U2 have released a new single, “Street of Dreams,” their first taste of new material in nine years, alongside a music video shot in Mexico City that also marks drummer Larry Mullen Jr’s return to the band, per musicradar.com.
The track’s official video, directed by producer Jacknife Lee, was uploaded to YouTube on July 7. It shows the band performing atop a bus in Mexico City’s Plaza Santo Domingo before a thunderstorm disrupts filming, damaging a generator and forcing the group to relocate to a nearby balcony to complete the shoot.
The video draws heavily on U2’s longstanding popularity in Mexico, which dates back to their 1987 album The Joshua Tree and the large stadium tours that followed. Frontman Bono performs several lines in Spanish, including the song’s title phrase.
Mullen’s appearance on drums is significant: he stepped away from the band in 2023 for three and a half years while recovering from major neck and back surgery. His return has drawn a strong response from fans online.
A release date for the forthcoming album has not been confirmed. Bono said the band remains in the studio working on material intended for live performance, describing the project as vibrant and unpolished in character.
The single follows February’s six-track EP Days of Ash, which addressed the stories of individuals killed in conflict, including Palestinian activist Awdah Hathaleen and Iranian schoolgirl Sarina Esmailzadeh. Bono has said the EP’s songs differ markedly in tone from those planned for the new album.
•Featured image credit: Press/Viviane Sassen