thanks to matthew for the heads up on the new u2 single, "electricial storm" -- and if it were any good, he'd get a link too. (ha ha ha, just kidding.)

great title; a shame to waste it on what is very obviously a single for a greatest hits package. g.h. singles usually offer up everything that a band does well presented in the most ramshackle fashion imaginable. sen. bono displays his typical optimism in the face of overwhelming odds; he sings the chorus in falsetto, reminding the listener that he used to be able to hit those notes full-voiced, and to show that he hasn't lost all of it by smoking and singing the refrain to "bad," he does a bit of moaning. meanwhile, larry mullen jr. bashes away on the drums; adam clayton stands around looking intelligent and, like most aging rock bassists, is the dignified foil to the outlandish frontman and quietly brooding guitarist; and the edge makes like an electrical storm before bumping into the guitar break from "walk on" -- one can imagine the song ending the way it does because it becomes obvious to even bono that they're getting self-parodic. essentially, g.h. singles leave the listener to listen to the other songs on the compilation to see how good a band can sound when the parts are assembled properly.