by Trevour

Standing/sitting in line for 10+ hours in the Target Center lobby was WELL worth it, my friend & I being the 29th & 30th people in line all day long. We got our Heart wristbands early in the morning, by 4:30 in the afternoon we were let in to get our General Admission wristbands. Then at 6:30 we were led to the INSIDE of the Heart, where staff quickly handed out INSIDE THE HEART wristbands. A total of 3 wristbands! But my friend & I ZOOMED right up to the front... it was unreal!!! Last time at Popmart I was 15 rows from the stage.

PJ Harvey was great, and I noticed on the U2 site that U2 had just arrived when she started her set! We had some nasty severe weather here (tornados & hail were present), and word was U2 were about to make an emergency stop in Fargo (near where I live) and then drive FOUR hours to Minneapolis. But everything was fine and it was almost 9:00 when the boys took the stage!

"Elevation" was an extremely powerful opener, "Beautiful Day," amazing! Bono & The Edge did their trademark duelin' out on the heart catwalk during "Until The End Of The World." Adam's bassin' kicked in for "New Year's Day" and the crowd went wild. Bono then dedicated their next song, "Kite," to First Avenue (a small club across the street from Target Center), which used to be called Uncle Sam's. I think Bono wrote "Stranger In A Strange Land" while visiting here almost exactly 20 years ago at that same spot! Things were calmed down a bit for "New York," but of course the crowd went berzerk again for "I Will Follow." Then one of Larry's most famous drumlines kicked in - it was amazing hearing "Sunday Bloody Sunday" in all its glory! At this point Bono took an Irish flag that someone had up front, and slowly brought it across the stage and gently laid it front of The Edge's piano. "Stuck In A Moment..." was dedicated to Michael Hutchence. Another legend had a dedication, as "In A Little While" was for Joey Ramone (who, as I'm sure everybody knows by now, passed away in April while listening to this song). Bono & The Edge did an acoustic "Desire" out on the Heart, and then went into another acoustic, "Stay," which I think was my FAVOURITE of the night!!! Many people wanted to hear this next one: "Bad" with "40" and was totally emotional. "Where The Streets..." kicked in, and the energy rocketed even higher. Bono laid down on one of the moving screens of the video wall for "Mysterious Ways" as the silhouetted video woman danced away in many colours. Bono sang a little intro for "The Fly," and then it went into full force, very strong! The coloured lighting added to the excitement, and Bono even air-guitared a little bit up on the Heart while The Edge played, almost like a mechanical wind-up toy!

U2 left the stage, and then we did the obvious... WAITED FOR THE ENCORE!

The Charleton Heston "gun" credo came up on the video wall, and the band came back out to start up "Bullet The Blue Sky," while the video wall displayed guns and violece footage. Very powerful. "With Or Without You" was next, and it sure felt uplifting. "Pride" went on, and then "One." The show ended with "Walk On," the tail of the song closing out with the "Hallelujah."

The band said goodbye, and we got to slap hands with The Edge a few times before they left the stage for good! Was that for real???

My friend & I had to walk home, and it was almost after midnight, and we were EXTREMELY sleepy, but it was ALLLL SOOO WORTH IT. It has been the greatest concert experience to date. Thank you, U2. This stop on the Elevation 2001 Tour is one I will NEVER NEVER NEVER forget!!!

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