Politically charged rock music exponentially increases the likelihood of failure. With high stakes subject matter comes zero sum consequences. The success rate is closest to a batting average of a Major League pitcher. Sound trite (Green Day), over-thought (post-1996 R.E.M.), preachy (Neil Young) or vapid (Black Eyed Peas) and the results can be embarrassing. Their creators often must deal with the long-term effects of alienating current/potential fans, pissing off the wrong people or seeming uninspired. All of those reasons signify why it's so damn impressive when somebody actually pulls it off. Making that kind of record for your third, and possibly make-or-break release? U2 laid everything on the line with War and made one of the greatest albums of all time.
In contrast to their first two albums, Boy and October, War displays immediacy so deep that it remains unrivaled before or since in their catalog. "Sunday Bloody Sunday," "Two Hearts Beat As One" and "Like A Song..." employ charging tempos and spiky guitar licks from The Edge that force the listener to engage them. At times Bono wails to the point that he could easily be confused with an innocent bystander left in the wake of a street gun battle. In essence, he becomes the character not just in words, but inflection and spirit as well. When he pleads "hold on tightly! hold on tightly" in "Drowning Man," you feel like his life hangs in the balance of the person he is addressing. On "Like A Song..." Bono assumes the personality of a freedom fighter who regretfully welcomes the battle: "we stake our claim/revolution once again!" Not only does this task require vocal chops, which he has, it also demands maximum charisma, which he possesses in droves.
The departure from Boy and October doesn't stop there, however. The Edge hones in his ability to produce simple but soaring guitar lines in "Like A Song..." and "New Year's Day." Hardly anybody gets such a great sing-like quality to his instrument as The Edge. He does use the fuzzy chime of the first two albums on "Surrender," but this song is far too ambitious to fit on those records. Here they lean on a steady groove and rely on Bono's voice to carry the load until the wonderful choir outro. Hearing a group of children singing lends even more emotion to an album already bursting with it. The exemplary ballad "Drowning Man" begins their foray into atmosphere and slower temper that they would explore much further with Brian Eno on The Unforgettable Fire.
Just as much as the in your face pace and Bono learning how to assume character roles, U2 drastically improved their lyrical skills on War. "The trench is dug within our hearts" from "Sunday Bloody Sunday" describes the Irish conflict in a succinct and striking demeanor. Scores of emo bands (specifically Thursday) would borrow this blunt style years later. Few have ever illustrated nuclear fear better than Bono on "Seconds" with "lightning flashes across the sky/east or west, do or die/like a thief in the night/see the world by candlelight." Long lost is the age in which this album was written, when Soviet/American tensions continually seemed at a breaking point. With so many violent metaphors, political and personal, one can't blame the band for choosing War as the title.
U2 arrived at a crossroads in 1983, much like Bruce Springsteen eight years before. Each released two highly anticipated but underachieving records and seemed unable to capitalize on their critical acclaim. Instead of trying to find a new identity, both decided to double down and risk it all for an even more excessive attempt with album number three. Never again would Bono sound so exposed, The Edge pound his strings with such purpose, Larry Mullen Jr. abuse his toms so loudly or Adam Clayton thump at his bass so aggressively. War is the album in which U2 finally struck the right mixture of taking complex issues and condensing them into something easily consumed without sacrificing substance. They no longer seemed clumsy or childish but rather a band ready to destroy anything obstructing their destiny. All ten songs implore you to stand up and take arms in a war that seems so worth fighting.
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