PREORDER: RELEASING NOVEMBER 13, 2026
Indie Exclusive Yellow Vinyl Pressed at Third Man Records
In 1976, four teenagers came together in Dublin and began making music. Fifty years later, Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. are marking their 50th anniversary with new music.
The 12-track album Carnaval De Luz is their first new material in nine years. U2 signaled a new creative chapter early in 2026 with the surprise releases of the six-track digital EPs Days of Ash and Easter Lily. Those projects were recorded during the same period as Carnaval De Luz, which completes what the band describes as a sequence tied to the liturgical calendar: Lent, Easter and Carnaval.
Produced by Jacknife Lee, Carnaval De Luz finds Bono, the Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. exploring themes of spirituality, friendship, freedom and perseverance against “dark, encroaching forces.” The album combines some of U2’s more experimental impulses with comparatively direct songwriting on tracks including “The Greatest Show on Earth,” “Glorify” and “Midnight Sunshine.” “Silencio,” meanwhile, is a brisk 2:35 blast of early surf/punk attitude, with additional production from OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder.
The Edge describes the album as “a messy, provocative, sacred collection of songs,” while noting that it marks U2’s first recorded use of flat-wound strings. The album also features contributions from longtime collaborator Brian Eno, who co-wrote and played synthesizers on “Go (Carnaval De Luz),” “The Greatest Show on Earth” and “Can’t Stop Us Now”; Martin Garrix, who co-wrote “Glorify”; and Daniel Lanois, who adds pedal steel to “Torn.”
The closing track carries particular significance. “Torn” is a duet between Bono and the late Dolly Parton, and marks Parton’s final recorded vocal performance. Co-written by U2, Parton and Johnny McDaid, the country-leaning song addresses fractured family relationships.
Releasing: 11/13/26