U2 frontman Bono has shared some insight into the band’s upcoming album, which is expected later this year.In conjunction with the just-released EP U2 - Days of Ash, U2 released a special edition

U2's 'Days of Ash' EP features songs about the killing of Renee Good by ICE, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and more disheartening world events

"The album contenders are very different in mood and theme than the ones we've chosen to put out on the Days of Ash EP," says Bono. "More songs of celebration than lamentation"

On their first collection of new songs since 2017, the quartet have a crispness that has been lacking in their 21st-century material, as they nimbly react to shocking news stories

The killing of Renée Good by a US immigration agent in Minnesota last month and the fatal beating of an Iran schoolgirl by the country’s security forces in 2022 are among subjects tackled on a new politically-charged EP by U2.

Set to a musical bed that recalls both the band’s early punk days and the swagger of their “Achtung Baby” era, Bono sings about Good being “born to die free, American mother of three

U2 have joined fellow rocker Bruce Springsteen in releasing songs in response to current events in America, including the shooting death of Renee Good by ICE agents in Minneapolis.