AP

Imagine walking into your living room and the sofa has moved plus the bookcase is leaning on a different wall. That's what listening to U2's new album is like. “Songs of Surrender” is a “reimagining” of 40 songs from the Irish quartet’s deep catalogue, cleverly presented from “One” to “40.” Think of it as a home makeover. There are triumphs and a few fumbles but a growing realization that the architecture of these songs is strong indeed. The new “Vertigo” has slight Middle Eastern instrumentations and an acoustic guitar-driven “Sunday Bloody Sunday” sounds more like a coffee-house prayer than a strident demand, but they’re still gorgeous.

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Tourists in Rome checking out the Pantheon, Italy’s most-visited cultural site, will soon be charged a 5-euro ($5.28) entrance fee under an agreement between Italian culture and church officials. The country's Culture Minister said Thursday that the move was a matter of “good sense.” The introduction of an entrance fee comes five years after a previous government shelved plans to start charging visitors 2 euros. Proceeds will be split, with the culture ministry receiving 70% and the Rome diocese 30%, officials say. Entrance will be free to Rome residents, minors, people attending Mass and personnel of the basilica, among others. No date was given for the introduction of the fee.