Alright, let’s get the hot take out of the way right out of the gate. This is my favorite U2 record of the ’00s.
It certainly came as a surprise to me. As I was shotgunning their discography in order, the transcendent bliss of their ’90s work came crashing down when I got to All That You Can’t Leave Behind. How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb didn’t do much to change my mind (note: I’ve largely come around on both now). I put on No Line on the Horizon, gritting my teeth to see why the reviews I had read were so unkind.
So imagine my surprise when I ended up enjoying it quite a bit.