Bono on U2 iTunes Invasion: ‘We Might Have Gotten a Bit Carried Away’

By Brian Ives 

U2 is nothing if not self-aware, and that’s especially true with frontman Bono.  So when the band solicited questions from fans via their official Facebook page, they were probably anticipating a question about their surprise release of Songs Of Innocence, which (as you may have heard) showed up in millions of people’s iClouds, whether they wanted it or not.

Related: Every U2 Song, Ranked

And they did indeed get such a question: a fan (or maybe a former fan) named Harriet Madeline Jobson asked Bono, “Can you please never release an album on iTunes that automatically downloads to people’s playlists ever again? It’s really rude.”

Related: Yes, We Like Your New Direction: 10 Artistic ‘Left Turns’ That Worked Out

Bono’s response started out rather glib: “Oops.”

“I’m sorry about that,” he continued. “I had this beautiful idea, we might have gotten a bit carried away with ourselves. Artists are prone to that kind of thing. A drop of megalomania, a touch of generosity, a dash of self-promotion, and deep fear that these songs, that we poured our life into over the last few years mightn’t be heard. There’s a lot of noise out there. I guess we got a little noisy ourselves to get through it.”

All four members of the band answered questions as part of the event, called #U2NoFilter, which aimed to promote today’s physical release of Songs of Innocence.

Related: Sharon Osbourne Says U2 Gave Away ‘Mediocre Music’ for Free Because ‘No One Wanted to Buy It’

Read more on Radio.com

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