by Collin Souter

What a month it’s been. I just saw the new poll on atu2.com asking fans about their favorite part of the Elevation tour. I have to agree on the music being the best, but I have to say the second best part has been meeting all the fans along the way. Nikki and I have been to 8 shows in the past month. We feel like seasoned veterans. We’ve had 4 general admission shows and 4 shows in the yuppie seats. Further down in this review, you’ll see a General Admission survival guide to enjoying the show.

But first, some thoughts on last night’s show. The stage looked as though they had to scale it down to fit inside this small 2-tier arena. We had a front row spot outside the heart just to the right of the tip (as you face the stage). Everything felt a lot closer. P.J. Harvey’s set felt like a club show even to those of us outside the heart. Harvey’s set matched the quality of her 3rd Chicago show performance. Steve Cunningham (whom I met in line that day) wrote a good review of the set already. I’m always glad to hear people commenting on her music on these review boards. It also sounded as though U2 offered her their entire sound system because I felt a ringing in my ears I never felt once she finished her set. Also, she and her band appeared on two of the black and white monitors above. I especially liked the close-up of her legs during the “Lick my legs! I’m on fire” scream.

As for U2…song-wise, the big surprises came in the form of “In My Life” beautifully segueing into “Stuck In A Moment.” Yes, I too felt a little lump in the throat at that moment. Another surprise came when the ENTIRE band came to the tip of the heart to perform “Desire,” a truly generous treat for those of us near the tip with cameras. Larry looked characteristically and understandably uncomfortable with the situation. It has been a while since Zoo TV. He hasn’t grown used to whites of our eyes.

Steve Cunningham and Scott Sanborn have written great, thorough, dead-on reviews of this show already and I highly recommend reading them. Rather than repeat what they’ve already said, I’d like to just give those of you who haven’t gone to a show a quick heads-up on what to expect when doing the G.A. thing. Remember…

1.“DANCE WITH ME, BONO” signs don’t work. I have yet to attend a show and not see at least 2 or 3 versions of this sign. Bono has yet to take a girl with a sign and bring her on stage. I know, I know… “What about Jonathan in Chicago with his ‘Keyboards during Stay’ sign?” He had to show up at least 3 times with that sign before Bono took him seriously. If you absolutely must have the sign, please don’t flag it EVERY time Bono walks in front of you. It obstructs the view of those behind you and the chances of Bono bringing a girl up to dance with him during “The Fly” will not be in your favor. The best thing would be to just be yourself. If your happiness after the show depends on whether or not Bono dances with you, then you’ll probably walk out disappointed. Furthermore…

2.BEGGING WILL GET YOU NOWHERE. Last night, somebody who I didn’t even see behind me before the show managed to lunge his way to our area. As Bono laid on the floor at the end of UTEOTW, the guy had his hand reached out and pathetically begged, “BONOOOOO…PLEEEEEAAASSSE…BONOOOOOO…” as if Bono would just stop everything, take himself out of the moment and shake this guy’s hand. Maybe before or after the show, but during the show he has other plans. Just be cool, people. Be cool.

3.DON’T THROW THINGS ONTO THE STAGE Remember the ‘Bono I need my shades back’ guy? Well, he showed up again last night with a similar sign that read, “This time I really need my shades back.” He had a pair of Fly shades with him. During The Fly, as Bono ran down the ramp, the guy threw the shades onto the ramp. Bono, not seeing them thrown at him, stepped on them, broke them and kicked them into the audience. Bye-bye Fly shades. Bono could have slipped and hurt himself, which would have REALLY put a damper on the show. So, please, people, don’t throw stuff on the stage. Bono will probably just kick it off anyway. He took a rose from somebody at the tip last night, then threw it back to the crowd. If you want to give Bono something, hold it out, but don’t throw it. Security hates that.

4.YOU WILL BE UNCOMFORTABLE You bought G.A. tickets and now you have to pay the price. Sure, at the outside of the tip, you get to touch Bono’s hand, but you also get a drunk guy’s elbow in your ribcage, a mysterious foot in your buttocks and somebody else’s anorexic shoulder up your nostrils. Well, okay, maybe it won’t be that bad. But somebody did write in another review of another show that, yes, U2 fans may be a peaceful bunch, but make no mistake, many would trample over their own grandmother to touch Bono’s hand. Those of you INSIDE the heart don’t have to deal with this as much as those on the outer tip. When Bono comes to the tip, it can get claustrophobic and you could be gasping for air. I have seen, on more than one occasion, people being pulled from the outer tip because they couldn’t handle it.

5.KEEP IN MIND, YOU HAVE A HORRIBLE SINGING VOICE Men, this applies to you. The same guy begging for Bono’s hand in marriage also serenaded up with his rendition of “Stay” and “Walk On” (among others). I know it could have been worse, but, really, leave it to the professionals. I sing along too, but only when I know I’m being drowned out.

6.LIMP BIZCUIT WILL NOT BE PLAYING TONIGHT SO, NO CROWD SURFING. Last night, security had to remove a guy from the outer G.A. section for crowd-surfing, a first for this tour, I think. When Bono wrote, “We get to carry each other,” I don’t think he meant that. Nobody at a U2 show wants to carry your ass.

7.WHEN WAITING OUTSIDE ALL DAY, if you have a boom-box and you want to play music for your fellow U2 fans (which does pass the time nicely), feel free to play music by artists OTHER THAN U2! There IS such a thing as over-kill. Anyway, all the radio stations already have the ‘Best Of 1980-90’ CD playing on a continuous loop outside the building all day, so why not go for diversity? To me, waiting to hear U2 music all day heightens the tension and makes the show that much more exciting.

So, there you go, G.A. ticket holders. Enjoy. With all of that, I STILL prefer it to the $135-85 seats.

Last night, Nikki and I gave a ‘thank you’ card to U2’s security for treating us with kindness and respect. At the Milwaukee show, they gave Nikki the sheet that has Bono’s WTSHNN prayer on it and in Indianapolis, they gave her a bottle of water for surviving the outer-tip-of-the-heart G.A. chaos. Thanks, guys. You do great work.

Anyway, this has been one hell of a month. I hope you all have the same kaleidoscopic, madcap, sleep-deprived musical journey we had. Nobody gives the best of themselves to their fans like U2. To all the great people we’ve met in the past month, thanks for trading with us and we hope to see you all again in the fall.

Unto the almighty!

Hallelujah!

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