Editing U2 (section)

=== ''No Line on the Horizon'' and U2 360° Tour (2006–2011) ===
Recording for U2's twelfth album, ''[[No Line on the Horizon]]'', began with producer [[Rick Rubin]] in 2006, but the sessions were short-lived and the material was shelved.<ref name="All areas">{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/u2-access-all-areas-26545329.html|title=U2: Access all areas |website=Irish Independent |first=Brendan |last=O'Conner |date=21 June 2009 |access-date=5 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090828031251/http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/u2-access-all-areas-1782416.html |archive-date=28 August 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> In May 2007, the group began new sessions with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois in [[Fez, Morocco]], involving the producers as full songwriting partners.<ref>{{bulleted list|McGee (2008), pp. 327–328|{{cite news |url=https://nationalpost.com/news/futuristic-spirituals-daniel-lanois-talks-about-recording-the-new-u2-album/wcm/ab8c217e-cb3c-4435-a48c-71b21cb12d38 |title=U2's No Line on the Horizon: A track-by-track exclusive with producer/co-writer Daniel Lanois |website=[[National Post]] |first=Brad |last=Frenette |date=10 March 2009 |access-date=31 March 2020 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20091020204444/http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/theampersand/archive/2009/03/10/behind-the-scenes-on-u2-s-no-line-on-the-horizon-a-track-by-track-exclusive-with-producer-co-writer-daniel-lanois.aspx |archive-date=20 October 2009 |url-status=live }} }}</ref> Intending to write "future hymns"—songs that would be played forever—the group spent two weeks recording in a [[Moroccan Riad|riad]] and exploring local music.<ref name="wanderers">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/feb/15/u2-no-line-on-the-horizon |title=The Wanderers |website=[[The Guardian]] |first=Sean |last=O'Hagan |date=15 February 2009 |access-date=15 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100424052201/http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/feb/15/u2-no-line-on-the-horizon |archive-date=24 April 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{bulleted list|{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/woman/celeb-news/-26526961.html |title=Taking care of business |website=Irish Independent |first=Brian |last=Hiatt |date=5 April 2009 |access-date=2 May 2017 |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/5kjAvxiXo?url=http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/news-gossip/taking-care-of-business--the-u2-interview-1698937.html |archive-date=23 October 2009 |url-status=live}}|{{cite magazine|url=http://www.telquel-online.com/277/arts1_277.shtml |title=Exclusive: Bono's Pilgrimage |magazine=[[TelQuel]] |first=Jean |last=Barry |date=18 June 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080331111427/http://www.telquel-online.com/277/arts1_277.shtml |archive-date=31 March 2008 |language=fr |url-status=dead}}}}</ref> The Edge called it "a very freeing experience" that "reminded [him] in many ways of early on and why [they] got into a band in the first place. Just that joy of playing."<ref name="betweenline">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.hotpress.com/U2/music/interviews/Reading-between-the-line-part-1/5294628.html|title=Reading Between the Line|magazine=[[Hot Press]]|first=Olaf|last=Tyaransen|date=11 March 2009|volume=33|issue=4|access-date=14 January 2017|archive-date=7 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170107213047/http://www.hotpress.com/U2/music/interviews/Reading-between-the-line-part-1/5294628.html|url-status=live}}</ref> As recording on the album continued in New York, London, and Dublin, the band scaled back their experimental pursuits, which Eno said "sounded kind of synthetic" and were not easily married with the group's sound.<ref>{{cite web |title=Brian Eno |first=Joshua |last=Klein |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/interviews/7723-brian-eno/ |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]|date=2 November 2009 |access-date=10 November 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091105012414/http://pitchfork.com/features/interviews/7723-brian-eno |archive-date=5 November 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref>

''No Line on the Horizon'' was released in February 2009, more than four years after ''How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb'', the longest gap between albums of the band's career to that point.<ref>{{Cite magazine|title=The Superleague of Extraordinary Gentlemen |magazine=[[NME]] |date=23 February 2009}}</ref> It received generally positive reviews, including their first five-star ''Rolling Stone'' review, but critics found it was not as experimental as originally billed.<ref>{{bulleted list|{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/12730-no-line-on-the-horizon/ |title=No Line on the Horizon |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |first=Ryan |last=Dombal |date=2 March 2009 |access-date=5 May 2018 |archive-date=6 October 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091006112523/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/12730-no-line-on-the-horizon/ |url-status=live }} |{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/1482512/u2-albums-from-worst-to-best/franchises/counting-down/attachment/no-line-on-the-horizon/|title=No Line On The Horizon (2009)|website=[[Stereogum]]|first=Ryan|last=Leas|date=1 October 2013|access-date=5 May 2018|archive-date=20 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520124048/https://www.stereogum.com/1482512/u2-albums-from-worst-to-best/franchises/counting-down/attachment/no-line-on-the-horizon/|url-status=live}}}}</ref> The album debuted at number one in over 30 countries,<ref name="Reuters">{{cite news|title=New U2 album is No. 1 in 30 countries |work=Reuters |date=11 March 2009 |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/music-u-idUSN1054376520090311 |access-date=5 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090820011703/http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssTechMediaTelecomNews/idUSN1054376520090311 |archive-date=20 August 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> but its sales of 5&nbsp;million were seen as a disappointment by U2 standards and it did not contain a hit single.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.heraldsun.com.au/entertainment/u2-the-band-who-fell-to-earth/news-story/44bc1101daad4ab41c4b1516503f027d|title=U2: The Band who fell to Earth |newspaper=[[Herald Sun]]|first=Neala |last=Johnson |date=9 September 2010 |access-date=5 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615004928/http://www.heraldsun.com.au/entertainment/u2-the-band-who-fell-to-earth/story-e6frf96f-1225916526194 |archive-date=15 June 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="guard-sales">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/oct/26/u2-bono-disappointed-album-sales |title=U2's Bono disappointed with latest album sales |last=Michaels |first=Sean |newspaper=The Guardian|date=26 October 2009 |access-date=27 October 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002165223/http://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/oct/26/u2-bono-disappointed-album-sales |archive-date=2 October 2013 |url-status=live | location=London}}</ref> Following the album's release, the band discussed tentative plans for a follow-up record entitled ''Songs of Ascent''.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-talk-horizon-follow-up-spider-man-musical-in-rolling-stone-cover-story-113047/|title=U2 Talk 'Horizon' Follow Up, Spider-Man Musical in Rolling Stone Cover Story |first=Brian |last=Hiatt |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=4 March 2009 |access-date=5 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090512194434/http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/03/04/u2-talk-horizon-follow-up-spider-man-musical-in-rolling-stone-cover-story/ |archive-date=12 May 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> Bono described the project as "a more meditative album on the theme of pilgrimage".<ref name="wanderers"/>

[[File:U2 360 Tour Croke Park 2.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|alt=A concert stage; four large legs curve up above the stage and hold a video screen which is extended down to the band. The legs are lit up in green. The video screen has multi-coloured lights flashing on it. The audience surrounds the stage on all sides.|At 164 feet tall, the stage structure from the [[U2 360° Tour]] was the largest ever constructed. The tour became the highest-grossing in history, having earned {{USD|736&nbsp;million}}.]]
The group embarked on the [[U2 360° Tour]] in June 2009. It was their first live venture for [[Live Nation Entertainment|Live Nation]] under a 12-year, {{USD|100&nbsp;million}} ({{GBP|50 million}}) contract signed the year prior.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/269275/exclusive-u2-readies-360-global-tour|title=Exclusive: U2 Readies '360' Global Tour|magazine=Billboard|first=Ray|last=Waddell|date=6 March 2009|access-date=27 February 2013|archive-date=6 January 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106015856/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/exclusive-u2-to-kiss-the-future-on-global-1003948418.story|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-livenation-u-idUSN3040810420080331|title=Live Nation agrees to 12-year pact with U2|website=[[Reuters]]|date=31 March 2008|access-date=23 March 2016|archive-date=4 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160404130457/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-livenation-u-idUSN3040810420080331|url-status=live}}</ref> As part of the deal, the company assumed control over U2's touring, merchandising, and official website.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/2787228/U2-ties-the-knot-with-Live-Nation-deal.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/2787228/U2-ties-the-knot-with-Live-Nation-deal.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=U2 ties knot with Live Nation deal|website=The Daily Telegraph |first=Emma|last=Thelwell|date=31 March 2008|access-date=17 August 2010}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The 360° Tour concerts featured the band playing stadiums "[[Theatre in the round|in the round]]", allowing the audience to surround them on all sides.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hotpress.com/archive/5293385.html |title=Exclusive: Paul McGuinness on U2's World Tour |website=Hot Press |date=4 March 2009 |access-date=29 October 2009 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=17 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170717205833/http://www.hotpress.com/archive/5293385.html |url-status=live }}</ref> To accommodate the stage configuration, a large four-legged structure nicknamed "The Claw" was built above the stage, with the sound system and a cylindrical, expanding video screen on top of it. At {{convert|164|ft|m}} tall, it was the largest stage ever constructed.<ref name="rs032309">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/26841404/inside_u2s_plans_to_rock_stadiums_around_the_globe |title=Inside U2's Plans to Rock Stadiums Around the Globe |last=Hiatt |first=Brian |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=2 April 2009 |access-date=21 July 2009 |issue=1075|page=14|archive-date=26 April 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090426031859/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/26841404/inside_u2s_plans_to_rock_stadiums_around_the_globe |url-status=dead}}</ref> The tour visited Europe and North America in 2009. On 25 October 2009, U2 set a new US record for single concert attendance for one headline act, performing to 97,014 people at the [[Rose Bowl (stadium)|Rose Bowl]] in Pasadena.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/266855/u2s-rose-bowl-show-breaks-attendance-record |title=U2's Rose Bowl Show Breaks Attendance Record |magazine=Billboard |first=Bob |last=Allen |date=30 October 2009 |access-date=30 October 2009 |archive-date=4 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140104050605/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/266855/u2s-rose-bowl-show-breaks-attendance-record |url-status=live }}</ref> In May 2010, while rehearsing for the next leg of the tour, Bono suffered a [[Spinal disc herniation|herniated disk]] and severe compression of the [[sciatic nerve]], requiring emergency back surgery.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2010/05/25/u2s-north-american-tour-including-chicago-date-postponed-while-bono-recovers-from-surgery/|title=U2's North American tour, including Chicago date, postponed while Bono recovers from surgery|website=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=25 May 2010|access-date=5 May 2018|archive-date=20 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520192604/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-05-25/entertainment/chi-100521-bono-u2-emergency-surgery_1_u2-com-u2-s-north-american-live-nation|url-status=live}}</ref> The band were forced to postpone the North American leg of the tour and a headlining performance at the [[Glastonbury Festival 2010]] until the following year.<ref>{{bulleted list|{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-announce-return-to-the-stage-in-homemade-video-2-245662/ |title=U2 announce return to the stage in homemade video |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=13 July 2010 |access-date=5 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100716004334/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/17386/180384 |archive-date=16 July 2010 |url-status=dead }} |{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/feb/24/u2-glastonbury|title=U2 confirm Glastonbury headline spot|website=[[The Guardian]]|first1=Ben|last1=Quinn|first2=Alexandra|last2=Topping|date=23 February 2011|access-date=5 May 2018|archive-date=20 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520124447/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/feb/24/u2-glastonbury|url-status=live}}}}</ref> After Bono's recovery, U2 resumed the 360° Tour in August 2010 with legs in Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, during which they began to play new, unreleased songs live.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-debut-another-new-song-on-european-tour-238937/|title=U2 Debut Another New Song on European Tour|magazine=Rolling Stone|first=Daniel|last=Kreps|date=23 August 2010|access-date=5 July 2018|archive-date=2 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180702204740/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/u2-debut-another-new-song-on-european-tour-238937/|url-status=live}}</ref> By its conclusion in July 2011, U2 360° had set records for the [[List of highest-grossing concert tours|highest-grossing concert tour]] ({{USD|736&nbsp;million}}) and [[List of most-attended concert tours|most tickets sold for a tour]] (7.3&nbsp;million).<ref name="360-records">{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1099191/billboard-power-100-u2-paul-mcguinness |title=Billboard Power 100: 27&nbsp;– U2 & Paul McGuinness |first=Ray |last=Waddell |magazine=Billboard |date=4 February 2012 |pages=18–19 |volume=124 |issue=4 |access-date=3 February 2017 |archive-date=1 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201055212/http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1099191/billboard-power-100-u2-paul-mcguinness |url-status=dead }}</ref>