U2 Innocence & Experience Tour 2015 (Dublin and Belfast gigs confirmed, post #275)

mrk75

kennyu272 wrote: »

What a week that was,went to all four gigs.Loved every minute of it.Of the seven shows I've seen on this tour (Amsterdam,London,Glasgow & Dublin x4) the second night in Glasgow is imo impossible to match.That was a different ball game altogether.

Felt Saturday night rivalled Glasgow 2 for me but the latter still possibly shades it alright.

Maggiemay12

Liam O wrote: »

I have a Dave Fanning story from Saturday but it was more me being a drunken eejit and him doing me in. He walked by and I say to my friends "ah, what's his name again", they took the piss out of me pretending not to know, or maybe they actually didn't, followed him to the lift, got in and say, "ah I couldn't remember your name" or something to that effect. Sounded perfectly alright in my head but probably came across quite rude.

His response was to just say "Marty Whelan" and run out of the lift, which I got back up in shame

Ha Ha
He seems abit giddy alright had met him at the start of the night (didnt cop who he was till later) when he split some drink on my jumper on his way back from the bar ,he then proceeded with his jacket sleeve to rub my jumper as in trying to dry the drink that had be fallen on it but stopped suddenly when he saw my strange facial expression looking at him...fair dues to him for trying anyways...

starWave

newdigi wrote: »

There was little or none of this on this tour. It was so heavily choreagraphed.
Now I do realise and do presume that probably the majority of concerts these days are like that. For example I heard that during this tour, timing 'bips' come into the band members earpieces to let them know when to come in. So I guess that doesn't allow for a whole lot of ad-libbing.

It's a shame as I think it's those moments of spontaneity that can make a show.

Maybe i'm just getting old and naive!

U2 have always used those timing beeps in the in ear monitors. You can find examples of it on YouTube. It's just to make sure that they don't miss a beat. There's probably a few more beeps on this tour as they have to sync with the video for a few songs, for example Bono spitting water on Edge and punching the lightbulb during "Until the end of the World".

MisterAnarchy

mrk75 wrote: »

Nah, I think they're genuinely just picked on the night but the girls are generally queuing early to get a spot by the barrier and have probably been watching all the other videos of girls dancing with Bono over the years during the same song so are kinda prepped in that way.

Nope its agreed before the show who will come up on stage,the band don't leave these things to chance anymore.
The people even have to sign some sort of a contract to agree to be allowed shown in videos .

q2xv9rjei4awgb

Raised By Wolves is the track, off the new album, that comes across best live I think.

Iris, Miracle, S4S and CWood road are good songs but though

As for being spontaneous, Tuesday was spontaneous as I Still Haven't Found was supposed to close the show but that was changed to Bad at the very last minute. Also, 40 wasn't supposed to be played.

On this tour, they can't afford to be as spontaneous as they used to be. Maybe on the E stage but, not on the main stage. Not with how the screen interacts with the songs etc.

Dibble

Little did I know that, as a 17 year old attending the Joshua Tree tour in '87, U2 would still be touring in 2015!

This time round I brought my 15 year old son on Friday night. He was blown away by the gig. As was I.

And as for finishing the show with Bad and One?

Sublime!

loadwire

johnpatrick81 wrote: »

:pac: Unfortunately the "let the crowd sing One" is also scripted and they do it at all the shows:P

Ah okayyy thought it worked great on the night anyway.

mrk75

bclar12 wrote: »

On this tour, they can't afford to be as spontaneous as they used to be. Maybe on the E stage but, not on the main stage. Not with how the screen interacts with the songs etc.

In fairness, it's been like that since Zoo TV, so nearly 25 years.

I think they get the mix about right.

johnpatrick81

mrk75 wrote: »

In fairness, it's been like that since Zoo TV, so nearly 25 years.

I think they get the mix about right.

I think they could mix it up a bit more. I really hoped for some rarities in the Dublin shows, some curveballs. But bar night 3 when they did One AND Bad, it was as expected.

Even back at Slane, there was 5 songs different from show 1 to show 2. That's a quarter of the setlist.

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/u2/2001/slane-castle-slane-ireland-6bd6feee.html

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/u2/2001/slane-castle-slane-ireland-63d6fee3.html

8-10

johnpatrick81 wrote: »

I think they could mix it up a bit more. I really hoped for some rarities in the Dublin shows, some curveballs. But bar night 3 when they did One AND Bad, it was as expected.

Even back at Slane, there was 5 songs different from show 1 to show 2. That's a quarter of the setlist.

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/u2/2001/slane-castle-slane-ireland-6bd6feee.html

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/u2/2001/slane-castle-slane-ireland-63d6fee3.html

Slane 1 had a better setlist (Still bitter about missing out on a ticket for Slane 2)

q2xv9rjei4awgb

johnpatrick81 wrote: »

I think they could mix it up a bit more. I really hoped for some rarities in the Dublin shows, some curveballs. But bar night 3 when they did One AND Bad, it was as expected.

Even back at Slane, there was 5 songs different from show 1 to show 2. That's a quarter of the setlist.

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/u2/2001/slane-castle-slane-ireland-6bd6feee.html

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/u2/2001/slane-castle-slane-ireland-63d6fee3.html

To be fair, there were 5 changes from the setlist on Friday, compared to the one on Tuesday.

As for rarities, they tried Two Hearts Beat As One (my fave along with Electric Co.) once earlier in the tour and it sounded horrific...Way too slow and the key of the song was changed to the point where it was too low.

You can't forget that Bono is older and he can't hit those notes anymore and the band as a whole is older so, they don't have the energy to make certain songs work anymore.

Better off not playing them if they are pale imitations of what they once were before.

Anyways, the last tour was the one for rarities. Some of the songs they pulled out were ridiculous

RolandGoose

I had no idea they done A Sort of Homecoming at Slane in 2001!
I was hoping for that one in the 3 arena on this tour.

Although having listened to the Slane version, that's probably best left in the vaults.

I expected fireworks on Saturday, I was sadly let down, Bono seemed exhausted and was pretty flat all night. The only real surprise in the setlist was New Years Day on the E stage on Friday night, a real welcome addition and a solid performance except for one or two bum notes by the Edge on piano.

Saturday has left a bit of a sour taste, but I can take solace in remembering Friday night, when they really nailed it! Perhaps the best U2 show I've seen!

q2xv9rjei4awgb

RolandGoose wrote: »

I had no idea they done A Sort of Homecoming at Slane in 2001!
I was hoping for that one in the 3 arena on this tour.

Although having listened to the Slane version, that's probably best left in the vaults.

I expected fireworks on Saturday, I was sadly let down, Bono seemed exhausted and was pretty flat all night. The only real surprise in the setlist was New Years Day on the E stage on Friday night, a real welcome addition and a solid performance except for one or two bum notes by the Edge on piano.

Saturday has left a bit of a sour taste, but I can take solace in remembering Friday night, when they really nailed it! Perhaps the best U2 show I've seen!

Bono had a cold and sore throat apparently. They have this live broadcast gig coming up in Paris too so, he needs to be on form for that

RolandGoose

bclar12 wrote: »

Bono had a cold and sore throat apparently. They have this live broadcast gig coming up in Paris too so, he needs to be on form for that

I reckon so too,
He seemed to be really holding back.

disappointing, then again at 55 the physicality of a 2 and a half hour show like this back to back cannot be easy.


I was v lucky to have been there on Friday, He was really going for it that night, infact the whole band were, an incredible performance!

My main worry about the future of U2 would be Larry Mullen Jr, despite playing an absolute blinder on Friday, he seemed in pain at times, and seemed to not enjoy the show as much as the others. His playing can't be faulted as he played brilliantly all night and was really going for it too. However his back pain has been well reported and its hard to see if he'll keep going at it much longer! I hope this legend doesn't do further damage!

thegreengoblin

Only getting round to posting now about the opening night.
I had so many expectations of a great gig, especially as it would be my first time to see them indoors...but...but...there was just something missing! I think it's the fact that a show is only as good as the songs that are played. The new songs are decent but none of them would be in my top 20 or even 30 U2 songs. But I've long accepted that the band are not going to hit a creative peak like Achtung Baby again so I can enjoy the gig for what it is and not be too hard on it.

The show doesn't come close to Zoo TV (or Pop Mart) but maybe it's unfair to compare it to something as amazing as that tour. And I would gladly pay 70 quid or whatever I paid just to hear Until The End of the World. It blows me away everytime I hear it live, it's an incredible song and you can tell they love playing it.

I agree with one of the earlier posts which said it starts off with so much energy and then it goes a bit flat. Electric Co is still mindblowing after all these years even if quite a lot of people at the gig hadn't a clue what the song was! Didn't really enjoy Sunday Bloody Sunday in its current format, I think it deserves better than that.

Maybe it's a sign of the fragmented times we live in but I didn't think there was as much hype about the gigs as usual, almost as if they're just another band. Interesting to see where they go from here. They've recorded some of the greatest songs in the history of rock music (and with Achtung Baby the best greatest album in my opinion) but they're on a slide, creatively speaking. I hope we get one more truly great album out of them.

q2xv9rjei4awgb

RolandGoose wrote: »

I reckon so too,
He seemed to be really holding back.

disappointing, then again at 55 the physicality of a 2 and a half hour show like this back to back cannot be easy.


I was v lucky to have been there on Friday, He was really going for it that night, infact the whole band were, an incredible performance!

My main worry about the future of U2 would be Larry Mullen Jr, despite playing an absolute blinder on Friday, he seemed in pain at times, and seemed to not enjoy the show as much as the others. His playing can't be faulted as he played brilliantly all night and was really going for it too. However his back pain has been well reported and its hard to see if he'll keep going at it much longer! I hope this legend doesn't do further damage!

Don't know about you but, I've seen them 9 times now and Tuesday and Friday was the first time I've ever seen him smile at a gig

Also, haven't seen him hit the drums as hard before as he was hitting them on Tuesday and Friday

FionnK86

thegreengoblin wrote: »

Only getting round to posting now about the opening night.
I had so many expectations of a great gig, especially as it would be my first time to see them indoors...but...but...there was just something missing! I think it's the fact that a show is only as good as the songs that are played. The new songs are decent but none of them would be in my top 20 or even 30 U2 songs. But I've long accepted that the band are not going to hit a creative peak like Achtung Baby again so I can enjoy the gig for what it is and not be too hard on it.

The show doesn't come close to Zoo TV (or Pop Mart) but maybe it's unfair to compare it to something as amazing as that tour. And I would gladly pay 70 quid or whatever I paid just to hear Until The End of the World. It blows me away everytime I hear it live, it's an incredible song and you can tell they love playing it.

I agree with one of the earlier posts which said it starts off with so much energy and then it goes a bit flat. Electric Co is still mindblowing after all these years even if quite a lot of people at the gig hadn't a clue what the song was! Didn't really enjoy Sunday Bloody Sunday in its current format, I think it deserves better than that.

Maybe it's a sign of the fragmented times we live in but I didn't think there was as much hype about the gigs as usual, almost as if they're just another band. Interesting to see where they go from here. They've recorded some of the greatest songs in the history of rock music (and with Achtung Baby the best greatest album in my opinion) but they're on a slide, creatively speaking. I hope we get one more truly great album out of them.

I was there on Saturday, and personally disagree that they are on a creative slide. I think Songs of Innocence is one of their best albums, its a concept album of their youth and they actually managed to make some crowd pleasers out of it. However I dont think The Miracle should have been a single, rather California or Raised By Wolves. Its a very modern album that doesnt reek of trying too hard.

RolandGoose

bclar12 wrote: »

Don't know about you but, I've seen them 9 times now and Tuesday and Friday was the first time I've ever seen him smile at a gig

Also, haven't seen him hit the drums as hard before as he was hitting them on Tuesday and Friday

I have seen them many times too,

I know Larry isn't one for hamming it up for the cameras or taking part in any of that "smile to camera left, walk stage right wave" non sense the others take care of, however I did get the impression he seemed to be winching at times during the gigs. He has told Larry Gogan very recently that he is pieced together for shows, he attribute this to bad posture drumming for the first decade of the band, his problems came to a head on Zoo Tv, i believe he has been receiving treatments since. His performance cannot be questioned he is dynamite and the glue that holds the band together, he absolutely nailed it on the recent gigs! Hopefully I am wrong on this, it was just the impressive I got despite a 10/10 performance!

thegreengoblin

FionnK86 wrote: »

I was there on Saturday, and personally disagree that they are on a creative slide. I think Songs of Innocence is one of their best albums, its a concept album of their youth and they actually managed to make some crowd pleasers out of it. However I dont think The Miracle should have been a single, rather California or Raised By Wolves. Its a very modern album that doesnt reek of trying too hard.

I know what it's about, I just don't think they carried it off as well as they could have. But that's probably an argument for another thread!

dixiefly

Ciaran_B wrote: »

That shout out to Denis O'Brien was the most tone-deaf thing I've ever heard on an Irish stage. Skin-crawling stuff. I was glad to hear people around me booing.

As an aside the Canadian girl pulled from the crowd was an absolute babe.

A shout out to this guy would have been way more appropriate.

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/a-quiet-funeral-for-a-brave-man-the-big-boys-could-not-bury-1.1608574

RolandGoose

For all the talk of the stage being ground breaking, I think the ideas used were very similar to what Nine Inch Nails done on their 2013 Tension tour.

If I remember correctly I think I remember Trent Reznor realeasing a clip of the performance and saying people will realise when U2 rip their stage set up off in the future.

Playing behind and inside a screen, it's a pretty cool concept, I think U2's use of this was quite minimal over all.

http://youtu.be/HwV5cWLFM9U

poundhound

David Bowie did this as far back as 1990 on his Sound + Vision tour.

Regardless of how original you think you are, Bowie's already done it;)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taDdErQP0f0

mrk75

bclar12 wrote: »

Don't know about you but, I've seen them 9 times now and Tuesday and Friday was the first time I've ever seen him smile at a gig

Also, haven't seen him hit the drums as hard before as he was hitting them on Tuesday and Friday

Jeez, Larry's always grimacing. Any video from the last 20 years or so bears witness to that one.

But his troubles are well documented. I guess maybe that has something to do with re-working SBS and the fact he stands for some of the tunes on the e-stage.

Having said that, I thought he was on fire on Saturday night.

mrk75

bclar12 wrote: »

Bono had a cold and sore throat apparently. They have this live broadcast gig coming up in Paris too so, he needs to be on form for that

Thought they were great on Saturday and that was even in comparison with the second night in Glasgow.

Musically tight, some good banter, a few guests....great!

hatrickpatrick

thegreengoblin wrote: »

Maybe it's a sign of the fragmented times we live in but I didn't think there was as much hype about the gigs as usual

MisterAnarchy

I still cant get that People have the Power song out of my head ,its superb

creedp

mark13 wrote: »

He was referring to Friday night, I was there, it was just before Mother and Child reunion, Bono thanked Matt Damon, Colin Farrell and Denis O'Brien for attending..not sure what he was thinking giving him a shout-out. Saw O'Brien leaving after the gig, with a police escort and a massive amount of security.

No sign of metal detectors on the door Friday, overall I was sort of disappointed in the show, saw them in Berlin a few months earlier and it was just a much better experience.

Long time U2 fan. Love their music and up to know understand why it is Bono does the political stuff but I have to say the mention of DoB on Friday night left a sour taste in my mouth.

The Nal

creedp wrote: »

Long time U2 fan. Love their music and up to know understand why it is Bono does the political stuff but I have to say the mention of DoB on Friday night left a sour taste in my mouth.

He thanked Blackberry on the 360 tour. Thats the moment I lost interest in U2. They're out of the club, so to speak. Shame though, I just think a lot of their output (and Bonos business dealings) are over considered.

Veloce

MisterAnarchy wrote: »

I still cant get that People have the Power song out of my head ,its superb

It was amazing to hear this live in London - it was my first i+e concert of 5 and was wondering about the song when played over the PA.. then the night was finished with that song when Patti came on stage.

Anyone interested in the catchy tunes played over the PA you can get some of them on this playlist:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLK-1IY86aF440hM9FVf04mX1mzs_ZwF0W

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-YYZYYHCbudg15LfGReW4mpTJhWD16Rr

Thought Kraftwerk 'The Model' sounded great over the PA!

Pepsicass

Does anyone know when/if the Paris concert will be aired here (don't have HBO)? Looking forward to seeing it.