Live Music Review: U2
By Diego OrlandiniSunday, Oct. 11, 2009
The lights went off, suddenly cell phones and cameras glowing like small flashlights were floating in a sea of fans at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The event anticipated by thousands--myself included--was the U2 360 Tour Concert last Friday. The legendary band's show was a combination of incredible music, one-of-a-kind lighting design, theatrics, projectors, and massive screens. This promised to be spectacular event that would not soon be forgotten.
I arrived with hundreds of other fans, right after the opening band, Muse, wrapped up their set. People were flooding in from all directions. Some were walking quickly, others were taking their time. There were people sipping on one last drink from the classic red plastic cup before entering the stadium, hugging each other, laughing, screaming. Some hardcore fans donned old U2 concert T-shirts. 2005 Vertigo Tour, 2001 Elevation Tour--and my personal favorite: a 1992 concert T-shirt. Now, that's what I call a fan!
This concert was part of the North American leg of the tour that started in Europe in June and it's scheduled to continue to pack football stadiums until 2010, promoting their latest album No Line on The Horizon.
The energy emanating from the audience was impressive. "Oh my God, I'm at a U2 concert," I heard an excited girl shout on her phone. The band came out one at the time, to the beat of drummer Larry Muller, Jr.'s drum. Suddenly, Bono appeared on the screens, wearing his signature sunglasses and a leather jacket, rocking and kicking the air as they began with "Breathe," the first song of the night.
Without a doubt, the most impressive thing at the concert was a massive metallic structure that functioned as a stage, holding the screens, lights, and speakers in a unique design that is the namesake of the tour. Created by tour architect Mark Fisher, this structure (nicknamed "The Claw") is a crucial part of the tour, making it innovative and memorable. "The Claw" allows the audience to see the show from all angles, like no other stage has made possible. A circular screen at the top of the structure played back images from dozens of cameras pointing at the band. It literally was a 360 degree show! It was quite impressive, standing there, imposing, with its four steel gigantic legs buried in the filed and surrounded by hundreds of people all around. "You got a pirate ship. We got a spaceship!" Bono said while looking across from the stage to the Buccaneers' pirate ship that's part of the stadium. "The Claw," in fact, looked like a massive spaceship, filled with lights beaming out from all directions.
At the center of the stage, the band stood directly underneath the "spaceship," rocking out to one song after another, a fantastic mixture of old and new. Seeing the vivid colors on the screen synchronize perfectly with the guitar riffs of The Edge was astounding. During a couple songs, the screen descended--or rather, opened down--forming an even larger screen of vibrant red. A game of lights took place, red, white, multiple colors, almost psychedelic. The technology behind the show was remarkable. The circular stage was connected with two movable metallic bridges that had Bono or The Edge walking through them on occasion as they shifted on top of the fans.
The stadium was packed. Later, as I chatted with a fan on our way out, he said, "They brought more people than the Super Bowl." (It wasn't hard to believe. In fact, he was probably right, since there was a considerable amount of people in the field, which is not the case at a football game.)
"Thank you Tampa for having us," Bono said, "thank for the great life you've given us." There was an evident connection between the audience and the band, even for such a huge venue were most of the people were far away from the stage. The simplicity and good vibe the band radiated warmed me. I think I shared that feeling with most of the audience. I felt this connection was very strong when they played their classic rock ballad "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking for." Bono stopped singing, letting the audience continue. I could see elated, smiling faces all around me, from the security guards to the couple swaying next to me.
At the end of the song, the band covered a part of Ben E. King's classic "Stand by Me," which drove the crowd wild. They set a pretty romantic mood from that point, following up with a stripped-down acoustic version of "Stuck in a Moment" with just Bono and The Edge at the guitar.
Some minutes later, the music stopped. "We got something very special for you tonight," announced Bono. "Our friend Guy Laliberte...he is orbiting the earth for his mission to talk about how precious water is." On the screen, wearing a T-shirt with the logo of his campaign "Poetic Social Mission" and a red clown nose, there it was, all the way from the International Space Station, live, the CEO of Cirque du Soleil, talking to us.
"I'm learning how to float," Laliberte said.
"How do we look from here?" Bono asked.
"Every time I look down, I see a fantastic planet," Laliberte responded. "Planet Earth looks so great, but also so fragile. We should not forget what a privilege it is to be there."
And with that message, they said their goodbyes. "Are you ready for lift off Tampa?" Bono shouted, thus starting "Elevation." In a matter of seconds, the crowd was moving again.
One of the coolest parts of the show consisted on a pre-recorded video played in the circular screen. It was the dancing heads of the four members of the band, banging back and forth to the beat of the music, looking at us. What followed was a strange techno version of "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" with the drummer playing djembe African drums and moving about the stage.
A piece of Bob Marley's "Get Up, Stand Up" was played in between "Sunday Bloody Sunday." The night was filled with special mentions to important people who share the well-known activism of U2 for world peace. A special dedication was given to Aung San Suu Kyi, former leader of Burma, who has been under arrest for fourteen years.
"We send a message of love from Florida," Bono said raising his hand to the sky. Her images were projected on the screen as U2 performed. "Tonight we sing for her," the screen read. Later, Reverend Desmond Tutu spoke passionately on the screen about One Campaign and their importance in the world. Bono asked "Is it getting better?" as the band followed with "One." They ended the song with a part of "Amazing Grace," with the U.S. flag billowing on the screen.
"This is an unbelievable voice," Bono said as the audience jumped and sang in harmony with the bright red light pouring out of the screens.
"With or Without You" had everyone slow dancing, singing along of course, as the stage shone a vibrant blue. It was another one of the many magical moments of the show.
"Don't forget about us," Bono said as they were getting ready to conclude the show. "Now take your phones out. Let's turn this place into the Milky Way." The lights went off and all around it, little lights, like stars, were titillating, precisely like Bono said, like the Milky Way looked at trough a clear sky. U2 played their last song of the evening, "Moment of Surrender," giving a perfect end to an incredible roller coaster of a show. Bono stared back at the audience, smiling. "Thanks for coming out to us, we love you."
And with that, Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen Jr., The Edge, and Bono hugged, waved to the audience and walked out, together, side by side, the four of them. Amazing.
Was it a great show? Yes. Will I remember it for years to come? Yes. Does U2 bring down the house like one of the greatest rock bands that they are? Without a doubt! I must say, I've been listening to U2's music for as long as I can remember and I never thought I'd get the chance to see them live. But I did--and it was unbelievable.
