U2 | Zooropa [30th Anniversary Deluxe Foil Gatefold Sleeve Double Yellow Coloured Vinyl Album] 2LP

In February 1993, U2 were on a break before starting the second year of their massive Zoo TV Tour in support of their chart-topping 1991 album Achtung Baby. A commentary on media oversaturation, the tour featured massive TV screens and interactive multimedia that gave the audience a reality show-type experience, making the entire endeavor an insanely ambitious undertaking.

However, during the break, the band decided to go into the studio—just to record an EP, they told themselves. But then the ideas began to flow and, as the tour started back up in the spring, U2 decided to fly back and forth to Dublin to continue recording. The sublimely weird full album that came out of this mid-tour madness they christened Zooropa.

The title is a play on the name “Europa” mixed with the “Zoo” theme from the Zoo TV tour. The album was started in February 1993 during a six-month break between legs on the Zoo TV tour. U2 decided they would make an EP to capture some of the energy they had after the tour stops. The tour was due to restart in May 1993, and they felt an EP would allow them to promote the tour. As work progressed, the band realized they were close to an album, and rather than push out the EP before the start of the tour, they traveled between tour destinations and Dublin to complete mixing and recording of the album.

The album was recorded with Flood and Brian Eno acting as producers, as well as The Edge taking a credit as producer. Preliminary work had been been started with Robbie Adams, while on tour in 1992, recording ideas at soundchecks, and compiling some loops from some of the more interesting parts. The band started recording in The Factory in Dublin in February working on rough demos. In March of 1993, with a full album in their sights, they began to split work between two studios with Robbie Adams handling the recording at The Factory, and Flood handling recording at the new Windmill Lane Studios. Eno was brought in for two week periods to produce and work with songs. Some additional work was done at Westland Studio in Dublin. The album was delivered in late May of 1993.