The world needs bands like U2. But which version of U2? For the best part of two decades they’ve oscillated between legacy act, tech evangelists and stadium-pop chasers, sometimes within the same album cycle. ‘Days of Ash’ — a six-track dispatch released with almost impatient urgency — suggests they’ve remembered something simpler: when U2 are angry, focused and cornered, they’re the best in the business.

American Obituary sparks this motor into life. Distorted Edge guitar, Adam Clayton’s prowling, near-disco bassline, and a chant that feels ripped from a protest line rather than a writing room. It’s reactive, raw, and unashamedly direct. Pointedly, the refrain, “The power of the people is so much stronger than the people in power,” lands not as a slogan but as a release. 

The Tears of Things is the real centre of gravity — acoustic-led, patient, quietly devastating. Bono threads Michelangelo, David and Goliath, and the corrosion of faith into a melody that coils tighter with each verse.

“When people go around talking to God it always ends in tears,” he sings, and it’s the most cutting line here. It’s reflective rather than explosive and all the better for it.

Then there’s Song of the Future, built around a fizzy, phased riff that nods to ‘Achtung Baby’ without feeling nostalgic. It mourns, yes, but it also moves; a reminder that U2’s gift has always been turning grief into lift.

Even taking into consideration the underwhelming Sheeran-esque familiarity of the Ed Sheeran collaboration Yours Eternally, ‘Days of Ash’ feels lean, unvarnished and purposeful — qualities U2 once treated as doctrine. As Clayton says in the documentary Rattle and Hum: “There are some people who say you shouldn't mix politics and music, sports and politics. Well...I think that's kinda bullshit.” The world needs U2 reacting to the political moment, defying political authority. Three chords and the truth.