The album is best characterized by "Numb," in which seldom-heard-from guitarist The Edge mumbles the barely sensical spoken word lyrics over a gorgeous synthesizer background. Other oddities include the slowly building opening title track, the strange vocals on "Daddy's Going to Pay for Your Crashed Car," and the Johnny Cash collaboration "The Wanderer," with some bizarre apocalyptic imagery that closes things on an appropriate note. Even the more conventional songs, like "Babyface," "Stay," have an otherwordly quality about them.

Overall, "Zooropa" is not the place for casual fans to start their U2 collection. Nevertheless, it is a worthwhile challenge for the already commited.


Ahead of its time?   September 18, 2001
Steven Dennis (Reston, VA USA)
22 out of 26 found this review helpful

U2 leaped well ahead of their fan base with this experimental record that is a way out there vision of the world and society.

Numb was a hit, and is perhaps the most bizarre and yet hypnotic U2 song ever. Lemon sounds like a lemon tastes. I can't explain it if you haven't heard it. Zooropa and Babyface also have that futuristic quality about them, with lots of Bono singing in a high-pitched tone.

My favorite song on the album, actually, even though it doesn't really fit here, is The Wanderer, with Johnny Cash. I simply couldn't get enough of that track when I bought this.

Basically, this is a good album with several intriguing songs and certainly is a must for fans tracking the evolution of the band. But it doesn't have the emotional gut resonance for me that some of U2's most inspiring work does.

Enjoy!


Best U2 Album Yet!   January 7, 2000
Si Clegg (Chester, England)
13 out of 14 found this review helpful

Whereas Achtung Baby! now sounds a tad dated, Zooropa sounds fresher every listen.The albums are quite similar in style however, both nodding towards dance music, though Achtung Baby was really only a token effort.Zooropa succesfully mixes dance beats with a kind of avant-garde cyberpunk sound, most noticeabley on Lemon, a stand out track - a laid back falsetto driven "dream landscape".The traditional U2 style of classic rock survives on other tracks, such as "the first time" and "Stay (Far away so Close!)". The latter lays claim to being U2's greatest track, a swirling lyric accompanied by a simple yet beautiful souding guitar piece. The album's theme is taken from the ZooTV tour and centres on the sensory overload of modern televisual culture. The first three songs carry this theme mainly, the title track mixing in corporate slogans with a classic Bono lyric about "dreaming out loud". Babyface is a more conventionall sounding track about the merits of porn videos (!). The third track (Numb) sees Edge attempting to sing again( or in this case robotically chant a list of rhyming words). Van Diemens land is far superior. A sharp repetitive guiter riff dominates the song, which does irritate after a couple of listens. Jonny Cash makes an appearance on the last track (The Wanderer) which is a real grower and a classic in it's own right. Backing vocals from the edge and bono compliment Cash's deep baritone. In the context of U2's career this ranks as my personal favourite, lacking the pomposity of the late 80's albums, and not trying too hard like Achtung Baby! It is a very chilled out album and shows U2 capable of a greater range than they are given credit. They are much more than a stadium rock band - songs such as "Daddy'Gonna pay for your crashed car" really pushing back musical boundaries. This track is dominated by the rhythm section, which does to an extent overshadow the impressive lyrics tackling drug addiction. With out doubt in my mind, U2's best album to date. Creative and inspiring.


Let's Groove Baby!   May 26, 2000
Jeff Angco (Detroit, Michigan)
10 out of 11 found this review helpful

What can I say! This album was fresh off the heels of Achtung Baby and in the midst of the ZOO TV Tour. Recorded in 3 months, Zooropa is a spontaneous masterpiece. If U2 isn't officially credited with a "Concept Album", this is it!

The leadoff song, "Zooropa", is everything ZOO TV is all about. Commercial slogans used as lyrics and arcade sound effects to fill in the blanks. This song sums up the album. Technology and commercialism IS life...not a way of life. This mentality proves to be true on the tune "Numb". The Edge, not Bono, takes the mic and repeats a list of do's and dont's. We are told what to do and brainwashed what to buy. U2 has fun disguising everything by flirting with dance rhythms. "Lemon", "Daddy's Gonna Pay...", and "Some Days Are Better Than Others" are U2 at it's most playful yet serious. Peel the layers and these songs will make more sense.

Of course, no U2 album is complete without a bittersweet lovesong. "Stay" is a song that fits the bill. This tune will take you away to that U2 of yesteryear.

Finally, after a blitzkrieg of trashiness around Europe, technology, and excess, someone has to make sense of it all. Enter Johnny Cash. Mr. Cash makes his appearance in the album's finale, "The Wanderer". What better way to bring in an elder statesman to make sense of U2's "sinful" tactics.

Zooropa isn't the most popular U2 album, but it is indeed the most playful and danceable. Give this album more credit. Released in 1993, in the middle of Grunge's heyday, U2 was brave enough to release an "experimental" album which didn't feature a single guitar solo.

Remember, Achtung Baby was a hard album for the band to make. Zooropa was born from Achtung Baby. ...and thank God Zooropa doesn't sound like Achtung Baby PtII. Turning the corner and reinventing their music is what U2 is known for...I just wish most of you knew that.


Flung from my third-story window after two listenings   December 28, 1999
J. Jones (Indy)
9 out of 20 found this review helpful

Diehard fans may out of blind loyalty plead for others to accept this album as a natural evolution of the band's sound and a sign of maturation. I say, forget that. My appreciation of music is limited to that which sounds pleasing to my ear; I don't feel an inherent need to add money to a supergroup's coffers, just because they've decided to get experimental on me. U2 created catchy and beautiful music with Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby. Zooropa is trash. Hence, in the winter of 1993, my roommate and I flung it from our apartment window...good riddance. Who cares if they wanted to make a statement about consumerism; make a statement yourself about consumerism by not buying this garbage.