Thoughts after listnening to the San Diego show!

[TheBrazilianFly]

After listening to all of the songs from the San Diego show I have come to the conclusion that this might be the most complete U2 show I have ever heard. It had everything, the aggressive rock n' roll, the gospel-like moments, the slow and beautiful songs, the epics, the classics, the rarities and 7 great versions of the new songs. I really liked the set list, the beginning is really rock n' roll, actually the whole show was extremely rock n roll, it had more visceral and riff based songs than ever (Vertigo, The Electric Co., All Because Of You, The Fly, Elevation, Love And Peace Or Else, Sunday Bloody Sunday, New Year's Day, Bullet The Blue Sky).

One of the reasons why I love U2 is because they are not afraid of trying new thins with their older songs. Even though that version of The Fly is not as good as The Elevation Tour version it's still pretty awesome. Starting with just the riff and Larry changing the drums tempo throughout the song and trying new things made this one hell of a special version, I hope they persist with The Fly and keep it like that but making it tighter. The same goes for Elevation! That was a great idea the way they played it. I think they want to try and change BTBS a little but don’t really know what to do, again this will be very interesting to see happening as the tour goes on. I loved the chanting at the end of One and the African melodies Bono kept inserting into Streets! Really cool!

The new songs translated well live but they still need to get the hang of it and with time they will definitely get them better. Love And Peace was fucking awesome!! I prefer Yahweh with drums and electric guitars and I hope they work their way towards that but still that was an interesting version.

Even though the band still needs to get most of those songs right there were still moments of magic there, specially at the end of The Electric Co. with Bono singing The Who's I Can See For Miles as the band kicking ass!!! I loved Edge during The Electric Co., The Fly and Zoo Station. When I saw that the band had played New Year's Day, Sunday Bloody Sunday and Pride I wasn’t even sure if I should get those songs, cause as much as I love them, I wanted to listen to the more unexpected songs but when I started listening to SBS, NYD I caught myself really into it even though the band didn't changed anything on those songs, I guess I got into it because they were into it and that makes the diference!

I really, really hope that The Electric Co., An Cat Dubh, Into The Heart, Stories For Boys and 40 make into the Vertigo Tour Live DVD cause thy are what makes this whole set list unique and I want to listen and see that band playing those songs many times, they were one of the highlights to me. I really fucking loved this show and this is just the first one!

Those of you who have listened to the show can post your thoughts here if you want.

 

[LMP]

Stories for Boys added onto Vertigo just made me smile, idk y, I knew it was coming but it just gave me this kind of nostalgic feeling inside ya know

 

[Dalton]

My guess is that An Cat Duhb/Into the Heart will not last for very long. It seems to lose momentum. I just hope it is still there when I see them in Phoenix.

 

[mikal]

i just got home from work an hour ago, so i just downloaded it. i'm at Miracle Drug right now.

this concert is fucking awesome. that's all i can say.

 

[lazarus]

I'm sure seeing Bono doing Sometimes was half the performance, but on the recording it comes off very boring. This is one of my least favorites off the album, but I love every song so that's not saying much. Still, I don't understand how anyone can dispute that it takes WAY too long to get going.

I was also hoping for a more powerful Miracle Drug, but that should improve as the tour goes on. But they really need to get Larry in earlier on Sometimes or it's never going to become the classic they want it to be.

And whether or not you like Yahweh, you have to admit that it's missing not only the guitar work on the alternate, unreleased version, but the beautiful electric sounds on the album. Sad, really. It was nice acoustic but lost half its power.

I'm still speechless about Electric Co. and An Cat Dubh. Really. It would be a shame if EITHER of these will be dropped, especially for something done a million times like I Will Follow, or even a great recent ressurrection like Out of Control.

Although I was hoping Bullet would be retired, Edge was doing some really cool exploration on this one. Introducing the sleep-inducing Hands that Build America, however, was a questionable idea. How about War (What is it good for?), which would also be a slight nod to Springsteen? Combining U2's loudest and angriest song with one of its most boring (even if you like Hands you have to see where I'm coming from here) is just a bad move.

I'm surprised no one's mentioned that the harmonica solo that closes the album version of RTSS is now at the beginning, and sounds really nice. I like Edge on the ha-la-la-la-dee-day, but really miss Bono's "hoooooooooo". Come on, dude, if you can hit that note in Sometimes you should at least try this one. It's just falsetto. Also, this is where the drums kick into a nice crescendo on the album version and this version just doesn't really go anywhere. Nice, but lacking its true power. My favorite song on JT.

It's really cool that this show was more on the rocking side. I just felt that of the mellower numbers, only One delivered on its potential, and that one is rote for them at this point.

All in all, certainly wish I was there. Hope by San Jose 1 it's up a notch or two.


laz

 

[Flying FuManchu]

I have to say that from what I've heard so far, U2 sounds good. Bono was singing pretty well IMO and I liked how changed some stuff (minor stuff) vocally.... I also enjoyed the little variations that Edge did for stuff like the Fly, Bullet, etc... that kind of stuff is what I like to hear. I hope they're able to do it for songs such as Love & Peace or Else...

Overall it sounds good to me in spite of the mistakes and supposed lack of energy that people seem to be complaining about. IMO it will defintely get better.

 

[RademR]

great setlist and great show, and thats just from the recording. of course they were off cue sometimes and they are a little bit rusty, but in a couple weeks they'll be at the top of their game.

Keep the setlist fresh boys!!

oh, im listening to Sometimes right, in the background u can kind of hear the audience sing along to the chorus. goosebumps....

 

[wasilefsky]

I was at the show last night in San Diego, and all I can say is that two things really impressed me. On the new albulm, my two least favorite songs are Love & Peace or Else, and Yahweh and I now have a new perspective on both of these songs.

Love and Peace or Else took place about 5 feet in front of me, and I was like wow this is kinda cool. When Bono put on his "Karate Kid" looking headband and started rocking out on the drums near the end, the energy seemed to be incredible!! He did this cheesy little marching in place routine and you can tell he was loving every minute of it, and so was the crowd!! I listened to the albulm version of that song a few times today and reliving that moment truly makes that song kick ass!!

As for Yahweh, I felt that the audience was fully captivated by that song. It was almost as if the band feared the song wasn't as powerfull as they intended it to be, especially when Bono started it by saying this song is not a hit. All I can say is that the end result was incredible! I remember seeing rumors that they would close with this song and I always said HELL NO!! When the song started, I think the entire crowd was wondering what they were about to play. There were a few minor cheers early on, but as the chorus came around, I think everyone in attendance was singing along, and it really was a powerfull sing along moment. By the end of the song, I had a big smile on my face in that it turned out to be a hit with the crowd and I really felt the audience connected with the band on a pretty deep level.

That's just my two cents, the rest of the show was incredible as well, I especially loved the intro!!

-Waz

 

[lazarus]

And one last thing...why does The Fly kick SO MUCH ass, only to ease off on the first two choruses? I don't get it. It's bad enough Bono's Lou Reed-ing the lyrics, but is Edge just standing there? WTF? At the end all hell thankfully breaks loose but they need to keep this one in overdrive for the whole song.

But, god, what an ending!


laz

 

[RademR]

Chills again as I heard the harmonica during RTSS...as the piano starts you can kind of feeel the buzz from the crowd like "are they playing RTSS??!!?"

 

[VertigoGal]

TheBrazilianFly, I completely agree with everything you said!

I'm really happy with this setlist, I love that's it's a little more rockin', and I hope we get that Boy shit in Atlanta. It's good to hear they're gonna be mixing up the setlists a bit...

Highlights for me: ElectricCo-An Cat Dubh-Into the Heart, One, Zoo Station, and *extremely surprisingly* Yahweh (!)

never thought I'd like that one...

 

[mikal]

damn. the acoustic Yahweh is actually excellent!!!

great job on keyboards Larry!!!

 

[RademR]

God, the end of Love and Peace is fuckin SICK

"The Fly" is so amazing as well, the beginning with Edge's guitar

I don't really like the way Bono delivers his lyrics though, how it's kind of slow during the verses, but maybe they just have to perfect it. Edge's guitar is more than perfect the way it is....damn

 

[bcrt2000]

drop beautiful day, add dirty day
drop new year's day, add exit
add please and discotheque-velvet dress

and then you'd probably have the best setlist EVER for any u2 show

i love beautiful day/new year's day

but i think they wouldn't fit as well on this tour as others that i mentioned

 

[joyfulgirl]

I'm sure seeing Bono doing Sometimes was half the performance, but on the recording it comes off very boring. This is one of my least favorites off the album, but I love every song so that's not saying much. Still, I don't understand how anyone can dispute that it takes WAY too long to get going.

I was also hoping for a more powerful Miracle Drug, but that should improve as the tour goes on. But they really need to get Larry in earlier on Sometimes or it's never going to become the classic they want it to be.

And whether or not you like Yahweh, you have to admit that it's missing not only the guitar work on the alternate, unreleased version, but the beautiful electric sounds on the album. Sad, really. It was nice acoustic but lost half its power.

Although I was hoping Bullet would be retired, Edge was doing some really cool exploration on this one. Introducing the sleep-inducing Hands that Build America, however, was a questionable idea. How about War (What is it good for?), which would also be a slight nod to Springsteen? Combining U2's loudest and angriest song with one of its most boring (even if you like Hands you have to see where I'm coming from here) is just a bad move.

I'm surprised no one's mentioned that the harmonica solo that closes the album version of RTSS is now at the beginning, and sounds really nice. I like Edge on the ha-la-la-la-dee-day, but really miss Bono's "hoooooooooo". Come on, dude, if you can hit that note in Sometimes you should at least try this one. It's just falsetto. Also, this is where the drums kick into a nice crescendo on the album version and this version just doesn't really go anywhere. Nice, but lacking its true power. My favorite song on JT.

It's really cool that this show was more on the rocking side. I just felt that of the mellower numbers, only One delivered on its potential, and that one is rote for them at this point.

All in all, certainly wish I was there. Hope by San Jose 1 it's up a notch or two.


laz

I was there and I agree with all of your assessments. Running to Stand Still in particular was disappointing. I don't ever need to see Bono holding a guitar during that song ever again. He needs to be out there at the tip of the oval raising the dead with those allelujahs, but instead he was on the main stage getting ready for the next song. Very strange.

 

[joyfulgirl]

And one last thing...why does The Fly kick SO MUCH ass, only to ease off on the first two choruses? I don't get it. It's bad enough Bono's Lou Reed-ing the lyrics, but is Edge just standing there? WTF? At the end all hell thankfully breaks loose but they need to keep this one in overdrive for the whole song.

But, god, what an ending!


laz

Again, I was there and I agree with you.

 

[RademR]

I was at the show last night in San Diego, and all I can say is that two things really impressed me. On the new albulm, my two least favorite songs are Love & Peace or Else, and Yahweh and I now have a new perspective on both of these songs.

ure dead on about "Yahweh", I have a new appreciation for this song, its simply beautiful...not to sound too corny. The crowd really seems into it as well.

 

[lazarus]

I absolutely LOVE the extra singing Bono did on Streets. It sounds very African-influenced, and it gives the song YET ANOTHER layer. Does anyone know if this is just ad-libbed or taken from something, perhaps a traditional African song?

Streets was a bit standard during Elevation (though still good), but like the POPMart version, they have once again breathed new life into their most powerful live song.

I can't wait to see this one in person.

Also, although I STRONGLY DISAGREE with playing One w/o the added "Hear me comin' love..." part, Bono & Edge trading "Whoas" at the end was simply sublime.


laz

 

[RademR]

to u guys who went to the show, what happened with the text messaging?

 

[joyfulgirl]

to u guys who went to the show, what happened with the text messaging?

Nothing. While everyone was singing 40 (how long to sing this song) and the band left the stage, there was a phone number on the screen that said text message your name to this number but there was no explanation for why or when we should do it (like, did they mean right then or later at home?) and people just started leaving.

 

[joyfulgirl]

I absolutely LOVE the extra singing Bono did on Streets. It sounds very African-influenced, and it gives the song YET ANOTHER layer. Does anyone know if this is just ad-libbed or taken from something, perhaps a traditional African song?

Streets was a bit standard during Elevation (though still good), but like the POPMart version, they have once again breathed new life into their most powerful live song.

I can't wait to see this one in person.

Also, although I STRONGLY DISAGREE with playing One w/o the added "Hear me comin' love..." part, Bono & Edge trading "Whoas" at the end was simply sublime.


laz

Well I wouldn't call Streets last night a complete disaster but it was the weakest I've ever experienced. At first I liked how they brought it back to Africa which is what the song is really about anyway but something was missing. Full lights didn't go on until towards the end of the song rather than the beginning and it was just ... so so. It will be interesting to see how it evolves during the tour, which it surely will.

 

[TheRat]

Listening to the recording, I can't help but feel disappointed. They sound like they're going through the motions, the set allows for few intimate moments. It feels like a normal rock concert, not a U2 concert. I've said i'm not their biggest fan before, but the Slane gig on DVD thoroughly impressed me. This whole concert feels detatched. Out of the song selection, the only thing that pissed me off was the uninspired performance of Elevation.

Zoo Station is fucking ace, though.

 

[joyfulgirl]

Listening to the recording, I can't help but feel disappointed. They sound like they're going through the motions, the set allows for few intimate moments. It feels like a normal rock concert, not a U2 concert. ... This whole concert feels detatched.

Thank you for validating my reality. This is how I experienced it last night.

 

[RademR]

The first time I heard it was in the stress of downloading and I thought it was pretty good, but they needed work.

The second time I started picking up things and thought it was real good.

I'm listening to it a third time and I have a feeling this tour could be one of their greatest!

When I first heard Miami Elevation's first night, I was a little dissapointed. Look how amazing the last tour turned out! I'm actually really into this bootleg.

 

[joyfulgirl]

The recording does sound good, better than I heard it being there because the acoustics in that arena suck even worse than everyone said it would. I had a hard time with the sound.

 

[ImOuttaControl]

Overall, I think this was an average U2 show, at least for an opener. I'll give them a few weeks of touring before I criticize too much.

For the most part I thought the show was great. The new songs were fantastic; by far the most rocking version of Vertigo yet and Miracle Drug/Yahweh were both beautiful. Electric Co! nuf said!

A couple of thoughts:

--The Fly was massacred. The into is awesome, but Bono just doesn't have the depth in his voice to sing the song in the same key as ZooTV. Either perform a great version (Elevation Tour version) or retire the song with some dignity. Maybe it'd be better to have The Fly/Zoo Station on a rotation?

--Does anybody else feel like All Because of You just doesn't in between One/Yahweh/40? That could be, IMO, the best closing trio in U2's history if All Because Of You were bumped up earlier in the set (and bono might actually be able to sing it unlike in San Diego). I have a feeling this will change.

--Although I love An Cat Dubh/Into the Heart, I'm not sure if it fits very well. I'm thinking about the non-hardcore fans here who probably find this rather boring. No reason for 3 songs from "Boy." Hopefully this will change soon and U2 will rotate 1 or 2 songs from "Boy" every night. (I'm thinking Electric Co., Out of Control and I Will Follow)

 

[PurpleSeven]

Wow - this is the most hyper-critical reviewing group ever assembled within the blue walls of Interference.

Here's a thought - it was the first night of what will be a loooooooooong tour. I betcha it's gonna evolve! Wow! Think of it - but then I'm sure we'll all still be bitching, but probably in the reverse of whatever the complaints currently are.

It was the opening night. Opening night of Elevation, Bono fell off the stage. Popmart became a complete trainwreck during Staring at the Sun. For Joshua Tree opening night, Bono had lost his voice.

In perspective - San Diego was pretty fucking good - at times great. This band is an evolving creature that only improves as a tour continues. They always do. The setlist will change, the playing will improve. Then we will be able to look back and say that the next tour isn't nearly as good as Vertigo was. So let's keep our eyes on the prize, and continue to tear it down in the present but build it up in the past! Hip Hip!

 

[Yahweh]

Let them be as critical as they want but if they can find a better live band in the world please come here and tell me about it especially since they havent played a full show in about 4 years.

Id like to see the people being critical get up on stage and do what U2 do which is really pure magic every night.

Comparing this show to other shows most have heard really is unfair like Slane, Sydney, Mexico or the like those shows were late in the tours, this is opening night. If youve heard other opening nights you will soon find this one to be the best one. Las Vegas Popmart wasnt great at all and neither was ZooTVs opener.

 

[drhark]

Hey would anyone mind emailing me the link to the audio of the show? brhark@adelphia.net

I'm going to the Pond on Friday but I can't wait.

I have a MiniDisc player w/ a Sony stereo condenser mic. Will i be able to get it into the show?

Also the mic is very hot and loud SPLs will distort it. Any clue on how to pad the mic without muffling the sound?

I'll send any audio I get to whoever can link me to the audio of the San Diego show

Thanks

 

[RademR]

drhark, you should find the audio files here:

http://forum.interference.com/f292.html