Bono, Oh Bono!

[U2BROTHR]

It's interesting, because most people are now praising the Vertigo tour no(even if they bashed it then), most have said SBS sounds the best it has in 10 years, and I've asked this before and I'll probably ask it again, when was the last time you saw U2 do something spontaneous?

I personally think...(notice...personally...) that the spontaneous nature of U2 was evident on the Vertigo tour...morseo than 360. You've got to remember, it's hard to be spontaneous when you have lights, visuals, and songs that move to timing and coordination of rock show. Basically you have to stay on track.

Remember the last leg of the North American Vertigo shows? Remember before the 2nd Encore there was a setlist switch? I always remember getting excited just after the 1st encore because the setlist would change....or someone might be pulled onstage to play....or something requiring audience participation. I liked that part of the show.....the part where U2 show that they're human and having a good time. Remember in Toronto when they pulled out Fast Cars? Holy crap? When they tried to call BB King? I love that shit. Remember in Detroit for the Zoo TV tour Bono ordered the pizzas? I was there for that too. Remember in Hamilton when Arun got up on stage and couldn't play? I laughed my ass off.....

The spontaneous moments do happen....maybe not as much this tour.

No...U2 aren't the band (like let's say the Grateful Dead) who can strum a few notes and then go into a rousing rendition of "Wire". They aren't that kinda band. It would have to be practiced....

 

[BVS]

I've seen U2 9 times, 5 different tours and I've seen one "spontaneous" moment.

 

[gvox]

What Mark said...he's recalled some tangible examples...and yeah, we know that in general most of what they do is fairly tightly rehearsed. But I just felt like it was more spontaneous, more emotional...I can't put my finger on it..but hell, I saw 24 shows last tour . TWENTY FOUR!! And yet, this time, with only 2 shows under my belt, I feel like I know exactly what's going to happen moreso than I did last tour, even if logically that doesn't make any sense. Every night felt fresh to me.

Pretty sure we had the Internets back in '05 also, so that rules that theory out

 

[gvox]

It's interesting, because most people are now praising the Vertigo tour no(even if they bashed it then), most have said SBS sounds the best it has in 10 years, and I've asked this before and I'll probably ask it again, when was the last time you saw U2 do something spontaneous?

There were plenty of spontaneous moments on Elevation and Vertigo, trust me.

SBS did sound weak last tour, but that had little to do with the subject of this thread (more to do with Larry than anything, imo). They were playing it slow, dirge-like. They've given it a shot of adrenaline and the band is playing it with renewed enthusiasm. We're feeding off that energy.

 

[gvox]

You have to look closely, really. What you're saying here is simply not true.

Actually, most here are complaining about Bono's spontaneity, because they want him to do everything in a perfect way without doing stupid things like running around the stage. So I don't see how you can complain about a lack of spontaneity and too much of it at the same time

Actually, the band isn't any more or less spontaneous on this tour than they were on previous tours. We just tend to think everything was fine in the past, but it wasn't.

And he DOES still get close to fans, closer than most other singers. And I've seen a lot of other concerts. Bono is still very much connected to the audience, making contact, getting people up on stage (well we've had our fair amount of complaints about that as well), at the show and outside the concert.

But it doesn't matter anyway. If Bono does get people up on stage, some will complain about it because it distracts him from singing a song in a perfect way, some will say it's a bad move and not spontaneous. If he doesn't, they will complain about that as well.

Sometimes I feel people here are trying too hard to find something to complain about. With U2, past always seems to be better than present.

I pray you are not referring to people like me. Because I've never said I wanted him to sing songs 'in a perfect way'.

And I don't necessarily think that things were better in the past. Most of what I've written about this present tour has been positive, and I gave the shows I attended high marks.

There are some times when sprinting around the ramp is a dumb move, yes, in fact, there are. There are some times when pulling a certain person up has been a bad move (usually because of inappropriate behavior on that person's part), yes, there are.

EDIT: I feel you're not being balanced about this. It feels like you're trying to force people into this all or nothing mold, and there's nothing wrong with disagreeing with something U2 has done once in a while, and I don't think what's being discussed here is petty in the least bit. Most of the people who are posting their thoughts here generally agree with most of what they do, cmon!

(I don't entirely agree with Yahweh_OMG, however, and realize that is who you were mainly responding to...)

 

[mikal]

There were plenty of spontaneous moments on Elevation and Vertigo, trust me.

what were they? not disputing or anything, i'm just wondering what moments you thought were spontaneous.

 

[elevated_u2_fan]

There were plenty of spontaneous moments on Elevation and Vertigo, trust me.

but were they really and truly spontaneous? That's what I have to ask. A lot of the spontaneity on the Vertigo tour especially had to do with inviting people on stage, do we know if this was a scripted part of the show or not? I'm not saying the people they pulled on stage were paid or anything I'm more asking if the act of bringing them up was pre planned...

Bono himself said "The hardest thing is to make it look spontaneous" back during the Zoo Tv period. That line has always stuck with me...

YouTube - "Four jerks in a police escort"

@1:24 He may have a grin when he says it but I don’t think he's joking when he says something like that.

 

[gvox]

I'm more asking if the act of bringing them up was pre planned...

Speaking as someone who did...It wasn't 'pre-planned' per se...more like 'pre-cleared'. Nothing can be completely spontaneous and for every person you see get up, there has been a bit of forethought given especially in terms of security. That's necessary.

But I do fully think that there were moments that were decided the day of. Absolutely. The guys that got up in Toronto and played Out Of Control. EXIT in LA (was it LA?) The duet with Arcade Fire.

When I say 'spontaneous' I mean, outside the normal realm of what they had planned for the flow of the show (assuming they only really had 3 or 4 master setlists and rotated them). Even when I was pulled up, it came at a time of the show when I don't think anyone else had ever been, ie, really early on in the set. That was totally Bono just in the moment, even if I had been watched carefully (and believe me, John had icicles for eyes when he was ready ) from a few shows before...I don't think the rest of the band knew he was about to do that, honestly.

Good example this tour: the girl getting hoisted up onto the bridge during UTEOTW. Pretty sure that if they had discussed that before the show the rest of the band would have been like "um, how about later/different song"? It was a great moment though.

And really, I'm not concerned with 'spontaneous moments' so much as that hard to describe vibe of freshness or uncertainty I felt every night on Vertigo..like I said, even with over 20 shows...I can't put my finger on it...I would really like to see him return to just saying shit off the cuff. I know he wants to get it right...but reading speeches off the teleprompter...man, I dunno...could be a bit more rock n roll. Ya know?

But this is kindof way off topic now..Overall, this tour is great. I just think that Rose Bowl show was one of the weakest in terms of the performances. THAT'S ALL.

 

[U2girl]

I think they had way too much running on this show money wise, and it was a one take show, that Bono was probably told to "stick to the script", and that is what he did.

Well, if there's ever a show that has to click according to the script it's the night when they do the DVD. The same thing was said about the last two tour DVDs (Boston and Chicago).

And... U2 being spontanous stopped about 20 years ago.

 

[Yahweh_OMG]

You have to look closely, really. What you're saying here is simply not true.

Actually, most here are complaining about Bono's spontaneity, because they want him to do everything in a perfect way without doing stupid things like running around the stage. So I don't see how you can complain about a lack of spontaneity and too much of it at the same time

Actually, the band isn't any more or less spontaneous on this tour than they were on previous tours. We just tend to think everything was fine in the past, but it wasn't.

And he DOES still get close to fans, closer than most other singers. And I've seen a lot of other concerts. Bono is still very much connected to the audience, making contact, getting people up on stage (well we've had our fair amount of complaints about that as well), at the show and outside the concert.

But it doesn't matter anyway. If Bono does get people up on stage, some will complain about it because it distracts him from singing a song in a perfect way, some will say it's a bad move and not spontaneous. If he doesn't, they will complain about that as well.

Sometimes I feel people here are trying too hard to find something to complain about. With U2, past always seems to be better than present.

I don t expect them to play perfect songs (they can t anyway and thank God). 360 Tour was the 1st and only concert (London 1) in 11 (since 92, every tour) which disappointed me and left me "cold". I needed a few days to actually understand why.... even now I m not sure. I was frustrated about something, almost ashamed of flying over to London to see my favourite band that never disappointed me before, spent 10 hours queuing and being sad at the end because something was lacking. Setlist maybe, new songs? I don t think so, I love the new songs and they sound better than the old ones.
I m not praising the past but I m disappointed about the present live shows.

 

[U2387]

Speaking as someone who did...It wasn't 'pre-planned' per se...more like 'pre-cleared'. Nothing can be completely spontaneous and for every person you see get up, there has been a bit of forethought given especially in terms of security. That's necessary.

But I do fully think that there were moments that were decided the day of. Absolutely. The guys that got up in Toronto and played Out Of Control. EXIT in LA (was it LA?) The duet with Arcade Fire.

When I say 'spontaneous' I mean, outside the normal realm of what they had planned for the flow of the show (assuming they only really had 3 or 4 master setlists and rotated them). Even when I was pulled up, it came at a time of the show when I don't think anyone else had ever been, ie, really early on in the set. That was totally Bono just in the moment, even if I had been watched carefully (and believe me, John had icicles for eyes when he was ready ) from a few shows before...I don't think the rest of the band knew he was about to do that, honestly.

Good example this tour: the girl getting hoisted up onto the bridge during UTEOTW. Pretty sure that if they had discussed that before the show the rest of the band would have been like "um, how about later/different song"? It was a great moment though.

And really, I'm not concerned with 'spontaneous moments' so much as that hard to describe vibe of freshness or uncertainty I felt every night on Vertigo..like I said, even with over 20 shows...I can't put my finger on it...I would really like to see him return to just saying shit off the cuff. I know he wants to get it right...but reading speeches off the teleprompter...man, I dunno...could be a bit more rock n roll. Ya know?

But this is kindof way off topic now..Overall, this tour is great. I just think that Rose Bowl show was one of the weakest in terms of the performances. THAT'S ALL.

I was at the girl on the bridge show. I think you are 100% right, that was a spontaneous moment all the way. UTTEOTW is one of those songs where the band always seems very intense and focused and I could easily see them suggesting another song had it been talked about! Also, Bono had to yell 2 or 3 times for the bridges to be brought together. 9/21 Boston was one of the best, most intense, tightest U2 shows this tour for sure.

I too agree that I can't put my finger on it, but something about the Vertigo tour felt less contrived. Maybe, as U2Brothr said, it is the set list changes in the encore and otherwise. Maybe the better rotation of setlists, diversity of material played, etc. Best besides Lovetown on that front.

I am overall very satisfied with 360 as well, just saying that as of now, it feels like it is missing something.

 

[corianderstem]

I too agree that I can't put my finger on it, but something about the Vertigo tour felt less contrived.

Maybe it's that they were having to connect with a smaller audience in a smaller space (I can't speak to the stadium shows on the tour, so others who saw one of the European shows might disagree), and if they have to work harder to try and make the stadium shows on this tour more "intimate," it involves a bit more scripting and control.

 

[Zoo2]

Back for More

Zoo2 - was the Rose Bowl the only show you saw this tour? If so, I encourage you to give it another try....

I was there, and I thought it was a great show (then again, I was in the RedZone on the rail, so I know that taints my view)...

Kinsa -Thanks for the comments. Yes, RB was my only show on this tour. I had tickets for Vegas but had an emergency matter to deal with at work, and that was that. Glad to hear it was a great show, but bummed I missed it- wanted to see them in the smaller venue.

I was actually down just a couple rows above the Red Zone at the RB (Edge's side). But there were a lot of industry people there, and maybe their practiced hyper-cool attitudes also contributed a bit to my cynicism.

But no matter how bummed I was at the RB gig, I've got my tickets for Anaheim and Oakland 2010!

 

[tryan101]

I don t expect them to play perfect songs (they can t anyway and thank God). 360 Tour was the 1st and only concert (London 1) in 11 (since 92, every tour) which disappointed me and left me "cold". I needed a few days to actually understand why.... even now I m not sure. I was frustrated about something, almost ashamed of flying over to London to see my favourite band that never disappointed me before, spent 10 hours queuing and being sad at the end because something was lacking. Setlist maybe, new songs? I don t think so, I love the new songs and they sound better than the old ones.
I m not praising the past but I m disappointed about the present live shows.

be careful. even thinking such a thing may lead to your seizure and arrest.

 

[Rosebud]

Hey guys, why don't we start a thread where we post all our favorite "spontaneous moments" of the tour?

We might be pleasantly surprised!





/naive pipedream.

 

[Yahweh_OMG]

be careful. even thinking such a thing may lead to your seizure and arrest.

I know....already got an e-mail stating I should only say positive things about the 360 Tour or I'll be kicked out of Interference....

 

[last unicorn]

I don t expect them to play perfect songs (they can t anyway and thank God). 360 Tour was the 1st and only concert (London 1) in 11 (since 92, every tour) which disappointed me and left me "cold". I needed a few days to actually understand why.... even now I m not sure. I was frustrated about something, almost ashamed of flying over to London to see my favourite band that never disappointed me before, spent 10 hours queuing and being sad at the end because something was lacking. Setlist maybe, new songs? I don t think so, I love the new songs and they sound better than the old ones.
I m not praising the past but I m disappointed about the present live shows.

I didn't have any experience like this with all the shows I saw this tour, but maybe because I didn't really have expectations? U2 don't own me anything. I would never complain about standing in line or travelling or spending money on their shows, because it's my decision and they don't force me to do it. There were moments about the shows I absolutely loved, and moments I didn't feel so much, but I was never disappointed. A U2 show is much more for me than simply a concert, it's about more than just the music. Meeting people, seeing friends again, the whole excitement .... I will never forget this. And as for the band .... I've seen a lot of great shows by other bands, but U2 for me will always be magic and special, even if they're not perfect - or simply because of that.

 

[BVS]

I know....already got an e-mail stating I should only say positive things about the 360 Tour or I'll be kicked out of Interference....

I got an email telling me a relative of mine that I never knew died in Africa, turns out they were rich and that I was the only living relative. All the money could be mine if I just told them where to wire it to... wasn't that nice?

I think my email is more believable.

 

[gvox]

Hey guys, why don't we start a thread where we post all our favorite "spontaneous moments" of the tour?

We might be pleasantly surprised!





/naive pipedream.

Oddly enough, I tried to start a thread about our favorite moments of the tour. It's done...mildly well, but nowhere near as well as the bitch and moan threads. That bothers me a bit as I'd rather hear more positivity than negativity. Then again, something struck me as so funny just now as I was typing this...alot of the 'favorite moment' comments in that thread are identical!

 

[Rosebud]

Oddly enough, I tried to start a thread about our favorite moments of the tour. It's done...mildly well, but nowhere near as well as the bitch and moan threads. That bothers me a bit as I'd rather hear more positivity than negativity. Then again, something struck me as so funny just now as I was typing this...alot of the 'favorite moment' comments in that thread are identical!

Oh did you? I must have missed that one.

Of course, people in this thread are just talking about "spontaneous moments", not necessarily "favorites". There may be a few things that a lot of people remember and really liked, but there are tons of things that are just spontaneous, or at least different from night to night.

At least that seems to be what people care about here.

 

[elevated_u2_fan]

the only thing I really consider spontaneous at a U2 concert now a days is when something goes wrong.

 

[mikal]

the only thing I really consider spontaneous at a U2 concert now a days is when something goes wrong.

OMG!!1 Bono faked da fall on opening nite in Miami!!111

 

[trojanchick99]

Kinsa -Thanks for the comments. Yes, RB was my only show on this tour. I had tickets for Vegas but had an emergency matter to deal with at work, and that was that. Glad to hear it was a great show, but bummed I missed it- wanted to see them in the smaller venue.

I was actually down just a couple rows above the Red Zone at the RB (Edge's side). But there were a lot of industry people there, and maybe their practiced hyper-cool attitudes also contributed a bit to my cynicism.

But no matter how bummed I was at the RB gig, I've got my tickets for Anaheim and Oakland 2010!

I was in the pit for the Rose Bowl and thought it was great. It was the best U2 pit experience.

I did d-bag seats for one Vertigo show and hated them, there was no crowd energy there. It think it's a problem endemic to LA with all the industry types. Thus my new rule of only doing GA or cheap seats in LA, that's where the energy is.

 

[Rosebud]

^^^What about the band intros? Those seem to be different most nights.

Obviously the major things are scripted for the most part, but that's always been true. If you're just looking at all the little things, there are lots of things that change.

 

[gherman]

One U2 fan: "Oh no Bono's energy is lacking, he isnt running and jumping as much as other tours"

Another U2 fan: "Oh no, Bono is jumping about to much, he should be more sincere"

swings and roundabouts n all that.

"Nail on the head"

I agree toooo much