U2, what happens to the new album?

About ten days ago U2 surprised everyone again: another EP of unreleased songs, “Easter lily”, a few weeks after “Days of ash”. But in both cases the wording “EP” appears prominently on the cover – to remind us that this is not the real album, which the band has been working on for some time. The plans have not changed. Bono writes in Propaganda, the fanzine linked to the publication of “Easter Lily”

We’re in the studio, still working on a loud, chaotic and ‘unreasonably colourful’ album to be played LIVE… which is the true spirit of U2. We continue to see bubbly rock and roll as an act of resistance against all this awfulness we see on our small screens. These are certainly ‘desert’ years for many of us, faced with the chaos that reigns in the world.
We’ll try to organize something bigger and more lavish in the future to remind the rest of the world that we exist, but in the meantime… this remains between us and you.

Already at the end of 2025, the new U2 album was said to be “almost finished”, and for months (unofficial) sources have been talking about a release scheduled for autumn 2026, with a single for the summer. Coinciding with the date of September 25, 1976, which marks the formation of the band: the release of the album will take place around that date to celebrate fifty years of U2’s career.

There is also talk of a tour for 2027 with dates in Italian stadiums: stadiums have already been optioned in various cities in our country, in the UK and Germany, as well as 4 dates in Croke Parke, Dublin. According to U2songs, a traditionally reliable source, the tour should continue until 2028 inclusive.

When Rockol interviewed Bono last spring, the singer summed up the inner workings of the band this way: “Springsteen said a funny thing about bands: “Democracy is needed for places like Iraq. But not for a rock band.” He is always amazed by the fact that the four of us U2 divide everything equally and that we are still very democratic. He has a band, but there’s only one Boss. In U2 there are four bosses.” A dynamic that explains well the long lead times and many discussions behind each project.