by The Goal Is Soul

What a show of pure magic from U2!

This was my 2nd trip to U2 360 this year – I also went to the second Croke Park show on 25th July (see my review) and this was much better in a lot of ways:

• Firstly – no Health & Safety issues here in Cardiff which meant we had a full 360 degree concert (unlike the 270 degree concert in Dublin!)
• The show started in dusk – meaning we could immediately enjoy the light show as opposed to the broad daylight / sunshine of Dublin!
• You could buy a beer on the pitch. Wow – what will they think of next! (Dublin – take note)
• U2 seemed far more relaxed than in Dublin – and the crowd was really up for it and played their part.

This was my 9th U2 show in total – and apart from Zoo TV Dublin (’93), a surreal San Diego (2001 - where we found ourselves up close and personal with the ‘U2 heart’ runway), and Slane Castle (2001) – this was the best show I have seen the band in terms of atmosphere, set list and overall performance. There was definitely something extra special about the concert which only happens a small amount of time. Its splitting hairs really, but U2 fans will know what I mean – it's like all the planets were aligned to make it a show to remember. You kind of sense the band know this too. A special and magic U2 night and a treat for everyone who was there.

From my vantage point in GA 30 yards from the walkway I had a perfect view of the main stage and the occasional fly-past by a member of the band on the 360 walkway. Not too sure the folks behind the stage had value for money though seeing the backs of the band for most of the show!

Check out the set list for the full list of songs, however main highlights for me were:

• The Claw – when Bowie’s music comes on and the smoke begins to shoot out of the Claw – you know U2 are on their way out to play. Great stuff.
• Breathe – The Edge missed his first note on the guitar solo. I saw him kick his foot pedal to activate the right sound – and then he gave a wry smile to Bono. Great stuff! He is human!
• Magnificant – Bono was right in front of us on his bridge & captivated everyone around me. Bono: "the magnificant Edge!"
• Get On Your Boots – the crowd went wild!
• Beautiful Day (after Land of Our Fathers opening)...and then Blackbird to finish. A brilliant song. Still needs the ‘U2 white-out’ moment from previous tours!
• Mysterious Ways – always needs to be in the live show. Brilliant. Needs the full Edge solo at the end though!
• I Still Haven’t Found What I’m looking For – the whole Cardiff crowd were invited to sing the first verse on their own and it was an amazing moment! Also nice 80,000 sing along moment of Stand By Me at the end.
• Stay (Far Away So Close) – simply out of this world: Bono / Edge acoustic duet first seen in Elevation 2001. Nice touch for Edge to be behind the stage and Bono up front.
• Unknown Caller – great karaoke moment of the tour! Say no more!
• Streets – we even had a classic U2 white-out moment! Brought tears to my eyes I promise you!
• Bad – I have read that people thought Bono was flagging at this stage due to being up until 7:30am at The Corrs wedding – well I didn’t notice – possibly because I was flagging at this stage too from jumping up and down so much! You got the feeling when Bono had a word with The Edge that this was put in to reward the excellent crowd / atmosphere – but I may be dreaming! Also a quick 80,000 sing along of “40” at the end (naturally!).
• Ultraviolet – the 5 of us at the show all agreed this was the highlight song / performance of the night! What a cool song – that is probably cool because it hasn’t been played to death. I loved it…and Bono’s special laser jacket.


Finally – thanks to Larry and Tamsin for their hospitality and for showing me a very clever way to get on to the M4 Eastbound and thereby avoid all of the legendary Cardiff traffic. I managed to get home to Manchester by 3:25am – which wasn’t bad considering some of the horror stories I have read about! Thanks to Cathy too for driving - and for taking no end of stick during the day about Australia losing the Ashes!

The Goal Is Soul will be back in 2013 to report on the next tour……

Return to previous page | Post a Review of this show!