U2 360 Norman, OK

[This tour has already been reviewed twice on this site, once in Raleigh by guest reviewer Dentist (who was with me on Sunday night) and once by Lawyer in Dallas.]

I love U2 even when, occasionally, Bono with his messianic complex makes me role my eyes and drop my head when I admit it. That Bono was on display in Dallas ten days ago. Too much politicizing. Too much preaching. Too much messing up my favorite songs by talking about poverty, AIDS, Africa, Myanmar, Iran, and anything else that popped into his head. But the other Bono, the one that through sheer force of will keeps U2 relevant 30 years on, the one that can get 60,000 fans to their feet by crank starting the microphone stand before going into opener Breathe, a song at least half the crowd has never heard, that Bono was in the house on Sunday night, and that guy I love. That guy can tell me about AIDS and Africa, and Myanmar, and maybe even Iran, and I’ll listen. He’s earned the right.


But let me begin by giving credit where credit’s due: opening band the Black Eyed Peas were very, very entertaining. While I enjoyed the music of Muse more in Dallas the week before, the Peas are definitely the more entertaining of the two bands. The credit primarily goes to Fergie, who not only has serious pipes live, but throws herself into the production. Between her moving and shaking, the rest of the group, the backing band, and a host of dancers, the Black Eyed Peas proved they knew a thing or two about playing large venues. Their 45-minute set was a perfect opener for U2, pumping the crowd of 60,000 onto their feet through sheer exuberance before exiting the stage a few minutes past 8:00.

A word about the setting. The concert was on OU’s campus in Memorial Stadium. It was a cool evening, low-60’s to mid-50’s with a predictably stout breeze that reportedly chilled folks in the upper stands. This breeze mixed with the smoke machines and spotlights to lend an ethereal quality to the event not unlike an Irish moor, a fact not lost on Bono. Me and my cadre of ten (including occasional contributor Dentist) had General Admission tickets. It being a weekend day, we headed down to the stadium at 2:00, determined to get on the catwalk, which we did, directly in front of the band, with some of us on the rail and no one further than the second row.

At 8:50, as “the wave” circled the stadium, the lights dropped and Larry Mullens strode in with “Kingdom,” an unreleased U2 song that is rumored to appear on their next album Songs of Ascent, playing overhead. With a burst he launched into Breathe, quickly joined by The Edge and Adam Clayton then Bono, grabbing that microphone stand and yanking it down with all his might.

From the beginning, it was obvious the boys had come to play. Perhaps this was because it had been 26 years since they’d played Oklahoma City. Or maybe it was the tangible electricity in the crowd. Whatever, from the opening moments the crowd and the band were in sync. If it takes two to tango, both were ready. Bono poured energy and The Edge was assaulting his guitar, especially on the Achtung material-- Mysterious Ways, Until the End of the World, and Ultraviolet.

The set list was basically the same as Dallas, but with the addition of In a Little While, one of my favorites off All That You Can’t Leave Behind, and Unknown Caller, one of my least favorite off the new album. Still, even that song worked as an odd sing-a-long enabled by placing the lyrics on the massive screen.

If I have a complaint it’s that Where the Streets Have No Name should be in the main set, not in the first encore. Speaking of, that doesn’t even feel like an encore. It’s One going into Amazing Grace going into Streets. That set-up is chilling to a church boy like me (especially in the Bible belt, where Amazing Grace got maybe the best sing-a-long of the night), but it would be more powerful earlier.

It’s hard for me to pinpoint why this concert was so much better than Dallas, the most disappointing of the U2 shows I’ve seen. I think a lot of it has to do with the location. This 360 show was designed to be seen outdoors, not in a dome, and the massive stage seems perfect, not ridiculous, outside. A number of the goodies of that stage, most notably the massive mirror ball on top, can’t be used indoors. Plus, Bono preached about half as much at this show, which was nice. I’m all about the many causes Bono supports, but I’m not laying down my money to hear the news. I’m sure my location helped, at one point or another I was with five feet of all four of them. The additional two songs brought the length up to about what it should be, nearly 2 ½ hours. Whatever, by the second encore, with Ultraviolet and With or Without You, I was physically and emotionally drained and able to lay back and take it in, lost in the music and the emotion and fully content. It was the best concert experience of my life. Excellent.