U2

"Every Breaking Wave" (video)

BY Gregory AdamsPublished Feb 23, 2015

A scaled-down version of a recent short film supporting U2's Songs of Innocence presents the love story of a pair of young skins trying to work it out during the political strife of early '80s Ireland.

Director Aoife McArdle's Every Breaking Wave originally showcased both the titular track and fellow Songs of Innocence number "The Troubles," but a trimmed-down vid supporting the former's recent radio edit truncates the short film while preserving the passion and pain. As you'll see down below, the video presents the difficulties of a couple's budding relationship, as framed within the complex and violent Catholic vs. Protestant sentiment running through Northern Ireland. Friendly mosh pit action and romantic moments are juxtaposed against bombings, political arrests and more.

"I wanted to make a film about what it was like to be a teenager in the early '80s in Northern Ireland," McArdle had said in a statement. "All the different pressures on you, the pressures of friendship, of falling in love for the first time, and all that in the face of huge troubles. Violence was inescapable on your doorstep. I remember very vividly what it was like to grow up when there were bombs going off and army everywhere so I did draw on a lot of memories."

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