U2’s The Edge says their new album is “not a straight up rock thing”

The Edge has given an update on the next U2 album, claiming that it will not be “a straight-up rock thing”.

The guitarist was speaking to Rolling Stone when he gave a glimpse into the band’s recent activity, which has included creating “an awful lot of material to wade through”, a lot of which dates back to their COVID lockdown.

“I guess we’re at that great honeymoon period of a lot of experimentation, and looking at all kinds of possible themes musically,” he explained. “I think the guitar will be a big part of the next record, but I don’t think it’s going to be a heavy rock album. I think it’s going to be a very different kind of use of the guitar, not a straight-up rock thing.”

He continued that he believes in that sense, it will be in keeping with the band’s typical process. “We’ve always tried to avoid using the instrument in a way that’s too mainstream and kind of normal,” he said. “We’ve always tried to find ways to use the guitar that has never been heard before, and it seems that that’s an important part of what gets us excited.”

The Edge’s comments seem to somewhat contradict the last update on the album from late 2023 when Bono said it would be “an unreasonable guitar record” with “big choruses”.

“I don’t think the world is waiting on the next U2 album,” the singer said at the time. “I think we have to give them a reason to be interested in it. I just want to write great tunes, because that’s where U2 started – with big choruses, clear ideas. And let’s go back there, but do it with some petrol and some matches.”

Around the same time, the band also shared that progress on their new album was “somewhat tied” to drummer Larry Mullen Jr. and his recovery. Bassist Adam Clayton said: “Starting work on new songs is somewhat tied to Larry’s situation. Could he commit to an album project? I don’t know.”

In 2022, Mullen Jr cited damage to his “elbows, knees [and] necks”, which he “got a chance to have a look at” during the COVID pandemic. Due to these drumming-related injuries, which he described as “damage along the way”, Mullen said he’d “like to take some time… to get myself healed”. It was then reported that he had undergone surgery to address the injuries.

While recovering, Mullen Jr made the decision to pull out of playing U2’s Las Vegas Sphere residency.

Last month, The Edge said: “The great news is Larry is getting better every week and we’ll be making a racket with him in no time. So we’re very excited about that.”

In the new interview, the guitarist gave a further update, revealing that they have now recorded a session with Mullen, and “we’re going to do another one in a couple of weeks”.

“He’s in great form,” he added. “It’s lovely to spend time with him in the studio in a creative environment.”

In other news, U2 recently shared a new song called ‘Happiness’ that was originally recorded in 2004.

The song came together during the sessions for the band’s 2004 album ‘How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’ and is set to feature on the shadow album ‘How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb’ alongside the previously released songs ‘Country Mile’ and ‘Picture Of You (X + W)’.

The forthcoming record – available to pre-order here – will include new, unreleased songs dug up from the archive of the original album’s sessions. It will be released on November 22.