I am going to guess with the running time of the album, that all songs are going to be very pop oriented, or RAWK.
U2 are making the songs they wanted to make when they first started out, but weren't experienced/good enough to do. They always looked up to Ramones, Beatles, etc and wanted to make those type of songs.
They were limited by their technical ability, and had to create their own style (though influenced by the new wave / punk at the time).
So we got some very interesting songs from them, songs that didn't sound like anything else. Now they are great at creating hooks, and it shows over the last two decades of output. These are good pop songs.
GOOYOW is stuck in my head. Growing up with U2, I never really had their songs in my head. I'm sure they were, but not on repeat like a catchy chorus. For me U2 albums were something of a journey. To sit down and get lose in the music, and the space they created.
NLOTH was close to that, until Crazy Tonight/SUC.
SOI flowed better than NLOTH, but I never found myself lost in the music. It was just a pop song followed by pop song.
So it's not so much that U2's goals have changed. They've always wanted to be on the top of the charts. And they reached it by doing it their way. Now with age and experience they have learned how to craft a song the traditional way, and this is what we have to accept going forward.
Unless the go into the next record with the idea of not wanting a pop sound.