by Robyn

U2 Gig-Cardiff.

To give a review of a gig often means that you already knew what was going to happen before you went. From the moment my mate Maddy and I got tickets I deliberately didn't check the internet for information, so all that happened at Cardiff was a total suprise to me. Therefore, I have no idea if any of the stuff I have mentioned has happened at other gigs.

Due to problems that you shall not be bored by, we did not make the gig until after the support acts had performed. So, while I told all my friends that I have seen the Killers, I didn't see them.

What really suprised me about the Cardiff Millennium Stadium was its sheer size-it literally cannot be missed. The sheer size of the inside even made the stage seem a little small! The stage people were lovely- handing out free water to those who, like me, hadn't drunk anything in hours. Maddy and I were also able to get quite close to the front by asking people if we go in front of them. For this, people got given little glow sticks by me-so hi to anyone we talked to ( I swear that Bono mentioned he could see 'glowing bracelets', so he must have seen our arms!).

Needless to say, the gig blew my mind. The song penultimate to U2 performing- 'Arcade Fire-"Wake up"' -caused ripples of excitement through the audience, resulting in tension that could have been cut by a knife. This was smashed by the opening chords of Vertigo, which left me speechless with excitement.

All Maddy and I could shout at each other during the beginning at each song was "I LOVE THIS TRACK!" before we would dance like mad. We also sang until our voices were hoarse-though where we were, we appeared to be the only ones who knew all the words to the songs.

My favourite bits of the gig can be summed up (possibly not in chronological order) as thus:
* The band's entrance on stage was very quiet, but made the crowd go wild.
* Everyone singing the chorus of Vertigo was amazingly loud and uplifting.
* Larry singing the chorus of 'Elevation'. He sounds better than me!
* Larry wiping the tear away during 'All I want is you' -or, at least, I thought it was a tear.
* The screen flickering to life during 'City of Blinding lights'. It appeared to smother the entire arena when it was fully lit. It can only be described as stunning as once it was on, you could not take your eyes off it.
* The bit with Bono and the blindfold. To be honest, when I first heard about this bit on the web I thought it would be a bit mawkish but it worked well, proving a point while being well choreographed. Saying that, Bono wasn't a bad drummer either.
* I liked the fact that the band moved about on stage. Elements like Adam moving to the other side of the stage, away from his 'normal' place was a nice touch, as I barely would have seen him otherwise.
* The entire crowd singing 'Unchained melody' so well that the band stopped playing and watched. Even Bono was quiet!
* 'One' -where the audience held up their phones after texting in. It looked like demented Christmas lights, but was amazing to watch as there were phones as far as the eye could see.
* The subliminal messaging of 'The fly' was some of the most optimistic stuff that I could have read. It was a bombardment, and I can barely imagine what it would have been like at Zootv to have that all the time.

My favourite songs were 'Vertigo', 'Pride', 'The Fly','Love and Peace or Else' and 'One', though all of the songs were well performed. I left the gig with ringing ears, but on a natural high that I don't think has left me yet!

This was my first U2 gig, and I sincerely hope it won't be my last.

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