ascender_RS
Refugee
BTW, were Larry and Adam even in the launch trailer?
U2 to Perform First Concerts at MSG Sphere in Las Vegas
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my thoughts have always been this...
this is something that has been in the works for a while. the first post of this thread was from July of last year. If the news leaked in July, then the band likely was on board prior to July of last year - so well in advance of a year of the actual opening of the venue (which is still scheduled for September - as per the guy who's running the show over there in a press conference held in Vegas earlier last week).
it's also a venue that requires unique media... the screens are higher res than anything U2 have used before or would take on the road, and obviously of a much grander scale, shape and size. video for every song will have to be created unique to the show - think JT30, but without the ability to just recycle old video like they did for Vertigo. i'm sure it'll come out soon that the band have been developing the assets needed for this show for a long time. it's part of why i always took the rumor that the show was shifting to SOS based with a grain of salt.
so it's undeniable that this has been in the works for a LONG time - at least 4.5 months prior to Larry's pronouncement at the Kennedy Center Honors.
so i see three possible scenarios...
a) Larry's situation changed towards the end of 2022
b) Larry's being cranky and used the surgery thing as his way out of the residency because "he isn't on board"
c) Larry's situation is and has been known for a while and this is the first step in his ultimate retirement from the band - or at the very least - his retirement from performing live
i think I'd toss B out right off the bat. while i'm sure Larry is sometimes cranky? if there was inner turmoil in the band that would lead to a break up or at least a break? i think we'd have heard more. obviously larry is the quietest and most private of the 4... but everything leaks. if larry was truly not on board and delayed his surgery in protest, we'd probably know.
and if larry was holding the band hostage with his surgery and there was a 3 v 1 break here - it certainly didn't look that way at the Kennedy Center Honors.
so that leaves us with A or C.
first to A... that Larry's situation worsened late last year, leading to the change in plans. i think this is the most likely scenario. which left them with the decision - play without Larry, or delay.
i know a lot of people think they should have delayed - and maybe they should have - but, again - if larry really wanted the band to delay? i think they'd have delayed. if the band went against his wishes? yea - that would push it into option B territory, and I think we'd have heard of it.
why not delay? this venue is supposed to be a huge leap forward in concert technology. there's only one opportunity to be first. the venue also has the next few residencies already planned out - with Harry Styles likely being the second act. i have no doubt that Styles already has his dates locked in.
delaying likely would push into the 2024 plans for a new album and world tour.
i know a lot of people are saying "well just add a few gigs at The Sphere as part of the tour."
that's not the way this venue works. again - the technology used is unique to the venue. the video being created is unique to the venue. it is not designed for one off gigs. it's VERY expensive to create. they quite literally sent the cameras - which are designed specifically for the venue - into outer space to capture footage (https://www.msgentertainment.com/3-2-1-msg-sphere-goes-to-space/).
so it was a situation of do it now, or probably never do it. or at the very least push the opportunity back a number of years. which, leads us to choice C...
... what if Larry doesn't actually know if he's going to be able to tour again? is this the first steps to a retirement for Larry? or at least a retirement from touring? is he that physically broken down that he just can't (or doesn't want to) do it anymore?
should the band simply stop touring if Larry wants to and/or needs to retire?
did the unknown make their decision to not delay easier? (i.e. we could delay 2 years and still be in the exact same situation we're in now... no Larry)
there's so much unknown still - and the band has kept this pretty tight.
all of the usual "sources" who are typically pretty good with this have been mentioning that Larry was likely to play in Vegas... and then the announcement comes and Larry's out. the sources also were saying this is shifting more to an SOS style show with a nod to Achtung Baby - and that clearly wasn't true. but i had someone tell me the same thing, who i trust and wouldn't make shit up (and who told me of the super bowl commercial before it was public) - and they had the Larry thing wrong.
i'm sure there's a rolling stone / billboard / variety / NYT / whatever article coming out soon that will spell all of this out for us.
in the meantime... how 'bout some dates and ticket on sale info people?!?!?!
this is something that has been in the works for a while. the first post of this thread was from July of last year. If the news leaked in July, then the band likely was on board prior to July of last year - so well in advance of a year of the actual opening of the venue (which is still scheduled for September - as per the guy who's running the show over there in a press conference held in Vegas earlier last week).
it's also a venue that requires unique media... the screens are higher res than anything U2 have used before or would take on the road, and obviously of a much grander scale, shape and size. video for every song will have to be created unique to the show - think JT30, but without the ability to just recycle old video like they did for Vertigo. i'm sure it'll come out soon that the band have been developing the assets needed for this show for a long time. it's part of why i always took the rumor that the show was shifting to SOS based with a grain of salt.
so it's undeniable that this has been in the works for a LONG time - at least 4.5 months prior to Larry's pronouncement at the Kennedy Center Honors.
so i see three possible scenarios...
a) Larry's situation changed towards the end of 2022
b) Larry's being cranky and used the surgery thing as his way out of the residency because "he isn't on board"
c) Larry's situation is and has been known for a while and this is the first step in his ultimate retirement from the band - or at the very least - his retirement from performing live
i think I'd toss B out right off the bat. while i'm sure Larry is sometimes cranky? if there was inner turmoil in the band that would lead to a break up or at least a break? i think we'd have heard more. obviously larry is the quietest and most private of the 4... but everything leaks. if larry was truly not on board and delayed his surgery in protest, we'd probably know.
and if larry was holding the band hostage with his surgery and there was a 3 v 1 break here - it certainly didn't look that way at the Kennedy Center Honors.
so that leaves us with A or C.
first to A... that Larry's situation worsened late last year, leading to the change in plans. i think this is the most likely scenario. which left them with the decision - play without Larry, or delay.
i know a lot of people think they should have delayed - and maybe they should have - but, again - if larry really wanted the band to delay? i think they'd have delayed. if the band went against his wishes? yea - that would push it into option B territory, and I think we'd have heard of it.
why not delay? this venue is supposed to be a huge leap forward in concert technology. there's only one opportunity to be first. the venue also has the next few residencies already planned out - with Harry Styles likely being the second act. i have no doubt that Styles already has his dates locked in.
delaying likely would push into the 2024 plans for a new album and world tour.
i know a lot of people are saying "well just add a few gigs at The Sphere as part of the tour."
that's not the way this venue works. again - the technology used is unique to the venue. the video being created is unique to the venue. it is not designed for one off gigs. it's VERY expensive to create. they quite literally sent the cameras - which are designed specifically for the venue - into outer space to capture footage (https://www.msgentertainment.com/3-2-1-msg-sphere-goes-to-space/).
so it was a situation of do it now, or probably never do it. or at the very least push the opportunity back a number of years. which, leads us to choice C...
... what if Larry doesn't actually know if he's going to be able to tour again? is this the first steps to a retirement for Larry? or at least a retirement from touring? is he that physically broken down that he just can't (or doesn't want to) do it anymore?
should the band simply stop touring if Larry wants to and/or needs to retire?
did the unknown make their decision to not delay easier? (i.e. we could delay 2 years and still be in the exact same situation we're in now... no Larry)
there's so much unknown still - and the band has kept this pretty tight.
all of the usual "sources" who are typically pretty good with this have been mentioning that Larry was likely to play in Vegas... and then the announcement comes and Larry's out. the sources also were saying this is shifting more to an SOS style show with a nod to Achtung Baby - and that clearly wasn't true. but i had someone tell me the same thing, who i trust and wouldn't make shit up (and who told me of the super bowl commercial before it was public) - and they had the Larry thing wrong.
i'm sure there's a rolling stone / billboard / variety / NYT / whatever article coming out soon that will spell all of this out for us.
in the meantime... how 'bout some dates and ticket on sale info people?!?!?!
prbiker15
Blue Crack Addict
You’re making too much sense again. 
technically none of the four were in the trailer...
from what i was told the "look-a-likes" that were shown, hilariously, in the photos we saw earlier were there to stand in for the actual band members... and then were taken out via CGI and replaced with the real ones.
i think this is likely where the confusion over Larry playing these shows arose from - as there was a fake Larry present in Colombia - and yes, in the closing of the trailer you can see all four band members walking away (or, rather, the 4 fake band members walking away with their backs turned so nobody can tell that it's not really them).
but we DO NOT actually see CGI Larry in the trailer.
i've also been told that the invites didn't come from live nation or any of the usual sources, which led some fans to question the legitimacy of the invite until they started asking around. and it was on VERY short notice - like 2 days - to pack up everything and fly to Colombia. Apparently the person who sent the initial email invites even misspelled Colombia... opting instead for Columbia.
also super confused as to why this was done in Colombia when there are plenty of perfectly fine deserts in Nevada or southern California that could have been used. perhaps they thought it would be easier to keep it all a secret.
lost in all of this is the idea that every single person in the video is an actual U2 fan and not an actor... which i think is pretty cool of them to do.
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ascender_RS
Refugee
I did wonder if any of them were actually there given the lighting and how little of them we actually saw but it definitely sounded like them...
We don’t know what we don’t know. It’s conceivable that he saw a bunch of specialists, got second opinions, tried some rehab and ultimately realized if he wanted to be ready for a lengthy world tour, he had one shot to get the necessary work done. Hell, he might’ve had it done already and is actively rehabbing. We don’t know.
People point to covid lockdowns as the time he should’ve been seeing doctors and surgeons. Seriously?
I will say, yes, the optics are not great. And would’ve been aided by a statement from the man himself. The press release attributes stuff to the other three collectively as well as Edge separately but not a peep from Larry. Him not talking leaves an empty space for rumors to fill, and here we are.
People point to covid lockdowns as the time he should’ve been seeing doctors and surgeons. Seriously?
I will say, yes, the optics are not great. And would’ve been aided by a statement from the man himself. The press release attributes stuff to the other three collectively as well as Edge separately but not a peep from Larry. Him not talking leaves an empty space for rumors to fill, and here we are.
ascender_RS
Refugee
The band always keeps things tight - they always have done and always will. While things like releases and tidbits of gossip about recording etc does leak, very little else does.
I just think this is all down to real life getting in the way of work, as it often does. They've committed to do this (because why wouldn't you), but the dates no longer line up which is no surprise given how long its been in the offing... the best laid plans and all that.
If it was a case of Larry retiring, this would have been as good an opportunity as they'd get to do that and break the new guy in gently, but it's not that either. Unless of course like you say, his full recovery isn't guaranteed.
They're all about touring the music. They create the music so they can tour with it. If Larry's future health is at risk, I could see them carrying on. And as much as he loves playing, I'm sure he could retire quite happily given the incredibly successful career he's had.
Headache doesn’t want anyone else buying tickets. Do you assholes get that???? Presale today for headache only!!
Except for u2 every other band has done this. Some tour without any original members. Some tour without lead singers. Drummers are replaced the most it seems.
Chris Martin filled in for Bono in Times Square for New Years or whatever that was. It happens.
Not what we want but I’m excited still.
Chris Martin filled in for Bono in Times Square for New Years or whatever that was. It happens.
Not what we want but I’m excited still.
some Easter eggs i noticed in the video...
***there's a call back to The Fly performance from the original ZooTV tour in each scene with a fan in their home town.
in Ireland there's a cross stich that says BELIEVE in the background
in Brazil Call Your Mother is obviously written on the wall
in Paris a poster saying EVERYTHING YOU KNOW IS WRONG is behind the girl
and in tokyo, well, it's just the album cover.
***there's a call back to The Fly performance from the original ZooTV tour in each scene with a fan in their home town.
in Ireland there's a cross stich that says BELIEVE in the background
in Brazil Call Your Mother is obviously written on the wall
in Paris a poster saying EVERYTHING YOU KNOW IS WRONG is behind the girl
and in tokyo, well, it's just the album cover.
Achtung Ya'll
War Child
I'd love to know how these fans were picked and how the logistics of that all worked out. Very cool of them to do (not so cool not actually being there if that's the case, but whatevs).
womanfish
Rock n' Roll Doggie ALL ACCESS
Well it's been just about 3 years since the start of covid. Lockdowns and overrun hospitals haven't been a concern in a while, and Larry isn't walking into a random hospital to have his back and arms checked out. He can go to any of the best private Orthopedists in the world at the drop of hat. So I assume the first part of your comment is correct. He probably tried different things after the end of the last tour, and finally came to conclusion of what needed to be done.
Aside from that, I'm glad they are picking a very unknown drummer. I think if they had gone with a big name they would have gotten criticized for it. Like, Oh man, U2 is playing VEGAS?!!? And they need this guy to actually sell tickets cause they are so washed up... blah blah.
I am also happy that this Sphere deal is gonna get them back into the world of Achtung Baby, as they are also working on new material for the "rock" album. I'm guessing that album is probably pretty far down the track toward completion, but it would be great to have the Edge reenergized during the rehearsals and planning of the Vegas shows.
It would be incredible to get the new album soon, (I'm guessing early 24 now instead of the late 23 that Bono had been talking about). So maybe a new song or two unveiled in Vegas...
Achtung Ya'll
War Child
For what?
ascender_RS
Refugee
I did wonder that, but at the same time, was that a deliberate thing (i.e. there's some big clever reveal going to happen) or was it just a scheduling thing hence the voice over at the end?
Achtung Ya'll
War Child
Yeah my wife was like "oh you gonna go?" and my first response was "no way I'll be able to afford whatever the tickets cost."
ascender_RS
Refugee
The trailer is great! Love the little nods to AB in there.
But do only us
Achtung Ya'll
War Child
The trailer is great! Love the little nods to AB in there.
But do only ussaddosdedicated fans know there's even lookalikes in the video? What does UV even stand for?
Ultraviolet - one of the songs off AB!
here's the author of the NYT article that first mentioned Larry taking some time off...
https://twitter.com/geoffedgers/status/1597416047346274305
to me it all reads like a guy who knows the end is near - so he wants to take a bit of time to himself to heal up before hitting the road again (perhaps for the last time) with the band next year.
i have some questions as to why it took him this long to get the surgeries - which makes me think that maybe he's trying his best to get himself healed to go out again but that there's no guarantee it will happen (and the band all know it)... but obviously that's just speculation.
it's been mentioned in articles that the capacity of the venue is 17,500 - but that it can be expanded to 20,000 with standing room.
so i'm assuming there will be some sort of GA situation here.
the FAQs also list two separate fan club presales - one for those registered prior to 3pm eastern time yesterday, and one for those who registered after. and this is separate from verified fan.
so we'll see. i think things will be pricy, but not unreasonable. they saw the backlash to springsteen.
obviously what "unreasonable" means is different to everyone - but i think the prices will be in line with normal, non-dynamic pricing market rates... probably with a few sections/seats/rows WITH dynamic pricing. dynamically priced (RED) zones perhaps?
ascender_RS
Refugee
Well, that's the obvious choice... but why Ultraviolet?
I’m thinking that the band went into the studio to work on new Album material and/or do some early prep for the Sphere and Larry discovered his body wasn’t holding up.
Perhaps he thought the long r&r since the last albums and tours would help, but as to Headache’s “got worse since” take, this fits.
Thus, no new album as a full band and the SoS release which seemed more of a Bono/Edge effort. Even the book tour would have built in a little buffer time for Larry. They could push off albums or album tours of new stuff to wait for his recover. They could release an SOS and wait for Larry. But the Sphere, which needed a full band playing essentially Greatest Hits? That could not wait. There was too much at stake and likely also too much already done in terms of video and planning.
Could have also been in pre-rehearsals for this gig that Larry found out the severity of his situation. Or watching the Genesis shows. That’s with the asterisk that Larry has been habitually cranky over the years and there was always a feel that he had side-gigs he wanted to explore more.
I’m hoping he appears at the shows in some sort of capacity, be it on the screen or as a sort of DJ.
Perhaps he thought the long r&r since the last albums and tours would help, but as to Headache’s “got worse since” take, this fits.
Thus, no new album as a full band and the SoS release which seemed more of a Bono/Edge effort. Even the book tour would have built in a little buffer time for Larry. They could push off albums or album tours of new stuff to wait for his recover. They could release an SOS and wait for Larry. But the Sphere, which needed a full band playing essentially Greatest Hits? That could not wait. There was too much at stake and likely also too much already done in terms of video and planning.
Could have also been in pre-rehearsals for this gig that Larry found out the severity of his situation. Or watching the Genesis shows. That’s with the asterisk that Larry has been habitually cranky over the years and there was always a feel that he had side-gigs he wanted to explore more.
I’m hoping he appears at the shows in some sort of capacity, be it on the screen or as a sort of DJ.
Yeah my wife was like "oh you gonna go?" and my first response was "no way I'll be able to afford whatever the tickets cost."
It says , Inside, there will be 17,500 seats, standing room only for 2,5000 guests.
So possibly a small standing area .
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