U2 to Perform First Concerts at MSG Sphere in Las Vegas

[rosephile]

fuck. maybe we should have just kept buying CDs after all.

I do, but I am weird. I also don't subscribe to a streaming service.

 

[Irvine511]

Reading this morning that they’ve sold 300,000 tickets.

This does seem like a lot for a single city in a year when literally everyone is touring? Seems they didn’t anticipate this kind of demand? Or am I buying into the narrative they are trying to create to mask TM incompetence and mendacity?

Either way, it does speak to both JT and AB’s status as all-time classic albums.

 

[DeVaul]

Reading this morning that they’ve sold 300,000 tickets.

This does seem like a lot for a single city in a year when literally everyone is touring? Seems they didn’t anticipate this kind of demand? Or am I buying into the narrative they are trying to create to mask TM incompetence and mendacity?

Either way, it does speak to both JT and AB’s status as all-time classic albums.

That’s 15 fully sold out shows if the 20k capacity figure is accurate. You could argue “well what about the tix bought to resell” but based on still-unfulfilled demand, they would’ve likely sold at the standard face values. It’s too bad the presales shat the bed, b/c this would’ve been a great story for both the band and the venue.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

Reading this morning that they’ve sold 300,000 tickets.

This does seem like a lot for a single city in a year when literally everyone is touring? Seems they didn’t anticipate this kind of demand? Or am I buying into the narrative they are trying to create to mask TM incompetence and mendacity?

Either way, it does speak to both JT and AB’s status as all-time classic albums.

Everyone may be touring but lots of them are picking up the residency model. I think they’re realizing fans are willing to travel for the shows now.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Reading this morning that they’ve sold 300,000 tickets.

This does seem like a lot for a single city in a year when literally everyone is touring? Seems they didn’t anticipate this kind of demand? Or am I buying into the narrative they are trying to create to mask TM incompetence and mendacity?

Either way, it does speak to both JT and AB’s status as all-time classic albums.

I'd say both.

You could tell both by some of the interviews The Edge gave where he spoke about there being a natural 6 week limit because of the size of the building, and also in the way they released the shows - that they didn't exactly expect it to go THIS well.

It absolutely is a lot of tickets sold for just one city. I think the most they ever did in the NYC area was 240k for 360... and that was split over a couple of years (and two stadiums). On Vertigo they did 7 shows in the fall at MSG. Thats around 140k. 200k if you count the spring dates at MSG and in Jersey.

It's not like a tour where the overwhelming majority of attendees live within an hour drive of the venue. It's the polar opposite. So it's clear they underestimated the level of demand.

I'm very interested to see if this will mean more shows added after the new year. I think a lot of that will depend on Larry - and if he's healthy, I actually don't think they'll add more shows. I think they'd focus on the new album. But if he isn't - yea I can see them doing another run.

This is also the absolute best case scenario for Dolan and MSG as they look to book the next artist into that place.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

That’s 15 fully sold out shows if the 20k capacity figure is accurate. You could argue “well what about the tix bought to resell” but based on still-unfulfilled demand, they would’ve likely sold at the standard face values. It’s too bad the presales shat the bed, b/c this would’ve been a great story for both the band and the venue.

Well they did 17 shows... so either the 300k number is incomplete (because they're holding back tickets for the final fan club sale) or the capacity is 17,600 for these shows.

Or, more likely, the capacity is closer to 18-20k but they've got a lot of tickets held back for comps... band, vip tix, high rollers, etc.

 

[DeVaul]

This is also the absolute best case scenario for Dolan and MSG as they look to book the next artist into that place.

Challenge is finding the act with broad international appeal that people will spend $$$ to travel to AND buy tix for, en masse.

Perish the thought, but does K-Pop skew old enough?

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Challenge is finding the act with broad international appeal that people will spend $$$ to travel to AND buy tix for, en masse.

Perish the thought, but does K-Pop skew old enough?

BTS sold out 4 nights at Allegiant Stadium in, like, 10 seconds.

 

[prbiker15]

Verified Fan restriction has been removed from show pages, I can see Official Platinum tickets now.

 

[mikal]

Welp, this Pearl Jam onsale is going about as well as the U2 one.

 

[DeVaul]

BTS sold out 4 nights at Allegiant Stadium in, like, 10 seconds.

Right.

 

[LadySpinHead]

Welp, this Pearl Jam onsale is going about as well as the U2 one.

Same. Waitlisted for VF, but I’m not a 10 club member so I guess I lose

 

[mikal]

Same. Waitlisted for VF, but I’m not a 10 club member so I guess I lose

I'm following it on Reddit for those who did get codes, and they are getting fucked right now!

 

[lazarus]

I really feel for anyone who wanted tickets and didn’t have their numbers come around. I got lucky, and got 2 $500 P1s to a Saturday night show for my girlfriend and I, and it’ll be her first U2 show, so I’m grateful.

Needed a huge miracle this morning to get my brother 2 tickets for the same show, but was able to through the verified fan craziness. Both he and my girlfriend were verified waitlisted. Ticketmaster didn’t recognize my email address at first, so after toggling back and forth for 5 minutes between a mobile browser and their mobile app, and signing out of both and re-signing in, even though I’d been following every technical instruction accurately, I was able to log in. My 10/21 show appeared totally sold out, but I kept refreshing for another ten minutes anyway, and finally a fresh batch of tickets dropped and I snagged a pair.

I’ve said this many times over the years during these periods where fans are upset when shows sell out, and I hope it doesn’t touch a nerve, but I actually like that U2 doesn’t give me much “extra credit” for being a diehard fan since the 80s. Keeping out the scalpers (or at least trying to) is admirable, but it’s another to tell a brand new fan who just got into the band from SOS, “hey sorry missy, go to the back of the line, I’ve been a fan for decades.” Vaguely reminds me of anti-immigrant sentiment, if I can say that without being melodramatic, what’s the line? There’s no them, there’s only us.

A lot of people don't want to hear this, and it shouldn't be the way things work, but yeah, with these online systems sometimes you gotta keep bashing your head against the door before getting your way in, and it can take a while using trial and error. When you're in college or working from home (or unemployed) and have the time to do this, it seems almost fun and there's a big sense of accomplishment when it works. Sadly many of us aren't able to devote that kind of uninterrupted attack at a specific sale time these days so it's frustrating.

Also, I kind of agree on the relative democracy of being able to get tickets--back in the day, if you were a big enough fan, new or longtime, you could get in line for tickets and participate in the first come, first served system. And before scalping was a big business, sending all their agents to get in line, that worked well.

My first U2 show was the little arena test run of ZOOTV at Rosemont Horizon in Chicago. . I was 16. i tried to call in for tickets for hours but found out it sold out in 30 seconds. I paid double to a guy that had tickets. 50 bucks.

It changed my life. Got to briefly meet Bono and Larry before the show. The opening acts were pixies and The Sugarcubes.. the next year I slept out on the sidewalk for three days to get tickets for zoo TV outside broadcast. I was third in line and got 10th row Center. And I would love to go see this show but life, money, and distance. keep me from it. I can’t wait to hear the reviews from all of you guys..

I was a recently new fan in the Chicago suburbs when the indoor Zoo leg went on sale, and had no luck. I'm pretty sure me and a friend drove to the Horizon the night of the show trying to get tickets outside and didn't succeed there either.

When the Outside Broadcast went on sale, I was actually out of town in Canada on a family trip and couldn't get in line for tickets, so I was screwed. But a friend of mine who had started scalping tickets (or selling to scalpers, more accurately) finally agreed to give me 2 at face value after some pressuring. They were near the back of the seating area at World Music Theatre, like Row W or something, but I didn't care. It was the middle show of a 3 night stand and I would find out later the band was hungover from partying the night before and considered it a subpar show, but I certainly didn't notice. Almost went back the final night as I think lawn tix were still available, but I couldn't persuade my roommate to go.

I probably told this story before.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

This event may include immersive elements such as seat haptics, movement sensations, flashing lights, intense lighting, visual effects, loud noises, and atmospheric simulations. Such elements may aggravate certain medical or physical conditions, and guests should take into consideration these elements, including if they have a history of discomfort or physical symptoms when experiencing them. Visit the Sphere FAQs here and the U2 event page on thespherevegas.com closer to your event date for the latest event information.

good news, we'll finally be able to smell bono's farts in real time

 

[lazarus]

This is half a year old, but it’s a pretty good article about how Ticketbastard can’t (and really has no motivation to) stop resellers. The only way would be to disallow ALL ticket transfers like they did for GA. While I’m a little surprised U2 mgmt didn’t insist on it for seats (or maybe they did), I can see why TM wouldn’t budge on it. They sell all of the inventory this way, and the risk of not selling out is almost entirely eliminated.

Well, people need to be able to sell tickets if they can't go due to unforeseen circumstances. But they certainly don't need to make a profit off of it. Why not implement the "face value only" stipulation for ALL tickets? Additionally, you can have every resale go through the TM system so you can't just transfer them to a "friend", making it all anonymous.

I'd like to know the drawback here, aside from "but...but...we must preserve Capitalism!!"

 

[lazarus]

This event may include immersive elements such as seat haptics, movement sensations, flashing lights, intense lighting, visual effects, loud noises, and atmospheric simulations. Such elements may aggravate certain medical or physical conditions, and guests should take into consideration these elements, including if they have a history of discomfort or physical symptoms when experiencing them.

"20,000 U2 Fans Freeze to Death After Immersive System Malfunctions at Debut MSG Sphere Concert"

Glad my tickets are for Night #2!

 

[TinKnight]

i would like to see the amount of verified fans with u2 related tattoos.

and again, i am fully prepared to take a giant doodie on ticketmaster's computers.

Oh, you say, their whole online infrastructure is on AWS, you're not actually taking a shit on anything of value

its about the fucking principle guys

showing the stupid little 24 year old "full-stack" engineer that the people have the power.

eat all the snacks in their corporate office

get buff using their in office gym equipment, now we can take bigger shits on more computers.

this is foolproof and genius ngl

 

[TinKnight]

Well, people need to be able to sell tickets if they can't go due to unforeseen circumstances. But they certainly don't need to make a profit off of it. Why not implement the "face value only" stipulation for ALL tickets? Additionally, you can have every resale go through the TM system so you can't just transfer them to a "friend", making it all anonymous.

I'd like to know the drawback here, aside from "but...but...we must preserve Capitalism!!"

Simple really, Ticketmaster gets a cut of the resale and have a vested interest in keeping the system as it is. They get to potential to sell the same ticket twice, and the second time can be much higher than the band's management asked for.

 

[prbiker15]

good news, we'll finally be able to smell bono's farts in real time

U2 4D without the glasses!

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

This is outside my office. Taunting me.

 

[mikal]

This is outside my office. Taunting me.

View attachment 13679

Confidently, I have a frisbee golf course off of my home office also tempting me.

 

[Hewson]

Pepperidge Farm remembers…
View attachment 13678

Ha.
Think I only have like 5 of them.

 

[lazarus]

Simple really, Ticketmaster gets a cut of the resale and have a vested interest in keeping the system as it is. They get to potential to sell the same ticket twice, and the second time can be much higher than the band's management asked for.

Well, no. That's what "face value" would mean. The fees and taxes would be passed along to the next person. No additional charges.

This isn't hard to implement.

 

[Hewson]

Challenge is finding the act with broad international appeal that people will spend $$$ to travel to AND buy tix for, en masse.

Perish the thought, but does K-Pop skew old enough?

BTS sold out 4 nights at Allegiant Stadium in, like, 10 seconds.

But would a show whose target audience's average age is like 14 or whatever work in Vegas for a residency?
Certainly, BTS is/would be a hot ticket on tour, but could you expect their fans to fly to the desert for the shows?

 

[ferball415]

Did anyone catch this height of rapaciousness?

 

[rosephile]

That's the "hey, wanna buy me a fancy-ish car?" price.

 

[ferball415]

But would a show whose target audience's average age is like 14 or whatever work in Vegas for a residency?
Certainly, BTS is/would be a hot ticket on tour, but could you expect their fans to fly to the desert for the shows?

Never underestimate loaded/indulgent mommies & daddies.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

But would a show whose target audience's average age is like 14 or whatever work in Vegas for a residency?
Certainly, BTS is/would be a hot ticket on tour, but could you expect their fans to fly to the desert for the shows?

yeaaa I think so.

there are more events aimed at families than you think - even though the strip hotels certainly aren't designed for families. the saddest shit you'll see is a family pushing a stroller through a casino at 1 am. it's not common, but you'll see it. the fuck are you doing people?

there are a TON of travel sporting events held in Vegas each summer. Vegas is the epicenter of the AAU basketball world from late July to early August.

they could put BTS or Taylor Swift on the moon and people would find a way to make it work.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

$94,000 Holy crap how is someone even allowed to list a ticket for that price? For 94 grand U2 better be setting up in my backyard and playing for five hours straight. Setlist written by me.

And no buffet for Bono, they bring their own food and drinks.