Bono in Swizz Beatz Brooklyn Studio

Rapper/producer Swizz Beatz is tweeting again about hangin' with Bono, this time supposedly in his Brooklyn studio where he is working on his new album titled Haute Living. Bono and The Edge are reportedly back in New York putting the finishing(?) touches on the Spider-Man musical. Bono is rumored to be making a guest appearance on the album on a track also featuring John Legend, a snippet of which can be heard here. You may recall that Swizz produced the Bono/Jay-Z/Rihanna collaboration "Stranded," which was a charity track for Haiti.

Killing Bono Soundtrack

There seems to be some confusion in the mainstream press regarding the Killing Bono Soundtrack. A number of outlets are reporting that "Street Mission" is a previously unreleased U2 track, but the Sony Music press release is pretty clear that this is a cover version performed by the film cast. The only U2 track included on the soundtrack is "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and there's no indication that this is anything other than the album version. Incidentally, ISHFWILF may fit the theme of the film, but it's totally from the wrong time period, even if Hot Press claims it's from 1982. :)

U2 Duals Tracklisting

We are actively discussing the recently announced tracklisting for U2 Duals in our forums. The details are posted there and on U2.com, so I will spare you the details. I do have to say that the general consensus in our forums (and in others I have visited) is that there is too much recycled material on this release for die-hard fans and collectors, particularly the inclusion of album tracks. It will be interesting to see how they spun a one-minute snippet of Amazing Grace into a stand-alone track.

McGuiness says new album out "before North American tour dates."

On the heels of yesterday's report that Amazon.de has listed a May release date for the next U2 album comes a quote in the German press from Paul McGuinness, apparently confirming that release schedule. McGuinees told reporters at the recent MIDEM conference in Cannes (January 22-26) that the new album would be released prior to the upcoming North American tour dates. Also of note, it seems that the record is indeed being produced by Danger Mouse, is already largely completed, and likely won't be titled Songs of Ascent after all.