The Emerald Rock

Posted By Joshua Keating Friday, January 9, 2009 - 12:50 PM Share

In his first week, Steve Walt has already proved himself to be a great and provocative blogger who's not afraid of a little controversy. It's a thrill and an honor to be sharing a site with him.

But I'll be damned if I'm going to let him get away with referring to Dublin born-and-bred U2 as a "UK" band in his post on the lack of great European rock bands. If that's what passes for realism these days, I want no part of it. (He's technically right about Belfast's Van Morrison, though some of my relatives probably feel differently.)

If Walt is defining Ireland as Europe, I'd submit the recently reunited shoegaze pioneers My Bloody Valentine as a great European band. If you think of others, he's looking for suggestions.

EXPLORE:EUROPE, CULTURE

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STEPHEN M. WALT

4:41 PM ET

January 9, 2009

My bad

Josh is of course correct. Apologies to him, Bono, and especially the Edge.

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