U2 shock releases an album to assault ICE and spiritual fundamentalism | Culture | EUROtoday

And riff highly effective guitar from The Edge; midway via the tune, which is titled American Obituary, Bono sings: “930 Minneapolis. / Desecrate domestic happiness. / Three bullets explode, three babies are kissed. / Renee the domestic terrorist?” U2 are again and really offended. The Irish group has launched a shock EP, the primary assortment of latest songs in 9 years, since they launched Songs of Experience in 2017.

There are six songs with a length of 23 minutes, an EP that they’ve titled Days of Ash (Days of ashes). This is figure carried out urgently and pushed by latest political occasions, within the fashion of Streets of Minnesota, they Bruce Springsteen. American Obituary tells the story of Renée Good, a mom of three who was murdered on January 7 whereas protesting ICE exercise in Minneapolis. “Renée Good, born to die free / American mother of three children / seventh day of January / a bullet for every child,” Bono intones in a rock tune like U2 was now not remembered.

Throughout the remainder of the album there’s an underlying message of assault on the doable arrival of fascism and a criticism of spiritual fundamentalism. The Tears of Things It works as a completely recognizable Irish ballad, with The Edge’s acoustic guitar constructing melodies and Bono demonstrating that when he begins singing slowly and with a reputable message he returns to being that shocking vocalist from the eighties.

Song Of the Future They are U2 from the most recent albums, a bit midway between all the things. Even so, the tune comprises a catchy refrain, a type of that Coldplay composed earlier than. The lyrics are about Sarina Esmailzadeh, a 16-year-old Iranian who died after being crushed by safety forces throughout the 2022 protests. Then comes a recited piece lasting simply over a minute, Wildpeace.

One Life At a Time, a mid-tempo that strikes alongside curiously with a pulsing percussive base and a few fairly guitar licks from The Edge, is devoted to Awdah Hathaleen, a Palestinian trainer and activist murdered within the West Bank by an Israeli settler in July 2025. Finally, Yours Eternally It options the collaboration of Taras Topolia, Ukrainian musician and soldier, and Ed Sheeran. This is a subject that criticizes the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Musically it consists of a business pop tune.

The launch coincides with the restoration of the journal Propaganda, made by followers of the group. In it, Bono says: “They are songs of rebellion and dismay, of lament. The songs of celebration will come later, we are working on them now… because, despite all the atrocity that we see normalized daily on our small screens, there is nothing normal in these crazy, maddening times, and we have to stand up to them before we can have faith in the future again. And in each other.”

https://elpais.com/cultura/2026-02-18/u2-publica-por-sorpresa-un-disco-para-atacar-a-ice-y-a-los-fundamentalismos-religiosos.html