Is an AB tour likely in 2021?

[Jarvio]

Is an AB tour likely in 2021?

I'd love them to, and, like RHMT, Acrobat is the song of the album that had never been played live before.

 

[PopFly]

In theory, AB is a better fit than TJT for the 'play the entire album' tour. AB has a better flow, with more big hits spaced out throughout the album than the front-loaded Joshua Tree. You can also very easily update the ZooTV gimmick for modern times, though I guess the JT's "no real gimmick, just a concert" works just as well today as it did in 1987.

Maybe U2 releases the new record this fall and tours it through a good chunk of 2018. Then they take
time off and return in 2021 with the Achtung Baby anniversary tour in the summer, followed by another new release in fall 2021.

 

[Martinski]

One can hope but also have in mind that they are in their 60's by then.

Sure Bruce Springsteen are chugging out 4 hr sets at 65+ yrs of age, but still. I'm afraid U2 arent as durable as E Street band and especially Bruce.

 

[mo786]

I agree that based on current performances, in 5 years I don't think they will be able to do it justice.

 

[georgemccauley]

After this tour is complete, it will be on everyones lips. Impossible for them not to consider it in my opinion. And realistically it could be one of the only things left on the U2 agenda to do

 

[Axver]

The real goal is a Boy 40th anniversary tour in 2020.

 

[Mack_Again]

30th anniversary for POP? no? ok

 

[TheGeekyU2Fan]

40th anniversary of War tour 2023 with another Red Rocks performance

 

[JDM111er]

40th anniversary of War tour 2023 with another Red Rocks performance

I'd much rather hear the War album in its entirety but, I'm probably in the minority.

 

[Bean_Counter]

Great post. I was thinking about this the other day too. With the success of this tour they have to be thinking of an AB tour and possibly even an anniversary tour of ATYCLB. I believe that would cover their three best-selling releases. I even put together a calendar of sorts-

2017 - TJT30 tour
2017 - Release SOE
2018 - SOE tour
2021 - AB30 tour
2022 - Release SOA
2023 - SOA tour
2025 - ATYCLB25 tour
2029 - Final album release
2030 - BOY50 Final tour

Admittedly a bit ambitious... In 13 years Bono will be 70 and I have a hard time thinking they would still be touring even then, but a fan can dream....

 

[BigMacPhisto]

The real goal is a Boy 40th anniversary tour in 2020.

I brought this up in another thread. I could see it being like a series of club gigs or just a one-off, but it's totally possible and would not surprise me. It's the album with the best chance of having it happen after Achtung Baby.

Not only have they played every song from it live, but half of them fairly recently and it would require a relatively limited amount of guitars and effects which Edge possibly being able to pull it off with just one guitar. It's not a long record, has no real strain on Bono's vocals and would take very little in the way of rehearsal.


As far as AB goes, it's certainly possible and updating Zoo TV for a world where people are basically becoming half computer with all of our current technology would be pretty clever. Yes, they're getting older, but AB is way easier to pull off than Joshua Tree in my opinion. So many tunes from AB have been played in recent years so there's little they would actually have to learn and I don't think people necessarily need a faithful 1992 show so they could bring back, say, The Elevation Fly and that would be just fine.

But AB should definitely open the show and then maybe close out the main set with other 90s hits and album tracks followed by whatever for the encore. This would mirror the front-loaded Zoo TV shows that featured a bunch of the album's songs.

The only two things hurting this idea?

1) They're going to wrap things up sooner than later. This band is clearly getting worn down and I don't think they ever even saw themselves taking it this far. In an interview here on Interference an eternity ago (go dig it up) they talk about putting out a few more albums and a third Best Of "because Walk On and Elevation need a home"....so I don't think they expected to be out here some 14 years later or whatever still doing this, but the long hiatuses between albums probably takes up a great share of the blame.

2) The general public isn't as into AB and U2 is also generally seeing a decline in their demand as a live artist. U2 fans love the album more than any other, but the general audience isn't as attached to it, so it would be a bit of a harder sell I believe.

I guess another point against it involves all of the choreography and such. Bono started just standing in front of a mic and singing on I&E for a lot of songs and now basically does that for most of these JT shows...so, how would he be expected to pull off The Fly and similar characters when he rarely does anything other than sing now? It's the sort of higher intensity show that I don't think they're capable of (hell, the current show is about twenty minutes shorter than what you'd expect based on past tours).

 

[BigMacPhisto]

One can hope but also have in mind that they are in their 60's by then.

Sure Bruce Springsteen are chugging out 4 hr sets at 65+ yrs of age, but still. I'm afraid U2 arent as durable as E Street band and especially Bruce.

It really should be noted by those outside of the Boss's fanatics that he basically lost the ability to perform dynamic music around the time of The Rising, maybe right after. Bruce can go pump out four hours of songs because they're just watered down now in terms of melody and vocal performance.

Now, I'm not saying he isn't still very fit and a capable performer, especially for his age. But go hear older live versions of these classic songs such as that awesome Born To Run-era gig and then compare them to how they're performed lately...it's like the melodies are just ignored entirely so that the songs can be played in the laziest possible manner.

U2 has been doing this as well. Bono does safer vocal performances now that he's rapidly losing range, etc. Only the 2000s-onward songs really still sound as vital (or nearly) as they have this century. Likewise, regardless of quality, it's the newest tracks that have sounded the most on-the-mark on recent tours and it's probably because if they could do it in the studio six months prior then they surely can live.

 

[Mack_Again]

Zooropa anniversary when