LIV
Active topics
  1. What do you prefer, a show in a Club (theatre, pub, etc. no more that 5.000 aud.), in an Arena (MSG, etc. with 10.000 - 20.000) or a show in a Stadium (from 40.000 to 120.000)?? And why?

    Well, here I go. Bono said sometime ago (maybe in U2byU2, don't remeber) that their music is made to play in an open air as a stadium. I agree.
    But I really love the ambient of the Clubs (see Hattem 82!), more "Rock" ambient...
    And I love the sound of the bootlegs played at an Arena, never went to one, but I think it can be great, an average point between Clubs and Stadiums...

    What do you prefer?
  2. For me, stadiums. All shows played here in stadiums sound better and plus, like he says are made for stadiums!
  3. Clubs: I would like to see this for the novelty (Irving Plaza 2000-12-05), but other than that not much. If I were alive for young U2 (and I knew about them) this would have been sweet.

    Arenas: I've seen most of my U2 concerts this way and love it.
    +Lighting control. I love it when the house lights all suddenly go on or off at the same time. It's a big rush and causes the crowd to roar, natural lighting cannot do that. Elevation Tour opening was great, so was Joshua Tree Pride and Lovetown Desire.
    +Crowd noise is encapsulated, bounces off the walls, sounds louder.
    +Great stripped-down setting fits certain tours (Elevation, Vertigo come to mind)

    Stadiums: Ahh, the way I experienced PopMart and the way I should have experienced ZooTV.
    +Massive! The feeling of something much greater than yourself.
    +Outside the US, this must be great! I speculate that experiencing U2 outside the US is much like experiencing a high-intensity football match (World Cup? Maybe not, but close? I dunno). One of my life goals is to experience U2 in a higher-energy crowd culture than my home US... better get on that soon
  4. For me it would have to be an arena, although I haven't seen them in one. Saw them in a stadium, but the sound was not that good, it wasn't loud enough. Best gigs I reckon are those in arenas as the sound and atmosphere is contained.
  5. STADIUM!!!!

    The best band to ever own a stadium.

    Edge's guitar sounds are made for big spaces, so the bigger the place, the better*



    *most of the time.
  6. Well, the Stadiums have the problem of the sound (I've heard tons of claims against that), but I was at Vicente Calderon on a summer day, in front of the (giant!) Vertigo speakers and the sound was great (and the people in the stands said it too).

    I'd love to see Where The Streets Have No Name (with the awesome flash!!) from the highest stand of an Arena... I would die!
  7. Arena it is for me. I've seen them in both arena and stadium, never had the privilege of an intimate club.
    I like the feel of the arena, The sound fills the place from top to bottom, It's more close, somewhat warm and enclosed. In a stadium the sound escapes, too far, too much.

    Having said that, My chances of seeing them perform are difficult because I always have to travel, The closest is 6 hours away west and 8 1/2 hours away east. So really, I'll take what I can get.
  8. Stadiums => Best shows with the best atmosphere !
    Think about PopMart shows or Zoo TV ones in stadiums... Or Vertigo in Milan

    (And that's also almost the only place they play now...)
  9. Stadiums, at leats that's what i think. never went to a concert But the atmosphere in a stadium must be magnificent.
  10. 90% of U2's music is designed for a large space, making clubs inelligible (although I would name Irving Plaza one of my Top 5 bootlegs- the stadium anthems sound so cool with only 1000 people).

    Arenas are probably best because everyone has a good seat no matter where they are, the band and audience are in much closer proximity, sound quality is better (no need for delay towers or massive speaker stacks), light effects work better (U2 had to change around the setlists for European leg of Vertigo because concerts started earlier in the day when sun was still out- imagine playing Streets in broad daylight).

    That said, the best stadium shows outshine the best arena shows- and the cavernous quality of stadiums looks better on camera. Sound quality is also usually pretty good (POPMART Mexico City).

    So I would say arenas are slightly better than stadium shows. For me, I'd say the intimacy between band and audience makes arenas that much more worthwhile, despite all the cool things about being outdoors.
  11. Also, for their mid-concert acoustic numbers, arenas are much better. Being miles away at the other end of a football field and listening to an acoustic track must be rediculous. That component of the show works better indoors.
  12. Originally posted by roxriosI'll take what I can get.


    But you'll take what you can get
    'Cause it's all that you can find
    But you know there's something more
    But tonight, tonight, tonight

    ...sorry i couldn't resist