1. I hear this narrative of ‘failure’ a lot regarding POP and The POPMART Tour, but was it truly a failure though? The album still sold over 6 million copies , it was number one in a dozen countries .. the tour was a disaster at first but built up steam to feature in my mind some of their best live performances to this day. Yeah the ‘septic tanks’ ( Yanks ) looked bemused - after all the joke was on them lol - by it all but the whole kitschy thing was lapped up in Europe and by the time they got to me in Australia ( all aussie stadia was packed full i might add as i went and saw them in Melbourne Brisbane and Sydney ) they were on FIRE and tight as a drum on stage , so by U2s lofty expectations it might be perceived as one but it wasn’t a failure at all ! They would each give their right testicles to sell 6 million copies again of anything !
  2. Originally posted by podiumboy:[..]
    I just played the Mexico City LNOE tuned down half a step using Garage Band. It's not distractingly different, and Bono (and Edge) could probably nail that chorus in that key.

    Now NYD tuned down a whole step, as they've done from 2017-2019, is distracting.


    Interesting..I hope they give it a try in any key!!
  3. Originally posted by podiumboy:[..]
    I just played the Mexico City LNOE tuned down half a step using Garage Band. It's not distractingly different, and Bono (and Edge) could probably nail that chorus in that key.

    Now NYD tuned down a whole step, as they've done from 2017-2019, is distracting.


    I like the modern NYD it sounds a bit darker
  4. NYD version in 2018 was so good. Great arrangement. The 'maybe the time is right, maybe tonight' verse after the solo makes quite a difference and makes the song even better.
  5. I love the new version too. I like all versions but it started tp be boring hearing it the same all the time
  6. Originally posted by iamcrazytonight:[..]
    NYD version in 2018 was so good. Great arrangement. The 'maybe the time is right, maybe tonight' verse after the solo makes quite a difference and makes the song even better.
    Even 2017 felt pretty fresh with not just the ‘maybe the time is right’ bit but also ‘so we are told this is the golden age’ as well. Pity they left the latter out of the 2019 shows but it was still great then as well. I’ve always loved NYD anyway but I enjoyed it even more they last few years probably going back as far as Slane for something better.

  7. Yes it was, both in terms of ticket sales and album sales (for their standards!). They hadn't seen so many not-sold out concerts since the Boy tour! Conceptually the tour was great and there's not much to blame (maybe it draws a bit too much from Zoo TV), but the band was clearly unrehearsed for the most part of the first half of the tour, and that's something unbecoming for a band that once was the biggest in the world. And also Bono had his worst tour ever regarding vocals, and he is a SINGER so the quality of his vocals live is not a minor issue.

    What this has to do with the Berlin 2018 broadcast is beyond me though


  8. This.

    Originally posted by SJKamal:I never realised the message behind the HMTMKMKM intermission video.

    They finish with an AB song (Wild Horses) which to them was from an era where they were untouchable. They are on top of the world from the success of AB (and with the powers given in the animation) and they choose to ignore all the advice given to them because of this.

    They then quite literally fly off to Popmart in the animation and it all goes to shit. They lose their powers and what made them great. Possibly due to the fact they ignored the advice that was given to them earlier.

    The next song is Elevation which is from an era where U2 were back to their best, especially after the "failure" of Popmart.

    This could be a big reach of course but it does add an interesting depth to the intermission video and the songs that were played before and after it.
  9. Ahhh I didn't see that. Yes, it kinda makes sense. Not a big reach! Definitely fits the band's attitude regarding Popmart.
  10. Maybe we should have a bigger discussion about “the band’s attitude regarding PopMart” because I’d posted a few weeks ago that they considered it a failure and was met with a surprising amount of defense for how the band seems to view it as an accomplishment.

    It would surprise me if they told Willie to present them in a purposefully deprecating manner just to make a tongue-in-cheek reference to a tour that we can’t seem to agree was either a mark of pride or a huge disappointment.

    I see it as a traditional comic-book-style presentation of the material they used as intermission music. There wasn’t anything deeper to the story of Johnny Cash aging during The Wanderer, it just made sense for the song. I feel the same about HMTMKMKM.
  11. They should’ve done an arena/stadium hybrid for Popmart, at least in North America. They would’ve sold out all the shows, and the poor ticket sales would never even be part of the conversation. They bit off more than they could chew. Michael Kohl thought he was going to be able to recreate the success of “Voodoo Lounge” or “Division Bell” tours.

    I’ve watched and listened to a lot of Popmart bootlegs. The first 2 shows were so unbelievably bad, the crowd should’ve gotten their money back. They were messing up Pride and IWF... songs they should be able to ply in their sleep! How embarrassing to come out in front of a large crowd with the worlds most extravagant concert production, and sound worse than most U2 cover bands. The 4th show in SLC is the first time things click, though still a long way to go. By the time they got to my show in Columbus, they had most of the kinks worked out and were about 90% there.
  12. I don’t think the PopMart tour performances suffered because the band was bad at playing the songs. They were underrehearsed on the stage, which was using a PA system never-before-conceived, which likely had an enormous impact on their comfort/communication on stage.

    The more I listen, the more I really think they just don’t know how to interact on the PopMart stage. A stadium sized stage with just 4 guys on it is not conducive to a tight performance, it takes a very distinct chemistry and understanding of how it feels and sounds.