But... I actually don't get why they don't do stadiums in the US...
Maybe they found out during Popmart, that it is a bad idea to do stadiums in the US
Uhhh yeah, it IS a bad idea to do stadiums in the US and Canada... stadium concerts suck compared to arena concerts.
This is not a North America-Europe thing. If they played stadiums here and arenas in Europe, I would criticize the North America leg just as well.
As for the PopMart Tour, U2 put out their worst record in 1997, then did very little promotion for it here in North America (unlike the two recent tours), then went on a stadium tour with chairs on the pitch (their choice), then charged $50 a ticket, which was a far higher price than any other concert tickets at that time, then made fools of themselves by erecting an absurdly gigantic stage that completely dwarfed the performers (Rage Against the Machine looked like lost little boys out there)... hence, few sellouts.
I think the euros loved the PopMart Tour because of the McDonald's arch, that's what I heard.
Nowadays, why pay 80 euros to sit 100 yards away from the band, forcing you to watch them on huge TV screens that are obscured by blazing sunshine, when you can pay $49 and only be 40 yards away, at the very most?
It's amazing to me that these euros actually prefer stadium shows over arena shows, whether Edge uses a guitar on OOTS or not. Maybe it's because they can all smoke their lovely cigarettes all day long at outdoor shows.
The real question is why doesn't U2 do arena shows in Europe? Too few quality venues, I've heard. However, maybe the real reason is because of the no-smoking rule.
Regarding setlists, it is obvious that the euro fans can only handle the "greatest hits" package. Any deep cuts like "The Ocean" or "An Cat Dubh" are far too esoteric for their tastes, they need "With Or Without You" and "Still Haven't Found" to be happy. Familiarity breeds contentment over there, I guess.
Besides, everyone knows that U2 is just using the European tour as a warm-up for the 3rd and 4th Legs in North America, Oz, NZ, and South America. Wait until you hear those bootlegs, they'll blow away the predictable euro sets being done right now ("Crumbs" anyone?).
As far as these euro posters who claim that North America doesn't have GA in stadiums, please explain to me why my Green Day ticket for the local baseball stadium in September is GA...
Also, please explain why Live8 in Philadelphia and Toronto were not sit-down concerts...