OT: U2 in Chicago

[IndyGirl]

I was in Chicago at Soldier Field last Saturday for U2's opening night of their North American leg of the tour. I saw Lynne, Kiki & Lady Starblade for a Nutter meetup beforehand. Lynne didn't attend the concert but the rest of us did. It's always fun meeting up with a group of Nutters! Snow Patrol opened & did a good job. U2 was great! I could tell by the first few chords of the first song that it was going to be a really good concert. I had a seat on Edge's side of the stadium. It was sold out & the band seemed to be feeding off the energy from the crowd. They played my favorite song, "Beautiful Day", towards the beginning of the concert. When they played, "Vertigo", the stadium felt like it was going to erupt with all of the energy from the crowd. It was a lot of fun! Here are some photos I took: http://www.flickr.com/photos/17678487@N ... 235324269/

[Susan]

Great photos, Julia! Just a week from now some of us NY area Nutters will be at a U2 show!
Did you get the u2.com e-mail update today? it says there will be some updates to the site but also to check back in a couple of days. Wonder if this is going to be an announcement for 2010? Or maybe a confirmation of being on SNL.

[Kiki]

There is definitely going to be a 2010 leg of the tour, of which I hope to get to a few shows during. I might even try for the pit...we'll see. I always get stuck with someone very tall in front of me. It happened in Chicago, and Lady Starblade traded places with me (since she was on the aisle) so I could see the stage. She's tall, so she had no problems. Ah, concerts!

U2 stated that it would do a European leg of their tour, which they did this summer. Then the American. Then they are taking a break, and supposedly releasing *another* album this winter, as they worked up over 60 songs during their hiatus between "How to Dismantal an Atomic Bomb" and "No Line on the Horizon." So, they definitely have the material. They then said that in the spring of 2010, they would go out on the 2nd leg of their tour.

Things that make me go SQUEE!

I know a lot of people aren't fans of U2, but my best friend had two older brothers who listened to U2, so I was exposed to them growing up and have always been a fan for as long as I can remember. I had never been able to make it to a show. I was so glad I didn't miss out on Chicago. My only regret was not going to night 2, as they changed up the set list and played "Your Blue Room" (for the first time in concert EVER!) and "Until the End of the World." Both of these songs made the set list in Toronto for the first night as well, however neither Chicago Night 2 nor Toronto Night 1 had "Pride (In The Name of Love)," which, thankfully opening night at my show had. Whew. I'll be interested to see if the set list morphs for their second night in Toronto tonight.

The Edge stated in a recent interview that they intend to change up the set list often. And, as they have so many songs, U2 can definitely do that. Makes me jealous that others will hear songs that I didn't get to hear.

As it was, our set list was:

1 Breathe
2 No Line on the Horizon
3 Get On Your Boots
4 Magnificent
5 Beautiful Day/Blackbird (Beatles snippet)
6 Elevation
7 I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For/Stand By Me (Ben E. King snippet)
8 Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of
9 Unknown Caller
10 The Unforgettable Fire
11 City Of Blinding Lights
12 Vertigo
13 I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight
14 Sunday Bloody Sunday/Oliver’s Army (Elvis Costello snippet)
15 Pride (In The Name Of Love)
16 MLK
17 Walk On/You’ll Never Walk Alone (snippet)
18 Where The Streets Have No Name

Encore
19 One
20 Bad/40 (snippet)

Second encore
21 Ultra Violet (Light My Way)
22 With Or Without You
23 Moment of Surrender

I was quite happy to get the acoustic version of "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" as that song and I have this nice history...in that it reflects a lot of my life. It was beautifully played...even if they were singing to the back of the stage and I had to watch the giant screens. And Edge needs to sing more...his voice is amazing and gorgeous!

The second encore is something to see!!! Spectacular! Talk about lighting up the stage and putting on a show. They certainly did it. And, for those of you who like the new album...they do this amazing remix of "I'll Go Crazy if I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" that is just....WOW!! I want a live single release, stat! Larry Mullen Jr. walking and running around stage, banging on a djembe drum is full of win!

The crowd was bursting with energy throughout the show...and it was one concert that will reside as a highlight in my concert-going history. Bono's voice was alive, was well, was strong. The Edge, Adam, and Larry were all spot on in their playing. I was caught up in the show the entire time. And, the music let me escape the stuff that's been stressing me out...and I let it all go and had a blast.

Afterwards, I went to purchase a venue-specific t-shirt for the show (now there is some smart marketing...make t-shirts/posters/programs venue-specific to each show) and had just handed over my credit card when suddenly I had a bright light on me, a camera in my face and a boom mic over my head. It was the U2 crew.

Camera man: "What did you think of the show?"

Me: "Oh...the show was awesome! One of the best I've been to."

Camera man: "Why?"

Me: "Why? Because they engaged the audience with each song. Because they're U2. Because of The Edge!"

Lady Starblade is pretty certain that it will end up somewhere. LOL!!

So, now that I've rambled...put it simply...awesome show. I'm already trying to get to another one. Alas, because of money and time restraints, it will have to wait until 2010. But they're worth it.

~Kiki~

[nancyrose]

Sounds like a great show, Julia and Kiki! So glad you had fun! And, Julia, thanks as always for the great photos!


And for all us New Yorkers: just in from a 5-mile run, it occurred to me that it might not be too early to check the weather forecast for Wednesday's Giants Stadium show. Ack! Thunderstorms and night-time temps of 50 degrees! Perhaps now would be a good time to start offerings to the pre-outdoor-concert gods!!

[Susan]

Nancy, I heard the weather forecast for next week too and am not going to worry about it. Mostly because I have 10 other things to worry about in between but yeah that jumped out at me when I heard it this morning! LOL. It's not too early to check, but it's too early for them to know for certain. If it rains, we wear raincoats and boots. Icky, but do-able.

U2 is from Ireland, they are tough guys, they played in the rain before. We won't be cold with 90,000 bodies squished together jumping up and down.

[nancyrose]

Hey, Susan, Trevor and I "weathered" the REM concert at Jones Beach complete with thunder, lightening and torrential rain last summer, and it was one of the best nights ever! We're ready! And, yeah, you're right...anything can happen with that forecast between now and then!

Are we gonna all try meeting up that night???

[Throb]

Thanks for reporting in.
I am really getting excited for next month’s Rose Bowl. I am a bit nervous. 90,000 people, I have not been to a concert that big in a loooong time.
But I know it is going to be unbelievable show.

Hope to meet up with some LA nutters or out of town nutters coming in for the show.

[IndyGirl]

Did you get the u2.com e-mail update today? it says there will be some updates to the site but also to check back in a couple of days. Wonder if this is going to be an announcement for 2010? Or maybe a confirmation of being on SNL.

Yes, I received the e-mail. I'm interested to find out what the announcement will be. Nice concert review, Kiki! Have fun at the concerts..Susan, Nancy & Throb. Crossing my fingers that the weather will cooperate.

[TheEqualizer]

From Rolling Stone:

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/i ... n-chicago/

QUOTE

U2 Reinvent the Stadium Show as 360 Tour Launches in Chicago

9/13/09, 1:05 pm EST

Photo: Getty
The last time U2 played a stadium concert in America it was nearly 12 years ago at the tail end of their disastrous Popmart tour. Terrible record reviews and half-empty stadiums for their gigantic production brought the band’s spirits to an all-time low. “If we come back again I think it’s going to be something very different,” Bono had told the crowd at Seattle’s Kingdome. “Because I don’t think we’ll ever be able to afford this again.” Their next two American tours were stripped down affairs confined entirely to arenas, but last night at Chicago’s Soldier Field U2’s 360° Tour returned to American stadiums with the biggest concert stage ever built. It was, in every way, a huge success and proof that rock & roll can work in venues designed for 80,000 screaming football fans.

(Check out photos of Bono and Co. — and their innovative new stage.)

The show began with a recording of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” as steam began shooting out of the claw-like stage the band has dubbed “the spaceship,” making it seem like it was about to launch into orbit. As the lights went out, the band ran onstage and kicked into an electrifying “Breathe” from No Line on the Horizon. It was the first of four consecutive tracks from the album. That’s often a recipe for sucking the life out of a crowd, but the anthemic songs translated perfectly to the stage and few seemed to mind the glut of new material. In fact, the only track played in the first hour of the show not written in the 2000s was a rather tepid version of “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.”

Before “City Of Blinding Lights,” Bono briefly discussed President Obama, who played the track at many of his campaign rallies. It wasn’t the only political moment of the evening. The stage was light green during “Sunday Bloody Sunday” to show solidarity with the dissidents in Iran. Bono dedicated “Walk On” to jailed Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. During the song about 50 people walked onstage holding photos of Kyi up to their faces like masks. Before an encore of “One,” a video Archbishop Desmond Tutu played where he spoke about aid to Africa.

After nearly a quarter-century or more in near constant rotation, U2 finally retired concert warhorses “Bullet the Bullet Sky,” “New Years Day” and “I Will Follow” — as well as more recent live favorites like “Mysterious Ways” and “Until the End of the World.” That left room for not only the majority of the new disc, but rarities like the title track to 1984’s The Unforgettable Fire (not played stateside since 1987) and “Ultraviolet (Light My Way),” which hasn’t been performed since Zoo TV in 1993. The latter — one of only two tracks from U2’s stellar 1990s catalog — was one of the show’s highpoints. Bono wore a laser-coated suit while singing the song into a target shaped red microphone that lowered down from the sky like a boxing announcers mic. “Your Blue Room” — a fantastically rare song from the band’s 1995 Brian Eno collaboration Passengers — has been reportedly rehearsed at great length recently, but unfortunately wasn’t played at the show.

Stadium shows of the past have been marred by lousy sound and an incredible distance between the performers and the vast majority of the crowd. To overcome this U2 not only constructed an incredible soundsystem, but built a round stage with long ramps that stretch out far into the crowd. This meant Bono could never face the entire crowd, so Edge and Adam Clayton picked up the slack and made sure to often be on opposite sides of the stage. Even Larry got up from behind his kit for a dancehall remix of “I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight” and walked around the stage with a tiny drum. Despite their efforts, it never felt as intimate as an arena, but was pretty much the best possible setup for a venue of that size.

After a crowd sing-along “With Or Without You” Bono told the crowd to wave hold their cellphones into the air. “Turn this place into the Milky Way,” he said as a giant disco ball came out on top of the stage. The simple effect truly made it seem like the stadium had reached outerspace, with thousands of cellphone lights turning into stars. They ended with an emotionally charged “Moment of Surrender,” perhaps the best song they’ve written this decade. As they took their final bows to thunderous applause, Bono looked quite pleased as he walked up to the mic one last time: “Thank you,” he said. “What an opening night!”

END QUOTE

[Throb]

Thanks for posting EQ.

Are you going to make the Vegas show?

Rose Bowl?

[TheEqualizer]

[quote="Throb"]Thanks for posting EQ.

Are you going to make the Vegas show?

Rose Bowl?[/quote]

My best friend from Chicago, who saw the show, is persuading me to go. But I will not be making either show.

[policefan]

Thanks for the pics IndyGirl!

they do this amazing remix of "I'll Go Crazy if I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" that is just....WOW!! I want a live single release, stat! Larry Mullen Jr. walking and running around stage, banging on a djembe drum is full of win!

Can't wait to see that..... and I agree TheEdge should sing more he has such a lovely voice.

[TheEqualizer]

[quote="policefan"]Thanks for the pics IndyGirl!

[quote="Kiki"]

they do this amazing remix of "I'll Go Crazy if I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" that is just....WOW!! I want a live single release, stat! Larry Mullen Jr. walking and running around stage, banging on a djembe drum is full of win!

[/quote]


Can't wait to see that..... and I agree TheEdge should sing more he has such a lovely voice.[/quote]

Not a live single, but this is a recording of the entire opening night show:

http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-deta ... ?id=266379

And for good measure, here's night two, which I think is a better performance:

http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-deta ... ?id=266440

[policefan]

THanks EQ!

But I can't do those flac. torrent files.

: -(

[IndyGirl]

Thanks for the pics IndyGirl!

You're welcome, policefan. Thanks for posting the article & concert torrent links, EQ. I don't have a dime password but hopefully someone else does that can post the files.