(Island)
On their first album of new songs in nearly a decade, even earnest Bono-isms carry weight amid music that is impassioned and rejuvenated
Even artists who enjoy a seemingly unstoppable imperial period eventually seem to encounter spells of turbulence when the creative planets no longer align – which has been the story of U2’s last 20 years. Try as they might, nothing has matched their earlier albums – especially that mostly uninterrupted golden run from their 1980 debut Boy to 90s benchmarks Achtung Baby and Zooropa.
They’ve tried going more pop, becoming more experimental, touring 1987 colossus The Joshua Tree again and even reworking old songs for 2023’s Songs of Surrender, but nothing has uncorked the genie again, or given the band the kind of relevance they had for so many years. Often, it felt as though they were trying too hard.
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