U2. The universally acclaimed rock band of the last 30 years. No band has been able to reach the heights of success that U2 has had over their storied career. They have 22 Grammys to their name spread across 13 studio albums selling over 170 million records. But how did these Dublin, Ireland natives get to this point? What took them from school boys with very little musical training to being some of the most successful musical acts of all time? How have they stayed relevant for over 30 years through changes in Western musical tastes and recording technologies? This paper will specifically examine what defines U2’s sound and how evolutions in recording technology have influenced the direction in which U2 took their musical stylings.

Initially …show more content…
The task of shepherding them through the process fell upon producer Steve Lillywhite. The band recorded at Windmill Lane in Dublin, Ireland, a studio known for recording traditional Irish music [2]. Lillywhite had a particular way of recording and mastering drums known with “gated reverb” that he created in conjunction with Phil Collins [3], that he used on “Boy” and subsequent collaborations with U2. Gated reverb involves routing a signal to a reverberation effect if the signal crosses a certain noise threshold, creating a very controlled echo with the instrument. In order to get the particular raw drum sound he desired, Lillywhite set up the drums in the reception area as the reflections lent a “wonderful clattery sound” that became a defining aspect of U2 [4]. This sound along with The Edge’s distinct echoing guitar riffs and Bono’s ambient and ethereal vocals laid the foundational sonic characteristic that U2 would base their sound around for years to come. The singles “I Will Follow” and “A Day Without Me” are great examples of the environment in which U2 recorded their first album, their initial musical decisions and their lack of experience. In particular you can really hear the influence of the studio surfaces in the record and it gives the record a live demo or rehearsal feel. I believe that this was a conscious decision by Lillywhite, as he stated that he was initially attracted to the band not through their early demos but through one of their live performances