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  1. So, in addition to loving U2, I have a passion for Star Wars too, and seeing a Star Wars thread on this forum, it prompted me to share this ...

    I stumbled upon this article the other day (http://www.starwarsringtheory.com/) and it got me thinking whether U2's albums demonstrated any adherence to ring theory, who's rules are as follows (summary [with comments added by me]) ...

    1. Exposition or Prologue:
    - Generally an introductory section. It sets the stage, sometimes the [another] time and the [another] place.
    - Usually its tone is bland and somewhat enigmatic. It tells of a dilemma that has to be faced, a command to be obeyed , or a doubt to be allayed [out of control].
    - Above all, it is laid out so as to anticipate the mid-turn [twilight that happens between night and day] and the ending that will eventually respond to it.

    2. Split into two halves:
    - The ring composition must split into two halves at the midpoint [Acthung Baby/Zooropa].
    - This draws an imaginary line between the middle and the beginning, which divides the work into two halves, the first, outgoing, the second, returning [to Cedarwood Road].

    3. Parallel sections:
    - The two halves of the ring must be arranged in parallel. This is done by making separate sections that are placed opposite each other across the central dividing line (one on each side of the ring) [for example The Joshua Tree and All That You Can't Leave Behind - see below].

    4. Indicators to mark individual sections:
    - The individual sections of the ring composition must be clearly marked so the reader knows where each section starts and stops.
    [Clear punctuation points after War, Rattle And Hum, Pop/Original Soundtracks, Vertigo]

    5. Central loading:
    - Whereas modern stories are usually presented in a clear, linear fashion with the climax occurring near the end, ring compositions tend to place the climax or central crisis of the narrative in the middle [such as the near break up of the band in 1990].
    - One clue that the middle has been reached, is that it uses some of the same key word clusters that were found in the exposition. . As the ending also accords with the exposition, the mid-turn tends to be in concordance with them both. Then the whole piece is densely interconnected.

    - In addition, the most important message of the work tends to be delivered at the turn or the center of the ring. [One is arguably this central axis !]

    6. Rings within rings:
    A large ring composition may, in fact, include smaller rings.
    [The Electric Co's shock therapy - laughing gas of Zoo Station - Miracle Drug 7. Closure at two levels. - Finally, the ending of a ring composition must join up with the beginning and make a clear closure on both a structural and thematic level. [though I do hope the the projected Songs of Experience doesn't mark the end !]

    Here's what I think is the the overall pattern or rhyme scheme of the U2 album ring:
    A Boy
    B October
    C War
    D The Unforgettable Fire
    E The Joshua Tree
    F Rattle and Hum
    G Achtung Baby
    G' Zooropa
    F' Pop
    E' All That You Can't Leave Behind
    D' Passengers
    C' How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb
    B' No Line On the Horizon
    A' Songs of Innocence

    A and A' (Boy, SOI) are the start and return to complete the circle (Dublin experiences particularly front and centre)

    G and G'(Achtung Baby/Zooropa) signify the zenith, and the crucial midpoint
    Some of these rhymes are really obvious to me ... themes, sounds, associated imagery, lyrical content.

    Here' the beginning of my observations ...

    A & A' (Boy, SOI)
    I Will Follow - Iris
    Out Of Control - Volcano
    The Ocean - Every Breaking Wave
    Shadows and Tall Trees - cherry blossom trees

    B & B' (October & No Line On the Horizon)
    Albums full of hymns - one aiming to produce "future hymns" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Line_on_the_Horizon)
    Rejoice - Magnificent
    Is That All ? - Moment of Surrender

    C & C' (War, How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb)
    War themes
    Surrender - Love and Peace or Else
    Drowning man - Sometimes
    Red Light - City of Blinding Lights
    "40" - Yahweh

    D & D' (The Unforgettable Fire, Passengers)
    So, a slight stretch here, as I've done one re-order ... but the Eno/experimental influence is clear
    Elvis Presley and America - Elvis Ate America

    E & E' (The Joshua Tree, All That You Can't Leave Behind)
    The "classic U2" albums, so sonically similar
    In God's Country - New York
    Mothers (of the Disappeared) - (Father flying a) Kite

    F & F' (Rattle and Hum & Pop)
    Fascination with particular genres ... American heartland (Desire) vs techno-heavy (Discothèque)
    Heartland - Miami
    God Part II - If God Will Send His Angels
    Needing your love (Hawkmoon 269) - asking you Do You Feel Loved
    Love rescue Me - Staring At the Sun

    G & G' (Achtung Baby, Zooropa)
    Really an extended double album that represents the zenith of it all ...

    THOUGHTS ???
  2. Awesome!
  3. Mind blown...
  4. U2ception
  5. This is genius! I'm still processing the Star Wars article - thanks for sharing! Makes me look at the prequels - which I still don't really enjoy - in a whole new light.

    And as one who studies and teaches the Bible as part of my job, I appreciate even more applying the chiastic structure of "ring theory" to U2! Your analysis is very cool and the detail is impressive. Seriously good stuff here.

    Just to keep this going...I definitely see your point in connecting TUF and Passengers and R&H and Pop, but I thought I'd give a go at putting the albums in their actual order:

    A Boy
    B October
    C War
    D The Unforgettable Fire
    E The Joshua Tree
    F Rattle and Hum
    G Achtung Baby
    G' Zooropa
    F' Passengers
    E' Pop
    D' All That You Can't Leave Behind
    C' How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb
    B' No Line On the Horizon
    A' Songs of Innocence

    D & D’ The Unforgettable Fire & ATYCLB
    Both albums involved production by Eno/Lanois, the one for the first time ever and the latter again for the first time in nine years. Both involve themes of mortality and loss, yet hope and joy in the midst of the struggle.
    A Sort of Homecoming - In A Little While (“and your heart beats so slow” - “slow down my beating heart…”)
    TUF - Walk On (“walk on by” - ”walk on…”)
    Promenade - Beautiful Day (“up through the spiral staircase” - the heart “shoots up through the stony ground”)
    Bad - Stuck (ok, maybe a stretch, but the one is focused on heroin addiction and the other on being unable to get out of the moment..)

    E & E’ The Joshua Tree & Pop
    Both albums (as mentioned earlier) involve fixations on particular genres and styles of music - the American roots music of JT and the “ode to club culture” played by a rock band that is Pop.
    ISHFWILF - Mofo (both songs of spiritual struggle - “still looking for the face I had before the world was made…”)
    WOWY - Velvet Dress (“give yourself away” and the conflict between the sun/moon…)
    Red Hill Mining Town - Last Night On Earth (“you’re all that’s left to hold onto - “you’ve got to give it away…”)
    One Tree Hill - The Playboy Mansion (“run like a river to the sea” and “go driving in that pool”...)

    F & F' Rattle and Hum & Passengers

    Both polarizing albums in their own way - R&H for the supposed egomania and Passengers for self-indulgence as a side project.

    Hawkmoon 269 - Your Blue Room ("like a drifter needs a room" - it's time to go again to.YBR...")

    No other individual song match-ups for this pair (others' ideas?) but I do think that both albums are "cinematic" in a way. R&H reminds me of driving across Route 66 ("Heartland" most obviously) and the film itself conjures these images for us explicitly as U2 goes across America. Whereas with Passengers, the whole point of the album obviously was to make "original soundtracks" to a mix of real and fake films...
  7. It's interesting when aplied to U2, until they releasw a new album and it pretty much sinks the theory...but this is a theory about star wars movies? Let me get this right, someone made a theory about how star wars movies follow the same basic plot structure (intro, middle, ans twist or finale) as almost every other movie ever made?
  8. The only thing I don't like about this awesome thing is that it somehow implies that SOI would be their last album.......
  9. Well, if we really want to get carried away we could start incorporating the Best Ofs, live releases, U218 Singles...

  10. This image is from the 2018 ei tour book ...
  11. I guess your (amazing and very well written) theory lost a lil bit of sense with the release of SOE didn't it?
  12. I'd stick SOI and SOE together, as they collectively represent a return to (the lights of) home ;o) lol