So I went to my first U2 concert last night, and I'm still under its trance.
Saying that the concert was incredible does not do it justice. I told my friends today that even if I hated U2, it still would have been the best concert I've ever been to. And I really believe that's true. Of course U2 is my all time favorite band so it was all a little much to take in honestly.
I've always heard people say seeing U2 is like going to church, but that's bullshit really, because church is stupid and boring, and seeing U2 is anything but. Seriously though, the spiritual experience that people say they have at a U2 show is real and I felt it, and I loved it.
I don't even know where to start, describing the show. I was pretty starstruck throughout. The visuals and production values were amazing throughout of course, but the performances themselves were the real highlights. Fantastic stuff.
When it comes to the setlist, I knew going into the show that I would have a "holy shit, they're playing this song?" reaction to probably every single song, and I did. Though it probably wasn't the perfect setlist, I really did not care.
The SOI songs all fit in pretty well. The Miracle and Cedarwood Road, which I didn't much care for wen the album first came out, were pretty great live. Raised By Wolves, which I almost love, was amazing (the chorus, which I find the weakest part of the studio version, works pretty well live). Song for Someone, which I find the most boring song, was surprisingly not boring. The way Edge comes in now makes the song much more interesting. What was boring (only a little though) was Every Breaking Wave. Full band would have been better (isn't it funny that at one point it seemed like whole nights could be acoustic and now it's just one song?). Invisible was a great rendition of their best song from this era, and the harmony they added to the chorus was pretty sweet. The Crystal Ballroom was a fun surprise, and they actually nailed it! Hard to believe they've only played it once before. But they've played Iris a bunch, and it seemed a little rough. Good, but not as powerful as it could have been.
The old songs were great all across the board. Even the ones I don't care as much about. I like them, but I've never been a big fan of Until the End of the World, Even Better Than the Real Thing, and Elevation, but it was hard not to be 100% into them. Show stopping performances. I also think Mysterious Ways (which I still love) might be the most overrated U2 song, but it was impossible not to dance to their grooving rendition of it.
The other veteran stuff was amazing to see, obviously. I was really glad they played The Electric Co. I prefer Gloria, but I knew not to expect that, and I looove Electric Co., moreso than Out of Control. In terms of other songs that I was hoping for, there were some, but I kind of forgotten about them during the show. I would have loved Desire, but I honestly didn't even realize until after that they didn't play it. New Years Day would have been insane, but if I'm not mistaken, they haven't played that at all this tour, so I wasn't expecting that. Bad would have killed me, but I looked at the setlists and they played it a lot recently so I knew the chances were low they would do it, so I didn't set myself up for disappointment on that one. Speaking of One, I do prefer it to Still Haven't Found, but the latter probably made for a better closer. Also, I fucking got All I Want Is You! Great luck.
I was just lapping up every minute of it. Bono goes on a rant, oldies roll their eyes and I get excited! My first Bono rant! I actually love all of Bono's talking. Usually bands just say hello and introduce the members. But this felt more like an experience the band wanted to share with us, like they really cared, like Bono just wanted to talk and make jokes and tell stories. No wonder they always pull people up on stage. They really do love their fans and you can tell not just because they pull out all the stops.
Don't know what else to say about the other songs, except they were extraordinary. Oh yeah, they did play Streets. The Paul Simon intro was maybe not the best choice, but it worked with the stats on the screen which were quite powerful, and, anyway, when they started playing Streets all that faded away and suddenly I was in a room listening to my all time favorite band play my all time favorite song, and I kind of got choked up. Life changing.
It's kind of crazy how many of my all time favorite songs I heard live last night. I Will Follow, All I Want Is You, Pride, With or Without You, Streets, etc. I am certain no other concert will ever live up to this, and that is why I feel the need to see U2 again immediately!
What a beautiful day.