by Zoodoctor

This was first 360 show and I made sure to not listen to boots and watch video of previous show in order to be as objective and (surprised!) as possible over the entire experience…I did review setlists and some reviews…tough to avoid them!

All in all, the stage set up is much less imposing, IMO, than presented in the media and on the Web. Very cool, though, and extremely functional in a stadium environment. And the band utilized the bridges and outer circle with ease. We chose to unload our GA’s when the switch to Friday messed up our plans to arrive early and try for the inner circle. So we got very low seats in Section 133 in the ticket drop on Tuesday night. Actually, we were right behind Quincy Jones, who got the shout out at the end of BD. As far as stadium seats, you can’t get much better, but were still a long way away.

Some highlights: Ultraviolet is an absolute gem live! For me, it was a very pleasant surprise, since I fully expected to never hear it live. And I totally disagree with critics who panned Your Blue Room live…it was very cool and the shtick from the Space Station worked quite well, IMO. In addition, TUF was special, and the rain looked very cool on the digital screen. And BTW, the “un-named U2 song” between Space Oddity and Breathe sounds spectacular, and I eagerly await the release.

Some disappointments: The technical problems were constant, and hit a peak during NYD…Bono never seemed comfortable with the mix in his earpiece and it showed, IMO.
And I am not sure I love Breathe as the opener, although the solo Larry entrance works very nicely. And I know many will not agree, but it may be time to (temporarily) retire One and Streets…just look how the absence of Bullet and Pride didn’t hurt the show at all, IMO.

Some crowd comments: Sitting in the “VIP” area was interesting…these folks clearly did not know the music other than the hits and were seated by the middle of the show. One guy was imploring the folks in front of him to sit down because he couldn’t see. One guy fell asleep! Unclear if he had some “help,” LOL!

All in all, the show was what I have learned to expect and admire from the band. They have aged well, and maintain relevance that only few bands have been capable, IMO.
I hope they return in 2010, to our area, perhaps the new NJ stadium or Citifield (in NY.)

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