by Paul Arbo

Let's see; having been a U2 fan since the Joshua Tree, yet not having seen them live until this date, one can see how my expectations would have been ASTRONOMICAL, to say the least. I can honestly say that my expectations were totally met and more.

To start, the tickets my friends and I scored were 11th row on the floor. We ended up being about half way out the B-stage (actually the B-stage was used for about half the concert), approx. 15 feet from the side, so we got plenty of close-ups with the band members. Not to mention, the mirror-ball lemon cruised about 12 feet directly over our heads during the first encore. OK, enough bragging about the seats.

As for the content of the show - nothing short of amazing. Great sound for the most part, incredible interaction between crowd and band (you could tell the band members were grateful), and, well, the music speaks for itself. I was elated to hear the band return to some live material that we hadn't heard in a while, such as Still Haven't Found..., All I Want Is You, I Will Follow. Not to mention closing with MLK - that was so unexpected that half of the people in our section had NO idea what song it was. I must admit that I had hoped that Running to Stand Still, Bad, Dirty Day and In God's Country would have been in the program, but that did not detract at all from the night.

As far as the new songs went, the band's renditions of Please, Gone and Last Night on Earth were supreme and it was great to hear them go acoustic on Staring... and to hear Velvet Dress at all. I did miss hearing Do You Feel Loved and If God Would Send His Angels, though. I guess if I had my way, the concert would have been about 8 hours longer!

To wrap up, from the adrenaline-inducing Pop Muzik to the inspiring and sombre MLK, the night of the concert will be one that even Alzheimers would never be able to take from me. Can't wait to see them again in Montreal in November!

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