by John K

I've been to every tour since Joshua Tree and have always walked away from every U2 show feeling like what I had just experienced was something more than a simple rock-n-roll concert. A U2 show has always been about more than that. There has always been something transcendent of the mind and communal of the spirit about a U2 concert. For me it has always been about something of such great depth and intensitiy, both emotionally and musically, that it was sustaining , nourishing and uplifting. Even in the big stadium shows of the 90s...there was always a sense of unity, community and oneness with the music and the band. An icy riff from Edge's guitar, a throbbing note from Adam's bass, an emotive wail from Bono's vocals and an explosive beat from Larry's drums would routinely send chills up your spine and raise the hairs on the back of your neck. The battle hardened/initiated U2 fans call this sensation "lift off" and I have never once failed to experience it over my 20 + years of following the band. Never once, that is, until last night in Omaha Nebraska.

So to what do I attribute this failing? Was it the band? Possibly. They are somewhat to blame. While the performance was musically very good, refined and professional I did sense a bit of "workman like" presentation in their material and performance and on several occasions it seemed as if they were just following the script for another night. Not surprising as they have been at this tour for almost a year but somewhat disappointing for me as a fan as this was my first opportunity to catch them during this tour. Plus...a good crowd would have helped the band rise above that and last night was not a good crowd....which brings me to my next point.

This was the most sedate and uninvolved U2 crowd I have ever been a part of and, while I saw a couple areas of action during the show, the majority of the arena seemed to be passively watching instead of actively participating. The vibe before the show was a strange mix of society and sloppy drunkenness and it became apparent very quickly that the concert had brought out various levels of Omaha society that were more interested in being seen at an "event" then participating in a communal U2 experience. As my wife and I waited in our seats before the show I even had the gentlemen next to me ask if "I thought we would have to stand up during the show". To which I replied "Yes. Stand up AND sing." He left about 3/4 of the way through the concert. A woman in front of me politely sat, with ear plugs in ears, and drank her Pepsi throughout the majority of the concert only occasionally getting up to see what the fuss was all about or to glare at me and my wife as we sang the lyrics to every song. A young couple on the other side of my wife stoically stood with their hands in their pockets as if they were attending a wake for a long lost relative. A friend of ours, who is also a U2 veteran having attended U2 shows in places as diverse as London and Kansas City, attended the show as well and was seated in different section than ours. He was routinely asked to "sit down" as no one else in his section wanted to have to stand and watch the show. I have never seen this kind of behavior at a U2 show and I never thought I would.

I was glad to read that others had a typical U2 experience and I truly wish mine would have been better.

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