by Kim

It's a bit baffling to me why so many fans and critics are complaining because there was nothing "new" about this show. This wasn't "Elevation Tour 2" or something. This was the 3rd leg of the SAME SHOW, and yes there were differences in this show. Was it, as Robert Hilburn put it, "as different as Septemeber 10th was to September 12th"? Uh, not quite. I really don't think you can compare anything to that horrible day, especially a rock concert. But what made this show great was the level of sensitivity that U2 showed. They brought the emotion to a level that I didn't even think they were capable of adding to. When Bono brought that American flag to his chest and embraced it like a baby, you could have heard a pin drop in that arena. The band were barely audible, playing behind him at an almost hushed level. Or when they played "One", and the names of the victims (not including the several thousand that are still unaccounted for) from the September 11th attacks were scrolled on huge screens behind the band, most people around me, myself included, were in tears.
I found this show very different in many ways than the last five I've seen from the first leg. Gone is the Charleton Heston schpeel and the grusome images of gun-related crimes (thank God). Instead of preaching political points-of-view, the band offered comfort through their music and, to me anyway, seemed more into this show than several I've seen before. They were reluctant to leave the stage after the last encore, with most of the band stopping to shake hands with the lucky few at the foot of the stage.

Oh yeah, No Doubt were the opening band. Enough said.

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