logo
'Sounds like future to me': Bono teases new U2 album

'Sounds like future to me': Bono teases new U2 album

Perth Now18-05-2025

Bono has teased U2's new album "sounds like future".
The 65-year-old singer has shared an updated about the group's currently untitled follow-up to 2017's Songs of Experience and cryptically explained it was important for the One hitmakers to "deal with the past" before moving forward.
Asked about the new album, he told Rolling Stone magazine: "Nostalgia is not to be tolerated for too long, but sometimes you've got to deal with the past in order to get to the future and to the present. To get back to now is our desire. Get back to this moment we're in.
"We've been recording. And it sounds like future to me. We had to go through some stuff, and we're at the other end of it."
Drummer Larry Mullen Jr missed the group's U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere 40-date Las Vegas residency after undergoing neck surgery but Bono praised his recovery and how he is back better than ever.
He said: "We've been playing in the room together, the four of us.
"And I can tell you (Mullen Jr) is completely through whatever storm of injury he's been through. His playing is at its most innovative. He's just all about the band. He doesn't want to talk about anything else, which is kind of amazing.
"By the way, being a band in a room where each individual musician has a role that's singular and collective is so rare because music is assembled these days.
"And even some of our music we have assembled, and we'll do that again, but to try and capture a moment of a rock 'n' roll band in full flight is at the heart of this record that we're making that we've recorded, but we are not finished."
The Vertigo singer - who admitted he doesn't know when the album will be released - was also quizzed on the possibility of a special box set to mark the 30th anniversary of U2's album Pop.
He replied: "Well, I never thought about that. Actually, I'm sure somebody clever has thought of that. But if they haven't, I'm not aware of it.
"And the film of the PopMart tour in Mexico is one of the most extraordinary U2 shows ever. I love the imagery around that album. And the only thing that album wasn't was pop."

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

‘Selfish': Hundreds of Sydneysiders line up for toy
‘Selfish': Hundreds of Sydneysiders line up for toy

News.com.au

timea day ago

  • News.com.au

‘Selfish': Hundreds of Sydneysiders line up for toy

Hundreds of Sydneysiders have spent their Saturday lining up in hopes of getting their hands on the latest trend sweeping the nation. The Labubu, a furry plushie featuring a bizarre grin and sharp teeth, has become the ultimate show of status after soaring to popularity with huge celebrities such as Rihanna and Dua Lipa donning the furry toy. Designed by Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung, the product is sold by Chinese toy company Pop Mart following a collaboration with Lung on his story series book The Monsters, released in 2015. While the Labubu hit the market in Asia in 2019, the slightly scary-looking plushie only took off after Blackpink's Lisa, a popular K-pop singer who also starred in season three of The White Lotus, was spotted with a $32 keychain-version of the doll attached to her handbag in April 2024. And in just 12 months, the whole world has become hooked, including Aussies. Aussies were first able to get hold of the now-viral toy following Pop Mart's arrival Down Under in mid-2023. Fast-forward two years, and there are now 11 Pop Mart stores in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne, all of which regularly draw huge crowds with the hopes of snagging an in-demand plushie. But, as one recent video filmed in Sydney shows, it's not children who are frantic for the Labubu – it's fully-grown adults. In the clip, crazed shoppers can be seen standing in Sydney's Pitt Street Mall as they eagerly wait to get their hands on the plushie. Security guards stand at the door and patrol the line to ensure fans are on their best behaviour as they endure the gruelling wait time. The footage has sparked a serious debate among Aussies amid claims 'selfish' people at the front of the line were buying '15 plus' Labubus – leaving none for others. 'Should it be limited to one per person?,' the poster questioned. 'The fact that there is no limit is insane! It's why resellers are making a mint,' replied one frustrated viewer. 'There should be a limit of two per person. That's fair! Who has time to line up for two hours for a fluffy toy? Obviously lots of people with too much money,' said another. 'I lined up for three hours and I ended up leaving with nothing. It's an outrage! I believe they should set rules in place for popular items and limit two per person,' said a third. Other viewers were less than impressed with the scenes with some branding it 'ridiculous'. 'No thanks. What a waste of money,' said one. 'Adults lining up for two hours for a small toy is a questionable behaviour in itself,' said another Some even compared the craze to the 2017 'fidget spinner' obsession. 'It's officially the 2025 version of fidget spinners.' 'It's madness,' agreed another. Pop Mart, which describes itself as a 'rising global force in pop culture and entertainment', said the power lies in the 'love at first sight' reaction the toys get from loyal followers. 'This isn't just about 'toys' but a collectable, pop-culture movement engaging Australian adults like never before,' a Pop Mart spokesperson told 'The excitement here mirrors what we've seen in major cities globally with queues forming around the block as eager collectors hope to get their hands on these unique pieces. 'We collaborate with a series of designers to create highly collectable figurines, and the range has grown from strength to strength.' Part of the fun – and the frenzy – comes from the mystery. Each Labubu is sealed in a box, so buyers have no clue which design they're getting. It could be a common one, a quirky variation, or if luck's on your side, a super-rare edition that collectors go wild for. Shoppers are also only notified of a new drop at short notice, often via WhatsApp the morning stock becomes available, further fuelling hype. With collectors often waiting in line for hours, some have reported queuing on social media for over 12 hours, and some Aussies have resorted to extreme measures. Airtasker has revealed people are being booked using the platform to queue up and buy a Labubu, with one Sydneysider paying a stranger $100 to avoid the large crowds. 'It's always fascinating to see how Airtasker users adapt to cultural moments,' Airtasker Founder and CEO Tim Fung told 'Labubu isn't the first craze we have seen people paying others to help them source – there was digital queuing for the Taylor Swift Eras tickets, help finding the CJ Hendry artistic wheelie bins and lining up in person for the popular pistachio papi desserts. 'If there is a cult buy happening it's more than likely you will find people posting on Airtasker for help to get their hands on it.' Despite it's hefty price tag, the Labubu craze shows no signs of slowing down. The quirky key-ring doll – which regularly resells for over $100 – was recently dubbed a must-have fashion accessory by Vogue, cementing its status as a full-blown cultural phenomenon.

From TikTok to TV, Robert Irwin is hot property
From TikTok to TV, Robert Irwin is hot property

The Age

time4 days ago

  • The Age

From TikTok to TV, Robert Irwin is hot property

The stars are aligning for Robert Irwin. For a start, America's ongoing fascination with Australia's preternaturally perky, croc-wrangling family has delivered a $58 million, media-impact jackpot for underwear-maker Bonds after the buff 21-year-old appeared in the brand's racy campaign designed to help it break into the $13 billion US men's market. A Bonds analysis of the campaign, which launched in April, revealed that it had generated a staggering nine billion 'media impressions' in its first 24 hours in the US. How much Bonds, which manufactures offshore and was sold to American giant Hanes in 2016, paid Irwin is unclear, but he's pulled off something previous brand ambassadors, such as Sarah Murdoch, Paul Mercurio, Pat Rafter and even Chesty Bond, couldn't: becoming the second-most popular global trending topic on TikTok in the first week of the launch. Crikey! Thanks to Irwin's khaki-clad, in-house management team, which is headed by 'mummager' Terri, the youngest Irwin is fast becoming the brightest star in the Irwin firmament, flogging everything from Twisties and Hello Fresh to Pop! dolls and holiday parks. (The Irwin empire already includes a multimillion-dollar property portfolio, from Australia Zoo to the 130,000-hectare Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve in Cape York, and a slew of residual-earning TV shows, books and magazines.) Irwin's media career started in 2004 when a horrified world watched his dad, Steve, cradle his month-old son while dangling a chicken carcass over the snapping jaws of a 3.8-metre-long saltwater croc. The former chairman of the National Australia Day Council, Lisa Curry, later revealed the stunt cost Irwin snr the Australian of the Year honour. But the Irwin hatchling survived. Homeschooled at Australia Zoo while surrounded by crocodile-infested ponds and gawking tourists, he was a regular on Jimmy Fallon's The Tonight Show by his teen years. In 2024, he got his own wax effigy next to his father's at Madame Tussauds Sydney. He has also co-hosted two seasons of Australia's I'm a Celebrity … Get Me out of Here!, was nominated for a Gold Logie, and won this year's AACTA for 'favourite media personality'. Even his fledgling love life has become tabloid fodder. And now he's on the cusp of his biggest showbiz break yet: deep in training to compete on the US television series Dancing with the Stars, just as big sister Bindi triumphantly did a decade ago. It doesn't get much bigger. Last year's finale drew a whopping 7.95 million viewers and garnered 32 million votes. Now that's a lot of undies.

From TikTok to TV, Robert Irwin is hot property
From TikTok to TV, Robert Irwin is hot property

Sydney Morning Herald

time4 days ago

  • Sydney Morning Herald

From TikTok to TV, Robert Irwin is hot property

The stars are aligning for Robert Irwin. For a start, America's ongoing fascination with Australia's preternaturally perky, croc-wrangling family has delivered a $58 million, media-impact jackpot for underwear-maker Bonds after the buff 21-year-old appeared in the brand's racy campaign designed to help it break into the $13 billion US men's market. A Bonds analysis of the campaign, which launched in April, revealed that it had generated a staggering nine billion 'media impressions' in its first 24 hours in the US. How much Bonds, which manufactures offshore and was sold to American giant Hanes in 2016, paid Irwin is unclear, but he's pulled off something previous brand ambassadors, such as Sarah Murdoch, Paul Mercurio, Pat Rafter and even Chesty Bond, couldn't: becoming the second-most popular global trending topic on TikTok in the first week of the launch. Crikey! Thanks to Irwin's khaki-clad, in-house management team, which is headed by 'mummager' Terri, the youngest Irwin is fast becoming the brightest star in the Irwin firmament, flogging everything from Twisties and Hello Fresh to Pop! dolls and holiday parks. (The Irwin empire already includes a multimillion-dollar property portfolio, from Australia Zoo to the 130,000-hectare Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve in Cape York, and a slew of residual-earning TV shows, books and magazines.) Irwin's media career started in 2004 when a horrified world watched his dad, Steve, cradle his month-old son while dangling a chicken carcass over the snapping jaws of a 3.8-metre-long saltwater croc. The former chairman of the National Australia Day Council, Lisa Curry, later revealed the stunt cost Irwin snr the Australian of the Year honour. But the Irwin hatchling survived. Homeschooled at Australia Zoo while surrounded by crocodile-infested ponds and gawking tourists, he was a regular on Jimmy Fallon's The Tonight Show by his teen years. In 2024, he got his own wax effigy next to his father's at Madame Tussauds Sydney. He has also co-hosted two seasons of Australia's I'm a Celebrity … Get Me out of Here!, was nominated for a Gold Logie, and won this year's AACTA for 'favourite media personality'. Even his fledgling love life has become tabloid fodder. And now he's on the cusp of his biggest showbiz break yet: deep in training to compete on the US television series Dancing with the Stars, just as big sister Bindi triumphantly did a decade ago. It doesn't get much bigger. Last year's finale drew a whopping 7.95 million viewers and garnered 32 million votes. Now that's a lot of undies.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store