" ~~~ U2 ~~~ "

jimed14

CAUTION - RUMOR ALERT

From past weekend's Contra Costa Times ... PURE speculation, but, I like the thinking ....

Bridge School Benefit: I'll officially kick off the annual rumor mill with the bold prediction that U2 will headline the 2009 Bridge shows. That's not just wishful thinking; the scheduling makes a lot of sense. Bono and the boys will be on the West Coast in late October for shows in Los Angeles and Vancouver, and it's quite peculiar that they've sidestepped the Bay Area. U2 says it won't add any more dates to its mega-stadium tour this year, but an appearance at the Bridge doesn't appear out of the question. Keep your fingers crossed for when the lineup is officially announced, usually in August or September.

http://m.contracostatimes.com/contracos ... &full=true

Bathgate66

Bathgate66 wrote:

Rolling Stone
May 06, 2009

You can always count on U2 to deliver eye-catching music videos, but with director Alex Courtes, the Irish rockers may have found their muse. Together, the pair has produced some truly wondrous, cinematic stunners, including 2004's "Vertigo" and "Get On Your Boots," the first single from the band's twelfth studio set, 2009's No Line on the Horizon.

But while "Boots" presented fans with a striking, green-screen rendered visual collage amid a captivating performance from Bono and company set in the cosmos, the four-and-a-half minute clip for U2's second single, "Magnificent," which debuted on the band's site this morning, utilizes the beautiful city of Fez, Morocco, as its backdrop.

Shot in March, the video consists largely of another brilliant performance from U2, inside the garden of a local riad. But the action does shift between U2's performance, close-up imagery of people running through the city, and wide shots of the city, its buildings draped in white sheets, which slither off the tops of palatial mosques and the tiled rooftops of the North African city.

The video also features slice-of-life footage shot within the medieval city, of its ancient edifices, its bustling markets, its denizens toiling and its youth playing.

The song, which was originally titled "French Disco," revolves around a pair of lovers "holding on to each other and trying to turn their life into worship," No Line producer Daniel Lanois said in a recent interview. "We wanted to have something euphoric and Bono came up with that little melody. And he loved that melody, and stuck with it. Almost like a fanfare. And then I was involved in the lyrical process on that, because we wanted to talk about sacrifice that one makes for one's medium or one's art."

© Rolling Stone, 2009.

Magnificent

norm

jimed14 wrote:

CAUTION - RUMOR ALERT

From past weekend's Contra Costa Times ... PURE speculation, but, I like the thinking ....

Bridge School Benefit: I'll officially kick off the annual rumor mill with the bold prediction that U2 will headline the 2009 Bridge shows. That's not just wishful thinking; the scheduling makes a lot of sense. Bono and the boys will be on the West Coast in late October for shows in Los Angeles and Vancouver, and it's quite peculiar that they've sidestepped the Bay Area. U2 says it won't add any more dates to its mega-stadium tour this year, but an appearance at the Bridge doesn't appear out of the question. Keep your fingers crossed for when the lineup is officially announced, usually in August or September.

http://m.contracostatimes.com/contracos ... &full=true

and if pearl jam who haven't played there since 06 were to also be there

Bathgate66

happy birthday bono

Lennon_Cobain

I am looking forward to both shows at Gillette Stadium. I have (Red) Zone tickets for one of the shows, so I am curious to see if I am going to be with a bunch of douchebags or not.

By the way, "Magnificent" is by far the best song on "No Line On The Horizon."

Poncier

Lennon_Cobain wrote:

I am looking forward to both shows at Gillette Stadium. I have (Red) Zone tickets for one of the shows, so I am curious to see if I am going to be with a bunch of douchebags or not.

By the way, "Magnificent" is by far the best song on "No Line On The Horizon."

I'll be one of those "douchebags" at the Monday show in Red Zone.
From what I can tell, especially for Monday when the bidding stayed reasonable a lot of die hard U2 fans grabbed Red Zone, it won't just be rich Uncle Pennybags and his cohorts.

And I agree about Magnificent, top track for sure on the disc.

Poncier

Bathgate66 wrote:

happy birthday bono

Next year will be the big one, wonder if they'll be on the road in May, could be an epic show if they are playing on 5/10/2010. I was at Larry's 40th on 10/31/01 in Providence and that was pretty cool, played "Slow Dancing" and of course "Party Girl" while Larry had some cake and champagne.

Bathgate66

wish i coulda made it up to gilette,

i'll have to be happy with 2 shows at giants stadium this time around,

i'm assuming they'll return with a leg 2 or 3 with indoor arenas as done in the past.

thankfully any event happening out in the swamps of New Jersey has the intangible of Bruce walking out onstage for a quick cameo . I think this is approaching near Bruces birthday , so heck maye he'll show up too ,...

Lennon_Cobain

Poncier wrote:

Lennon_Cobain wrote:

I am looking forward to both shows at Gillette Stadium. I have (Red) Zone tickets for one of the shows, so I am curious to see if I am going to be with a bunch of douchebags or not.

By the way, "Magnificent" is by far the best song on "No Line On The Horizon."

I'll be one of those "douchebags" at the Monday show in Red Zone.
From what I can tell, especially for Monday when the bidding stayed reasonable a lot of die hard U2 fans grabbed Red Zone, it won't just be rich Uncle Pennybags and his cohorts.

And I agree about Magnificent, top track for sure on the disc.

I'll be in (Red) Zone 2 on Monday night.

Poncier

I'm in Red 2 as well, unfortunately I think 2 is Adam's side based on the Houston seating chart:

http://www.ticketmaster.com/seatingchart/98764/27555

but who knows. Should be good either way.

Bathgate66

BEING BORN: U2'S STAGE
May 10, 2009
posted by: m2

Thx to Bart for emailing us a link to some very cool shots of U2's
stage for the 360 Tour being built in Belgium. It looks ENORMOUS.

see more pics on Bart's site >>

http://bartmot.be/Site_2/The_Claw.html

g under p

Bathgate66 wrote:

BEING BORN: U2'S STAGE
May 10, 2009
posted by: m2

Thx to Bart for emailing us a link to some very cool shots of U2's
stage for the 360 Tour being built in Belgium. It looks ENORMOUS.

see more pics on Bart's site >>

http://bartmot.be/Site_2/The_Claw.html

Oh My Goodness it looks like something from the docks at a shipyard.

Peace

Bathgate66

EDGE: 'LUMINOUS TIMES' WOULD BE 'FUN'
May 14, 2009
posted by: m2

Please sit down before reading. Kthx. By now, it's possibly the No. 1
question on every U2 fan's mind: What songs will U2 play on tour this
year? Edge shares some possible answers in the new issue of Rolling
Stone (with Green Day on the cover). Here's a snippet shared with us
by @U2 Forum member, "The Exile."

RS: "What will the set lists be like?"

Edge: "We're talking about resurrecting songs we haven't played in a
long time. I have a list of every U2 song -- some I can't remember
anymore -- even some of the B-sides that we've never played live. We
were thinking how much fun it would be to play something like
'Luminous Times.' Certain songs from the last couple of tours, we may
not play again. We want to find songs that feel fresh and valid."

RS: "How are the new songs shaping up live?"

Edge: "We'll play about half the album, and having played some in TV
appearances, we know these songs translate well live. There's a few
that will be up there with our best-ever live songs. Some of them we
really have to rework -- 'Crazy Tonight' was a very keyboard oriented
song on the album, but I took it to the guitar live, and it sounds
great...."

Edge also says he "wouldn't rule out" singing lead on a song, and when
Rolling Stone suggests "Numb," Edge promises to add it to the list of
possibilities. Use the link to talk about all this in our forum.

join the discussion in @U2's forum >>

http://forum.atu2.com/index.php/board,12.0.html

Bathgate66

THE CLAW: MOVING PICTURES
May 15, 2009
posted by: m2

You've seen the still photos, now how about some moving pictures of
"the claw"? @U2 reader Greg and a few friends shot about a minute of
video at the StageCo facility in Werchter, Belgium, and have put it on
YouTube.

SEE VIDEO ON http://www.atu2.com/

Greg says they plan to go back this weekend when it's not "raining
cats and dogs."

Bathgate66

U2 bomb
May 16, 2009
By Dan Wootton

NOT such a beautiful day for seasoned rockers U2 - their latest single
has become the lads' biggest flop in TWO DECADES . . . it didn't even
make the Top 40!

Despite being the standout track on their new album, Magnificent had a
chart performance that was anything but (sorry BONO).

It only managed to limp in to No 42 thanks to its paltry 5,157 copies
being sold and downloaded.

I don't mean to sound dramatic, folks, but that's a commercial
disaster of epic proportions that would send lesser bands to the
scrapheap.

The tune becomes their lowest single in 22 years, since God's Country
hit number 48 in 1987. Sadly, for Bono and THE EDGE, new album No Line
On The Horizon did no better - it was their worst-selling in the
band's long history.

Bet Bono wishes he could hide Where The Streets Have No Name.

Bathgate66

THE CLAW: ON ITS FEET
May 16, 2009
posted by: m2

As promised, Greg and friends went back to Stageco in Belgium today
and found much better weather, not to mention "the claw," fully
upright and towering high above the nearby buildings. There's a still
photo we've put on Flickr (thx Dirk) and Greg put this video on
YouTube for the world to see:

Flickr photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/atu2com/3536629353/

Video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLR9aNvkecA&feature=player_embedded

Bathgate66

Het Nieuwsblad: U2's monster stage erected in Werchter
Belgian company builds `The Claw' on Brabantian soil

May 19, 2009

Important visitors have come to Werchter. They've come from London to watch a Belgian company scaffolding the brand new stage for U2, ready to tour the world and give Bono a roof over his head. "He can rest assured."

It was a strange sight on May 18th for the inhabitants of Werchter. Or, more precisely: a looming sight. For, near the Werchter church, an iron colossus of about 30 meters high arises. It is the final test build of the new U2 stage, dubbed "The Claw" by the band. The Claw, to which video screens will be secured before and during live shows, will for the first time be visible in its full glory in Barcelona. On June 30, Bono and Co. will kick off their prestigious world tour there.

But for now, it is the Belgian company Stageco that provides one of the world's biggest groups with a stage setup. "The design for the new U2 stage is, with regards to load capacity and weight, the biggest we've received so far," said Tom Bilsen of Stageco. Even so, the stage building company has been the provider for the biggest artists: from Robbie Williams to the Stones. The creator of the 360-degree design for U2's new tour was veteran Willie Williams, and the London-based Mark Fisher bureau passed the plans along to Stageco in Tildonk. The necessary space to erect the test build was found in Werchter.

"We started building about three weeks ago," Bilsen explained. Now the thing is bigger than an average house. "It measures 40 by 60 meters. Yes, it's impressive. And I should add that we'll have to build two more copies of the whole thing, because a total of three stages will be driven around the world in some 50 trucks." It'll be necessary, as U2 plays Berlin on July 18, and scarcely two days later a new claw will have to be showing off in the Amsterdam Arena.

The claw will have screens and boxes suspended from it and will have its feet among the audience. It's designed to guarantee an optimal view for each fan in each stadium, the Koning Boudewijn stadium in Brussels in 2010 among others. Before that time comes, Stageco wants to make sure Bono will have a safe roof over his head. "That's why the stage in Werchter will be overburdened with weight," Bilsen concluded. "Not to make it collapse, but to take the weight of the screens and boxes into account."

For a few days longer, Werchter will remain in the Claw's grip. After that, low-rise buildings will once again reign in Flemish Brabant.

© Het Nieuwsblad, 2009.

[Note from @U2: This is a translation of the original Dutch article.
For a video, and a picture gallery (under EXTRA), check out the original site:
http://www.nieuwsblad.be/Article/Detail ... =GKA2AF8NT]

Bathgate66

The @U2 staff was recently asked to write a quiz about U2 for Parade magazine. That quiz appears in today's online edition.

There are 25 questions with varying levels of difficulty. If you're up for the challenge, good luck!

Take the quiz here:

http://www.parade.com/celebrity/quiz/music/u2.html

g under p

Bathgate66 wrote:

The @U2 staff was recently asked to write a quiz about U2 for Parade magazine. That quiz appears in today's online edition.

There are 25 questions with varying levels of difficulty. If you're up for the challenge, good luck!

Take the quiz here:

http://www.parade.com/celebrity/quiz/music/u2.html

Considering I haven't been following the band closely like I did till the early 90's. I had 3 wrong: The question of who sang on a song, the high school question and the model on the cover of Vogue.

Peace

Bathgate66

THE CLAW - JUNE 6
June 07, 2009
posted by: m2

U2 Barcelona and U2 East Link have both posted a bunch of new photos
of U2's Claw being built at Camp Nou in Barcelona. The latest pics are
here:

http://www.telefonica.net/web2/u2barcel ... lona_s.htm

http://img190.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=img7763b.jpg