2014 appears to be continuing in the same vein as the rest of the year for U2, the band has been condemned for the theme of their new music video.
The video is being filmed in Belfast, local residents are said to be angered and upset with the video’s depiction of the area.
The footage was shot last Wednesday 17th and Thursday 18th December in Northern Ireland.
Belfast residents claim that the video’s theme is in “poor taste” and that the filming has greatly disrupted the local area.
The Belfast Telegraph reports that members the the film crew, disrupted social workers trying to visit elderly residents.
However, what has really bothered people is the subject matter of the music video. The premise of the story seems to be the aftermath of a bomb explosion, with burning cars and injured survivors, which has triggered terrible memories for many people.
A local told the Belfast Telegraph: “U2 were apparently trying to stage something like a bomb that happened here in the Troubles and I couldn’t believe they would do that. They have done various plays and films about the Troubles anyway, and the Troubles did happen.”
Worst of all, U2 have been scolded for “cashing in” on the Troubles, with critics labeling that the music video is in “poor taste.”
The director Dan Gordan told the Belfast Telegraph: “People rush to look at the negative. U2 aren’t setting out to paint us or themselves in a poor light. They are there to expose stuff and talk about it. Nobody even knows what the song is about and we are rushing to play the blame game.”
It’s been an rocky year for the Irish lads, if they thought the release of their new album Songs Of Innocence, was going to be smooth sailing, they couldn’t have been more wrong.
The record was released in September on iTunes and was made available to download free of charge for 500 million Apple users. The free giveaway was met with an avalanche of abuse, with artists such as Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason, Bombay Bicycle Club and Sinead O’Connor all slating the Irish group’s tech venture.
