Seeing U2 live has always been an emotional experience for me. It’s an all-day event and usually involves a lot of driving, bad traffic, coordinating with other people and making sure I have a good spot. Yeah, that and the whole “legendary band live” thing. This concert was no different. A great experience that stuck with me long after the lights went out. U2’s 360 experience consists of a huge metallic claw that reaches down from the sky, an elaborate catwalk and a ridiculous amount of video screens and speakers. For all that technology and engineering, the end result is some damn fine acoustics. Bono’s vocals were crisp and powerful and The Edge’s guitar work was on point! Per the usual “the scientist” mixed catchy riffs with tight solos, driving home the peaks and valleys of epic U2 songs. Flushing out the rhythm section, Larry Mullen Jr. opened and closed the show himself serving as the backbone for the band he started when he was 16 years old. The “ladies man” Adam Clayton, won over new fans, both male and female, with his fancy bass-work.

Taking in the show from inside the catwalk directly in front of the stage was a real treat. Certainly the closest I’ve ever been to Bono and the gang out of the five shows I’ve been to. I always say you don’t get the full experience for a band if you’re not fighting the people around you for space to breath. Crammed together like potatoes in a sack, the fans in the general admission are the ones there to rock and not stare from their seats sipping a soda. Our crowd erupted when Bono walked by about 10 feet away crooning into the night. But what you make up for in view of the musicians you lose in view of the ridiculously huge screens and set design. I didn’t get much of the 360 experience but I guess I can rent the DVD for that. The moving parts were too big from our position so I’ll settle on stellar audio and a front row view instead. The playlist gets mixed reviews. I expected a slowly built-up opener with the spirited track “No Line on the Horizon” but instead it was snuck in later under the radar. Another great song of the new album, “I’ll Go Crazy if I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight”, was remixed as a funk-fusion dance number with Larry Mullen Jr. jiving about the stage with a conga drum. Sure enough though, there were the winners. The usual suspects all crushed it and I won’t get into the specifics as we all know those songs were written for a stadium crowd. “Ultraviolet (Light My Way)” was an unexpected treat though, with or without Bono’s “laser jacket“. A U2 show takes a lot out of you but I wouldn’t have it any other way. So many sights and sounds to process. You feel like you’re gonna miss something if you take time to blink. But once you realize it’s all about the moment, sit back and just let it ride, well that’s when it really starts to soak in. It’s no secret this is my favorite band of all time and seeing them live it about as good as it gets for a lifelong fan of Ireland’s biggest export.