U2 360 Philadelphia: Concert Review

Last Thursday night, I was one of the 70,000 or so people in attendance at the U2 concert in Philadelphia. The concert, which was originally scheduled for July 2010, was postponed for a year after Bono injured his back while rehearsing for a show in Munich. However, the painfully long wait turned out to be well worth it. The legendary Dublin rockers put together an incredible show that won't soon be forgotten, especially by me because it was the first rock concert that I attended.

Since this was my first concert, I was essentially entering the realm of the unknown. I have listened to a wide array of music from various artists, but aside from high-quality DVD's and YouTube videos I have never heard any of them play their music live. That is why I felt a little downtrodden when U2's opening act, Interpol, began to play their setlist. To put it bluntly, I was less than impressed with the band's sound quality. Now don't get me wrong, they performed great and they were adequately loud. My problem with their performance was involved the sound system. For whatever reason, the music they were playing was coming across as a "wall of sound". You could tell that what you were hearing was rock music, but the guitars were distorted, the vocals were mostly unintelligible, and the drums simply became molded in with the rest of the music, providing the audience with no real beat to follow. In essence, it only felt like a step up from listening to a performance recorded on a cell phone. As frustrating as that was, it didn't prevent me from enjoying the heavy riffs in "Say Hello to the Angels" and the prominently catchy vocals in "The Heinrich Maneuver", which still managed to wrestle themselves away from the muffled sound system in order to become clearly distinguishable to this listener's ears.

Thankfully after Interpol completed their setlist somebody on the technical team must have noted the poor sound quality, because U2's start time seemed to have been delayed. They were supposed to begin performing around 8:45 pm, but they didn't go until 9:20. When they did take the stage, the improvement in sound quality was immediately noticeable. Whereas Interpol's music came across as a wall of sound, U2's music was clear, crisp, and often rivaled the quality of some of my U2 MP3's. As The Edge (U2's guitarist) began to play the opening riff of "Even Better Than the Real Thing", it was obvious that the real fun was just beginning.

U2's performance was absolutely surreal, and the stage show was particularly spectacular.  The stage, known as "The Claw", was made up of three main parts. The first part was the main stage, which was situated in the center of The Claw's structure. The second part was a 360 degree ring that circled around the main stage. Bono spent a considerable amount of time frolicking and dancing on the ring, but The Edge, drummer Larry Mullen Jr., and bassist Adam Clayton all made appearances on the ring at some point during the show. The ring also connected to the main stage through the means of a couple of moveable bridges. The third and most impressive part of the stage was the claw itself, an enormous, four legged structure that ascended above the performance stage. This extraterrestrial-looking feature was over 100 feet tall, and it housed the show's video and sound systems. Its most impressive feature, however, was the almost unfathomable light show that was built right into it. Throughout the show, the stage changed colors many times, flashed searchlights across the crowd and shot blue beams of light straight into the night sky. For example, during "City of Blinding Lights" The Claw turned scarlet red and white, and shot four blue beams of light vertically into the sky. During "Zooropa" The Claw changed colors numerous times while flashing lights splashed rapidly throughout the awed crowd. During this particular show, U2 turned outlandish and lavish stage performance into an art form, and it was only boosted by the full moon and low-flying planes that made the Philly sky their home throughout the entirety of the concert.

The other major strength of the show was the band's varied setlist that encompassed every phase of their long and storied career. Whether it be the oldest classics (Where the Streets Have No Name, I Will Follow, Sunday Bloody Sunday)  the 90's experimental songs (Zooropa, Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me, Mysterious Ways) or more modern hits (Beautiful Day, Elevation, Magnificent) U2 explored every portion of their extensive catalog, appeasing fans of all ages and preferences. Whereas some bands tend to shy away from certain periods of their existence, U2 unapologetically embraces every era, every album, and every song, a strategy that certainly works in their favor. The varied flavor left me feeling as if I had just got done test tasting every flavor of Ben and Jerry's ice cream. It really allowed for the band to show of the true extent of their enormous talent.

Overall, this was a great first concert for me. U2 is arguably the greatest live act on the planet right now, and this concert really reinforced that assertion. This band truly has a talent in staging lighthearted and fun performances while conveying important and stirring messages in their lyrics. Aside from the audio hiccup during Interpol's performance, and a misunderstanding in seating that got a surly middle aged woman angry at me (we won't get into that) this was one of the most enjoyable experience's that I have had in a long time. I can easily recommend going a live U2 to anybody who is thinking about doing so. Trust me, you won't regret it.