** SPOILERS** The soundcheck thread

[bobsaget77]

I agree. these are the three biggest of the regulars that I would agree with. none of these songs have ever sounded tired throughout their live history, nor would I have any complaints about revisions/etc

I would've said the same about Even Better but it feels really...off this tour. it gets good when they get onto the e-stage, but it really doesn't work until then I don't think. I understand it's the way they're able to transition to the e-stage, but I don't really think it works that well energy wise, or in the version they're playing, which worked perfectly on 360, but not so much here.

and I'd be very surprised if UTEOTW wasn't the last song of the first set. it works perfectly there, being "the end of the world" and all, which really fits the first set's theme. we've established the second set has no theme whatsoever, so I think the Fly would fit perfectly as the opener.

I think as others have mentioned before, The Fly, UTEOW, and NYD all have a common theme: not being completely driven by Bono. Bono's voice could be totally shot and they still destroy those songs.


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[nitebusnitebus]

The Fly into Invisible would be the best thing to happen to Invisible. It seems people get confused when it starts in the screen and don't really react until the big reveal. And any excuse to play The Fly is a good one.

exactly. The Fly's riff would immediately have people darting back to their seats. I couldn't think of a better way to start the second half.

....besides Zooropa, but we'll wait till the european shows for that discussion

 

[U2FanPeter]

Curious how this works inside the screen and without Bono on guitar. The screen songs work best if they are songs where Bono doesn't move much.

Is EBTTRT bumped? That could be 3 tours where the US got the song and no proper tour show in Europe has got the song since Popmart.

 

[nitebusnitebus]

Curious how this works inside the screen and without Bono on guitar. The screen songs work best if they are songs where Bono doesn't move much.

Is EBTTRT bumped? That could be 3 tours where the US got the song and no proper tour show in Europe has got the song since Popmart.

would be surprised if they dropped EBTTRT, it's their way out of the screen. unless they've found a new way to do that/are doing it less dramatically

definitely interested to see how it works in the screen. I hope we find out tonight and don't have to wait until NYC.

 

[bobsaget77]

Curious how this works inside the screen and without Bono on guitar. The screen songs work best if they are songs where Bono doesn't move much.

Do it Elevation style or open with Zoo Station. I think Zoo Station would be better inside the screen anyway, it'd be perfect. Zoo Station-Invisible-The Fly would be a great way to kick off set 2.


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[Axver]

If something were bumped to make way for The Fly, I'd hope/expect it to be MW. The Fly/Invisible using the screen, then EBTTRT to get to the E stage and bring up somebody to do Meerkat. No need for MW.

That would be a good thing, because MW is currently suffering severe blood loss from the amputation of the slide solo and needs to be put out of its misery.

 

[daygloeyes2]

If something were bumped to make way for The Fly, I'd hope/expect it to be MW. The Fly/Invisible using the screen, then EBTTRT to get to the E stage and bring up somebody to do Meerkat. No need for MW.

That would be a good thing, because MW is currently suffering severe blood loss from the amputation of the slide solo and needs to be put out of its misery.

I would love that.

 

[nitebusnitebus]

If something were bumped to make way for The Fly, I'd hope/expect it to be MW. The Fly/Invisible using the screen, then EBTTRT to get to the E stage and bring up somebody to do Meerkat. No need for MW.

That would be a good thing, because MW is currently suffering severe blood loss from the amputation of the slide solo and needs to be put out of its misery.

Crystal Ballroom should full scale replace MW until Discotheque can do the job as well. it's time for MW to go, yes the crowd loves it but the crowd loves a lot of other songs in the set too. if they've proven they don't have to play One every night, same goes for MW. I think most of us agree that it isn't working that well.

 

[U2FanPeter]

If something were bumped to make way for The Fly, I'd hope/expect it to be MW. The Fly/Invisible using the screen, then EBTTRT to get to the E stage and bring up somebody to do Meerkat. No need for MW.

That would be a good thing, because MW is currently suffering severe blood loss from the amputation of the slide solo and needs to be put out of its misery.

Dump Better & MW.

Wanderer intermission > Fly > Invisible > Crystal > couple wildcard slots

Crystal Ballroom fits the "dance" requirement left by MW and allows Bono time to search for his latest onstage victim to drag onstage.

Discotheque needs an extreme makeover in order to re-appear again. True for most Pop material.

 

[nitebusnitebus]

Dump Better & MW.

Wanderer intermission > Fly > Invisible > Crystal > couple wildcard slots

Crystal Ballroom fits the "dance" requirement left by MW and allows Bono time to search for his latest onstage victim to drag onstage.

Discotheque needs an extreme makeover in order to re-appear again. True for most Pop material.

I think either the Elevation or Vertigo versions of Discotheque would work fine on the e-stage.

I agree with you though regarding that order. let's think about this for Europe...

The Fly
Invisible
(maybe Discotheque)
The Crystal Ballroom
wild card 1
wild card 2 (maybe 3)
The Troubles
Bullet the Blue Sky / Wake Up Dead Man (snippet)
Running to Stand Still OR One Step Closer
With or Without You
October
New Year's Day
Pride

and then save EBW for a full band encore version maybe?

 

[PhilsFan]

Curious how this works inside the screen and without Bono on guitar.

You could, in theory, have the band playing the song in the screen while Bono begins on the catwalk, and have him ascend to the screen to join them during the outro solo.

 

[RoKKeR]

Please break out the Boston 2001 version of the fly!!

 

[brooklynmike]

Mysterious Ways isn't going anywhere. It gets the crowd moving. They've tried to kill it off several times and it always works back in. It sucks that they're not playing the slide ending but I don't think there's many in the crowd that notice it anyway.

Fly would be a very welcome addition- especially if it's opening the second set. I like Invisible but not many people know the song and the screen gag goes over most heads anyway. If The Fly led into Invisible it may get some traction.

 

[nitebusnitebus]

Mysterious Ways isn't going anywhere. It gets the crowd moving. They've tried to kill it off several times and it always works back in. It sucks that they're not playing the slide ending but I don't think there's many in the crowd that notice it anyway.

Fly would be a very welcome addition- especially if it's opening the second set. I like Invisible but not many people know the song and the screen gag goes over most heads anyway. If The Fly led into Invisible it may get some traction.

Discotheque and the Crystal Ballroom could also get the crowd moving. like I said, if they've proven they don't need to play One every night, they don't need to play MW every night either.

but we agree on the Fly/Invisible bit. that's going to be a welcome addition if it really does happen, people will actually get into Invisible.

 

[U2FanPeter]

You could, in theory, have the band playing the song in the screen while Bono begins on the catwalk, and have him ascend to the screen to join them during the outro solo.

How wide is it inside the screen with all the extra guitars/basses/drums? I don't think they cross paths at any point during the current show.

 

[Axver]

I think either the Elevation or Vertigo versions of Discotheque would work fine on the e-stage.

I agree with you though regarding that order. let's think about this for Europe...

The Fly
Invisible
(maybe Discotheque)
The Crystal Ballroom
wild card 1
wild card 2 (maybe 3)
The Troubles
Bullet the Blue Sky / Wake Up Dead Man (snippet)
Running to Stand Still OR One Step Closer
With or Without You
October
New Year's Day
Pride

and then save EBW for a full band encore version maybe?

This would be bloody great.

And that Vertigo version of Discotheque had so much potential. I can't believe Edge hated it enough to kill it off.

 

[nbelcik]

I love that damn song. Curious how they'll play it with just one guitar. It reminds me of when they soundchecked it in Seattle. The person who is very, very excited about this soundcheck is me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw25UrixFeg

I remember this, my friend went with me and wasn't a U2 fan and was wondering why I was so excited. Was really hoping they would play it that night, no dice though.

My bet is that a lot of cool stuff is gonna be saved for Europe, simply because I think that the band thinks they need to repair their reputation in America and the best way to do that is play the hitz.


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[cobl04]

Repair it from what?

This "rehearsal" is a cop-out. The Wanderer, great. But don't give us a fucking tease of The Fly and not play it.


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[Mack_Again]

cool stuff for Europe so possibly road-testing SOE songs...?

 

[YBORCITY]

Repair it from what?

This "rehearsal" is a cop-out. The Wanderer, great. But don't give us a fucking tease of The Fly and not play it.


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Agreed!

 

[popacrobat]

They certainly rehearsed the real version in Toronto, without any doubt.

They're going to play it at some point.

 

[LemonMelon]

cool stuff for Europe so possibly road-testing SOE songs...?

Maybe there's a song on SOE that sounds like The Fly and they were rehearsing it

 

[nitebusnitebus]

They certainly rehearsed the real version in Toronto, without any doubt.

They're going to play it at some point.

did they? no reports of this before

 

[popacrobat]

I haven't been on Interference a ton since I've been driving from Connecticut to Toronto to Connecticut to Boston to Connecticut to Boston and back, rinse repeat, etc.

But yes, they rehearsed The Fly in Toronto. Extensively.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

I would've said the same about Even Better but it feels really...off this tour. it gets good when they get onto the e-stage, but it really doesn't work until then I don't think. I understand it's the way they're able to transition to the e-stage, but I don't really think it works that well energy wise, or in the version they're playing, which worked perfectly on 360, but not so much here.

It sounds like a clanging mess and has no real energy as the in-the-screen trick works once, but not twice...they should just get out of the screen and perform something on the ramp without it, then head over to the E-stage.

It's easily the biggest disappointment of the 19 (or whatever) regulars that we hear every single night.

Mysterious Ways really re-energizes the crowd (especially since many are still just coming back from their bathroom/beer breaks). It really puts things into overdrive for the next batch of songs. Keep it.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

A: Songs Performed In Full Thus Far (44):

Boy: I Will Follow, The Ocean*, Out of Control, The Electric Co. (4)
October: Gloria (1)
War: Sunday Bloody Sunday, 40 (2)
The Unforgettable Fire: Pride, Bad (2)
The Joshua Tree: Where The Streets Have No Name, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For, With or Without You, Bullet The Blue Sky, In God's Country (5)
Rattle & Hum: Desire, Angel of Harlem, When Love Comes To Town, All I Want Is You (4)
Achtung Baby: Even Better Than The Real Thing, One, Until The End Of The World, Mysterious Ways (4)
Zooropa:
Original Soundtracks I:
Pop:
All That You Can't Leave Behind: Beautiful Day, Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of, Elevation (3)
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb: Vertigo, Miracle Drug, City of Blinding Lights (3)
No Line On The Horizon:
Songs of Innocence: The Miracle (of Joey Ramone), Every Breaking Wave, California (There Is No End To Love), Song for Someone, Iris (Hold Me Close), Volcano, Raised By Wolves, Cedarwood Road, The Troubles (9)

Non-Album: 11 O'Clock Tick Tock*, The Sweetest Thing, Ordinary Love, Invisible, Lucifer's Hands, The Crystal Ballroom (6)

Covers: Stand By Me (1)

* = KROQ show only



B: Rehearsed And Then Later Appeared As Snippets Only (3):

War: Two Hearts Beat As One (1)
No Line On The Horizon: Moment of Surrender (1)
Non-Album: The Hands That Built America (1)



C: Heard Rehearsed and/or Appeared On Control Room Screen (10):

Boy: An Cat Dubh (1)
October:
War:
The Unforgettable Fire:
The Joshua Tree: Running To Stand Still (1)
Rattle & Hum:
Achtung Baby: The Fly, Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World (acoustic) (2)
Zooropa: Numb (1)
Original Soundtracks I:
Pop: Playboy Mansion (1)
All That You Can't Leave Behind:
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb: One Step Closer (1)
No Line On The Horizon: Magnificent, No Line On The Horizon (acoustic) (2)
Songs of Innocence:

Non-album: The Ground Beneath Her Feet (acoustic) (1)

Full Band Run-Throughs: Running To Stand Still, The Fly, Playboy Mansion, One Step Closer, Magnificent (5)
Acoustic Only Run-Throughs: Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World, No Line On The Horizon, The Ground Beneath Her Feet (3)
Edge-Only Run-Through Confirmed: An Cat Dubh (1)
Seen on Control Room Screen: Numb (1)




D: Presumed To Have Been Rehearsed But I Have Yet To See Solid Enough Confirmation (7):

Boy: Into The Heart (1)
October:
War:
The Unforgettable Fire:
The Joshua Tree:
Rattle & Hum:
Achtung Baby: Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses (1)
Zooropa: Stay (1)
Original Soundtracks I:
Pop: If You Wear That Velvet Dress (1)
All That You Can't Leave Behind: In A Little While (1)
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb:
No Line On The Horizon:
Songs Of Innocence: Sleep Like A Baby Tonight, This Is Where You Can Reach Me Now (2)


E: Lyrics Appeared Only As A Snippet In A Live Show (2):

Pop: Mofo (1)
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb: Love and Peace or Else (1)


Totals:

Played In Full: 44
Rehearsed And Later Appeared In Snippet Form: 3 (47)
Heard Rehearsed and/or Appeared On Control Room Screen: 10 (57)
Presumed Rehearsed: 7 (64)


Album Totals:

Boy: 4 Live Songs (I Will Follow/Ocean/OOC/Electric) + 1 Rehearsal (An Cat Dubh) + 1 Presumed Rehearsal (Into The Heart) (6)
October:1 Live Song (Gloria) (1)
War: 2 Live Songs (SBS/40) + 1 1 Rehearsal Turned Snippet (TWBAO) (3)
The Unforgettable Fire: 2 Live Songs (Pride/Bad) (2)
The Joshua Tree: 5 Live Songs (Streets/ISHFWILF/WOWY/Bullet/IGC) + 1 Rehearsal (RTSS) (6)
Rattle & Hum: 4 Live Songs (Desire/AoH/WLCTT/AIWIY) (4)
Achtung Baby: 4 Live Songs (EBTTRT/One/UTEOTW/MW)+ 2 Rehearsals (Fly/TTTYAATW) +1 Presumed Rehearsal (WGRYWH) (7)
Zooropa: 1 Control Room Screen Appearance (Numb) + 1 Presumed Rehearsal (Stay) (2)
Original Soundtracks I: (0)
Pop: 1 Rehearsal (Playboy Mansion) + 1 Presumed Rehearsal (Velvet Dress) + 1 Appearance Of Lyrics As A Snippet (Mofo) (3)
All That You Can't Leave Behind: 3 Live Songs (BD/Stuck/Elevation)+ 1 Presumed Rehearsal (IALW) (4)
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb: 3 Live Songs (Vertigo/MD/COBL) + 1 Rehearsal (OSC) (4)
No Line On The Horizon: 1 Rehearsal Turned Snippet (MoS) + 2 More Rehearsals (NLOTH/Magnificent) (3)
Songs Of Innocence: 9 Live Songs + 2 Presumed Rehearsals (Reach/Baby) (11)

Non-Album: 6 Live Songs (11OTT/Sweetest Thing/OL/Invisible+LH+TCB) + 1 Rehearsal Turned Snippet (Hands) + 1 Rehearsal (TGBHF) (8)





Still Alive: 40 songs
Presumed Dead: In God's Country, When Love Comes To Town, Miracle Drug, The Troubles - 4 songs with no live appearance in over a month



Current Song #2 Rotation Candidates (3): Out Of Control, The Electric Co. and Gloria
Current E-Stage Rotation Candidates (8): Desire, Angel of Harlem, Elevation, Stuck In A Moment, Ordinary Love, Volcano, Lucifer's Hands, The Crystal Ballroom
Current Late In Main Set "Surprises" (2): Bad, All I Want Is You
Current Closing Candidates (4): 40, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For, One, Stand By Me

Rest Of Show: The same damn 19 songs every night...

1. The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)
3. Vertigo
4. I Will Follow
5. Iris (Hold Me Close)
6. Cedarwood Road
7. Song For Someone
8. Sunday Bloody Sunday
9. Raised By Wolves
10. Until The End of The World
......................................................
11. Invisible
12. Even Better Than The Real Thing
13. Mysterious Ways
16. Every Breaking Wave
17. With Or Without You (previously #20)
18. City of Blinding Lights (previously #21)
19. Bullet The Blue Sky (previously #17)
20. Pride (In The Name Of Love) (previously #18)
......................................................
21. Beautiful Day (previously #19)
22. Where The Streets Have No Name
23. closing song

Set balloons to 24 tracks with the appearance of a surprise track in the main set (Bad, All I Want Is You, The Troubles, etc.) and to 25 tracks with a three song E-stage rotation section instead of two or an extra closing track. The rare 26 song night includes the above plus an extra cover song in the encore.

There have been only three nights reaching 25 songs and one hitting 26 songs. On most nights, you should expect them to merely follow the 24 song formula which means chucking Bad or All I Want Is You into the main set somewhere...and if they're feeling tired, they'll just skip that and deliver a 23 song course.

 

[sharebear]

One fix--they did a full-band run through An Cat Dubh/Into the Heart at the Roxy rehearsal.

 

[nitebusnitebus]

I haven't been on Interference a ton since I've been driving from Connecticut to Toronto to Connecticut to Boston to Connecticut to Boston and back, rinse repeat, etc.

But yes, they rehearsed The Fly in Toronto. Extensively.

this is great to know. really hope it shows up in it's true form. did it sound like the 'normal' version (Vertigo/360 with modified drum beat) or a rework?

as for Mysterious Ways, really, like I said, it's fine but they can easily swap around "dance" songs just like they could swap around One/Still since they serve the exact same purpose.

also I realized the band could easily walk out of the screen during the "there is no them" acapella part in Invisible while all the lights are on, then the lights go back down and everything goes nuts while they're on the e-stage. the sound effect is left over, the screen rises, Bono sings the opening lines of Discotheque while he, Adam, and Edge walk down the catwalk and the disco balls come down, and the light show completely changes when the riff kicks in. bam. just like the Elevation version (my favorite take to date)

 

[Axver]

If anybody knows any soundcheck details that are not listed in the soundcheck field of each show's listing on U2gigs, just let me know and I'll add them.

 

[ben.heff10]

They certainly rehearsed the real version in Toronto, without any doubt.

They're going to play it at some point.

What else did they rehearse in Toronto? I tried to go and listen but they must've been done when I was there...


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