August 2017 Archives

by Anna Gaca, SPIN

Several U2 fan club members report they've received a mysterious letter from the band, apparently promoting "Blackout," a rumored title of an unreleased U2 song.

The letters include a paragraph about William Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience, the collection of poetry that inspired the titles of U2's 2014 album Songs of Innocence and its forthcoming counterpart, Songs of Experience. Most of the text is blocked out by a silhouette of Bono's son and the Edge's daughter, revealing only the words, "Blackout ... It's ... clear ... who ... you are ... will ... appear ... U2.com."

At the bottom of the page, a partially blacked-out line of text reads, "U2 will announce ______________ on ______."

U2 are currently on a break before the second North American leg of their Joshua Tree anniversary tour. They'll head back out on the road with Beck in September. See a few of the "Blackout" letters below.

Any other #U2 fans get this letter in their mailbox today? @u2 @atu2 @U2start @u2songs @u2gigs pic.twitter.com/3Gtws7rbmo

— Amiee Stubbs (@AmieeStubbsPix) August 21, 2017

Any other @U2 fans receive this #Blackout letter in the mail? @U2tour @u2songs pic.twitter.com/PRGnGhbs9x

— Christopher (@kc_surfer) August 21, 2017

Totally weird and random piece of mail today. Must be from the @u2 fan club. Very cool that they did this! pic.twitter.com/UCnchdwWBP

— Jeff (@duranimalJeff) August 21, 2017

© 2017 SPIN.com.

Original article: https://www.spin.com/2017/08/u2-blackout-songs-of-experience-rumors/

Proposed four-storey facility would be located on the site of the band's Dublin studio

Conor Pope, The Irish Times

Plans for a U2 museum on the site of the band's recording studio in Dublin's docklands are at an advanced stage, with a planning application set to be lodged in the coming days.

Despite the fact that - along with Guinness, St Patrick, Oscar Wilde and, possibly, Michael Flatley's feet - U2 are Ireland's most famous export, there are no public spaces celebrating the band's achievements on the world stage.

Even the walls of graffiti which once surrounded their old studio at Windmill Lane have been levelled to make way for towers of glass and steel.

It is intended the four-storey museum will be dedicated to the band's archive and will include artefacts covering its 40-year story.