Everything about U2 is big. The stadiums, the presentation, the music, the
sound, and yes, even their photo passes!,
In the run-in to the Live 8 global
showcase, this was U2’s second gig of 2005’s Vertigo European ten date tour.
A complete sell-out, sixty thousand excited fans packed out the impressive
Man City ground to witness arguably the biggest band on the planet, do their
thing. Twenty five years, and 17 albums later – I finally get to see them.
It was worth the protracted wait.
Coming on late to a huge roar, messianic frontman Paul Hewson, (Bono to me
and you), he lead his storm troopers through a spectacular two hour fifteen
minute show. Sombrely dressed, and more modest by comparison with ZooTV and
Elevation tours, I detected some kind of mourning, either personal or
global. Gone was Bono’s make-up and array of hats, replaced by simple black
outfit, as were his band mates. Later political references symbolised their
deep empathy for the state of the world, so perhaps I was right after all.
However, the tone was up-beat from the minute go, as they ripped into their
powerhouse opener (and closer) Vertigo, considered to contain one of the
best riffs of all time. This sent the crowd delirious, laying the foundation
for a superb night of arena engulfing music. Right now, they are probably
the ultimate arena band, with 26 years of experience behind them. They may
not take too easy to the tag of pop group - the most successful in the last
two decades - but that’s exactly what they are. Their music is global in
appeal and warmth – global warming if you like.
This time, they exuded a
kind of self-assured confidence in their ability to unite the entire planet.
Incredibly, they have the rare knack of touching everyone in their path –
politicians, men, women and children. Successive bands have come and gone in
their lifetime, and there’s no sign of them fading away. They always seem to
deliver the goods at the right time. Like all great bands they’ve taken huge
artistic risks which have paid-off. No such risks tonight though.
Blasting
out classic back-catalogue hits like I Will Follow, New Year’s Day, they set
a frenetic and unrelenting pace, without even talking to the crowd. When it
came at song seven, City Of Blinding Lights, it was simple, "Hello
Manchester. I remember the first time the band passed through this city.
This is the city of the future. This is the band of the future", as we all
screamed with approval. Bono knows exactly what to say and when to say it.
Bouncing back into action they didn’t put a foot wrong: crowd pleasers all
the way, mostly hi-energy. Behind them, the never-ending back-screens lit up
the twilight as countless images rolled by. Split screens and multi angled
camera shots beamed around the stadium. You could see and here them
everywhere, as they constantly paraded the sweeping thrusts way out in the
crowd. Trying hard to play down the technology, it was impossible to ignore
the back-up, and it got more impressive as the night rolled on.
A tender
Sometimes (You Can’t Make It On Your Own) dedicated to Bono’s late father,
briefly stalled the juggernaut. His achingly beautiful delivery stunned
everyone. Back to Rock’n’Roll, the tempo raised again as the upper tier
bobbed – Sunday Bloody Sunday, Pride In The Name Of Love soon gave way to
Where The Streets Have No Name, dropping a further register to the song
that has been voted the greatest off all time in just about every poll –
One. That did it for me.
Unified, we all went for it as if it was a message to the world – and it
probably was.
Two encores brought more thrills as we saw techno over-dive kick-in for The
Fly, a dazzling Mysterious Ways, and a thumping reprise of Vertigo.
As of April 2009, Blu-rays and DVDs reviewed by the editor are watched on a Panasonic TH-37PX80B
37" Plasma TV with a Sony BDP-1500 Blu-ray player and played through a Yamaha DSP-AX820 amplifier.
PC games reviewed by the editor are on:
Since Jan 2011: Intel Quad Core Dell XPS 8100, i7 CPU 860 @ 2.80Ghz, 8Gb RAM, nVidia GeForce GTS 240, Windows 7
Since Nov 2005: Intel Pentium D 830 3.0Ghz, 1Gb RAM, 128Mb nVidia GeForce 6700XL, Windows XP
Since Aug 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.66Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb GeForce4 MX440 graphics, Windows XP
Since May 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.6Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb ATI Radeon 9600TX graphics, Windows XP
Since Jun 2002: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, 64Mb ATI Radeon 8500LE
Since May 2000: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, Voodoo 3 3000 AGP
Everything about U2 is big. The stadiums, the presentation, the music, the
sound, and yes, even their photo passes!,
However, the tone was up-beat from the minute go, as they ripped into their
powerhouse opener (and closer) Vertigo, considered to contain one of the
best riffs of all time. This sent the crowd delirious, laying the foundation
for a superb night of arena engulfing music. Right now, they are probably
the ultimate arena band, with 26 years of experience behind them. They may
not take too easy to the tag of pop group - the most successful in the last
two decades - but that’s exactly what they are. Their music is global in
appeal and warmth – global warming if you like.
Blasting
out classic back-catalogue hits like I Will Follow, New Year’s Day, they set
a frenetic and unrelenting pace, without even talking to the crowd. When it
came at song seven, City Of Blinding Lights, it was simple, "Hello
Manchester. I remember the first time the band passed through this city.
This is the city of the future. This is the band of the future", as we all
screamed with approval. Bono knows exactly what to say and when to say it.
A tender
Sometimes (You Can’t Make It On Your Own) dedicated to Bono’s late father,
briefly stalled the juggernaut. His achingly beautiful delivery stunned
everyone. Back to Rock’n’Roll, the tempo raised again as the upper tier
bobbed – Sunday Bloody Sunday, Pride In The Name Of Love soon gave way to
Where The Streets Have No Name, dropping a further register to the song
that has been voted the greatest off all time in just about every poll –
One. That did it for me.
Review & concert pics copyright © Elly Roberts, 2004-2010.
