by Michael West

Manchester 2 Review

Due to my diabolical (at best) navigational skills Jon and I got back to Derby at about 2.30am after the first show. I was sweating worse than George Best after a hearty call of "Drinks on the house!" so hopped in the shower and wrote down a few notes about the show as I have a memory like a sieve, before getting into bed at 3am. I was up four hours later to get ready to drive back up to Manchester to get in line early to queue for the Heart! We ended up getting there about 11am, wondering if we were going to be met with 6 or 600 people as we walked up the steps to the entrance. There were 6. Queued here for a couple of hours before shifting into the train station where there was a few very helpful and kind people organising the masses. Spent the afternoon caning two American ladies, Sally and Laura, at cards and feeling tired after last night's exertions. Managed to get into the Heart (along with more than a couple of prime losers who shoved their way into the queue at the last minute). We were standing 2/3 deep from the barrier, in-between Bono and Adam. I couldn't believe how close we were! I would have preferred to have stood between God (Bono) and his understudy, Jesus (Edge), but I have a few shows left to nail that one down. Sat down chatting with fellow fans as we waited, endlessly repeating "They have to play The Fly!" - in vain as it turned out. Went for a walk around to check out the arena filling up. It seems small to me and, at 19,500 capacity (biggest arena in Europe), this surprised me. I think the NEC in Birmingham is 11,000 capacity so it will look like a shoe-box!

Kelis hit the stage at about 7.40pm. I enjoyed her set more than last night but I'm still not exactly a massive fan to be honest. I think she is an attractive woman with an excellent voice, but going in for rock when she's clearly more suited to ballads puzzles me somewhat. I think the drummer is comedy! Took great pleasure in watching him repeatedly toss up his stick (not a sexual metaphor) and dropping it! One thing, though, Kelis - for Christ's sake wear a bra! I'm a pervert with the best of them but seeing them virtually drop out of her top was not a pleasant sight. I took the opportunity to sit down and rest my weary legs before U2 came on. Sgt. Peppers came on a little later tonight as I thought "oh dear, here we go again!". My stomach was churning and deep breaths were in order!

On stage they came and the arena was straight onto their feet to give them a standing ovation. Bono looks a touch shorter and older up close but if it was possible for me to have an operation to allow me to have several of his children it would already be done. Adam spent most of the evening with a wide grin on his face (I'm sure he was eyeing-up a nice-looking bird on my right). They kicked into Elevation and we were jumping for our lives in the heart, revelling in the spirit and joy of the moment. Sure this has been mentioned before, but Bono mimes the "wooo-hooo's!" in Elevation. This is fact as opposed to opinion. I was watching him very intently from very close and it is blatantly obvious. Personally, I couldn't care less. I don't see the point in him wrenching out a stunning falsetto at the start of the show for you to think "hey, that was nice".. then his voice is fucked for the rest of the night. Let the crowd do it, we're more than happy to oblige! Bono's voice was excellent all the way through again tonight, another pleasant surprise. I came to the conclusion that the crowd and myself wouldn't care if it dropped out anyway, we'd just fill in and help him out. He's up there giving his heart and soul and it struck me how everybody worships the dude. Wherever he walks… whatever he says… people gravitate to his presence. Beautiful Day was very nice again. Another thing I thought when in the Heart is that it's sometimes hard to know that the rest of the audience is there - it's like you're stuck in a cocoon (and you can't get out of it, obviously).

Until The End Of The World was better for me tonight than last night. The reason behind this is that I had a brilliant view of Bono stalking towards Edge as he sang "is this rock and roll!?" before his "la la la's" at the end of the song. The end to that song is quintessential U2 in my eyes and I could watch it a million times and never become bored with it. Next song saw the first of many set changes. Jon asked me what I thought it would be and, as Edge was near the tip of the heart at UTEOTW's conclusion I said "He'd better get his fucking skates on if it's New Years Day". We nodded and both said "Mysterious Ways"… only to see Edge sprint all the way back for NYD!! Obviously got the crowd going and I enjoyed it but, personally, I would prefer to see Disco/Staring. Kite was next, again with a little dedication from Bono to his dad. A stunning version, marginally better than last night (although Jon disagreed with me). Bono's eyes tightly closed as he felt his way through the song - a gripping and emotional sight. Can’t really state enough how great thing this song is live.

Gone was next which, for me, is always a fantastic thing. I've always loved this song and think it sounds very powerful live. Tonight was no different. Pop can be a much-maligned entity which, with songs like this, makes me scratch my head and ponder the musical tastes of some people :-) During the song Bono gets carried away and in a fit of emotion kicks his mic stand down which falls into the heart and clips into a girl front row centre I think. She's fine, and I think this just adds to the intensity of the song. Big highlight for me. With Kite being a musical metaphor for losing hold of someone, Gone seemed to indicate to me that Bob Hewson really wasn't in good shape. Bono looked troubled from where I stood - experiencing a multitude of conflicting emotions. Before New York began, with Bono bathed in darkness, he bent down to apologise profusely for kicking down the mic stand. Again, he certainly didn't look at peace with himself. New York was excellent like last night. Gripping sight to see Bono pacing around in circles at the song's beginning, bold and wide-eyed.

Jon thought we'd be getting I Will Follow again tonight after hearing Edge's guitar tech before the show started, which would have been fine with me after last night. The bass line for the song hit and Jon turned around to me and I was like "Silver & Gold!?!?" lol. Turned out to Out Of Control! This pushed very hard for my song of the night. Fantastic to hear and a nigh-on faultless performance it appeared to me. We were bouncing around in the heart like drugged-up Kangaroos and I particularly enjoyed Edge's solo. Sunday Bloody Sunday was excellent again tonight, but perhaps a touch less passionate than the first night. Get Up/Stand Up noticeable by its absence. Full Wake Up Dead Man was played after this with Bono singing it flat on his back on Adam's side of the Heart. Stuck came next and was a big sing-a-long again, enjoyed this more than the previous night. Sweetest Thing came next and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this one. Great sight to see Bono with a big smile on his face at the piano with the audience really getting into it. Nice to see every now and then but I'm glad it's not in there every night. Jon phoned his sister when this was on as she really likes it - her text response was "fanbloodytastic" :-)

Bono went over close to the Edge and stated that "Edge, it's been raining for two days now"… and went into playing Rain with him! Wonderful to see and a very pleasant surprise. They then walked over to the tip of the Heart to play Staring At The Sun. Nice enough version but I personally prefer it coming after Discotheque. I knew All I Want Is You would be next after hearing Bad on the first night. I really like this song and it was great to hear the full version but, I hasten to add, it isn't anywhere near the quality of Bad! Can't see why they don't stick it in before Bad so they can play the latter every night. You never know, the segue may well work quite nicely. Great crowd interaction as we were all belting out the "YOOOOUUUUU's" at the songs conclusion.

Streets came next and this was my song of the night. Everyone going absolutely crazy in the heart, as was the rest of the crowd. There is one moment that I will never forget which made this song, and the night, for me. I had my eyes glued on Edge for the duration of the song and towards the end he was really getting into it as he looked over the heart and the rest of the crowd. I swear I could see the tears forming in his eyes as he felt the unbridled and unadulterated love and joy hitting him in waves from the crowd. He closed his eyes, body swaying lightly, and his mouth slightly agape. His expression was one of pure elation and witnessing this made me cry a little bit I have to say. A very special and unforgettable moment for me. Being in the Heart allows this kind of thing. I feel like crying as I relive the scene in my head right now. A classic U2 moment. Mysterious Ways was excellent again but not quite up to night one for me.

I pretty much knew Pride would be next and it was good to hear it. However, to have this in the set over The Fly isn't to my personal tastes. I'd take The Fly over this in a heartbeat! Bullet had the Charlton Heston intro tonight, which is far better than the hastily arranged deal which is more Euro-relevant. Another stunning version - more passion and energy than last night. I enjoyed it immensely, especially seeing Bono work the crowd with the flashlight. Bono pulled a girl onto the stage at the tip of the heart for With Or Without You but it was nothing more than a standard performance in my eyes.

I'm sure there's a fair bit of speculation about what happened during One - so this is my take from about 6 feet away :-) After thanking the crowd in a little speech beforehand they begin the song. Bono appears to forget the words to the start of the second verse and takes a moment to gather his composure. This didn't bother me or the crowd. Hey, it's a live show and Bono often forgets lyrics - big deal. His expression appeared, to me, as though he was trying hard to remember the words but they just wouldn't spring into his head! His strumming became more aggressive and he started to look very agitated and pissed-off. It was now I noticed that his guitar seemed very out of tune/key and Bono lept behind Edge to shout something, presumably, to his guitar tech. They carry on manfully with the song but towards the end Bono turns to Larry and made a cutting gesture across his chest with his hand as if to signify "enough - last one tonight as I ain't happy!". Bono thanks the crowd and disappears quickly backstage, followed by the band wearing not exactly exalted expressions. I knew there would be no Walk On after this, the crowd were hanging around for it as the lights stayed off for a long time. Strange ending to the night. Couple of people around me commented that Larry appeared to be in great pain towards the end of the song, don't know if this forms part of the equation…

I thought tonight's performance was just as good as the first night. However, I personally prefer the set list of the first night, although I certainly welcome all the changes with open arms. Great crowd again. Two fantastic nights! Roll on Birmingham :-)

8.5/10

Mike West

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