Tomorrow the band releases their 16th album Carnaval de Luz, and the critical response so far is that it’s one of their best recent records. Granted, there have always been the haters and the naysayers (and the ‘how dare they force a new album on me’ whiners who still won’t let it go twelve years later), but for those of us who have been fans since the beginning, it’s always a pleasure to see and hear new music by this band we’ve grown up with.

I’ve been a fan since the beginning thanks to WAAF and WAQY playing “I Will Follow” so many years ago. They’d found a kindred spirit in Boston radio early on, which quickly spread across Massachusetts to other rock stations, making my home state an early stomping grounds. It also helped that MTV picked them up quickly as well, especially with the October and War albums. By the time The Unforgettable Fire came out in 1984, I was obsessed, wishing I’d had the cash to pick up all their singles and back catalog. By the time The Joshua Tree came out in 1987, even all the jocks in my high school loved it, I secretly laughed at the fact that I’d gotten to them well before they did. Score one for the music nerds! Heh.

I haven’t heard much from the new album other than the already dropped singles like the above, “Silencio” and “Street of Dreams”, but I like what I’ve heard so far. They’re a much older band and they’re allowed to chill out a bit these days, but prefacing this new release with not one but two stellar EPs of great tunes proves that they haven’t lost any of their power. Once I have this new one downloaded I’m sure I’ll be giving it repeated listens!