Joshua Tree Tour 2017 - Rumors & General Discussion

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Axver said:
I can't confirm this, but word is that difficulties with fitting the IE stage into Australian arenas played a role in killing the chances of an arena tour down here. Apparently Rod Laver would be fairly tight.

Then again they made it work in Dublin...
Click to expand...

Yeah, I guess it could be true, I don't know my Australian arenas. I do believe they want to do stadiums vs arenas simply because of the high cost to tour Australia, and amount of time it would take to play arenas to fully satisfy demand. I remember originally the Vertigo Tour was going to go to Japan and Australia in late 2005. It was going to look like this;

November
18,19, 22, 23: Tokyo - Budokan or Yokohama

December:
2, 3: Brisbane - Entertainment Center
6, 7, 9,10: Melbourne - Rod Laver
13,14,17,18: Sydney - Superdome

Obviously, they realized demand would not be satisfied by this, and chose to go the stadium route instead. Popmart in Australia flopped just as badly as it did in the US, and they were convinced they'd have to do arenas. The effects of ATYCLB and HTDAAB "elevated" U2's stature around the world. If U2 did the I&E Tour in Australia, they could conceivably do 20+ shows just in Australia and NZ, and STILL play for less people and make less money than they could by playing half as many shows in stadiums. I'm not saying it's right, just showing what they're all probably thinking. It's been 7 years since they came to Australia, demand will be there.
 
Headache in a Suitcase said:
Pretty high standard you require... Reporting and quotes from Live Nation reps, the band's management, and fiancial disclosures are not good enough for this guy. He needs the actual contract.

:up:
Click to expand...

I have the pdf of the contract where they sold the De Lux Merchandise Co. to Live Nation on my computer, a buddy has been doing some contract work for LN for a few years in Houston, sent it to me. Bono signs "PDH" and Larry couldn't be bothered to show up, had his attorney sign in proxy.
 
AndrewCowley said:
"I think we have a great strategy, a really solid way of doing it without it being a classic-album nostalgia show"

For mine this hints at rearranged songs. Cue a bunch of pathetic stripped back versions of some songs. They are going to botch it. For sure.
Click to expand...

BVS said:
I'm guessing you're fun at parties.


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference
Click to expand...

While I'm not the life of the party, I'd like to think I'm as fun as the next guy and I am also worried about a few stripped down versions of JT songs.
 
Axver said:
I can't confirm this, but word is that difficulties with fitting the IE stage into Australian arenas played a role in killing the chances of an arena tour down here. Apparently Rod Laver would be fairly tight.



Then again they made it work in Dublin...
Click to expand...


Poor excuse, cause PopMart squeezed into the Burswood Dome.
 
The_acrobat said:
Yeah, I guess it could be true, I don't know my Australian arenas. I do believe they want to do stadiums vs arenas simply because of the high cost to tour Australia, and amount of time it would take to play arenas to fully satisfy demand. I remember originally the Vertigo Tour was going to go to Japan and Australia in late 2005. It was going to look like this;

November
18,19, 22, 23: Tokyo - Budokan or Yokohama

December:
2, 3: Brisbane - Entertainment Center
6, 7, 9,10: Melbourne - Rod Laver
13,14,17,18: Sydney - Superdome

Obviously, they realized demand would not be satisfied by this, and chose to go the stadium route instead. Popmart in Australia flopped just as badly as it did in the US, and they were convinced they'd have to do arenas. The effects of ATYCLB and HTDAAB "elevated" U2's stature around the world. If U2 did the I&E Tour in Australia, they could conceivably do 20+ shows just in Australia and NZ, and STILL play for less people and make less money than they could by playing half as many shows in stadiums. I'm not saying it's right, just showing what they're all probably thinking. It's been 7 years since they came to Australia, demand will be there.
Click to expand...

I really wish that itinerary had happened. There were also rumours of 4-5 shows at TSB Arena in Wellington, which if it had happened would've been U2's smallest concerts since the Lovetown Point Depot shows. (But TSB Arena sounds like fucking arse, it might as well be a high school hall, so perhaps it was for the better that they didn't play it.)

If U2 don't come to Australia until 2018, they could get very close to the gap between Popmart and Vertigo - which at the time was considered to be an unreasonably long gap that stoked much of the demand to raise attendance from arena to stadium levels.

The big questions for any tour down here are: will they do Adelaide AND Perth, or if just one, which? And will they play anywhere in New Zealand other than Auckland? Adelaide has a very popular new stadium, and Perth is about to open a big new one, so I think they're a chance to both get gigs for the first time since 1989 (ZooTV just did Adelaide; Popmart Perth; Vertigo Adelaide; 360 Perth). As for New Zealand, doing two gigs at Mt Smart is easy, but Wellington is more central for the whole country - they haven't gone there since 1989 and the main problem is that the Cake Tin has a tight restriction on how many gigs it can host each year. And then there's the South Island, not played since 1993; Christchurch is bigger, but Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin is better suited to gigs and Cantabrians would make the trip down State Highway 1 in droves. It's surprising the UF Tour didn't go to Dunedin because it was still part of the traditional live music circuit in the eighties, and it's about time U2 played the legendary city of New Zealand music. More big touring acts have been going to Dunedin in preference to Christchurch since Forsyth Barr opened (and since the earthquakes).
 
The problem with our shiny stadium down here (Dunedin) being a realistic option for nz shows is the airport runway is too short for major bands touring gear to fly in so it all has to get bussed from chch. Extra travel time, extra cost etc - most of the people who've played haven't had v elaborate stage set ups. We do have a roof tho! (And a truly terrible wind tunnel).


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference
 
That bloody airport out in Momona sometimes feels like it might as well be as far away as Christchurch! :lol:
 
Adelaide Oval would have to be a lock surely.

Perth is interesting in that the new stadium is scheduled to open March 2018, but that could change and U2's plans are unknown obviously. Maybe they'll end up farewelling Subiaco, who knows. Remember last time they added a second Perth show on the same day as the first show went on sale, so demand shouldn't be a problem (12 vs 7 years shouldn't make any difference, they're both a long time between drinks).

If they absolutely had to skip one of the five main capitals then that leaves Brisbane, but that'd be monumentally dumb.
 
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It's really quite extraordinary that no U2 stadium tour of Australia has ever done all five major cities. But yeah, given they did two shows at Suncorp last time, no way they're dropping Brisbane. That was quite extraordinary - demand in Sydney that time around wasn't enough to justify a third show like in 2006, nor was there any serious speculation that Melbourne might get a third, but Brisbane jumped up to two despite only having one in 2006. I think Suncorp holds more people than QSAC too?

I wonder if U2 would ever consider performing outside of the five major cities. Their mode of touring Australia seems to be to come and go as quickly as possible. But I don't doubt they could sell out a show in Canberra, and in Cairns or Townsville. I'd say they ought to go to Van Diemen's Land, but where the fuck would they play? Bellerive Oval is the largest option in Hobart and I doubt it is well suited to concerts. York Park in Launceston has hosted gigs before.
 
thatsnotmypuppy said:
Yep Brisbane 2 360 was half empty. Still - that's 28-30,000 or so people... not bad...
Click to expand...
I think a bit more than that as they sold nearly 85,000 tickets between the two gigs... still that's a good turnout for a city that size. No way will they skip Brissy. I think we may actually get a FULL Aussie tour this time.
 
Can't help but notice that any likely stadium is still dead empty at the moment for the rumoured dates.

Also I forgot to read a few other articles on U2gigs, if the Vertigo stage was still around late last year, then who knows what equipment they keep that is more recent?
 
A U2 stadium show in Louisville? Well, add that to the list of things I never thought I'd see! I pretty much have to go to this... 3 hour drive, and since I grew up with family there, Louisville is like my 2nd home. Unfortunately I no longer have family there to crash on their couch for the night.


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference
 
Pop Artist said:
I had the same thought as well! Did Bonnaroo sell out or something? Would think Louisville would be within the radius clause for it, could also explain why it is just being announced now.
Click to expand...
Maybe... Might have had an agreement to wait a few weeks after Bonnaroo being announced.

But it is an odd run through the Ohio River Valley there with Louisville, Pittsburgh and Cleveland (OK Cleveland is just outside the ohio river valley but still)

If they were going to add another show I'd have put my money on the southwest. Odd that they ignored the region that is so intertwined with The Joshua Tree era.
 
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