A little blog post some of you may disagree with
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There are different levels of U2 fandom. From fans who struggle to remember some of the words of the choruses of the big singles but generally like the band, to anoraks who cuddle Twitter anxiously during every concert to find out what snippet Bono will sing at the start Crazy Tonight.
Some people have told me that I must be one of U2’s biggest fans. One of my oldest friends asked me to enter a “Find Ireland’s Biggest U2 Fan” contest on Irish radio last year. I didn’t enter as I don’t like losing. I’m probably the biggest U2 fan in my house, and I possibly could be the biggest U2 fan on the short street that I grew up on in Derry, but I’m sure I wouldn’t be anywhere near the biggest U2 fan in the estate.
It’s all relative. In my view I loiter somewhere in the middle of the scale. To most of my friends, (especially the non-U2 fans) I am a mega U2 nut. To the many mega U2 nuts I’ve met, I may well be one of them. But really, I’m just your average big U2 fan. I get very excited by a new album and a new tour. I’ll (usually, not always) get the album on day of release. I’ll join the scramble for concert tickets the instant they go on sale. And I check the @U2 homepage every few days or so for the latest news.
But I’m not an obsessive - I think. For example, before this tour (and wee red book nonsense) I’d never considered travelling abroad to see U2. I hadn’t even considered travelling from the UK back to Ireland for a show. And I’ve never bothered with following setlists during tours. I’ve never been interested in what songs U2 play at concerts I’m not at. I was consequently quite surprised to find out that fans on Interference have ‘setlist parties’ where they follow, discuss and joke about every one of U2’s concerts as it happens. I’ve joined in on three setlist parties during this tour, including two when I was in the city where the show was. They are addictively good fun.
But personally I think fans, even the mega U2 nuts, should avoid all setlist news if they’re going to a concert in the near future. The show is far, far better when you have absolutely no idea what to expect, either in terms of setlist or production. It’s better to ensure that any surprise is a surprise. Stingray Guitar’s first performance in Turin was just so stupendously wonderful because it was so stupendously different, fun, exciting and, (after Bono’s back injury) so stupendously emotional an opener. And it was even more so because I had no knowledge of it in advance. Same too for Miss Sarajevo, Hold Me Thrill Me, and the two new songs played in Turin.
For this reason I try obsessively to avoid all news of rehearsals before the opening nights of tour legs on the 360 tour, as it’s one of the few shows where I can expect a surprise (if expecting a surprise isn’t a contradiction). This means a U2 news blackout, avoiding Interference, @U2, U2Gigs, Twitter, and hiding status updates on Facebook from U2 fans, for a few days.
Unfortunately some of the bigger surprises on this tour have been spoiled by people letting slip what songs were rehearsed. Someone revealed on the thread on Interference for the Auckland show that Scarlet had been rehearsed. The pre-concert threads are mostly used for fans to discuss obtaining tickets, transport to the stadium, accommodation and meeting up for drinks. It’s bad form (in my blinkered view) to discuss rehearsals too, especially on threads for the tour leg’s opening night. @U2 is better in this regard as they insist on including the word “SPOILER” in the titles of threads with setlist news.
And a mate who had just arrived in Sao Paulo instantly and excitedly revealed that Zooropa had been rehearsed as soon as I met him at the airport. That would have been the biggest surprise of all. Can you imagine being at the show, singing along and jumping around to U2 playing a familiar setlist, and then being hit with “wait a minute ... that sounds familiar ... that’s ... FUCKING HELLSKI! ... THAT’S ZOOROPA!!!” How many OMGs would you scream in between flapping your hands uncontrollably beside your head? (Of course, if you never follow setlists then you would never know that Zooropa was such a treat, so maybe I’m only speaking for how flappy I would have been.)
(And I really didn’t mind having the Zooropa rehearsal revealed, as I didn’t have a ticket for that show anyway, until being given one for free completely out of the Oi FM blue. I had a different and better surprise that night.)
I have to confess that I made a stupid setlist faux pas in Seville last year. I was sitting in the GA queue with some very fabulous American girls who had just flown in the day before. One of them had successfully avoided all setlist news for that tour leg. I lavished great praise on this strong-willed and wise person, and told her how much I agreed with, admired and respected her principled stand. Two minutes later I speedily rattled off a sentence with four song titles in it, including Miss Sarajevo. She graciously didn’t punch me.
U2 are frustratingly good at spoiling surprises too. I realise that they need to rehearse the production of songs like Zooropa and Your Blue Room on the Claw. But they have an annoying habit of loudly rehearsing new setlist songs (which don’t seem to require involved production) during soundchecks on the afternoon of the gig. They rehearsed I Will Follow, Pride and the acoustic version of No Line before Helsinki 2 last year, to cheers from the thousands of hardcore fans who were waiting outside in the GA queue to get prime spots in the pit. They rehearsed Love Rescue Me and All I Want Is You in Sydney, Even Better Than The Real Thing and Ultraviolet in La Plata, and (perhaps the biggest and best surprise) Zooropa in Sao Paulo.
So the fans who are most likely to follow setlists closely, who will camp outside stadiums for days to be directly below U2, and the fans who would go the most nuts if they heard a new song on the setlist, are the fans who don’t have any surprised reaction when the song is finally played.
U2 have kept two great surprises from spoiling soundchecks: Bad in Brussels 2 last year, and Out Of Control at Sao Paulo 2 this year. I wasn’t at Brussels 2, but I imagine there must have been a great response from fans in the pit. It would be very nice if they could spring more surprises like these.
Furthermore, I am aware that I’m using this blog and the associated Facebook page to try to promote Me & U2. And I am aware that I've been chucking out little tales of each show I attend, which by necessity means describing what songs were played, especially any new ones. So I'm a big spoiler myself. (And blog posts like this where I speedily rattle off many songs hardly help!)
Anyway, as major issues go, this one ranks with where I lost that missing sock. I’m writing this to pass the time whilst waiting for a flight at Bogota airport, and it’s boarding time. My South American sprint is almost over.
So here in a Mexican nutshell is what I think U2 fans should do: avoid all setlist news, whilst still following this blog. I appreciate how likely both are to happen
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There are different levels of U2 fandom. From fans who struggle to remember some of the words of the choruses of the big singles but generally like the band, to anoraks who cuddle Twitter anxiously during every concert to find out what snippet Bono will sing at the start Crazy Tonight.
Some people have told me that I must be one of U2’s biggest fans. One of my oldest friends asked me to enter a “Find Ireland’s Biggest U2 Fan” contest on Irish radio last year. I didn’t enter as I don’t like losing. I’m probably the biggest U2 fan in my house, and I possibly could be the biggest U2 fan on the short street that I grew up on in Derry, but I’m sure I wouldn’t be anywhere near the biggest U2 fan in the estate.
It’s all relative. In my view I loiter somewhere in the middle of the scale. To most of my friends, (especially the non-U2 fans) I am a mega U2 nut. To the many mega U2 nuts I’ve met, I may well be one of them. But really, I’m just your average big U2 fan. I get very excited by a new album and a new tour. I’ll (usually, not always) get the album on day of release. I’ll join the scramble for concert tickets the instant they go on sale. And I check the @U2 homepage every few days or so for the latest news.
But I’m not an obsessive - I think. For example, before this tour (and wee red book nonsense) I’d never considered travelling abroad to see U2. I hadn’t even considered travelling from the UK back to Ireland for a show. And I’ve never bothered with following setlists during tours. I’ve never been interested in what songs U2 play at concerts I’m not at. I was consequently quite surprised to find out that fans on Interference have ‘setlist parties’ where they follow, discuss and joke about every one of U2’s concerts as it happens. I’ve joined in on three setlist parties during this tour, including two when I was in the city where the show was. They are addictively good fun.
But personally I think fans, even the mega U2 nuts, should avoid all setlist news if they’re going to a concert in the near future. The show is far, far better when you have absolutely no idea what to expect, either in terms of setlist or production. It’s better to ensure that any surprise is a surprise. Stingray Guitar’s first performance in Turin was just so stupendously wonderful because it was so stupendously different, fun, exciting and, (after Bono’s back injury) so stupendously emotional an opener. And it was even more so because I had no knowledge of it in advance. Same too for Miss Sarajevo, Hold Me Thrill Me, and the two new songs played in Turin.
For this reason I try obsessively to avoid all news of rehearsals before the opening nights of tour legs on the 360 tour, as it’s one of the few shows where I can expect a surprise (if expecting a surprise isn’t a contradiction). This means a U2 news blackout, avoiding Interference, @U2, U2Gigs, Twitter, and hiding status updates on Facebook from U2 fans, for a few days.
Unfortunately some of the bigger surprises on this tour have been spoiled by people letting slip what songs were rehearsed. Someone revealed on the thread on Interference for the Auckland show that Scarlet had been rehearsed. The pre-concert threads are mostly used for fans to discuss obtaining tickets, transport to the stadium, accommodation and meeting up for drinks. It’s bad form (in my blinkered view) to discuss rehearsals too, especially on threads for the tour leg’s opening night. @U2 is better in this regard as they insist on including the word “SPOILER” in the titles of threads with setlist news.
And a mate who had just arrived in Sao Paulo instantly and excitedly revealed that Zooropa had been rehearsed as soon as I met him at the airport. That would have been the biggest surprise of all. Can you imagine being at the show, singing along and jumping around to U2 playing a familiar setlist, and then being hit with “wait a minute ... that sounds familiar ... that’s ... FUCKING HELLSKI! ... THAT’S ZOOROPA!!!” How many OMGs would you scream in between flapping your hands uncontrollably beside your head? (Of course, if you never follow setlists then you would never know that Zooropa was such a treat, so maybe I’m only speaking for how flappy I would have been.)
(And I really didn’t mind having the Zooropa rehearsal revealed, as I didn’t have a ticket for that show anyway, until being given one for free completely out of the Oi FM blue. I had a different and better surprise that night.)
I have to confess that I made a stupid setlist faux pas in Seville last year. I was sitting in the GA queue with some very fabulous American girls who had just flown in the day before. One of them had successfully avoided all setlist news for that tour leg. I lavished great praise on this strong-willed and wise person, and told her how much I agreed with, admired and respected her principled stand. Two minutes later I speedily rattled off a sentence with four song titles in it, including Miss Sarajevo. She graciously didn’t punch me.
U2 are frustratingly good at spoiling surprises too. I realise that they need to rehearse the production of songs like Zooropa and Your Blue Room on the Claw. But they have an annoying habit of loudly rehearsing new setlist songs (which don’t seem to require involved production) during soundchecks on the afternoon of the gig. They rehearsed I Will Follow, Pride and the acoustic version of No Line before Helsinki 2 last year, to cheers from the thousands of hardcore fans who were waiting outside in the GA queue to get prime spots in the pit. They rehearsed Love Rescue Me and All I Want Is You in Sydney, Even Better Than The Real Thing and Ultraviolet in La Plata, and (perhaps the biggest and best surprise) Zooropa in Sao Paulo.
So the fans who are most likely to follow setlists closely, who will camp outside stadiums for days to be directly below U2, and the fans who would go the most nuts if they heard a new song on the setlist, are the fans who don’t have any surprised reaction when the song is finally played.
U2 have kept two great surprises from spoiling soundchecks: Bad in Brussels 2 last year, and Out Of Control at Sao Paulo 2 this year. I wasn’t at Brussels 2, but I imagine there must have been a great response from fans in the pit. It would be very nice if they could spring more surprises like these.
Furthermore, I am aware that I’m using this blog and the associated Facebook page to try to promote Me & U2. And I am aware that I've been chucking out little tales of each show I attend, which by necessity means describing what songs were played, especially any new ones. So I'm a big spoiler myself. (And blog posts like this where I speedily rattle off many songs hardly help!)
Anyway, as major issues go, this one ranks with where I lost that missing sock. I’m writing this to pass the time whilst waiting for a flight at Bogota airport, and it’s boarding time. My South American sprint is almost over.
So here in a Mexican nutshell is what I think U2 fans should do: avoid all setlist news, whilst still following this blog. I appreciate how likely both are to happen