Zooropa Discussion (AKA We're Gonna Tweet Out Loud)

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I stick with my notion that they need to flood the audience with lighting, (i.e. a-la-CapeTown-Boots-intro, when they flooded the audience with yellow lighting), but this time, with ZOOROPA, flood the audience with psychedelic pastels!!! ...this song is all about ambience!!! ...and so they need to stress ambience!!! ...atmospheric excellence!!!

Secondly, although hard to imagine that they would actually do this, can you only imagine a quote on quote B-stage, at the very front of the catwalk, all 4 band members there, drum set and all, an in-your-face ZOOROPA, with the cylindrical screen going insane in the background, while the audience is flooded with them lights i've been preaching about!!!! ...it can only be magic I tell you!!! ...let's get creative Mr. Willie Williams!!!

As far as the actual rendition of the song, they couldn't have sang it/ played it better!!! U2 at its best!!!
 
Finally got the chance to watch it.

I'd love to know their reasoning for playing it "hidden." I wonder how much of the low-key crowd reaction was due to the band not being in sight? Was some of the non-reaction more bemusement? It was like watching a big lava lamp while listening to them perform the song, rather than watching the band.

That being said, holy shit, was that good to hear. So cool.
 
I just saw the video as well. Amazing and mindblowing. I'm pretty sure that they were in the dark because they wanted the screen to extend all the way (and it pretty much did). The reaction was kinda better than I thought it was gonna be (don't know how people reacted in the stands) but wow, what great visuals. Three words - PLEASE KEEP IT! :wink:
 
First off, AMAZING that they are playing this song.

No need to shorten it so much.

Also, they need to a. light up the crowd and b. light up themselves. It's tough to identify with a band if you can't see them. Get them lit up and get the crowd into it, and this is easily one of the best songs of the tour :up:
 
Maybe the crowd did not react well b/c of the lighting and they thought somehow, something was fucked up. The lack of light on the band was a misfire - making it like a soundtrack playing in the background but no band. Flood the place with light for the second part and it will go off. Maybe Bono could break out his Fly shades so we can all pass out.
 
I sort of think they'll keep it for at least a few more gigs, given the whole "trending on Twitter" thing. Just add a few spotlights, and I think it'll be more or less perfect.

EDIT: Also, the "flooding the stadium with light" thing would look awesome. :drool:
 
God Part III said:
I don't think I am. I kinda thought so even before Zooropa and EBTTRT was put in. Bring in Discothéque and Electric Co., and we're golden.

Out of curiosity Ax, what's your all-time favourite setlist U2 has ever done?

I bet you it's from the 80's.
Click to expand...

Whereas I still feel like this is possibly U2's worst tour, setlist wise. Some of the surprises and rarities have been the best ever (Zooropa? UF? YBR? Scarlet? HMTMKMKM? ES? Fuck yes!), I will readily agree there, but the problem for me is that it's almost impossible to hear more than one or two awesome things with any one or two other awesome things. There's just a smattering of awesomeness here and there, amidst a generic stock setlist that I outright dislike. I do not quite feel that dislike towards the 2011 setlists, but 2010 and especially 2009 just do not do it for me at all (emphasis also on "for me"; I know how much of a minority I'm in here and don't say any of this to persuade anybody that they're somehow wrong).

As for my favourite setlist, honestly I don't actually have one. Obviously for overall setlists, Lovetown is my favourite, closely followed by the Boy and October Tours. Individual setlists, though? That's too hard. Some contenders would be 1981-05-15, 1982-03-18, 1983-02-26, 1987-08-03, 1989-09-21, and 2005-09-20.
 
I thought having the band hidden, cocooned inside the screen was absolutely fantastic, loved it, loved it, loved it. There was this weirdy battered song pumping out of a honeycomb video screen, that was going nuts with trippy visuals (well to start with at least). Having the band hidden inside it was a nice effect I thought. And not too dissimilar to The Unforgettable Fire when the screen opened to enclose the band. It's stadium hypnosis, and it works fantastically well.

However some of the GA heads I met after the show said they didn't like it. I guess they lost the effect of the screen that could be seen from further away.

I thought the visuals stopped too early during the song, and the change from the slow part to the fast part seemed a bit broken n clunky. Not sure if it sounded like that in rehearsals or not.
 
dan_smee said:
Is it little wonder this band is averse to experiment in this way? Sao Paulo should be ashamed. The biggest setlist surprise U2 have arguably ever put forward, and no reaction from the crowd. That is disgusting, and a big part of why U2 don't bother treating the fans like this.

Shame.
Click to expand...

Don't be such a sanctimonious twat.

Perhaps the incredible people of Sao Paulo aren't U2 setlist anoraks. The audiences here have been far better than those in NZ and Oz. I was on the field at Melbourne 1, and the lack of audience response to Bad was quite surprising. People in the pit at Brisbane 2 used Bad as their toilet-stop song.
 
Axver said:
Whereas I still feel like this is possibly U2's worst tour, setlist wise. Some of the surprises and rarities have been the best ever (Zooropa? UF? YBR? Scarlet? HMTMKMKM? ES? Fuck yes!), I will readily agree there, but the problem for me is that it's almost impossible to hear more than one or two awesome things with any one or two other awesome things. There's just a smattering of awesomeness here and there, amidst a generic stock setlist that I outright dislike. I do not quite feel that dislike towards the 2011 setlists, but 2010 and especially 2009 just do not do it for me at all (emphasis also on "for me"; I know how much of a minority I'm in here and don't say any of this to persuade anybody that they're somehow wrong).

As for my favourite setlist, honestly I don't actually have one. Obviously for overall setlists, Lovetown is my favourite, closely followed by the Boy and October Tours. Individual setlists, though? That's too hard. Some contenders would be 1981-05-15, 1982-03-18, 1983-02-26, 1987-08-03, 1989-09-21, and 2005-09-20.
Click to expand...
87-08-03 in Birmingham NEC was incredible. I was there and only a few weeks after I still haven't found being released, they played "Spanish Eyes" and the crowd knew all the words. It was a very special night!!!!!
 
cathalmc said:
Don't be such a sanctimonious twat.

Perhaps the incredible people of Sao Paulo aren't U2 setlist anoraks. The audiences here have been far better than those in NZ and Oz. I was on the field at Melbourne 1, and the lack of audience response to Bad was quite surprising. People in the pit at Brisbane 2 used Bad as their toilet-stop song.
Click to expand...

Absolutely agree mate!! A lot a people sometimes forget that the band are playing for the 90-95% going to just one concert.

Also, I was there with ya in Brisbane and apart from that girl dancing by us, the crowd in the pit was a bit embarrassing to say the least as far as enthusiasm goes. But don't forget Sydney 1 & 2 crowds were night and day better!!!!!

By the way, check your facebook. Are you getting my messages? You need to upgrade your facebook messaging!!!!
 
Maybe the crowd was just entranced by the Claw Cocoon, rather than being ambivalent about the performance.

The more I think about it, the more I think it's really cool. Reeeeaally hope they keep it in.
 
I dig the Claw Cocoon for the intro and early verses, totally. But once the song opens up musically, the visuals should reflect that, in my opinion very drastically. They have the means; they can make this happen. :up:
 
Axver said:
So, after Interference finally has a love-in over Zooropa and everybody finds some common ground to rejoice and celebrate, U2girl mopes in here to be a complete fucking downer.

And you whine about us being miserable, critical people? Look at yourself.
Click to expand...

The post I reacted to fits the holy trinity of your criteria: moping, being miserable and critical. It also manages to offend the craziest U2 audiences in the world. And several people called the poster out on it. So stop throwing a fit about it.

Is it little wonder this band is averse to experiment in this way? Sao Paulo should be ashamed. The biggest setlist surprise U2 have arguably ever put forward, and no reaction from the crowd. That is disgusting, and a big part of why U2 don't bother treating the fans like this.

Shame.
 
U2girl said:
The post I reacted to fits the holy trinity of your criteria: moping, being miserable and critical. It also manages to offend the craziest U2 audiences in the world. And several people called the poster out on it. So stop throwing a fit about it.

Is it little wonder this band is averse to experiment in this way? Sao Paulo should be ashamed. The biggest setlist surprise U2 have arguably ever put forward, and no reaction from the crowd. That is disgusting, and a big part of why U2 don't bother treating the fans like this.

Shame.
Click to expand...

:applaud: Indeed!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
From Willie's blog:

'A splendidly left of field thought emerged about a year ago that somehow it felt like Zooropa might sit well in this show. Dec trawled through the multi-track last summer when we were trapped in Nice and some of the more interesting sounds and effects found their way into the ‘questions’ audio piece in the show (“What do you want…?”)'

So let me get this straight Willie...It was thought of before the European, Australian & NZ shows and we still couldn't have it. I hope this Spider Man play dies soon because that is what i'm blaming:angry:
 
Zooropa !!

dan_smee said:
Is it little wonder this band is averse to experiment in this way? Sao Paulo should be ashamed. The biggest setlist surprise U2 have arguably ever put forward, and no reaction from the crowd. That is disgusting, and a big part of why U2 don't bother treating the fans like this.

Shame.
Click to expand...


It's not exactly right that it had no reaction. It had the same reaction as UV or HMTMKMKM on the previous night. I was in the inner circle on both gigs.
It also got a great ovation in the end.
These songs are for die hard fans as much as OOC. The crowd reaction is different in OOC because it's an up beat song in a moment of complete madness that is the excitement of a gig start.
These gems are for the ones who sleep outside stadiums. I'm a Joshua Tree Tour veteran and it was a joy when friday night we heard ZOOROPA thru the PA. We were in Tears and hugging each other outside the stadium.
Also liked the way it was presented. It was like a secret gig. As if they closed the door for the casual fans and said: “this is our little gift for you guys”. That’s how i received it.
They were really focused on it. Minimal movements. The sound was......F**ckg awesome. No better word to describe it.

Sunday night was my little 17yo daughter first U2 gig. She was born in 93, the same year ZOOROPA was played for the last time. I couldn’t stop holding her in my arms while burning my lungs out loud and She's gonna dream out loud.
 
Tommy WM said:
From Willie's blog:

'A splendidly left of field thought emerged about a year ago that somehow it felt like Zooropa might sit well in this show. Dec trawled through the multi-track last summer when we were trapped in Nice and some of the more interesting sounds and effects found their way into the ‘questions’ audio piece in the show (“What do you want…?”)'

So let me get this straight Willie...It was thought of before the European, Australian & NZ shows and we still couldn't have it. I hope this Spider Man play dies soon because that is what i'm blaming:angry:
Click to expand...

:hug:
and thanks for posting his entry.
 
Reading Willie's diary about Zooropa kind of bothered me. They complain about not having time and it is a little insulting. We give them our $$ and they just broke a major world record and they are still tinkering with the show two years in? It is almost over. This has been the least cohesive/consistent tour the boys have ever put on. To me it is the same problem with Spiderman. You spent the money, you bought the toys and the rest of the show seems to be an after thought.
 
Iskra said:
Reading Willie's diary about Zooropa kind of bothered me. They complain about not having time and it is a little insulting. We give them our $$ and they just broke a major world record and they are still tinkering with the show two years in? It is almost over. This has been the least cohesive/consistent tour the boys have ever put on. To me it is the same problem with Spiderman. You spent the money, you bought the toys and the rest of the show seems to be an after thought.
Click to expand...

So people complain we dont have enough setlist shake up, and now people complain they are still tinkering?
 
Iskra said:
Reading Willie's diary about Zooropa kind of bothered me. They complain about not having time and it is a little insulting. We give them our $$ and they just broke a major world record and they are still tinkering with the show two years in? It is almost over. This has been the least cohesive/consistent tour the boys have ever put on. To me it is the same problem with Spiderman. You spent the money, you bought the toys and the rest of the show seems to be an after thought.
Click to expand...

ZooTV had them adding curveball songs with only a couple shows left. Ditto for Vertigo. Both Pacific Rim shows.
 
Iskra said:
Reading Willie's diary about Zooropa kind of bothered me. They complain about not having time and it is a little insulting. We give them our $$ and they just broke a major world record and they are still tinkering with the show two years in? It is almost over. This has been the least cohesive/consistent tour the boys have ever put on. To me it is the same problem with Spiderman. You spent the money, you bought the toys and the rest of the show seems to be an after thought.
Click to expand...

Can you post me the whole entry? The quotes I've seen say nothing about not having enough time...
 
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