This was a no-brainer for me, a chance to see the World's Greatest Rock and Roll Band. (Yes, I realize the Stones are still alive and kicking, but since 1987 or so U2 has been the one to hold this title. Or a better title I guess would be the World's Most Popular Band.) I guess I'm glad Bono hurt his back last year and had to reschedule shows and they added St. Louis. Otherwise I wouldn't have seen them.
And it was held in beautiful Busch Stadium, the first time I've ever been in the new one. The "Claw" stage that looked like a spaceship, is so big and tall(over 150 feet) that it couldn't have fit into the Edward Jones Dome, like most of the other shows on the U2 360° Tour have been in football or soccer stadiums worldwide. Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City would have been the likely choice I thought. More seats more money. Or even Faurot Field in Columbia could have gotten more people. Heck they played in Norman Oklahoma and East Lansing Michigan...
This was the first stadium show I've ever been too. But I bought general admission field tickets because a) it was cheaper and b) closer than most of the other seats, unless I wanted to sit in the upper decks.The gates opened at 5 and thanks to my brother dicking around we didn't get there until 5:30 or so, but thankfully the heat scared away a lot of people. We didn't get into the inner part closest to the stage, but were about 8 "rows" back from the access ramp.
And the heat was torture. One good thing was they let us bring in water or soda, so we could stay hydrated without paying the astronomical prices. It was 92° when we got there and the sun blaring at our backs. Thankfully by around time Interpol, got around to playing at 7:30(supposed to start at 7:00) the sun was behind the stands.
Interpol came out, with one member dressed in a full suit in this heat, and played nine songs over 40 minutes or so. Probably the heat, and the fact I've never heard anything of theirs, I wasn't that impressed, except for how quick they were done. The lead singer looked like 1990's Brad Pitt, with a mullet and he sounded like Michael Stipe...
Then came the set-change, which took over an hour. The neatest part was watching the 3 camera operators on each of the claw legs get hoisted up. Finally the speakers started playing David Bowie's A Space Oddity, and the band came out. They had the fans going with the two opening songs rocking, but as soon as the Edge hit the distinctive opening tones and notes of Mysterious Ways it sent the crowd into a frenzy. The first four songs were from Achtung Baby, I would guess being as it's the 20 year anniversary of the album...
Set List
Even Better Than The Real Thing
The Fly
Mysterious Ways
Until The End Of The World
I Will Follow
Get On Your Boots
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For> Many Rivers To Cross
Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
Beautiful Day > Space Oddity
Elevation
Pride (In The Name Of Love)
Miss Sarajevo
Zooropa
City Of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight > Discothèque > Life During Wartime > Psycho Killer
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Scarlet
Walk On
One
Hallelujah > Where The Streets Have No Name
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Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me
With Or Without You
Moment of Surrender
The highlight for me was seeing my favorite song of theirs I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For. Bono had the crowd sing some of the lines in the first verse and choruses. During the song, it got me caught up in the moment, forgetting that I was stuck at an outdoor concert in the middle of summer. Plus it was cool being able to look up and over and see the Arch. If I was more centered or more on the right side, I guess they would've been in the background.
Before, the song Bono made mention of how long they've been at this and thanked the audience for being with them all these years. "Adam (Clayton, bassist) still believes being in a band is a great way to meet girls.... And it is." He joked about Larry Mullen the drummer, still being upset at the band not being named after and lauded the Edge as the greatest guitar player of his generation. And for Bono himself, "...As for me, I'm a man of simple means: 200 trucks, 400 tons of equipment, is all I need..."
He also mentioned that they'd been in St. Louis before 30 years ago, where they played at Graham Chapel on the Washington University campus, which the Post had reprinted an review of earlier this year. He read the set list for that night which was humorous in that the first three songs, were repeated as the last three songs in the encore. He also mentioned several time the lights being on in the Hilton and that the people needed to get to sleep over there.
Other highlights were seeing another personal favorite the Batman Forever soundtrack song Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me. And they played all of their hits, or the ones I wanted to hear. Pride (In the Name of Love) was another standout for me that seemed to get the crowd into it. The only real absent song was ,New Year's Day (Angel of Harlem, Desire, All Because of You, Stuck in A Moment, if you want to get picky), but I could live without hearing it.
They used a video of astronaut Mark Kelly(Gabrielle Giffords husband) setting up Beautiful Day and I liked the wise segue of playing a bit of A Space Oddity, which related perfect to the couple.
The stage and video screen were used. They had to ramps to the outer catwalk, that were moved several times, that brought Bono and the Edge close and taken back. And the video screen was brought down like "a space ship getting ready to lift off," during the later part of the main set and trapping the band at one point
And Bono kept the politicalnesss out of it for the most part. He mentioned a bit about Aung San Suu Kyi and democracy in Burma and gave a shout out to Amnesty International. He even joked before telling the audience to keep the people of Joplin in our hearts and prayers, that "... I want to think before I talk. I don't always do that...," before Moment of Surrender, a song which seemed anti-climatic and took the wind out of the sails. The group left the stage to Rocket Man playing over the loudspeaker.
The Edge, is the master of getting tones and sounds out of his guitars. He naturally did the guitar switch after virtually every song, but listening to U2's songs it's easy to see why, they almost all have different sonics and they generally kept the same sounds that the recorded versions have. And in It Might Get Loud, he says 'he tries to play as few notes as possible.' So, what he does with foot pedals, synths or whatever, is amazing.
The worst part was the people. There was almost a fight ten feet in front of us. Some guy was fucked up on something and tried starting something with a huge guy(I think the guy could have taken him and his two friends). Then having to listen to hipster/hippie chicks talking with their friends and having their friends come up and help block my view. I didn't mind them dancing or enjoying the show. And a woman in front of us passed out about halfway through U2's set. How do you pay money for tickets, then pay shitloads more for beer and have fun like that? Guess I'm just a conservative.
On the plus side of people, there was something that even made me crack a smile, watching couple young kids sitting of their parents/grandparents shoulders next to me, smiling and clapping along to the music.
There was no major surprises, nothing much different from previous set lists(which I hadn't looked at except for South American dates earlier this year), but U2 is able to conjure up enough magic to make it feel like you're watching something special. Maybe that's why they are the greatest rock and roll band in the world. One of the best I've been too...
Post Dispatch review
and Riverfront Times review
And a write up on the U2 site
