In an interview with RTÉ 2fm’s Dave Fanning, Larry Mullen revealed that U2 are hoping to “have something released by September”.

Speaking about his band's first album since No Line on the Horizon four years ago, he said: “I’d say we will be finished by the summer – and hopefully we will have something released by September.

“Hopefully what we will be able to do is release September this year and shortly afterwards, release again. That’s what we want to do.

“We are working with [producer] Brian Burton at the moment of Dangermouse, no will.i.am is not there, just Mister Mouse!

“We have been working for the last couple of years mostly in Ireland which has been great, we have been here for a long period of time. There’s lots of music which is great.”

Mullen also spoke about own personal projects, outside of being the drummer of one of the world’s biggest bands: “I have spent 30 years sitting behind something...looking at men’s arses!

“I’ve enjoyed it and it’s been great but I looked at Bono and Edge in particular when he went to Broadway, I kind of felt you know I’m not punching high enough.

“I need to actually move out of this place and actually do other things, and have different conversations and sit at different tables, because everybody else was, except me.”

Mullen also spoke to Fanning about how he embarked on an acting career. In 2011 he filmed the remake of Man on a Train alongside Donald Sutherland, which will be screened in the IFI tomorrow night, Friday, January 11.

He said: “I just took the ball and ran with it.

“I met Donald Sutherland the day before and at 6am the next morning and there we were doing it.

“Failure wasn’t an option.”

On working the legendary actor, Sutherland, he said: “You are standing there and this is the guy from Don’t Look [Now], Klute and M*A*S*H. I just threw myself into it”

Mullen will also appear alongside Maria Doyle Kennedy in the new film A Thousand Times Good Night and he also has a wish list of directors he would like to work with: “When I see the Coen Brothers films, and I don’t say this in an arrogant way, but I always think I know I could work with these guys, I know they’d get me, they do something that I really like.

“I’d love to work with Danny Boyle and I’d love to work with Quentin Tarantino but that’s a pretty high aspiration but that’s what I’d like to do.”

Listen to the full interview with Larry Mullen on The Dave Fanning Show on RTÉ 2fm this Saturday, January from 10am until 12pm.