salomeU2000
The Fly
[SIMG] HTTP://bonovox.interference.com/reviews/lanoisedgethumb.jpg[/SIMG]
By Captive of EXIT
(Photo courtesy of: Andi/U2LAFANS)
Captive, Guitarist for EXIT writes an exclusive concert review for Interference! Remember to check out EXIT at the Hard Rock Caf? in Cleveland on June 13th, and at the U2 Fan Celebration at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum on June 14th! Check out the official EXIT website at: http://www.exit-band.com
There was much speculation about who the special guest at the Daniel Lanois show on the 5th of June would be. I had been planning on attending anyway (the two times I?d seen him before I was blown away), but one particular rumor had reinforced that thought. The rumor was that it would be Bono - instead, it was The Edge.
Sometimes I wonder why there's a part of me that loves this city in the strange way I do. It?s like traffic rivaling experiences. We rushed down to Hollywood, spent 15 minutes at one light at Hollywood and Highland, and eventually reached the Henry Fonda Theatre and jumped in line. There was much rejoicing with our favorite U2 GA line buddies, and then we heard the sound check. Until that moment I didn't really believe that I might actually see a member of U2 - but we heard ?I Still Haven't Found? bleeding through the walls of the theatre. The power of assumption is indeed pretty powerful... I could've sworn it was Bono I heard. When we were finally let in, everyone rushed up to the seats in the balcony. And, of course, our group ran to the bar in front of the stage. We stared at each other in disbelief, trying to fathom what we were about to see. Then even more so when a friend told me the box office informed her the reason they made us wait so long to get inside was because The Edge from U2 was inside sound checking with Daniel Lanois. What?
The show started with ?The Maker? (from Lanois? album Acadie) and I was in heaven. I?ve noticed his setlists don't vary too much, he sticks to the same basic tunes, but they are generally altered in some small way. Like ?The Maker? for instance - the first time I saw him, he played it on the Omnichord, and the other night it started out as a jam before he even sang. I could describe the whole show but I?m sure you're all thinking "So what about Edge?!"
(Photo courtesy of: Andi/U2LAFANS)
Ahem.
So, in short, the show: amazing. Brian Blade (Daniel?s drummer): always incredible to watch on the drums. He leaves a lot of space in what he plays, and he uses them in ways I?ve never seen before, such as tapping the sides with his sticks. Daniel?s hands: couldn't take my eyes off them. The way he picks, the way he hits, strums with his palm; and when he sits at the pedal steel he just becomes it. The notes bleed out of his fingers like his own blood. He states each show this instrument was his first love, and it shows.
Amusing note: Daniel sang a song with the bass player, who came over to the extra mic near the humble ?frontman.? Daniel tested the mic and it wasn't on, so he said to the soundman, "Can you turn The Edge's mic on?" A rush went over us, murmurs and some quiet yells, and my eyes just got bigger and bigger. It was after my friend Jeffrey said that the extra Memory Man delay on the stage had Edge's name (in tape) on it that I kind of actually believed we would see him, but I think it was at that moment that I realized that Bono wasn?t there. I do love the man dearly, but as a guitarist, seeing Edge would mean much more to me.
Late in the set, my friend behind me breathed, "I see him, I see Edge." I think my heart stopped, then compensated by beating ten times harder. Daniel started introducing him, saying he's had the honour of playing with so many of his heroes, that this friend of his he'd been playing music with for twenty years...The Edge. I first saw his beanie peek up out of the shadow of the side-stage area, then his sky blue shirt. His face, his bright smile. It?s funny, in comparison to Bono, Edge is very slender and tall. Next to Daniel he was so short, almost stumpy. He picked up a cherry-red Les Paul, and they sang ?Falling at Your Feet? (off of the recent album Shine). I tried to calm myself, to take in everything. Daniel, the bass player, the drummer... it wasn't happening; I was hypnotized by Edge. How I?ve missed looking up at his closed eyes, his intensity and concentration in what he's doing. His smooth voice came out during the choruses and I just stared. Daniel had on a pink wristband (the crowd's were blue) and that did not faze me, but I looked at it on Edge's wrist and it struck me as so odd - a pink wristband on his freckled arm. I?ve never seen him with a wedding ring, and yet he had not only that, but a very nice, big silver watch. His shirt also amused me - there were two silhouettes of policemen or something with the word "Rockers" in colour below. New jeans with nice fake-wear lines, new black canvas shoes, but it was hard for me to tear away my eyes from his hands to see these things. It was even hard to tear away my eyes to look at his face. His skin, his stubble, the crinkles around his eyes when he grins?and when he would open his eyes, that electric, shocking green, so penetrating, so intense.
(Photo courtesy of: Andi/U2LAFANS)
The second song they did is probably my favourite Daniel Lanois song: ?Stillwater'.? Edge picked up a slide on top of the Fender Bassman his guitar was through and?oh my. He just glided gracefully over the song, mostly single notes, and I was actually thought how "Edge" it sounded. He kept looking up from his own hands and over at Daniel?s to see where on the neck he was. There was such perfection in the notes he chose, and I felt each one all through me. I felt it stinging in my eyes; I felt it washing down to my toes. After each song he would look up, as if coming out of a trance, glance over at Daniel, grin, and put his hand on Dan?s back. I think it was after ?Stillwater? that Edge looked up and out at the crowd and smiled, which made everyone cheer more. He bent over and turned the speed on the memory man delay and I must be as big of a tech geek as him - because that excited me to no end. He placed a capo on the 2nd fret and I knew what was coming. "I have climbed highest mountains... I have run thru the fields..." The audience went completely mad. Such a gorgeous song, what a gorgeous version. It sounded so high in key to me and I realised it must only be a half step higher than I?m used to, but there was still a noticeable difference in how high Edge?s harmony was. And, oh, his voice. So soft, smooth and round. I watched his hands just as closely as I used to during the Elevation tour, I had to take in each second, because the performance didn?t last long. They hugged, Edge's head on Daniel?s chest, smiles all around. He walked off, with the trademark stick-the-pick-in-the-back-right-pocket move and was gone.
(Photos courtesy of: Andi/U2LAFANS)
Marianne Faithfull came up and sang a song too, as well as Daniel?s sister. Soulful, moving music that is real. I am still so high from this eventful, brilliant, perfect night.
For more pictures from the concert, visit:
http://www.u2lafans.com
By Captive of EXIT
(Photo courtesy of: Andi/U2LAFANS)
Captive, Guitarist for EXIT writes an exclusive concert review for Interference! Remember to check out EXIT at the Hard Rock Caf? in Cleveland on June 13th, and at the U2 Fan Celebration at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum on June 14th! Check out the official EXIT website at: http://www.exit-band.com
There was much speculation about who the special guest at the Daniel Lanois show on the 5th of June would be. I had been planning on attending anyway (the two times I?d seen him before I was blown away), but one particular rumor had reinforced that thought. The rumor was that it would be Bono - instead, it was The Edge.
Sometimes I wonder why there's a part of me that loves this city in the strange way I do. It?s like traffic rivaling experiences. We rushed down to Hollywood, spent 15 minutes at one light at Hollywood and Highland, and eventually reached the Henry Fonda Theatre and jumped in line. There was much rejoicing with our favorite U2 GA line buddies, and then we heard the sound check. Until that moment I didn't really believe that I might actually see a member of U2 - but we heard ?I Still Haven't Found? bleeding through the walls of the theatre. The power of assumption is indeed pretty powerful... I could've sworn it was Bono I heard. When we were finally let in, everyone rushed up to the seats in the balcony. And, of course, our group ran to the bar in front of the stage. We stared at each other in disbelief, trying to fathom what we were about to see. Then even more so when a friend told me the box office informed her the reason they made us wait so long to get inside was because The Edge from U2 was inside sound checking with Daniel Lanois. What?
The show started with ?The Maker? (from Lanois? album Acadie) and I was in heaven. I?ve noticed his setlists don't vary too much, he sticks to the same basic tunes, but they are generally altered in some small way. Like ?The Maker? for instance - the first time I saw him, he played it on the Omnichord, and the other night it started out as a jam before he even sang. I could describe the whole show but I?m sure you're all thinking "So what about Edge?!"
(Photo courtesy of: Andi/U2LAFANS)
Ahem.
So, in short, the show: amazing. Brian Blade (Daniel?s drummer): always incredible to watch on the drums. He leaves a lot of space in what he plays, and he uses them in ways I?ve never seen before, such as tapping the sides with his sticks. Daniel?s hands: couldn't take my eyes off them. The way he picks, the way he hits, strums with his palm; and when he sits at the pedal steel he just becomes it. The notes bleed out of his fingers like his own blood. He states each show this instrument was his first love, and it shows.
Amusing note: Daniel sang a song with the bass player, who came over to the extra mic near the humble ?frontman.? Daniel tested the mic and it wasn't on, so he said to the soundman, "Can you turn The Edge's mic on?" A rush went over us, murmurs and some quiet yells, and my eyes just got bigger and bigger. It was after my friend Jeffrey said that the extra Memory Man delay on the stage had Edge's name (in tape) on it that I kind of actually believed we would see him, but I think it was at that moment that I realized that Bono wasn?t there. I do love the man dearly, but as a guitarist, seeing Edge would mean much more to me.
Late in the set, my friend behind me breathed, "I see him, I see Edge." I think my heart stopped, then compensated by beating ten times harder. Daniel started introducing him, saying he's had the honour of playing with so many of his heroes, that this friend of his he'd been playing music with for twenty years...The Edge. I first saw his beanie peek up out of the shadow of the side-stage area, then his sky blue shirt. His face, his bright smile. It?s funny, in comparison to Bono, Edge is very slender and tall. Next to Daniel he was so short, almost stumpy. He picked up a cherry-red Les Paul, and they sang ?Falling at Your Feet? (off of the recent album Shine). I tried to calm myself, to take in everything. Daniel, the bass player, the drummer... it wasn't happening; I was hypnotized by Edge. How I?ve missed looking up at his closed eyes, his intensity and concentration in what he's doing. His smooth voice came out during the choruses and I just stared. Daniel had on a pink wristband (the crowd's were blue) and that did not faze me, but I looked at it on Edge's wrist and it struck me as so odd - a pink wristband on his freckled arm. I?ve never seen him with a wedding ring, and yet he had not only that, but a very nice, big silver watch. His shirt also amused me - there were two silhouettes of policemen or something with the word "Rockers" in colour below. New jeans with nice fake-wear lines, new black canvas shoes, but it was hard for me to tear away my eyes from his hands to see these things. It was even hard to tear away my eyes to look at his face. His skin, his stubble, the crinkles around his eyes when he grins?and when he would open his eyes, that electric, shocking green, so penetrating, so intense.
(Photo courtesy of: Andi/U2LAFANS)
The second song they did is probably my favourite Daniel Lanois song: ?Stillwater'.? Edge picked up a slide on top of the Fender Bassman his guitar was through and?oh my. He just glided gracefully over the song, mostly single notes, and I was actually thought how "Edge" it sounded. He kept looking up from his own hands and over at Daniel?s to see where on the neck he was. There was such perfection in the notes he chose, and I felt each one all through me. I felt it stinging in my eyes; I felt it washing down to my toes. After each song he would look up, as if coming out of a trance, glance over at Daniel, grin, and put his hand on Dan?s back. I think it was after ?Stillwater? that Edge looked up and out at the crowd and smiled, which made everyone cheer more. He bent over and turned the speed on the memory man delay and I must be as big of a tech geek as him - because that excited me to no end. He placed a capo on the 2nd fret and I knew what was coming. "I have climbed highest mountains... I have run thru the fields..." The audience went completely mad. Such a gorgeous song, what a gorgeous version. It sounded so high in key to me and I realised it must only be a half step higher than I?m used to, but there was still a noticeable difference in how high Edge?s harmony was. And, oh, his voice. So soft, smooth and round. I watched his hands just as closely as I used to during the Elevation tour, I had to take in each second, because the performance didn?t last long. They hugged, Edge's head on Daniel?s chest, smiles all around. He walked off, with the trademark stick-the-pick-in-the-back-right-pocket move and was gone.
(Photos courtesy of: Andi/U2LAFANS)
Marianne Faithfull came up and sang a song too, as well as Daniel?s sister. Soulful, moving music that is real. I am still so high from this eventful, brilliant, perfect night.
For more pictures from the concert, visit:
http://www.u2lafans.com
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