AFTER teasing it on social media earlier in the week, U2 has released the full-length “Your Song Saved My Life,” an original song the group recorded for “Sing 2,” an animated musical set to hit theaters Dec. 22. Although the new song doesn’t represent any vast jump in genre, U2 fans will recognize it as a departure from the group’s usual style, starting off with a gospel-pop style piano and elevating into orchestral accompaniment before wrapping up with a falsetto chorus and not many guitars in sight. Several U2 catalog songs, including “Joshua Tree” favorites and “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out of,” also appear in the movie, which has Bono taking on a lead voice role for the first time, envisioned as a lion. His character, Clay Calloway, is a legendary rock star who’s lived in seclusion since a tragedy 15 years earlier, and is now being coaxed out of retirement by the fledgling cast of a stage musical being mounted in a Las Vegas-like — but strictly animal-inhabited — resort city. The song occurs briefly during the movie as fans try to persuade the reluctant Calloway that his music has, in fact, saved lives, then plays out in full leading into and during the end credits. Fellow musicians Pharrell Williams, Halsey and Tori Kelly have roles in the Universal release, along with Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Scarlett Johansson, Taron Egerton and Bobby Cannavale. The Republic Records soundtrack was also announced Thursday, with a release date just before the film comes out Dec. 17.(SD-Agencies) | 