RTÉ 2XM to premiere title track of U2’s No Line on the Horizon

Get ready to rip, folks. RTÉ 2XM will play the title track of U2’s new album ‘No Line on the Horizon’ on Thursday, February 12 at 12 noon GMT.

You can tune in to 2XM on DAB digital radio sets in the Greater Dublin area, Cork and Limeric, or online at www.rte.ie/digitalradio.

Walmart posts previews of U2’s No Line on the Horizon

We got the heads up from U2tour.de via Twitter: Walmart online has posted previews of all the tracks on No Line on the Horizon.

Update 02/08: Walmart has taken down all the previews, except ‘Boots’.

Walmart

It’s always hard to tell from random 30-second clips, but early favourites for me are: the title track, Moment of Surrender, Cedars of Lebanon and Fez-Being Born. YMMV.

What are you waiting for? Have a listen and let us know what you think.

U2 releases details of their new album ‘No Line on the Horizon’

No Line on the Horizon

U2 have uncovered the sleeve, tracklisting and formats of their new album ‘No Line on the Horizon’ and the single ‘Get On Your Boots’ on their official website.

‘Get On Your Boots’ will be released as a digital download on February 15th and a physical format will follow on February 16th.

The statement on the website continues:

“Produced by Brian Eno, Danny Lanois and Steve Lillywhite, sessions for No Line On The Horizon began in Fez, Morocco, and continued at the band’s Dublin studio, New York’s Platinum Sound Recording Studios, and London’s Olympic Studios.

Released on March 2nd (March 3rd in the US), the album will come in a standard format with 24 page booklet and in digipak format. The digipak includes an extended booklet and the album’s companion film “Linear” by Anton Corbijn. A limited edition 64 page magazine will also be available, featuring the band in conversation with artist Catherine Owens, and new Anton Corbijn photographs. No Line On The Horizon will be released on 180gm vinyl. (More on the formats below)

The album cover artwork is an image of the sea meeting the sky by Japanese artist and photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto.”

Here’s the full track listing:

1. No Line On The Horizon
2. Magnificent
3. Moment of Surrender
4. Unknown Caller
5. I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight
6. Get On Your Boots
7. Stand Up Comedy
8. Fez – Being Born
9. White As Snow
10. Breathe
11. Cedars Of Lebanon

No Line On The Horizon will be available in five formats;

  • Standard jewel case – with album CD and 24 page booklet (Amazon)
  • Digipak format – limited edition with album CD, 32 page colour booklet and fold out poster. Features access to exclusive downloadable Anton Corbijn film. (Amazon)
  • Magazine format – limited edition with album CD, with 64 page magazine. Features access to exclusive downloadable Anton Corbijn film. (Amazon)
  • Box format – limited edition bespoke box containing digipak format album CD, DVD of Anton Corbijn’s exclusive film, 64 page hardback book, plus a fold out poster. (Amazon)
  • LP vinyl – limited edition with 2 black vinyl discs, gatefold sleeve, and a 16 page booklet. (Amazon)

Radio release

Not mentioned in U2’s press release is the single’s radio premiere, which will take place this Monday (January 19th) at 8.10am GMT on The Colm & Jim-Jim Show on RTÉ 2fm, in Ireland. Dave Fanning will play the new single and he will be talking to Colm and Jim-Jim from 7.30am about ‘previous U2 albums, his relationship with the band and memories of one of the greatest bands in the world today’. You can listen to the show online on RTE.ie.

U2tour.de has details on radio premieres in various European countries.

‘Brian Eno would like to talk about this’

Gavin and U2's whiteboard

New on U2.com (subscribers only), a video of Gavin Friday explaining what the symbols on U2’s whiteboard mean. Friday, as U2 fans will know, is the band’s preferred ‘midwife’, and helped deliver U2’s new baby via caesarian.

We’re amused by the note on ‘Moment of Surrender’ at the top of the board. It reads ‘Brian would like to talk about this’. From what we’ve heard, Eno – not a fan of brevity, perhaps – fought for a 9-minute version of the mix, instead of the 7’12” version the band preferred. That might be what the note referred to.

Click for a run down of what’s on the board.

U2 announces new album ‘No Line on the Horizon’

Mark your calendars! U2.com reports that ‘No Line on the Horizon’, the new studio album from U2, will be released on Monday 2nd March, 2009.

They write:

Written and recorded in various locations, No Line On The Horizon is the group’s 12th studio album and is their first release since the 9 million selling album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, released in late 2004.

Sessions for No Line On The Horizon began last year in Fez, Morocco, continued in the band’s own studio in Dublin, before moving to New York’s Platinum Sound Recording Studios, and finally being completed at Olympic Studios in London.

The album calls on the production talents of long-time collaborators Brian Eno and Danny Lanois, with additional production by Steve Lillywhite.

Billboard runs the story and has a quote from a ‘source’ who heard songs in their early forms: “…amazing and a little out there. I hope they don’t change anything.” (Read more.)

U2’s new album set for ‘early 2009’ release

U2.com reveals the new album won’t see the light of day until next year. The band has decided to continue working on the 50 to 60 new songs they’ve written.

Bono: ‘I’m always the one who underestimates how easy it is to simply ‘put out the songs now’, if it was just up to me they’d be out already! But early next year people will be able to start hearing what we’ve been doing. We want 2009 to be our year, so we’re going to start making an impression very early on …’

Up till now many fans had assumed a 2008 release in time for Christmas. Says Bono: “It has to be our most innovative, our most challenging … or what’s the point?”

Read more at U2.com.

The Edge: ‘It’s totally frantic’

Q magazine talks to – a very busy – The Edge about U2’s new album. The guitarist sheds some light on the album’s sound and confirms some of the song titles that have floated around the web for some time.

“‘We wanted to give it some variety. There is some dark, heavy stuff but there are also some lighter things. Some we’ve really had to sweat to get and some just came so easily.” Work-in-progress highlights include “f—k-off live rocker” “Breathe”; “For Your Love,” which Edge says is one of his best-ever riffs; and the aforementioned “Get On Your Boots” (“Eddie Cochran with barbershop harmonies”). Other notable tracks include the eight-minute-long “Moment Of Surrender” and “No Line On The Horizon,” inspired by a distortion box called Death By Audio recommended by ex-Secret Machines guitarist Ben Curtis.”

The article suggests the band is still unsure whether to release the album pre- or post Christmas.

Read the full story at U2france.com.