1. Every month we put a U2 fan in the spotlight. The fan of the month for July 2016 is user mofothethird. Read along for the interview we had with this U2 fan.

    "U2 couldn't have played better gigs than those two nights in Brussels [...] We had this incredible midsummer storm with lightning, rain, and a very beautiful (full?) moon as icing on the cake. By far the most enjoyable stadium gig."

    Tell us something about yourself, who are you and what do you do for a living?
    Well, I'm Joyce, a petite dutch girl. Right now I just celebrated my 24th birthday, this month and currently I'm residing in The Netherlands and Belgium most of the time and work at the zoo (not the U2 one). It's a fantastic job and I'm in charge of taking care of some pretty awesome animals, and educating our visitors about animals, environment and conservation.

    How did you become a fan of U2? Tell us how it happened.
    I was born in the 90's and U2 was omnipresent that decade.
    U2 was in my parents record collection. Their collection and their love for music runs through me and that's how I first became familiar with the melodies of U2.
    I say melodies because, obviously, I'm Dutch, so during my childhood, I didn't comprehend lyrics until I was a bit older.

    I vividly remember that first time their lyrics really struck me. I think it was around 2003.

    The first time I saw the movie Bloody Sunday. The combination of the movie, knowing that the events which where performed on film actually happened out there in Ireland, made the -11 or 12 year old- teenage me really furious, U2's music amplified this feeling, and made it even worse.
    I decided to look up the history of the Troubles, and the influence of the IRA in Ireland, and of course the band that wrote this amazing song.

    And thus, the story began...


    You've attended the last two U2 tours and traveled to 4 different countries in the process. How was your experience? Any anecdotes you want to share?
    I have too many!

    I first saw U2 in Amsterdam with a high school friend Nathalie and my mum (how Rock 'n Roll). But I was gutted that we had seats instead of field tickets. So this only sparked more enthusiasm to visit another gig.

    So as any stubborn 16 year old teenager would do:

    I decided to ignore my parents warnings, and met up on with 2 total strangers that I never met (except for chatting on U2 fan forums). So us, 3 girls, met in Utrecht central station and took the first train to Germany, chasing around "the Claw!"

    It was the first time I traveled by myself, but we all know how the U2 family is:
    I'm very thankful to say I had a blast. I met friends for life, learned a lot about travelling, tasted new foods (I really hate schnitzels) , and saw the band up close, but still... Not quite as close as I wanted so... Off with the horns and on with the show:

    The last couple tickets for the 360 tour I had where for both Brussels nights, and later on I managed to score tickets for Glastonbury!

    U2 couldn't have played better gigs than those two nights in Brussels. It's still on the top of my list today. We had this incredible midsummer storm with lightning, rain, and a very beautiful (full?) moon as icing on the cake. By far the most enjoyable stadium gig. The crowd was loud, some performance highlights were Out of Control, Miss Sarajevo, and BAD!

    About Bad: 5 minutes in, Bono -out of nowhere- grabs his Gretsch and starts playing a simple but fantastic counter part to Edge's guitar playing. And to this day, I haven't heard it anywhere else. It's incredible. It gives insight why Bono and Edge said they miss that instinctive playing on guitar sometimes.


    Why is it that gigs in the pouring down rain are always better?

    How do you prefer U2 live, in the intimate setting of arenas, or the awe-inspiring paraphernalia of stadiums?
    One thing? Can't somebody just build a rain machine in Arena's?
    I honestly see pro's and cons in both options. I have no preference and tend to just make the best of any situation I get thrown in front of me by the band.

    You also attended the Glastonbury show on 2011. What do you think of that performance? How did the non-U2 crowd receive the band?
    I did, and it was very erh.. special. I must say, for me as a fan, it was a big disappointment. Mind you, this is just a personal opinion.
    My least favourite U2 gig. Maybe because the expectation of the crowd and the buildup was too high, maybe because the gap between the audience and stage was too big. It just didn't connect with the crowd. At least not at the front where I was. To my surprise, the TV performance looked and felt better than being there in person! So that saved their bacon a bit.

    What is your favorite U2 videoclip, and why?
    All Because of You.

    "Choose a job that you love and never work a day in your life"
    It is kind of my life's motto.
    The video of ABOY is proof that U2 are connoisseurs of life. I try to live by the same standard as much as possible with a slightly smaller financial balance . But we both get the fun.

    If there would be only one U2 song you could hear the rest of your life, which one would it be?
    One Tree Hill.

    Finish the sentence: I hope Songs of Experience is a spiritual successor of this U2 album...
    I'd rather not have them sound like anything they did before.. but If I have to choose... POP!

    How different is U2 compared to other artists that you like?
    They have taught me more things than any other band.

    What are your hobbies and interests away from U2, musical or otherwise?
    Well my job and thus wildlife and conservation of it, but I'm not a hippie just yet.

    Fanatic supporter of our national teams in several sports, I'm an artistic kinda girl that loves working on realistic portraits, and design stuff for websites, poster's. I'm okay at photography, and can obsess over good movies and series from time to time.

    Check out my work including U2 here:
    https://www.flickr.com/photos/74914903@N07/albums

    Thanks for having me and I look forward meeting any of you awesome U2starters in the nearby future.



    Thanks for this interview mofothethird!

    Note: Our crew members choose the fan of the month, you can't sign up for it.
  2. Thanks for the interview Joyce!
    Can you tell us a little bit about the I+E shows you attended? Did you get a good look of the visuals? Which show you enjoyed the most?
    Very cool pic!
  3. Great interview Joyce!

    I should've had had a photo taken in front of that poster...
  4. An awesome read.

    I've got to say that version of 'Bad' is one of my favourite ever - super jealous! Bono always does himself down as a guitar player, and its true he's no Edge or Jimi Hendrix or anything but I really enjoy a lot of the little pieces he's played down the years.

    Fab pics on your flickr by the way, you sure know how to take a good pic! Thanks for sharing.

  5. Originally posted by cesar_garza01:Thanks for the interview Joyce!
    Can you tell us a little bit about the I+E shows you attended? Did you get a good look of the visuals? Which show you enjoyed the most?
    Very cool pic!
    Innocence and Experience tour was an Equal blast.

    In had no plans beforehand so I hopped on the train, and Arrived in Amsterdam to check out what was happening at the Ziggo Dome ( the venue the band would be playing the next day. )

    To my surprise, the familiar Dutch faces where already there.
    About 10 of them, nothing shocking; some of them I knew, some others I didn't, but we hooked up conversation quickly which made me decide to stay the night and do a sleepover in front of the venue.

    We had a chilly but nice sleepover in front of the doors. With live music and U2 covers by a fan who always brings his guitar. He did so in Brussels , and now again in Amsterdam!.
    A nice fact: This guy, ended up being pulled up on stage in Stockholm to play a song with the band. Got an acoustic guitar from Edge/Dallas!
    I Couldn't be more happy for him, and well deserved for his efforts to make the GA queue a pleasure!

    Anyway, After waking up and getting FREE COFFEE from the superb security staff on site, we where up 'n ready to dive into 4 nights of fun.

    The first night I wen't for a spot at the E-Stage.
    I had the pleasure of being about 5 ft away from them while they kicked in Two Hearts which was totally unexpected. They only played it once in the US leg and most of the fans thought that was the end of it.

    The second night : I was already slightly worn from last show, and my friend was actually getting sick. We decided to take it slow, So it was time to take in all the visuals, and enjoy taking some picture's of the band.
    I sneaked onto the VIP deck for U2's first set from The Miracle, Aaaand got kicked off by a supervisor during Iris. Haha.

    The visuals of the I+E show where fantastic. the screen! The Screen! Its so hard to describe what they add to the show. But this is a nice example. I completely disliked Invisible and Iris from the start. And after seeing both songs live, I really .. Really like them. I think the screen makes you see the ideas behind the songs a whole lot clearer. Cedarwood Road is the best example of this.
    U2 and Oliver Jeffers * delivered perfection there.

    (Oliver Jeffers is an artist that previously worked with them to make the cover of U2's Ordinary Love viny


    Day 3 was the day that we decided to try and meet the band. A scary thought. I was always kind of afraid of meeting the band and scared that "my band" turns out to be a bunch of assholes. But everything fell into place. I got to shake Edge and Bono's hand, and have a mini-chat with them and even got a pic with my hero. I don't think anything compares to the feeling of finding out that the band is exactly as kind and patient with their fans as expected. Big big compliments to U2's security and Edge and Bono for being so cheerful, relaxed and so on.
    What a day. I felt like a millionaire. (only better probably)


    The last night. We ended up behind the red zone's which was a nice spot if you arrived late. An even more surprising might have been the upbeat and reworked version of Magnificent they performed. I think the expression on people's face's alone, was worth it. I personally like it, even though it was a bit of a risque song for an E stage slot.
    Then we got the ultimate ending to four great nights: Bad --into--> 40
  6. Originally posted by Caledonia:An awesome read.

    I've got to say that version of 'Bad' is one of my favourite ever - super jealous! Bono always does himself down as a guitar player, and its true he's no Edge or Jimi Hendrix or anything but I really enjoy a lot of the little pieces he's played down the years.

    Fab pics on your flickr by the way, you sure know how to take a good pic! Thanks for sharing.

    Thankyou Caledonia!

    I agree with you. Sometimes Bono F's up but if I had hands like his I wouldn't be able to play at all lol. I appreciate his playing much more since that night in Brussels, I feel sorry for the dude.
  7. Thanks ! First time for everything. Haha Even for interviews.

    Also Caledonia, thank you so much on the positive comments on my photo's. I've been planning to sneak in my DSLR but for now, I've always used my point and shoot.
  8. Nice interview, and i also think the band is so relaxed when talking to the fans etc.
  9. Nice read !!

    Beatiful pics ! i always dreamed to have a work in a zoo ..i love animals
    Which animals do you have to take care?
  10. I'm flattered Patou! thanks! I've never done anything remotely like this before.

    I've worked and work with Seals, Sealions, Tropical fish, Northsea fish, Sharks, (sting)Rays, Raptors, Kea's (NZ parrot species), and Penguins.
  11. Originally posted by mofothethird:I'm flattered Patou! thanks! I've never done anything remotely like this before.

    I've worked and work with Seals, Sealions, Tropical fish, Northsea fish, Sharks, (sting)Rays, Raptors, Kea's (NZ parrot species), and Penguins.
    I love all of them , specially Seals and Sealions
  12. aaah yeah, more love for Pop