by Vince Duque

Aside from individual sanctimonious U2 fans who strangely exhibited qualities of religious fanatics in the way they hogged the real estate inside the inner ellipse, 131: Honolulu blew my head. Honolulu was a fitting bookend that started for me with their opening show on March 28, 2005 in San Diego (on my birthday!) and pit-stopped in Dublin for some homegrown action.

The whole night’s fight card was a rocking Battle of the Bands. I had no expectations for Rocko and the Devils, but Rocko surprised me with his frenetic energy up and down the ellipse. Pearl Jam delivered with a blistering set. Even as a rare opening act, Mike McCready on lead guitar, played out of his mind and Eddie Vedder didn’t dial it in either. Their performance tonight was reminiscent of the Seattle band Mother Love Bone (and the predecessor to Pearl Jam) who always played “to the back of the stadium” in small clubs whether three people or a thousand people showed up. As Pearl Jam shook up Aloha Stadium, I imagined Bono in the green room listening the noise upstairs and getting fired up like an Irish heavyweight boxer, unwilling to relinquish their title of Best Band in the World. I knew it was going to be a damn good fight.

U2 came out swinging. GREAT MOMENTS: Edge’s always chilling guitar opening in “Blinding Lights,” to Bono’s moving tenor in “Miss Sarajevo,” to Adam and Larry’s jazz beat in “Bullet” to Bono and Eddie on “Rockin’ in the Free World,” and Larry’s darling no-frills farewell. And how can you not love when Bono calls an audible in the middle of the set just to shake it up a bit, struggling in a fun way through “Wild Horses?” I’ve listened to a bootleg (on U2torrents.com from”u22too”) five times already and I get goosebumps every single time. Met some special people from Arizona who were not only passionate U2 fans but warm and human too. A nice kinship and the beginning of a great friendship. Hello to Eric, Kim, Shane and Misty!

NOT SO GREAT MOMENTS: The overindulged couple and their high-pitched sidekick who kept barreling their weight through to the front, practically riding up the back of my girlfriend until she gave way and rubbing it in that he was a “d**k who was going to be in front of me and got up at 11AM, had breakfast and still made his way to the front, while we camped out the night before. Thumbs down on other U2 “faithful” who straight-faced acknowledged they would abide by the “walking” rules laid out by U2 security only to disregard and disrespect those who played by the rules when the doors opened and no one was looking. Isn’t that the point of being in the spirit of U2, that we walk a different kind of path and uphold a special kind of faith? Aloha Stadium security…food in the ellipse or no food? Why the severe lack of U2 merchandise, some of which landed on eBay? The cool U2/Pearl Jam poster is going for $250! Lastly, wish I could’ve heard “New Years Day, Until the End of the World, Kite or Stay.

Overall, a memorable night for my girlfriend and I and a sweet exclamation point to bring down the curtain in 2006. December 9 was our New Years Eve party. Looking forward to stripping it way down again in 2008, boys!

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