lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
While I applaud U2's desire to shake things up this time around (or perhaps they weren't convinced COBL was doing its job), there are a couple things fundamentally wrong with LPOE as a show opener.
First off, the beat of the song is a bit of a "shuffle", which is only underlined by the guitar. While Zoo Station has a similar beat, the guitar is completely different and gets things moving faster. MOFO and Elevation, by comparison, were very high energy openers which need no explanation.
You then have the "building" openers like Streets and COBL. While many felt COBL wasn't appropriate for an opener, at least the beat is driving and doesn't let up. By contrast, and this leads into my second point, LPOE has too many moments where the beat drops out for some kind of breakdown. Unfortunately, the first one comes right after the first verse, right before the big riff comes in. It's a bit too early in a concert to suck all the percussive life out of the place. The beat also drops off before the guitar solo, which again loses some momentum.
The last reason I feel this song shouldn't open is because the band's presentation of it is too gimmicky to be so early. Larry on the drums at the tip, Bono taking over with the headband...it's something that was well-conceived but should occur later in the set. Do you want to be confusing people halfway before the first song's over? You want people caught up in the energy of the band, not wondering why band members are running from one instrument to another.
I don't know how it came off in person, but listening to the MP3s I don't think this is the answer to the opener question. Perhaps COBL isn't the ideal kickoff, but the bridge with the "ooohhs" and the "Oh you look so beautiful tonight" is a lot more appropriate than LPOE. I think it gets the crowd involved as it's a lot catchier of a song, and as I mentioned before, it doesn't have a breakdown/middle eight that slows things down.
If anything, they could try All Because of You and just rock out that way. But last night's idea should be written off as a novelty that doesn't fit. We'll see if the band tries it one more time, goes back to the original plan, or changes yet again...
laz
First off, the beat of the song is a bit of a "shuffle", which is only underlined by the guitar. While Zoo Station has a similar beat, the guitar is completely different and gets things moving faster. MOFO and Elevation, by comparison, were very high energy openers which need no explanation.
You then have the "building" openers like Streets and COBL. While many felt COBL wasn't appropriate for an opener, at least the beat is driving and doesn't let up. By contrast, and this leads into my second point, LPOE has too many moments where the beat drops out for some kind of breakdown. Unfortunately, the first one comes right after the first verse, right before the big riff comes in. It's a bit too early in a concert to suck all the percussive life out of the place. The beat also drops off before the guitar solo, which again loses some momentum.
The last reason I feel this song shouldn't open is because the band's presentation of it is too gimmicky to be so early. Larry on the drums at the tip, Bono taking over with the headband...it's something that was well-conceived but should occur later in the set. Do you want to be confusing people halfway before the first song's over? You want people caught up in the energy of the band, not wondering why band members are running from one instrument to another.
I don't know how it came off in person, but listening to the MP3s I don't think this is the answer to the opener question. Perhaps COBL isn't the ideal kickoff, but the bridge with the "ooohhs" and the "Oh you look so beautiful tonight" is a lot more appropriate than LPOE. I think it gets the crowd involved as it's a lot catchier of a song, and as I mentioned before, it doesn't have a breakdown/middle eight that slows things down.
If anything, they could try All Because of You and just rock out that way. But last night's idea should be written off as a novelty that doesn't fit. We'll see if the band tries it one more time, goes back to the original plan, or changes yet again...
laz
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