 As they began to play , bassist Adam Clayton developed a bassline . The part was originally based on the Grandmaster <unk> <unk> song " White Lines ( Don 't Don 't Do It ) " before Clayton changed to a more trance @-@ like bassline . <unk> Bono created some melodies and sang over the music . During the album 's recording , Bono had become tired of writing in the first @-@ person and he began writing lyrics and singing from the perspective of different characters . During the writing of " Moment of Surrender " , Bono assumed the character of a drug addict having a crisis of faith . The song title was borrowed from the <unk> Anonymous term for when an addict admits being " powerless over alcohol " and needs help . Bono had attempted to use the phrase " vision over visibility " in the lyrics of earlier songs ; however , " Moment of Surrender " was the first song where he felt it was appropriate to be used . Eno called Bono 's singing in this character as " so heartbreaking <unk> and vulnerable " , creating a feeling like " a knife to the heart " . Lanois contributed by developing the gospel @-@ like chorus . The uneven hi @-@ hat from the drum part stems from Mullen 's electronic drum kit malfunctioning during the song 's recording . Eno was amazed by each performer 's ability to develop and play their part without any instructions or <unk> . After the song 's recording completed , everyone in the studio , including a gathering of production personnel and visitors , was completely silent , and Eno suggested it was as if they had gone on an " emotional adventure of some kind " . He called the song 's recording " the most amazing studio experience I 've ever had " , and he believes the " emotional crescendo " heard in the song properly captures how they felt as they improvised the piece . Bono stated " it was a spell and we were in it " . 
