U2 tease new music: “The fight is for our future”
06.10.2023 - 13:09
/ nme.com
U2 have said they have some “amazing new songs” in the can, teasing that they will be “ready soon”.The Irish group are currently a week into their spectacular residency at Las Vegas’ groundbreaking new venue, Sphere. Ahead of the first show last Friday (September 29) Bono and co. released a standalone single called ‘Atomic City’.Now, the band have taken Zane Lowe on another behind-the-scenes tour of the Sphere in a video for Apple Music.
During the conversation, Bono and The Edge spoke about what’s to come next for U2.“Well, I think new music, new tunes,” the latter said. “There’s a lot that we have ready and some that need a little dusting off, but will be ready soon. I tell you, we’ve got some amazing new songs.
Really exciting.”Bono added: “Edge has about 100 in the bag. I have about 20… but [bassist] Adam [Clayton]’s got something to contribute.”The frontman went on to explain that drummer Larry Mullen Jr – who is absent from the Vegas concerts due to various injuries – “will be sitting there going through the bag going, ‘Yeah, no, that’s shite. That’s shite.
That’s shite. Is there anything here that isn’t shite?'”Bono said U2 will eventually manage to “find 10” tracks that are up to scratch, telling Lowe “that’s all you need” for an album. “10.
And that’s your reason to exist,” the singer continued.“If not, U2 should just fuck off. Go live on an island, or go away and be a nuisance somewhere in the world. But if we want to continue as a band, it’s only about one thing.
It’s about the text, it’s about the tunes, it’s about the performance. It’s about whether you believe us or not.“And we have an extraordinary musical genius in our band. We will try, I will try, to put into words the music [The Edge is] making.