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Achtung Baby is the seventh studio album by rock band U2, released on 19 November 1991. Stung by criticism of their previous album, Rattle and Hum, the band made a deliberate change in musical and thematic direction with the album. Achtung Baby incorporates alternative rock, electronic dance, and industrial influences into U2's music. Thematically, the band replaced their previous earnest image with a more ironic one. Seeking renewal and inspiration on the eve of German reunification, the band began work on Achtung Baby in Berlin's Hansa Studios in October 1990 with producers Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno. Conflict arose within the band over the quality of the material and their musical direction. Weeks of slow progress, arguments, and tension subsided when the band quickly improvised the song "One", which was a breakthrough for the album sessions. The band was more productive in the studio after recording sessions moved to Dublin in 1991. Sonically, the band referred to the album as the sound of "four men chopping down the Joshua Tree". Thematically, it was a more inward-looking and personal record; it was darker, yet more playful than the band's previous work.
