Just in time for their return to the Sphere, U2 has re-released Achtung Baby. This time, the album is available in Dolby Atmos on digital platforms.
Artist re-releases are nothing new. Generally, they feel like cash grabs postured as a must-have addition to fans' collections. Taylor Swift, legal issues aside, is the worst offender. Do fans really need several (Taylor's Version) albums in several editions? I digress.
Even aside from the (Taylor's Version) fad, artists usually commemorate albums with anniversary reissues. Short of vault tracks or a monumental remaster, they're hardly worth it. Paul McCartney's first few Archive Collection editions were must-haves for any fans. The Beatles' new mixes are always better than the last.
U2 has always done a good job of balancing these — at least for their hallmark albums. Take The Joshua Tree, for example. For its thirtieth anniversary, the band re-issued it with a live album for a second disc.
However, this isn't Achtung Baby's first remaster rodeo. The band released anniversary editions for its twentieth and thirtieth anniversaries in 2011 and 2021, respectively. The first of those featured B-sides and various remixes and radio edits that made it worth it.
In 2024, as the band is knee-deep in their Las Vegas residency at the Sphere, they have once again remastered the album. This time, it's a transformative change.
Achtung Baby Dolby Atmos review
Achtung Baby's opening track, “Zoo Station,” hits harder than ever with the Dolby Atmos mix. The Edge's guitars have more punch than ever, and Bono's distorted vocals are clearer than ever.
There are parts of The Edge's guitar riff I've never heard before. From the get-go, this remaster feels like a whole new album.
As you'll see throughout this article, Achtung Baby was already perfect. Yet the producers found more to uncover from an album over three decades old.
Some significant changes
The most notable changes come in “Ultraviolet (Light My Way),” “One,” “Love Is Blindness,” and “Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses.”
Beginning with “Ultraviolet,” it now resembles the way U2 plays it live at the Sphere. No, it doesn't feature Bram van den Berg's drum fills, but The Edge's vocals come in earlier in the choruses. Bono's falsetto singing is buried deeper into the mix with The Edge's “Ultraviolet” refrains being prominently featured.
“One's” changes are more subtle. For one, no pun intended, you can hear Bono's acoustic guitar playing more than previous mixes. Towards the end, after the final refrain of the word “one,” you can hear a “love” spill out. I've never heard that in any other mixes of the song.
“Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses” is more ambient than ever. Bono's vocals have more of an echo than ever, adding to the song's passion.
Achtung Baby closes out with “Love Is Blindness.” The song is already pretty gothic on its own merit. However, this new mix turns up the eeriness to 11. The strings section is more prevalent than ever, making it sound like something out of the Haunted Mansion.
Smaller changes
There are some other smaller changes heard throughout this Dolby Atmos mix. In the intro to “Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World,” The Edge's little guitar riff can be heard. It's similar to the one heard during performances on the “ZooTV” tour. Unlike some of the other changes, this isn't game-changing. “Acrobat” has become more guitar-driven than ever with this new mix. Adam Clayton's bass also seems to be louder throughout the whole remaster.
Should you listen to Achtung Baby in Dolby Atmos?
Unlike most remasters, U2's Achtung Baby is a whole different experience. The album has never felt so immersive.
The saying “If it ain't broke, don't fix it” usually rings true. But somehow, the producers found a way to improve an already-perfect album. They gave under-appreciated elements more time in the spotlight. And overall, U2's masterpiece is even more of a cohesive album than ever.
In fact, it's “Even Better Than the Real Thing.”
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