U2 – October

The pressing I have sounds great, nice dynamics and no background noises. The booklet is fantastic, and the whole packet is for that matter considering the price and what some modern albums cost. As for the music, it's a great album and Gloria is the standout track for sure.

If you can track down a clean copy of this pressing (shouldn't be too difficult as the Japanese are notorious for taking care of their records and literally everything else) the soundstage is well mixed and the presence/projection sounds awesome with the right hi-fi setup

Thanks Mickyw! for the recommendation. Just got a copy of this pressing, an unplayed promo copy. By far the best U2 pressing I have so far. I've tried a variety of pressings for October including the UK first pressing and this is the best. Punchy bass, sharp treble, great soundstage depth. Way better than the modern day muddy 180 gram pressings. I'm a fan of early U2 back when they were less polished, more wild, and they still let Larry play the drums! :) Btw also see the first Canadian pressings of Rattle and Hum and the Unforgettable Fire. Very good as well.

Compared to other releases this seems to have quite a different, non-stamped, text in the runout. Somebody else with the copy that noticed the same?

There is another Irish variant LP pressing from the early to mid 80's, double dipped, translucent with a darker U2 OCTOBER on the labels. I have it. This one is very scarce.

Very nice pressing indeed! No pops/crackles/hiss even after many years of play! Beats any later pressings!

Got this with a deep scratch of a couple centimeters long on both sides, so don't buy this if you want to be sure of a pressing without issues

Not a fan of this or War. Boy felt almost like Joy Division in places, then it felt to me American influences crept in. I jumped back on board briefly with The Unforgettable Fire, which imo is their best album.
This had some good bonus tracks though. - Nice to have A Celebration and Trash Trampoline.
If you’re a U2 fan you’ll probably love this. The packaging is neat. Sturdy and not cheap. I can’t really comment on the mastering as the only version I had heard before was the cassette version. But it sounds ok to me. I’m not hearing bloat or brickwalling. Then again, the songs are fairly minimal.
3/5 from me

Not very good. The UK first press is much better than this one.

Anyone have an extra inner sleeve for this or similar version?