dsmith2904
ONE love, blood, life
08th November San Francisco - Oakland Arena
Please post all reviews of the November 8th show here.
Please post all reviews of the November 8th show here.
08th November Oakland - Oakland Arena
- Thread starter dsmith2904
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone that follows U2.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
ironicninja
Babyface
- Joined
- Nov 8, 2005
- Messages
- 4
I don't have anything to compare it to, because I've not really been to an arena show before. I'd say the sound was a B-, but improved gradually (or maybe I just got used to it) but I was on the floor
lol I know huh. I'm going to edit the title.
Oakland Experience
Newbie to the board, but old time Propaganda person - have been seeing them since The Conspiracy of Hope Tour in 1986 (when I was 16! Time flies!).
Line flow = Okay. Got there at 4PM since randomization makes it pointless to get there at 6AM (which we did for 8 shows on Elevation to get into the heart). Crowd ok, line control reasonable. Oakland Arena staff is not as good as some, but better than others - get there before 3PM, I'd say.
We didn't get tickets for San Jose due to U2.com fiasco so this was our first show on the tour, and it was AMAZING. I stay away from the boards so I can just experience it with wide eyed wonder, and they totally blew our minds with their personal, sincere performances.
Bono's voice sounded like it was going, going, gone at the start of the set, but either he was croaky and finding his feet or just saving it, because the stops really got pulled out and even we, old, jaded crusty fans, were in tears a few times - not just once! Everything started to gel around the 3rd or 4th song, and everyone around us (and we) started freaking out and screaming with joyful excitement.
It's been interesting to see them go through rage and protest to activist "culture jamming" to resolution and peace - the media onslaught redux from ZooTV is now so much about "love yourself" as opposed to "it's your fault you complacent jerks" that I think it does a TON more to help empower, engage and inspire folks, and that kind of personal deep compassion is evident in the much more personal "vibe" of the show. I felt like I was, yes, at a "RAWK" show, but I felt very personally like I was being embraced, not accused, and that is the #1 thing that will make me walk with kindness and open up more and not give up, which is really the goal of everything.
We said, "It's like church that's so good you only have to go once every 4 years because the positive effects last that long".
I just wish I knew how to say "thank you" better, because sitting here crying feeling overwhelmed with gratitude kind of bottlenecks my ability to be eloquent.
Newbie to the board, but old time Propaganda person - have been seeing them since The Conspiracy of Hope Tour in 1986 (when I was 16! Time flies!).
Line flow = Okay. Got there at 4PM since randomization makes it pointless to get there at 6AM (which we did for 8 shows on Elevation to get into the heart). Crowd ok, line control reasonable. Oakland Arena staff is not as good as some, but better than others - get there before 3PM, I'd say.
We didn't get tickets for San Jose due to U2.com fiasco so this was our first show on the tour, and it was AMAZING. I stay away from the boards so I can just experience it with wide eyed wonder, and they totally blew our minds with their personal, sincere performances.
Bono's voice sounded like it was going, going, gone at the start of the set, but either he was croaky and finding his feet or just saving it, because the stops really got pulled out and even we, old, jaded crusty fans, were in tears a few times - not just once! Everything started to gel around the 3rd or 4th song, and everyone around us (and we) started freaking out and screaming with joyful excitement.
It's been interesting to see them go through rage and protest to activist "culture jamming" to resolution and peace - the media onslaught redux from ZooTV is now so much about "love yourself" as opposed to "it's your fault you complacent jerks" that I think it does a TON more to help empower, engage and inspire folks, and that kind of personal deep compassion is evident in the much more personal "vibe" of the show. I felt like I was, yes, at a "RAWK" show, but I felt very personally like I was being embraced, not accused, and that is the #1 thing that will make me walk with kindness and open up more and not give up, which is really the goal of everything.
We said, "It's like church that's so good you only have to go once every 4 years because the positive effects last that long".
I just wish I knew how to say "thank you" better, because sitting here crying feeling overwhelmed with gratitude kind of bottlenecks my ability to be eloquent.
ironicninja
Babyface
- Joined
- Nov 8, 2005
- Messages
- 4
There was an unofficial, fan-organized numbering system in the line. You signed your name on a list, and then they gave you a sharpie to write your number on your hand. Nobody was checking it when it was time to go in, I think it was just in case a dispute came up. I was around #250 when I got there at 2:30pm. Still was able to get close to the outer edge of the ellipse, about 4 people back.
KeyserSoze
Babyface
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2005
- Messages
- 9
Anyone know the setlist to Oakland #1 yet?
jfk2005
Babyface
I am still basking in the excitement of this great show. It was totally explosive. Bono's voice was great and he was soo excited throughout the whole show. I was telling my friends that it was like Bono on ecstacy or something, ha ha, because he was very lovey, smiley and thankful to the fans all the way through. The woman from Kenya that he pulled up gave him a piggyback ride across the stage! That was so cool to watch. When they played the snippet of One Tree Hill my heart skipped a beat. It didn't "feel" like a snippet to me, which was cool, the moment sort of went in slow motion. At the beginning of One, Bono thanked Lars Ulrich and Sean Penn for their help with the One Campaign. Sean Penn was in front of me and I saw him pretty much go like this 
with his arm in the air after he heard his name. 
with his arm in the air after he heard his name.
Last edited:
U2SJ
Refugee
Here is a review in the Oakland Tribune!
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune
Bono, front and center
Another anthemic performance from U2, and lead singer, of course
By Jim Harrington, CONTRIBUTOR
Bono performs with Adam Clayton and The Edge Tuesday night at the Oakland Arena. (Mike Lucia - Staff)
BONO is no genius.
It's not as if he was the one who came up with the Theory of Relativity, penned "Ulysses" or created the peanut butter cup.
He's a rock'n' roll singer who seems to operate by one simple motto: Do the next right thing onstage. With that principle in mind, the leader of U2 will hand the microphone to a young girl in the crowd, dance with a passionate fan during a big number, shake hands with a guy in the front row or, really, whatever else is the appropriate move at any particular moment.
Yet, if that motto is so simple, one has to ask why there aren't more performers who live by it? Good question.
Although he's best known for putting on big stage shows and singing big rock anthems, Bono proved yet again on Tuesday night at the Oakland Arena that the real reason he is rightfully considered to be the greatest front man in rock is because he does all the little things right.
Talk to the fans who attended Tuesday's show, which kicked off a two-night stand at the venue, and I bet the first thing they mention isn't the cool light show, the stage with the
heart-shaped walkway that extended halfway across the arena floor or the great version of the anthem "Pride (In the Name of Love)." I'm willing to wager that they instead bring up how Bono carried a woman on his back during "Mysterious Ways" or let a young girl lead a chant of "No More" in "Sunday Bloody Sunday."
In all, it was another winning chapter in the book that some are calling "The Biggest Week in Bay Area Rock'n' Roll History." U2 was at least as good Tuesday as Paul McCartney had
been at the HP Pavilion in San Jose Monday. And the Rolling Stones, who play Sunday and Tuesday at SBC Park in San Francisco,
In perfect rock star form, U2's Bono filled the stage - with both big and small gestures - in concert Tuesday night at the Oakland Arena. (Mike Lucia - Staff)
certainly have their work cut out for them if they are to top either Paul or Bono.
Following a moderately entertaining opening set by reggae-star Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley, who also performs Monday at the Independent in San Francisco, U2 launched its two-hour-plus concert in a very dramatic fashion.
The house stereo system pumped out a tune by Arcade Fire, the Montreal-based buzz band that will take over as opening act for U2 later this month, and then three-fourths of the legendary Irish band took the stage and began to play "City of Blinding Lights," one of the best tracks from last year's "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb."
Last but not least
If you have to ask which member of U2 was the last to appear on stage, well, you clearly haven't been paying attention.
It was, of course, Bono, who burst out of seemingly nowhere
at the point of the stage that reached farthest into the crowd. He was surrounded by a sea of outstretched arms as he sang "City of Blinding Lights" with the passion of a preacher delivering a sermon in a revival tent.
"Vertigo" — which, despite popular opinion to the contrary, is really an actual song found on "Atomic Bomb" and not just a jingle for Apple's iPod — was another big crowd pleaser. The band kept the adrenaline pumping as it charged directly through "Elevation" (from 2000's "All That You Can't Leave Behind") and "Mysterious Ways" (from 1991's "Actung Baby").
Played crowd favorites
The mood remained electric as the quartet focused the early part of its show on such crowd favorites as "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" (the anthemic hit off 1987's "Joshua Tree"), "Until the End of the World" (another "Actung Baby"
Bono sings another U2 classic at their concert Tuesday night at the Oakland Arena. (Mike Lucia - Staff)
track) and "Beautiful Day" (which opens "All That You Can't Leave Behind").
No matter the song, or the era of its origin, there was never mistaking whose show it was on this night. Even during the new album's "Miracle Drug," which featured some fine vocal work from The Edge, Bono completely dominated the spotlight, in that case by telling a humorous story about how the guitarist was really a space alien from the future. Later, a single drum was erected on the walkway for Larry Mullen Jr. to play during "Love and Peace or Else." After Mullen finished, Bono took over, tied a cloth around his forehead, began beating the drum in Kodo-worthy fashion and made people forget about Mullen.
Yet one doesn't mind Bono hogging the spotlight because he is such a natural. Things just seem to happen at the right time at the right place for Bono, such as when crowd members handed him an Irish flag and, then, an American flag during "Sunday Bloody Sunday." Still, the credit can't all be chalked up to chance. Bono is smart enough to take advantage of those situations in a way that, really, no other performer seems capable of doing.
If that doesn't qualify him as a genius then Bono will simply have to settle for being the greatest front man in rock.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune
Bono, front and center
Another anthemic performance from U2, and lead singer, of course
By Jim Harrington, CONTRIBUTOR
Bono performs with Adam Clayton and The Edge Tuesday night at the Oakland Arena. (Mike Lucia - Staff)
BONO is no genius.
It's not as if he was the one who came up with the Theory of Relativity, penned "Ulysses" or created the peanut butter cup.
He's a rock'n' roll singer who seems to operate by one simple motto: Do the next right thing onstage. With that principle in mind, the leader of U2 will hand the microphone to a young girl in the crowd, dance with a passionate fan during a big number, shake hands with a guy in the front row or, really, whatever else is the appropriate move at any particular moment.
Yet, if that motto is so simple, one has to ask why there aren't more performers who live by it? Good question.
Although he's best known for putting on big stage shows and singing big rock anthems, Bono proved yet again on Tuesday night at the Oakland Arena that the real reason he is rightfully considered to be the greatest front man in rock is because he does all the little things right.
Talk to the fans who attended Tuesday's show, which kicked off a two-night stand at the venue, and I bet the first thing they mention isn't the cool light show, the stage with the
heart-shaped walkway that extended halfway across the arena floor or the great version of the anthem "Pride (In the Name of Love)." I'm willing to wager that they instead bring up how Bono carried a woman on his back during "Mysterious Ways" or let a young girl lead a chant of "No More" in "Sunday Bloody Sunday."
In all, it was another winning chapter in the book that some are calling "The Biggest Week in Bay Area Rock'n' Roll History." U2 was at least as good Tuesday as Paul McCartney had
been at the HP Pavilion in San Jose Monday. And the Rolling Stones, who play Sunday and Tuesday at SBC Park in San Francisco,
In perfect rock star form, U2's Bono filled the stage - with both big and small gestures - in concert Tuesday night at the Oakland Arena. (Mike Lucia - Staff)
certainly have their work cut out for them if they are to top either Paul or Bono.
Following a moderately entertaining opening set by reggae-star Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley, who also performs Monday at the Independent in San Francisco, U2 launched its two-hour-plus concert in a very dramatic fashion.
The house stereo system pumped out a tune by Arcade Fire, the Montreal-based buzz band that will take over as opening act for U2 later this month, and then three-fourths of the legendary Irish band took the stage and began to play "City of Blinding Lights," one of the best tracks from last year's "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb."
Last but not least
If you have to ask which member of U2 was the last to appear on stage, well, you clearly haven't been paying attention.
It was, of course, Bono, who burst out of seemingly nowhere
at the point of the stage that reached farthest into the crowd. He was surrounded by a sea of outstretched arms as he sang "City of Blinding Lights" with the passion of a preacher delivering a sermon in a revival tent.
"Vertigo" — which, despite popular opinion to the contrary, is really an actual song found on "Atomic Bomb" and not just a jingle for Apple's iPod — was another big crowd pleaser. The band kept the adrenaline pumping as it charged directly through "Elevation" (from 2000's "All That You Can't Leave Behind") and "Mysterious Ways" (from 1991's "Actung Baby").
Played crowd favorites
The mood remained electric as the quartet focused the early part of its show on such crowd favorites as "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" (the anthemic hit off 1987's "Joshua Tree"), "Until the End of the World" (another "Actung Baby"
Bono sings another U2 classic at their concert Tuesday night at the Oakland Arena. (Mike Lucia - Staff)
track) and "Beautiful Day" (which opens "All That You Can't Leave Behind").
No matter the song, or the era of its origin, there was never mistaking whose show it was on this night. Even during the new album's "Miracle Drug," which featured some fine vocal work from The Edge, Bono completely dominated the spotlight, in that case by telling a humorous story about how the guitarist was really a space alien from the future. Later, a single drum was erected on the walkway for Larry Mullen Jr. to play during "Love and Peace or Else." After Mullen finished, Bono took over, tied a cloth around his forehead, began beating the drum in Kodo-worthy fashion and made people forget about Mullen.
Yet one doesn't mind Bono hogging the spotlight because he is such a natural. Things just seem to happen at the right time at the right place for Bono, such as when crowd members handed him an Irish flag and, then, an American flag during "Sunday Bloody Sunday." Still, the credit can't all be chalked up to chance. Bono is smart enough to take advantage of those situations in a way that, really, no other performer seems capable of doing.
If that doesn't qualify him as a genius then Bono will simply have to settle for being the greatest front man in rock.
i_love_adam
War Child
this newspaper reviewer is quite the idiot! All he knows is Bono 
sigh... and keeps going on about bono always being the centre of attention and spotlight thief!
sigh... and keeps going on about bono always being the centre of attention and spotlight thief!
chickadee
New Yorker
made people forget about Mullen.
No true U2 fan would ever forget Larry! Eeeesh.
Bono this, Bono that. I am such an Edge girl.
No true U2 fan would ever forget Larry! Eeeesh.
Bono this, Bono that. I am such an Edge girl.
cypress
The Fly
I actually prefer to read U2 *newspaper* concert reviews by reporters that are not U2 fans. It allows for a different viewpoint on the concerts than we're used to from the awesome and impassioned fan reviews given here. I guess from a showman point of view you could say Bono steals the show every night. I'm guessing that's what the reporter was referring to.
But obviously this band is equally balanced amongst the four Dubliners. Not since the Beatles have we seen a band this talented across the board. Unlike the Beatles, U2 has remained together throughout its entire career which is what separates them from the Beatles as the greatest band ever (in my opinion).
But obviously this band is equally balanced amongst the four Dubliners. Not since the Beatles have we seen a band this talented across the board. Unlike the Beatles, U2 has remained together throughout its entire career which is what separates them from the Beatles as the greatest band ever (in my opinion).
Similar threads
