I Sat by Dead People: Notes from LA2 (spoiler)

[martha]

Yes, they were dead. They were propped up in their chairs, but they had no pulse, no breath of life, no feelings, no feet with which to dance, and no SOUL! They just sat there, eyes open, but staring at nothing. One of them had the reflexes to applaud slightly at the end of Pride, but that was just a reflex; there was no meaning to the motions.

The good: All I Want is You was sublime! I've never heard that song live before and I was moved nearly to tears. Wild Honey accoustic continues to be a highlight, as does Please. Pride never fails to deliver.

The bad: No Bad last night, but I guess we'll live with a break. Streets' intro was a little off pace. Bullet is becoming a bit cliched. The pacing of the encore is slowed too much by What's Goin' On.

The ugly: Staples Center sound is as bad as you've heard; the rumors are true. The parking was twenty fucking dollars. And finally, the crowd. They were unresponsive and casual. I guess Phoenix and SLC spoiled me, but the crowd last night was almost quiet at times, and this affected how the band played and responded to us.


Oh yeah, Gwen and No Doubt still suck!

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...a highway with no one on it, a treasure just to look upon it...

"She's hyperventilating." --my podiatrist (about me) 10-24-01

 

[~LadyLemon~]

How can those people just sit there? Bunch of wankers...lol. And no Bad? What is this world coming to?? Bad to Streets is probably my favorite part of the show (well beside the bullfight)...

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Tonight this city belongs to me...

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

We had people like that back in May in Detroit. How can you go to a U2 show and NOT be moved in some way, shape, or form? Blarghy stupid people.

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Angel in devil's shoes
Salvation in the blues

~*April*~

 

[Bonochick]

Originally posted by LarryMullen's_POPAngel:
We had people like that back in May in Detroit. How can you go to a U2 show and NOT be moved in some way, shape, or form? Blarghy stupid people.

The people by me in Detroit were all really drunk (except for my parents, of course)...so they were havin' a pretty good time, but I don't know how much of it they will remember. *lol*

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"I don't know you,
But you don't know the half of it..."

 

[Discoteque]

I've heard so many stories of Interferencers who end up sitting by deadwood. WTF IS UP WITH THESE PEOPLE???

I mean, why even bother to go to the concert at all if you're not going to go and truly enjoy it to the fullest??? I think if I got a seat by a deadwood person I would probably yell at them for taking seats away from people who might REALLY have wanted to attend!!

Come on...the tour is called ELEVATION!!! You to go a show to GET YOU SOME!!!

WANKERS. *fume*

NOT happy about the report on the Staples Center, as I'll be going to LA3...but one has to (hair toss) suffer for the love of the boys, right??

[This message has been edited by Discoteque (edited 11-14-2001).]

 

[U2Kitten]

That happened to me once too. They were a group of two couples and one man was very enthusiastic but his wife and friends were talking, going to the bathroom and going for food constantly, and walking in front of me every time, screaming 'excuse me' over the music- this happened too much. The one guy who cared never left and tried to fire the others up but he might as well have brought 3 logs to the show, at least they wouldn't have walked in front of me so many times

 

[Crzy4Bono]

I love the title to this thread hehe

I can't understand people like that either. I was with a bunch of them the first go round in Atlanta. Go figure.

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She's gonna dream up a world she wants to live in / She's gonna dream out loud.
Visit my web page at www.u2page.com

 

[jezebel]

I work with dead people,(not literally!!) I don't need to sit next to them at a U2 concert.

Based on the reviews, sounds like LA #1 and LA #2 were night and day.

 

[NicaMom]

Originally posted by martha:
And finally, the crowd. They were unresponsive and casual. I guess Phoenix and SLC spoiled me, but the crowd last night was almost quiet at times, and this affected how the band played and responded to us.


Oh yeah, Gwen and No Doubt still suck!

I was there last night and didn't experience none of the above.
I had with me a brand new U2 fan and she was blown away by U2 and with the way the band interacted with the fans.
No Doubt was awesome and they got a lot of support from the fans.
I love what Bono said about LA, we have not screw them.

 

[U2morrow]

Ugh I hate people that just sit there at concerts(except of course if there is a physical problem). Why bother going?! Just pop in a CD. Boston 4 was the BEST concert I've ever been to and practically the whole row in front of me was sitting down!!! Luckily the guy on my left was really into it. At Prov1 the two guys on my right kept looking at me as if I was crazy for jumping up and down and singing. They serioulsy just STOOD there and clapped like once during Streets. The shows were awesome nonetheless but it was these shows that made me really appreciate the energy and soul in the heart for Prov2

.

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"And when it's raining,
raining hard, that's when the rain will break my heart."

 

[u2utah]

LOL at martha's title

The same thing happened to me at San Jose 2. @#$%&$@ VIPs who just want to say they went!

I felt like I was in an energy vortex. I was surounded by dead wood. They stood the whole time, and clapped, but that was it. (except to complain once when I moved too much) Kite was played for the first time--no reponse. Stay was played, first time ever for a Zooropa song in the USA--nothing. It was such a drag, especially after being in the heart the night before. I resolved never again to sit in a seat. GA only for me!

 

[Roland of Gilead]

Sorry to hear about your experience martha. The thought of seeing people sitting quietly during a U2 concert makes me cringe.

One observation about this tour is that you get to hear Bad or All I Want is You, but never both in the same night. I was lucky enough to see the Bad into Streets setlist at Vancouver last April. Personally, an All I Want is You into Bad into Streets would be fantastic, but if they did that, I'm sure many people would of died and went to Heaven.


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"I know that this is not goodbye." -Kite

 

[Corsair]

Btw, some of the "probably" dead people are probably a bunch of tapers taping the show...so dun yell at them. The tapers need to keep quiet so that they wun record their cheering into the tape. Guess they're still enjoying the show.

 

[kobayashi]

u2tours.com lists something called 'new' between what's going on and one. what was that?

[url="http://www.u2tours.com/detail.src?ID=20011113"]http://www.u2tours.com/detail.src?ID=20011113[/url][/url]

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Kobayashi's bizarre use of colour, superfast editing and extreme camera angles, coupled with a hilariously deadpan performance by Toshiro Takemitsu as the inspector who discovers a whole family of ghosts travelling without valid tickets, remains without peer.

 

[thehepcat]

I think that's supposed to be 'New York', as this is where it is normally played.

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Looking for U2 bootlegs?
www.geocities.com/u2trades

 

[kobayashi]

Originally posted by thehepcat:
I think that's supposed to be 'New York', as this is where it is normally played.

oh yeah. that makes sense.

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Kobayashi's bizarre use of colour, superfast editing and extreme camera angles, coupled with a hilariously deadpan performance by Toshiro Takemitsu as the inspector who discovers a whole family of ghosts travelling without valid tickets, remains without peer.

 

[theSoulfulMofo]

Hey Martha, so did I... I could have sworn "I see dead people" all around me @ LA2...

BTW, which section were you at? We were probably sitting next to each other around the same dead people... lol



[This message has been edited by theSoulfulMofo (edited 11-14-2001).]

 

[Salome]

I don't think this thread needed a spoiler

there are dead people at every show (well, in the U.S.

)

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Salome
Shake it, shake it, shake it

 

[theSoulfulMofo]

Oh.. I was down on 108... three rows from groundlevel... but way across from the stage.

 

[U2live]

That is so funny your thread title. Not funny to be next to tho. At least they didn't throw up like the "party animals" (in their 50s yet) who threw up next to us during Beautiful Day (last leg). They started out by saying their favorite concert was Jimmy Buffett. The Staples Center sucks, its like a big drafty barn. It makes the Forum seem like an acoustical wonder.

 

[moon_is_playing_tricks]

Em... if I can just interject here for a moment:

I belong to a U2LA list group, and although I didn't get to go to the first night or second night, I have not heard word one about how "awful" the shows were or how "dead" people were. All I've heard is how awesome the shows were, how excited my friends were for seeing our friend Courtney get up on stage and play with the band the first night, and how everyone who experienced the shows were blown away by the energy. So much so, that many of them have said they were better than the Anaheim shows in April.

Where were you at? Were you in the heart? Were you somewhere on the floor? The fact that the Staples Center is as big as a freakin' barn may have something to do with "dead people." Or, it may have something to do with the fact that LA is an industry town. I don't know. All I do know is that U2 rocked the Staples Center both nights and the people in the U2LA list are flying high - all I can say is, I can't freakin' wait until Monday night. If you want to be next to people who are alive and will be elevated, stand next to anyone from the U2LA group - me included.

Moonie

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If you ask me, I think it's all about drums.
*************************
Tonight the moon has drawn its curtains
It's a private show no one else going to know
I'm wanting
(If You Wear That Velvet Dress)
*************************
Hit Gurl

[This message has been edited by moon_is_playing_tricks (edited 11-14-2001).]

 

[ramblin rose]

I've been really unlucky on this leg and have been surrounded by these dead people for 2 of the 4 shows I've been (Prov1 and Austin).

It was funny because in Austin I was the only person standing and singing at one point. And in Prov1 everyone around me seemed only to be interested in going to get food and beer. Who goes to the concession stand at the beginning of Streets?

It really brought me down. I am hoping this doesn't happen to me again in Vegas.

 

[cell]

Originally posted by NicaMom:

Originally posted by martha:
And finally, the crowd. They were unresponsive and casual. I guess Phoenix and SLC spoiled me, but the crowd last night was almost quiet at times, and this affected how the band played and responded to us.


Oh yeah, Gwen and No Doubt still suck!

I was there last night and didn't experience none of the above.
I had with me a brand new U2 fan and she was blown away by U2 and with the way the band interacted with the fans.
No Doubt was awesome and they got a lot of support from the fans.
I love what Bono said about LA, we have not screw them.

i think the show was really cool and the crowd was great where i was standing, to me it was one big party. no doubt, in my opinion kicked ass. i love them and gwen stefani is the ultimate cool chick, along with the rest of the band, they are awesome.
but u2 is always even better, of course, they played a great setlist. i dont really care what they play as long as i got to see them. i had a great time

 

[StarsnStripes]

People enjoy concerts in different ways. Me thinks some of you pay too much attention to the people around you instead of watching the show.

As far as Staples is concerned, I read during the NBA finals that the building was designed to "filter" noise out of the building. Don't ask me how it's done, but that's probably why the sound sucked and the crowd appeared dead.

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Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do for someone is to just tell them to fuck off. I am told to fuck off rather a lot by these three gentlemen.

 

[Veranda]

I think some of those dead bodies in the seats should drain a little life force from some of the raging lunatics sloshing around GA stepping on people and pushing them down!

 

[martha]

Originally posted by theSoulfulMofo:
Hey Martha, so did I... I could have sworn "I see dead people" all around me @ LA2...

BTW, which section were you at? We were probably sitting next to each other around the same dead people... lol

I was up in 319. And I wish they were tapers, but I think they were just zombies.

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...a highway with no one on it, a treasure just to look upon it...

"She's hyperventilating." --my podiatrist (about me) 10-24-01

 

[ramblin rose]

Originally posted by StarsnStripes:
Me thinks some of you pay too much attention to the people around you instead of watching the show.

It kind of hard not too when they say "Excuse me can I get by" like 10 times during the show,or tap you from behind and say "Can you sit down now, we can't see"

 

[zooropamanda]

That is why you gotta get in the Heart!

All peeps having nothing but fun in there...oh, unless you count the now infamous 'Sitters' in Boston

 

[martha]

Originally posted by ramblin rose:
It kind of hard not too when they say "Excuse me can I get by" like 10 times during the show,or tap you from behind and say "Can you sit down now, we can't see"

YES! Or when the assholes are trying to get to their seats JUST AS THE BAND IS WALKING UP THE STAIRS TO COME ONSTAGE!!!!

Not all of us can spend (or want to spend) 13 hours sitting on cold cement for the CHANCE to get into the heart. I'm short, so unless I'm right up front, I don't see a damn thing when I'm on the floor. Hell, I don't even get SEATS on the floor for other concerts because of that. At Anaheim, Phoenix, and SLC the people around my seats were enjoying the show, no matter where we sat. I did notice a very real difference here at Staples Center. I think the accoustics of the arena were part of the problem, and I think the coolness of LA people were part of the problem. Now don't get all defensive; I'm not criticising the band or the fans, just the dipshits who go to concerts to sit and stare like it's a TV show.

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...a highway with no one on it, a treasure just to look upon it...

"She's hyperventilating." --my podiatrist (about me) 10-24-01

 

[StarsnStripes]

Originally posted by ramblin rose:
It kind of hard not too when they say "Excuse me can I get by" like 10 times during the show,or tap you from behind and say "Can you sit down now, we can't see"

Yeah, those people are annoying. Ballgames, concerts, movies--there are always going to be people who should sit at the concession stand instead. I wasn't refering to them, just the ones who don't comply with everyone's enthusiasm expectations.