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  1. War is not under-appreciated. It does have its place, and it just feels like a natural step in the progression of the band from Boy and October. To me it has more of a raw tone to it than the first two albums. Enter the Unforgettable Fire, when production really kicks up, wall of sound, etc, and they're never the same.. meaning, the rawness and, I guess, punkish vibes are over..for a while, at least. Until the Edge kicks up the industrial distortion of AB.
  2. For me, the sonic link between War and TUF is Drowning Man.
  5. They got the top 2 right in the wrong order and NLOTH is about right but the rest are completely the wrong way round. Must be a fan of 80’s u2 that ranked them.
  6. I put War in my Top 5 but I’ll be the first to admit that nostalgia is probably playing a critical role here.
  8. If you chunk that list into groups of four or five (i.e, 14-11, 10-6, and 5-1), it isn't all that bad.

    AB is my favourite while the eighties albums in their top five are also in mine.

    Admittedly, #6-11 need work. R&H is great if you just consider the studio tracks but overall it's a mess.

    I prefer Pop to both ATYCLB and HTDAAB but this list probably takes into account all the awards those two albums won. Pop should definitely be ahead of October.

    I'm sure it's my age but their bottom three are also my least favourite. New U2 is great to hear but doesn't leave a lasting impression on me. For what it's worth, I think SOI is better than the other two.
  9. I think War falls very squarely in the middle to upper third of U2 albums. As others have noted, the highs are super high (NYD, SBS, 40…yes, 40) and help define the sound of U2. There are also some weaker tracks but imo nothing truly abysmal. I think War gets its proper due as a very good U2 album that served as a further springboard for them to find true greatness (JT, AB).

    And October should always be at the bottom of any U2 album ranking….but I still love it.
  10. These Ultimate Classic Rock lists are so poorly written, and obviously have no proofreader. They rank SOI as the "worst" album at # 14, but praise the first five songs as strong, and then Pop at #11 is pretty much labeled a terrible album. Huh? I've seen this on their lists before where something ranked really low is full of compliments, and something ranked much, much higher is trashed. Me or just about anyone else on U2start could make a much more intelligent list in their sleep blindfolded while being hit with a hammer.
  11. As far as War being overrated or underrated? I think it pretty much gets what it deserves. I like every song, but admit Red Light ain't their best moment. Don't understand the hate for The Refugee though. Sure Larry sounds like he's in the USC Marching Trojan bands, and Bono still sounds weird with the vocal mix. Kind of like they were not sure if they were a punk band or a pop band, or some other kind of band, but a fun mess for me to listen to!

    And now the inevitable album rankings inspired by this War post:

    1. Achtung Baby
    2. The Joshua Tree
    3. Pop
    4. Rattle and Hum
    5. War
    6. The Unforgettable Fire
    7. Zooropa
    8. All That You Can’t Leave Behind
    9. How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
    10. No Line On The Horizon
    11. Boy
    12. Songs Of Experience
    13. October
    14. Passengers
    15. Songs of Guilt uhhh Innocence
  12. Originally posted by ap5:I think War falls very squarely in the middle to upper third of U2 albums. As others have noted, the highs are super high (NYD, SBS, 40…yes, 40) and help define the sound of U2. There are also some weaker tracks but imo nothing truly abysmal. I think War gets its proper due as a very good U2 album that served as a further springboard for them to find true greatness (JT, AB).

    And October should always be at the bottom of any U2 album ranking….but I still love it.
    October was the bottom till 2017, but since then SOE is the bottom