by Paddy

Two days after the show and I still would like to talk about it--perhaps the second best U2 show I have seen (The Joshua Tree Tour being the first).

As a die-hard Springsteen fan, I have had to place this alongside some of his best as well. I figured out the difference: Springsteen asks you to come along with the E-Street Band while Bono, the Edge, Adam, and Larry come out and grab you and make you come along with them to rock-n-roll land.

Bravely, the foursome begin by leaving the lights on as the electronica of "Elevation" fills the air and then Bono grabs the mic and the audience by its coat and starts to "elevate" us immediately. (I am talking section 400 near the back seats, as well.) From there, the band calls us out of lethargy into social and political and rick consciousness. Yeah, a couple of guys don't get it and yell "U2 Rocks" while Bono talks, but otherwise, they create community.

Then, they tug at the heart with the song for Michael Hutchence and "Kite" and Joey Ramone. All starts to connect, and just when you feel sombreness sneaking in, they rock the house with "Streets"! I, for one, thought the Zoo TV Tour was real performance art, but the bull fight between the Edge's guitar and Mephisto/Bono, with rock and roll and loss of ego winning, really showed how this band can use the barest of stages. (About the onbly time the show felt flat for me was when the videos of "beLIEve" in "The Fly" seemed to force themselves in [or wwas this a goodbye to that parody?].)

Even Bono's honmsty about the Edge's guitar strings and the "Angel" lyrics added to the show by making the slight errors emphasize perfection. It is said that Indians create imperfections in their weac=ving to allow a hole for soul to come in. After "Pride" amd "One" we saw Celtic soul thrive.

During the encores, we saw the four-man band, bereft of most of the stagecraft and standing there only with instruments and their talent, rocking the hell out of the Pond.

Slainte is all I can say to the boys.

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