U2 are currently getting ready for their upcoming Innocence And Experience tour, and The New York Times caught up with them during their month-long rehearsals in Vancouver to reflect on their past year. They talk a lot about the struggles they had with constructing Songs Of Innocence, and there’s a lot of hand-wringing over the unconventional, forceful release of the album. They also go into the intimate vibe they want to achieve with this upcoming tour, and Bono also provides an update on how he’s recovering from his October bike crash that put him out of commission for a while. He’s getting better:

I really used to think that my head was harder than any surface it came in contact with, and I don’t anymore. I didn’t come off a Harley-Davidson. I came off a push bike and smashed myself to bits. There is no glory here. […] It feels like I have somebody else’s hand. But they say that nerves heal about a millimeter a week, so in about 13 months I should know if it’s coming back.

He won’t be able to play guitar on the upcoming tour, but the rest of the band doesn’t seem to mind. And his inability to play seems to be affecting him in other ways, most notably that he hasn’t stopped writing or recording even as they’re preparing for tour. Most recently, they’ve brought in Lamb’s Andy Barlow to produce a few tracks and see where it goes.

And, judging from the new pictures that come with the article, Bono’s dyed his hair blonde! Read the full article here.

U2’s Innocence And Experience tour kicks off on 5/13 in Vancouver, and wraps up in Paris in November.