The next U2 album, which had been expected out in time for the holidays, has now been delayed to early 2009. In a new posting on U2.com, Bono says, “We’ve hit a rich songwriting vein. It gets a bit dark down here but looks like we’ve found diamonds not coal. I thought a while back we might have the album wrapped by now, but why come up above ground now if there’s more priceless stuff to be found?
“When we set out on this record it was [drummer] Larry [Mullen] who came up with the plan not to have a plan. He put up this idea that wouldn’t it be great just to make music for its own sake, not for the purpose of a live show or on album but just to see what we’re capable of.
“It’s a brand new chapter for us, and everyone we�ve played the tracks to has said that musically it feels like another departure. The last two records were very personal, with a kind of three-piece at their heart, the primary colours of rock – bass, guitars and drum. But what we�re about now is of the same order as the transition that took us from The Joshua Tree to Achtung Baby.
