Montreal GA Tonight (not a pleasant atmosphere)

[trashdaveed]

Just came from the GA lineups for tonight's show in Mtl...it's -6C and it's been snowing all day. Those dudes are suffering. I talked with some near the front of the line and they've been there since yesterday at 9am. Not looking forward to doing this tomorrow. What do you guys think about the fact that they've scheduled shows in 'colder' areas for Nov/Dec? I think Cleveland and Buffalo are in for some tough times too.

 

[kellyahern]

I think it depends on how the arena handles GA. From reading in the tour dates thread, Montreal seems to be messed up

http://forum.interference.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=3188622#post3188622

Boston should be okay if they follow the same procedures that they did in the first leg (handing out # wristbands and having people come back at a certain time).

 

[Gen. Chat]

It wouldn’t be that difficult for management at the arena to provide an area for GA ticket holders to queue up inside. Sounds like the conditions there really suck.

 

[indra]

Just came from the GA lineups for tonight's show in Mtl...it's -6C and it's been snowing all day. Those dudes are suffering. I talked with some near the front of the line and they've been there since yesterday at 9am. Not looking forward to doing this tomorrow. What do you guys think about the fact that they've scheduled shows in 'colder' areas for Nov/Dec? I think Cleveland and Buffalo are in for some tough times too.

I don't like any band that well.

 

[VintagePunk]

Those poor bastards.

What about reports last night that security were handing out numbers, allowing fans to leave for the night??

 

[dazzledbylight]

NASTY...........

at MSG and it was waaaay warmer ???55 F depgrees but POURING RAIN for HOURS {and mostof the whole week u2 were in NYC } they did let people in ?? about an hour earler before it got dark {back in late Oct} .

 

[anitram]

Well, nobody forces you to line up 36 hours in advance. And I don't think the band needs to cater to psychotic fans willing to stay in line for two days in freezing temperatures and snow up to their knees by altering their schedule based on weather. There is no way I'd be in line in Montreal before the afternoon.

 

[Pop Artist]

If I remember correctly, Montreal GA was really messed up during Elevation as well!

 

[trashdaveed]

Well, nobody forces you to line up 36 hours in advance. And I don't think the band needs to cater to psychotic fans willing to stay in line for two days in freezing temperatures and snow up to their knees by altering their schedule based on weather. There is no way I'd be in line in Montreal before the afternoon.

This is entirely true. However, I'm sure you've seen a U2 show up close before, so it's much easier to say than if a show like this is your best opportunity to do that for the first time. I understand that if these people really wanted to have that chance, they could buy a plane ticket to somewhere warm and take their chances at getting a GA and take time off their job/life, but it also is much more difficult for some than others. You end up risking a whole lot more. The 'Snow Shows' end up as the best shot.

 

[ruffian]

I heard that people didn't have to wait in line all day, though...someone at the show called me a little earlier and she said she was grateful she didn't have to freeze (though last night security said despite wristbands you DID have to wait in line). guess they took pity on everyone.

 

[trashdaveed]

Maybe people were just pulling my leg, but I had a good chat with a guy in the U2.com line and he said there were at least 100 people in the regular GA line when he got there at 7am.

 

[Canadiens1131]

I think it depends on how the arena handles GA. From reading in the tour dates thread, Montreal seems to be messed up

http://forum.interference.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=3188622#post3188622

Ohhhhh yeah, you're right about that.

They handed out a first set of numbered tickets, which were then exchanged for one of two types of numbered wristbands at fricken' 1AM Saturday morning. Later on, er, at 8AM, the arena folks arranged people using the wristbands into two GA lines (U2.com and regular GA).

I left the U2.com GA line at 10:30 due to the onset of hypothermia of some sort, and ended up showing up around 5:30PM for the concert. I was three people back from the outer Elipse rail, had a fantastic concert, and enjoyed myself immensely.

My thoughts and prayers to those who were in the GA line all day.

 

[anitram]

The fact is there is no need at all to line up at 9 AM the day before for a chance at a spot up close.

 

[Angel]

The fact is there is no need at all to line up at 9 AM the day before for a chance at a spot up close.

amen

I showed up at 5:30pm in NY won the lottery and got second row between Bono and Adam.

Lining up in -10 degree snowing weather for more than a couple hours is just plain insane. Anyway, I hope they all were able to enjoy the show and didnt suffer from any frozen limbs. Craziness.

It's all so random anyway, so why wait so long, suffer so much and not even know if you are going to win the lottery? Although I must say, the elipse looked PACKED tonight. I think there was some writsbanc cheating going on.

 

[blueeyedgirl]

Re: Re: Montreal GA Tonight (not a pleasant atmosphere)

I don't like any band that well.

I'm with you on this one. I wouldn't do it for my own mother, let alone U2.

 

[Seconds]

Lining up in -10 degree snowing weather for more than a couple hours is just plain insane.

It's all so random anyway, so why wait so long

I think that what happened was that most people that started the line were french canadians who didn't speak english. Therefore didn't understand how the lineups were supposed to work.

Then other fans(including myself) queued up in line aswell, fearing that this line ups would be different. And then the security caused even more confusion by handing out those worthless tags.

When I went there on friday afternoon, i asked everyone around, almost no one spoke english and most didn't even know there was a u2 fanclub membership.

When the tickets were handed out, people went back and started the lineups again. I just went home, slept, took a shower and went back at 5:30 pm where the almost empty U2 fanclub line line was waiting for me.

On a sidenote, I really wish Bono woudn't have mentioned the scum Gilles Duceppe during the concert. I went there to enjoy myself and not to hear the drunken Bloc/PQ followers scream for their leader.

 

[lady lemonade]

Weird coz I was in the U2.com GA line all day and everybody spoke english. Security told us if we left it'd be at our own risks so to get to known the people around us. We left a couple of times to get blankets and food but most of out time was spent freezing our ass off in line. Lots of people showed up around 5pm and their spot on the flool was almost as good as our. The ellipse didn't start filling up until 6:30PM.

 

[vira]

I went to the Bell Centre Friday night to get my red ticket as well. I went back at midnight to get my bracelet and that's when I found out we had to come back at 6:30am and wait ALL DAY. What's the point? We ditched the lineup and went to check out the hotel U2 was staying at, met Bono and the Edge, came back to the Bell Centre at 6:30pm, got into the very short U2.com line, won the lottery to get into the elipse and was about 5 people back from the front centre of the stage. I honestly cannot believe the luck I had!

 

[Tavs]

oh craaazy. I heard they are at a hotwl in old montreal...which one is it, if you don't mind telling.

 

[Klink]

Those poor bastards. What about reports last night that security were handing out numbers, allowing fans to leave for the night??

Got there at 10pm the day before the show and were already 138-141 in line. It was freezing but it made the show that much better.

For the record, they gave us numbered coupons, then handed us numbered wristbands at 1am and told us to come back at 6:30. At 6:30, they had security put us in order. Think we're crazy? Welcome to Montreal...and that goes for many events, not just U2 shows. The same craziness infected the building for the entire show...it was louder and more rowdy than any show I've ever seen (including Toronto, London and San Diego). It was worth the cold wait.


I forgot to answer the question. I think management's decision to have shows in Montreal in late November isn't really all that brilliant. Unfortunately, things being what they are, crowd energy and dedication (which is what it takes to freeze for that long) isn't what matters to management and cities like Montreal (3.6 million people) are not scheduling priorities compared to NYC, Chicago & LA.

 

[Hallucination]

Just came from the GA lineups for tonight's show in Mtl...it's -6C and it's been snowing all day. Those dudes are suffering. I talked with some near the front of the line and they've been there since yesterday at 9am. Not looking forward to doing this tomorrow. What do you guys think about the fact that they've scheduled shows in 'colder' areas for Nov/Dec? I think Cleveland and Buffalo are in for some tough times too.

Tough luck is all I can say. I don't mean to be rude or inconsiderate to those who have to go through this but we can't expect any band to scheduale a tour based on weather. This is perhaps when the lottery system would be a good thing. Nobody forces anyone to line up dasy or even hours in advance. It would suck for those fasn but hey lets face it this is somthing the chose and want to do.

 

[Klink]

That's not true. The lottery is absolutely ridiculous and doesn't save anybody anything. You still have to line up early to get a good spot outside the ellipse.

 

[hollyc]

I agree with the comments that bands shouldn't alter their dates based on weather. It's our choice to stand in line (or not). That said, I was one of the people who got a red ticket Friday night, left at 12:45 am and came back Sat morning at 6:15. It wasn't how I expected to spend my time in Montreal, but the system there was less than efficient. The information kept changing and by the time we really knew what was going on we had already invested so much time being there, we figured - why leave now? I am not sure why, after they handed out the numbered wristbands on Fri night, we couldn't leave and come back just before the concert on Saturday to line up in order. I guess we'll never know...security there kept saying "this isn't boston, this isn't ottawa - this is montreal and we are doing it our way". It was cold, it was long, it was tiring - BUT it was a choice we made. And I have to say - the fans I was in line with (the non-U2 fan club GA - both English and French speaking) were some of the coolest people I have met. And, I ended up in the ellipse, first row - so it was all worth it.

 

[ancatdubh99]

Just adding my experiences -- we got there at 6:30pm the night before just to scope out the venue and see where the door was, and were SHOCKED to see dozens of tents (with generators!) and tons of people already in line. We had no intention of lining up until early Saturday morning, but we decided we'd better get in on it once we saw the crowds. We were 79 and 80 in line at 6:30pm the night before. People that showed up at 6am or so were about 300.

It was the craziest thing I ever saw. I'm all for camping out, but I didn't think anyone in their right minds would sleep outside in 10 degree weather (Fahrenheit). So we sat outside from 6:30 am (when they made us come back with the wristbands) to 6:30 pm when they let us in, and we really thought we were going to die of exposure. And I'm from Chicago. For the record, I had on 3 shirts, 2 wool sweaters, a big down jacket, a pair of tights, a pair of long underwear, a pair of leggings, a pair of jeans, 2 pairs of wool socks, 2 pairs of industrial mittens, 2 hats, a hood, a scarf, and a 5 degree sleeping bag, and I was beyond miserable. Those Montreal people are crazy nuts. And so many of them didn't even speak a word of English! I'm not sure that I would line up for 24 hours in the winter for a band that communicated in a different language...

Interestingly, we showed up at 11pm the night before Las Vegas 2 and were #1 and #2 in line. In nice weather. In Montreal, we show up at 6:30pm and are #80 in the freezing and driving snow. That just goes to show you that Montreal KICKS ASS. It was my first visit, and I fell in love with that city. It certainly has spirit.

And, by the way, it was the GREATEST SHOW I'VE EVER SEEN. Totally worth it.

 

[retro]

I showed up at 3:30pm on Saturday. I waited in line for about 3 hours and not only did I get inside the ellipse, but stood right by the front of the stage. The only person in front of me was the girl who was picked out by Bono to dance with him during W.O.W.Y.

I hope this proves that camping out for 12 to 24 hours does NOTHING! (aside from getting yourself sick) Even if I had not gotten inside the ellipse, I would have had a great position along the outter permeter.

Most of the people in my line were very nice. They held my place a couple of times while I got some hot chocolate to warm myself up. Although...there was one moron at the end of the line who gave me some trouble when I tried come back in. The guy was standing in line for roughly 5 minutes and had the nerve to suggest I wait in the back of the line. So I let him have it. Obviously he wasnt a real U2 fan. I hope that putz didn't get inside the ellipse.

Show was amazing though...

 

[ancatdubh99]

I disagree that camping out gets you nothing. Obviously, if you get into the ellipse then you're pretty much golden no matter what time you show up. But if you don't (and I haven't gotten in once this tour...), then if you're 3 or 4 people back from the ellipse and are 5'6", like me, then you can't see the majority of the show. It's a height issue. In Montreal we were one row of people back from the ellipse (despite getting there at 6:30 the night before...) and the guy's head blocked a good deal of the action for me. When I've been farther back, it's really really frustrating. Like, anything you end up seeing you see through only one eye.

 

[Super_Fan]

Camping out gets you something at least railing.

 

[ancatdubh99]

By the way, I walked by the Bell Centre Sunday around 1:30 and there were already a bunch of tents and many people in line for Monday's show. That's the earliest I've ever seen anybody line up for anything. And the coldest.

 

[retro]

By the way, I walked by the Bell Centre Sunday around 1:30 and there were already a bunch of tents and many people in line for Monday's show. That's the earliest I've ever seen anybody line up for anything. And the coldest.

This is what happends you have free health care. You get crazy people in tents in minus god knows what weather

 

[Seconds]

I think the main reason fans in Montreal start the line so early and in the cold, is because they don't come to sites like these where they can get REAL info. And the main reason the don't come to these sites is because they only speak french.

When I heard people were lining up friday I asked some fans where the fanclub line would be. They had no idea what I was talking about.

I'm a lifetime montrealer, but I will never understand these people. I love being fluent in many languages(english, spanish, french) but for some god for saken reason, alot of people here have a fear of anything that is NOT french.

Most of the fans who were in the fanclub line on saturday were bilingual or out of towners. Met people from Detroit, St-John's, Atlanta. Great people. I love U2 fans, such friendly folk.