U2 Live @ the O2

...​one of the best nights of my life.

​Venue:

• The O2 Arena, London

Date:

• 24th of October 2018

Live Acts:

• U2

​

​I didn’t want to write about this concert because I felt it would be a review way too personal, but then I thought ‘fuck it, when I’m old and senile I can re-read this, and think about the best night of my life’. 

I had dreamed of seeing U2 live since about 20 years ago, when I started listening to them in the (hated by anyone but me) Pop era and I had lost all hope it was going to happen, since the tickets are always so expensive, and they never seem to play anywhere near me. I came to the conclusion it just wasn’t meant to be. But when last week I won a couple of tickets that Kerrang! was giving away, I couldn’t believe my ginormous luck.
​

This wasn’t a nostalgia concert like The Smashing Pumpkins’, so I can’t hold it against U2 for playing new music, they are promoting Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience after all… even if Innocence didn’t even get one song played. Oh, well!
​

I’m not going to lie, I haven’t listened to almost anything after How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, but I still call U2 one of my favourite bands, because no one else ever managed to give me the feelings these four dudes do… and that was proven on Wednesday, when (without exaggerating) I bawled my eyes for the first half of the show. Luckily, I managed to pull myself together and enjoy the second half, sing along, dance and clap like a normal person… but still with tears in my eyes like I have now writing this.
​

"I still call U2 one of my favourite bands, because no one else ever managed to give me the feelings these four dudes do"

I don’t think I’m saying this just because I love U2, but they do put up a show that is out of this world. They have a main stage, a satellite stage connected by a catwalk where two mega screens can move up and down on top of it, and two more tiny platforms that are only used for one song. But that is not all, in the middle of the screens (that can become almost invisible) the whole band can stand, move around and even fit Larry’s drums – it is insane.

I have seen videos of their live action, so I thought I had an idea what to expect, but no amount of recordings could ever have prepared me for the experience, when you are actually there, in front of Bono, Edge, Adam and Larry singing and playing their hearts out to you.
​

U2 is a band that got where they are obviously for their amazing music, but I think a lot of it is also thanks to their shows. Any fan needs to find a way to seem them live at least once and if you bring along someone that is not really into them, like Dan for example, I promise you they won’t hate you for dragging them there, they might even get converted – that’s how much of a great show they put on.
​

The seats Kerrang! gave us were pretty amazing, probably the best seating I have ever had, almost in front of the satellite stage, where most of the action was. The show lasted two hours, not the three The Smashing Pumpkins or System of a Down put up, but I can’t really moan. The four Irish boys played a good mix of old and new tunes, from ‘New Year’s Day’ and ‘I Will Follow’, passing through some of my favourites like ‘Stay’ and ‘Pride’, and going heavy on Achtung Baby, which we were all glad for. Sadly Pop didn’t even get one song played and it was a bit of a let down since ‘Staring at the Sun’ was the track that made me fall for this amazing band.

​But like I said before, I cannot even hold that against them, this still was one of the best nights of my life.
​

10/10

Written by Mags.
​

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