sonic risks they take pay off fully, but when it hits it HITS.

And a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle

4.5

Sometime I think, ugh, U2. Great. Then I listen to one of their albums and I think, yeah, this is very good. And that’s what I think of U2. A very good band that was shoved down our throats in the 80s and 90s as the best band out there, when they were merely a very good band. And this is a very good album. Definitely not a masterpiece, there’s some filler. The hits are great. 4 stars.

Handful of certified bangers and overall a good album - NOT my favorite U2 album, John. 4 stars, it's solid

U2, but darker and more 90s. Really good U2 album.

It’s okay

You can trust in the trademark U2

Good album. A few songs I haven't heard that were all pretty good.

Maybe I like U2

Definitely feels more modern than the preceding albums. I like Bono's voice and the more complex instrumentation.

It's an okay album, it's missing a really strong energetic song. But there is one incredible highlight: the song One is probably one of the most beautiful guitar based pop songs of the nineties. I would give it a 7/10.

This is the sorta thing I would have loved if I heard it at the right time but didn't touch me as much. Still good though

Good

3.75

Satanizar a U2 son extremos demasiado exagerados, con Bono es otra cosa, tienen su razón y no es exageración.

Actually really liked this album. I feel like U2 is over-hated considering how solid their sound and structure is.

8/10 Not far off from the caliber Joshua Tree, but just enough not to get top marks. 4-4-2025

A good album, but suffers in comparison to Joshua Tree.

Aight

Their best

4/5

"Achtung Baby" is one of the landmark albums when it comes to U2. The songs featured here are great to listen to. Bono is a vocal powerhouse and this adds a lot to the album. At some points, it seems a bit one-note, but this doesn't hinder the experience with the album.

Heard it a lot maybe too much . Great edge sounds.

Nice

8/10. This is a really interesting album. It's really interesting that U2 used to be this good of a band. :)

Sonically very different from the other U2 album I have received. They were definitively headed in a more pop-centric direction here. It’s still good. Favorites were Zoo Station, One, Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses, Mysterious Ways, and Ultra Violet.

I've been waiting for Achtung Baby! As my brother's favorite U2 album, it marks a change in sound for the band. Though this album was commercially successful, its sound is less commercialized. The change seems like, to me, that U2 was able to explore more musically. It's not so much rock as the only genre but the burgeoning alternative sound is present, too. The lyrics, like with all of U2's music, are so powerful and evocative. And again like all U2 albums, Achtung Baby is crafted with such purpose. 3.5

Ahh I was wondering when U2 was gonna hit the list, this is definitely ba good album! And I have no qualms in saying that I really like U2! This is a good album, hut it doesn't my favorite big theirs, but I did enjoy it!

This is hard because of aforementioned irrational dislike of Bono. But let's push through. "One" is amazing. I first heard Johnny Cash's version many years ago. And the original here is almost as good. "Until the End of the World" is good but kind of background/forgettable to me. As is "...Wild Horses"! "So Cruel" is good. As is "...arms around the world". So overall I have to conclude that this is a good album. Yes I can feel the ego coming through in so many places. But there are some great songs behind all that.

Yet another album I have heard of but never gave a full listen. Pretty solid album considering all the challenges I understand the group went through to pull it together. 'Mysterious Ways" and "One" are the most recognizable songs.

3.5 stars

This was my real introduction to U2, 80s U2 had been my dad's U2 and the initial sound of "Zoo Station" had forever changed that, the building industrial growl, the distorted guitar sending shockwaves through you, the distorted vocals making Bono sound like he's smoking 2 packs of superkings a day. The rest of the album veers around the landscape wildly with a great run of "Zoo Station", "Even Better Than The Real Thing", "One", "Until The End Of The World", and "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses" on side 1, side 2 is a little weaker but I'll hold "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" over anything by most other bands.

Seminal album - must if you have never listened.

Breath of fresh air for U2 until One was overplayed and killed the vibe.

There is some typical U2 cheese in here that holds it back (“Tryin To Throw Your Arms Around the World” is pretty awful, “Love is Blindness” not a great closing track) but on the whole a great album.

This is a good full album,. Less industrial than some U2

It's good, but not as good as I think U2 can be… more dance beats than guitar riffs. 'Mysterious Ways', which we already know and love, is the standout. 'Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses' may be the low point.

nice

So much U2 in one week. Did Bono create this website?

U2 back to their better emotional but edgy form.

Pretty solid. The last U2 album that I could car about.

It’s packed with great songs, including some that I’d totally forgotten about. But it’s also U2. The U2 tax must apply. You can’t just be U2 and make great songs and think you can get away with it. There’s always going to be that begrudging feeling that you’re U2. It annoys me a bit that I did pause and wonder if I was going to give this five stars but thankfully a couple more listens reminded me that it is U2 and I just don’t want that hanging over me for the rest of this challenge. Sorry boys.

Classic U2. Some great guitar effects from the edge. Took their sound in a new direction they’re still on today

stadium rockers afflicted by early stages of zoonosis

Love the title. Like the album. Respect U2 for trying to be a bit weird at the same time as being the biggest band in the world.

A lot of songs in there I grew up with! Hard not to like!

Strong album this from U2 & a shift from their normal familiar sound, moving to a more electronic rock vibe. Changing things almost broke the band but love or hate em they went on to do much more.

Usually I find U2 to be pretty overrated, but this album's really good. Very interesting sound to start the 90s with and so different than Joshua Tree. It was vital listening when it was first released, which is hard to think since U2 (and especially Bono) have become irrelevant though the years. 4⭐️

7/10

I know U2 gets a lot of hate and backlash, but I think this is one of their more liked albums and I understand why. I think this album has nice variety and a nice rhythm from one song to the next. Mysterious ways, ultra violet, and acrobat are the highlights on this album. U2 is super nostalgic for me so that also helps my vote. 4/5

Honestly I liked this a lot. It covered a wide range of feelings that i could feel simply from the music, and the lyrics matched. I wouldn’t have expected U2 to make an album that didn’t sound the same after a while, but this one exceeded my expectations. Would listen to again if it came up, 3.9/5. Favorite song: mysterious ways

Might very well be their best album. Many songs are very repetitive and drag on without reason, but that might be personal taste. 7/10 Fave: Love is blindness

Liked this more than I thought I would

Lots of great songs on this one.

Ладно, первоначально я отнесся к альбому холодно. Но, как и с другими альбомами, постепенно разогрелся. Наверно, лучшая песня -- Mysterious ways. Неплохо звучит Love is Blindness. Остальные поддерживают альбом на достойном уровне. Это панк-рок по ощущениям.

Strong and high-quality throughout but seems so commercially-oriented and image-refreshing as to strike one as pretty cynical and certainly not as soulful as Boy, War and Unforgettable Fire. Perhaps because one gave up one's own youthful idealism too early and too easily, one wishes U2 had held on to theirs. Still the value is clear and undeniable on a bunch of cuts.

Ugh, put my Achtung Baby rating with War. So this rating is for War...

Solid 4 here. I don't love U2 necessarily, but I respect and like a lot of what they do. This album isn't on the level of Joshua Tree though still very solid. Mysterious Ways and One are classics. Love is Blindness was a nice closing song. I enjoyed listening to this one even though most of the deeper cut songs weren't really my favorite.

4 estrelas

I've never been big on U2, but this album is actually quite good. Bono doesn't feel like he's trying too hard or being pretentious. Mysterious Ways is probably my favorite of the popular U2 songs -- maybe because it sounds like it ought to be a Lenny Kravitz song with the guitar tone. Other standouts for me were Even Better Than the Real Thing -- a surprisingly laid-back alt rock jam with some psych infusion in the form of shimmering echo laden guitar. Love is Blindness is a fine note to end on. I find the instrumental to be really nice. For me this is a soft 4.

U2 does a great job of evoking feeling of triumph and sorrow in the same album. I have always enjoyed U2 and this album strengthens that stance. Definitely a high 4 here.

Have always enjoyed this album. Mix of classics and just some solid jams. One is a classic. Some really good background instrumentation happening on these songs. So Cruel has that sounds from The Smith's song How Soon Is Now?. Dope sound. Mysterious Ways another classic. Love Is Blindness is a real solid one too. I get why U2 is dragged on but I have a random soft spot for them and think a lot of their tunes are incredibly catchy and emotive. Call them my guilty pleasure band idgaf.

I pretty much hate U2 but I was surprised to find I liked most of this album.

A really good album from U2. I knew many of the songs from the past and haven't heard them for a long time. It's nice to hear them again. Overall, U2 and this album are not among my top favorites. 4/5

okay

Thought that this would be just average but I enjoyed it. I especially liked the song ultra violet (light my way). This album just had a nice vibe

I'm going to be honest. I enjoyed that more than I was expecting. It was pretty cool. Wasn't really a fan back in the day.

I forgot how many bangers were on this album.

(1st listen was a plane and I was really emotional and enjoyed it. Have since revisited wild horses, mysterious ways (obvi) and ultraviolet light, need to listen to album again in non-plane setting)

The bit of me that wants to have cool opinions wants to mark this right down for Bono's later ego/tax offences. But this album is just too big a part of my upbringing, and there are just too many hooks (of both types) buried in my brain for me not to admit a resentment-filled love for about six tracks on this album. Which seems apt given all the divorce-themed lyrics. My resistance is useless. "On your knees, boy"

1/17/25. It's about time I give U2 a fair chance, this album is very good. The guitar playing is really good and layered, and the songs keep you interested throughout. Will revisit.

I love a selection of songs in this album but losing a point for the overall length of the album - I feel like some of these songs could have been taken out but overall a goodie indeed

Some brilliant guitar work on this album and some killer singles

I'm actually surprised. I think there are a lot of strong songs on here. Some of them FEEL passe just because they are so well known (e.g. Mysterious Ways) but are still pretty good.

like last time, i want to not like the insufferable cunts but the music is good

Good

The Good: this is the 4th U2 album to appear on the list, which should mean the last! The Bad: That there have been 4 U2 albums on the list, and oh so many other bands not even mentioned… The Ugly: THOSE FUCKING SUNGLASSES BONO STARTED WEARING!!! While listening to the album, my wife kept commenting that it all sounds the same… not the album, just U2 in general. Which begs the question why this is the 4th album on the list? I’ve mentioned it before, so I won’t say again that I am not a U2 fan… having not said that, and, believe it or not, never having listened to the album, it is amazing that I am familiar with more than 50% of the tunes on the album. Something that is impressive all on its own. Yet, if anything, what this album did for U2 was polarize the public where, up to The Joshua Tree, there were massive fanboys and the general public just appreciated the band, while a small group disliked them. When Bono put on the fly-eye glasses, the fanboys became accolades, and the rest of us just started really disliking anything U2, and that is shown by the comments on this album. However, we should be rating the albums for what they are, and if we enjoy listening to them… so, painfully, here’s 4* for a band I love to hate.

Imma preface this by saying that I've never been a big U2 fan for one specific reason. This album was pretty good, The Edge has a way of finding really sick sounds with his master of effects pedals and his play. Legit blew me away a couple times while I was listening to this album. The drummer's also super sick! Like, I love the extra percussion stuff that he adds in to some of these tracks. I really got into tracks like Acrobat... until Bono's vocals came in. I've always disliked his singing/voice and it's turned me off of so many of U2's songs in the past. That's persists to this day, I dont even know why I dont care for it cause I've listened to a lot of bands with significantly worst vocalists. But for some reason it just bothers me and kinda ruins songs. Other than that I really liked this album.

U2 doesn't need much introduction as one of the biggest rock bands to come out of Ireland. However, in the case of this album, we need to start with the preceding live album Rattle and Hum, because that was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. It was a full exposure of the pretentiousness and swaggering rock arrogance that the band kept hidden through most of the 80s until they no longer could. They came off as preachy and were unprepared for their commercial success. Thus, they took some time away to reinvent themselves for the 90s, and Achtung Baby was the first taste of that reinvention. The album is generally good in embracing the band's new style of electronically-tinged alternative rock, complete with production courtesy of Brian Eno to clean up their sound from what it was the decade prior. Throughout the entire run, every member does a decent job in their role, with the obvious highlight going to the Edge's guitar work, taking inspiration from dance music, noticeable on cuts like "The Fly" and "Mysterious Ways". I know Bono isn't a spectacular vocalist, but he does his best to sell the faux rock-star attitude painted with irony on tracks like "The Fly", "Even Better Than the Real Thing", and the title track. That's not to say there aren't a few earnestly written songs here such as reflections upon internal band struggles and the German reunification on "One" and the strained relationship on "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)", but those moments of honesty were few and far between. Also not helping matters is that there are a few slower songs like "So Cruel", "Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World" and the closer "Love is Blindness" that I didn't find as engaging as other slow moments on this album and in the band's catalog. They're not bad songs per se, but not my go-to tracks from them. All's to say that Achtung Baby is a solid album from U2 in their desire to reinvent themselves. As time has proven, that reinvention gave diminishing returns as they wallowed in more electronic music by the end of the 90s, but at least this first offering was promising enough.

ein tolles album! verstörend damals, rückblickend „wegweisend“ für U2 .. mit einigen klassikern. gefällt, aber einmal hören reicht auch heute - endlosschlaufe war früher.

great

This is very solid but there has always been something about u2 that they never can quite get over the 4 hump for me could i write poetry to this? y

I don’t care what anyone thinks; I love U2.

Suprisingly really fun album. Not a U2 fan but this was quite good.

songs so good that you forget bono is a twat

Tough one to rate for me. I think overall vibes wise I might like this more than Joshua Tree which was really more of a 3.5 and I upped it to a 4. This one feels like a 3.75 maybe so a 5 is definitely too high but 4 doesn't really rate it above Joshua Tree. I suspect I'll come across this more as this list goes on but this is my first one like this. Anyway though, I liked the shift musically for them. I remember hearing "One" and "Mysterious Ways" a lot as a kid growing up in the 90s. I was never huge into them but didn't hate them as a kid either. I definitely enjoy them more as an adult. It's interesting, so far I haven't been a big fan of the Madchester genre, but I found myself enjoying its influence on their sound here. I didn't really think I'd be giving U2 a 4* let alone two of them, but here we are!

Definitely feels like an early 90s time capsule. "Mysterious Ways" will always be a favorite.

Me 15-ish years ago would have rated this five stars, but today me rates this album a solid four stars. Although I do admit the album has a few five star moments. Did my rating decrease because of Bono?

I’m coming around on U2, the hits on this are great and the rest are pretty good too. Nice!

I’m talking U2 to you! This was another pretty good one from them. I knew the hits, but never thought I liked them. I now know that I really like at least a few of their albums. Thanks, list generator.

What can you say?? It's U2. At their worst, they're world class.

A good sounding album. I know the U2 for their single rather than albums. I have to say that this one is interesting to listen because is a fusion between the classic u2 sound with electronics, but still not exaggerated. In each song you listen every member role. I don't consider this album a masterpiece, but a very good rock-pop album

One is an excellent song

One of the best, if not THE best record of their's.

now we're venturing in u2's later discography, and i think that while it does have a generally nice sound, a LOT of companies literally worshipped the ground u2 walked on. this is music for commercials. hazy, dreamy, and mildly psychedelic, this album tries hard to capture my interest but it sometimes misses the mark. i imagine stock footage of people walking on air and busy timelapse times square shots. this is music for a windows xp ad. it's not a bad album, but u2's probable unintentional contribution to this sort of tired pop rock can only make me rank it so much. there's some winners in this album though. some songs are poetic and profound.

I thought this album didn’t hit the highs of Joshua Tree but kept a higher average quality compared to that record. It still gets some hype moments, like in Ultra Violet. Standouts: Zoo Station, Until The End Of The World, So Cruel, Tryin’ To Throw Your Arms Around The World, Ultra Violet, and Acrobat.

One of their best and last good album

This is certainly not their best or even in my top 3-4 from an album perspective, but with so many recognizable tracks (including One), can’t go lower than a 4 here.

I remember how excited I was to get this CD in my first order of Columbia House, only to be somewhat confused upon first listen. This was not the U2 we were all used to. Which was the point I later learned. The industrial and metallic production is bleak, hard and desperate, very much like the songs themselves. The band was on the verge of breaking up at this point, and their decision to ditch the all-for-one sound of unity for which they were known, for a more introspective dark sound proved to be the reinvention they needed. It’s no Boy, War, Unforgettable Fire or Joshua Tree, but it’s a great album of a band who finally learned that their best stuff comes when they don’t take themselves quite so seriously.