Best considered as a warm-up for U2's next album, the classic The Joshua Tree, 1984's The Unforgettable Fire finds the quartet retreating from the overt commerciality of War and, with the help of Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, gradually shifting to a more ambient sound. The Eno-Lanois production team would later be the key that pushed U2 toward experimental waters. Although that approach is apparent on a bonus disc of B-sides, non-album rarities, live tracks and extended remixes, songs such as "Pride (In the Name of Love)" and "Bad" still aim for the stadium back rows. An accompanying DVD includes all the album's videos as well as the band's performance at Live Aid. A half-hour documentary shows the group and its producers laboriously recording "Pride" with all the repetition, second-guessing and sheer boredom of piecing together the song, practically guaranteeing you'll never want to hear it again. (Mercury/UME) 4 out of 5 stars
