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by Mike Lanin

I think it is important to point out that this show was an iconoclastic thumb in the eye of politicians, the rock scene, religious zealots, end even fans who were all too willing to chalk U2 up as having hit their pinnacle with Joshua Tree. What we witnessed with this tour was not only a drastic, throw-caution-to-the-wind, rebirth of a band that had grown from a little, political Irish band to a monolithic chart-topper--and were obviously ready to stir it up again. There are few shows in history that completely overwhelmed and transfixed the audience like this one. Tall towers with red beacons glowing atop stood with a huge ZooTV neon sign, and a hug TV playing CNN and flashing political and satirical messages. Behind the band was more screens--all amounting to an incredibly overwhelming visual impact that caused me to think about what a bizarre and complex world we had created for ourselves (and of all irony, the internet was still several years off--no doubt this would have exemplified the ultimate expression of U2's ZooTV message of sensory overload). In one sound-bite, between songs, Bono proclaims "I have a Vision", and the crowd cheered loudly, as their fearless leader was going to give them hope and guidance... then Bono finished his sentence "... a television." The crowd cheered again as they were left slightly stung to know that their hopes of salvation were dashed; replaced with the harsh reality of 24-hour television programming of televangelism, war, and famine in our living rooms. Without doubt, this show was beyond the scope of anything I had seen before, and dare say, expect to see again in my life. Simply incredible and life-altering.

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