To celebrate the 20th anniversary of their iconic album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, U2 is has released a special ‘shadow’ album titled How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb. This new collection, available from November 22nd, features ten new and unreleased tracks discovered in the original recording sessions’ archives.
Revisiting a Creative Era
In addition to the new album, the band has remastered How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb for the first time, going back to their early ’00s recording sessions—a period marked by intense creativity and personal reflection, particularly for Bono, following the death of his father, Bob, in 2001. This anniversary edition will include the bonus track “Fast Cars.”
The Edge on the New Album
Reflecting on the anniversary, The Edge shared: “The sessions for ‘How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’ were such a creative period for the band. We were exploring so many song ideas in the studio. For this anniversary edition, I went into my personal archive to see if there were any unreleased gems, and I hit the jackpot. Although we left these songs to one side at the time, we recognize now that our initial instincts were right. This shadow album is that raw energy of discovery, the visceral impact of the music.”
New and Remastered Tracks
How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb includes four new songs: “Treason,” “Evidence Of Life,” “Country Mile,” and “Happiness,” as well as “Luckiest Man In The World,” previously known as “Mercy,” which now gets its official release. To be clear, “Mercy” has been a mythical track among U2 fans. An unreleased version has been popular on YouTube for more than a decade. Furthermore, the band played a version on their 360 live tour in 2010. Jacknife Lee produced this version with Duncan Stewart assisting with producing and mixing. Furthermore, Carl Glanville and Chris Heaney served as engineers on the track.
The album also features five newly remastered tracks, including “Picture Of You (X+W),” “Don’t Wanna See You Smile,” and “Theme From The Batman.”
Celebrating the Original Album
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, U2’s eleventh studio album, originally released on November 22, 2004, went to No. 1 in 34 countries and won eight Grammy Awards. Described by Bono as “our first rock album,” it features hits like “Vertigo” and “Sometimes You Can’t Make It on Your Own.”
Release Formats and Dates
The remastered How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb (20th Anniversary Edition) and How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb will be available as a dual digital release on November 22nd. The physical formats for the anniversary edition will include various vinyl and CD box sets, as well as a limited edition cassette. How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb will also be released as a standalone digital album on November 29th and a limited edition vinyl for Record Store Day Black Friday.
