{ magnificent }

The North American leg of the U2 360 Tour stormed the shores of Lake Michgan this weekend, and I was there. The opening show was Saturday night at Soldier Field in Chicago, and boy was it worth the trip. Anyone who knows me knows of my undying love for U2. I am not a religious person in the traditional sense, but U2 is my religion. Where the Streets Have No Name is my church. I feel better when I hear their music, I feel alive when I see them in concert. There is a sense of love and charity and ”we can make a difference” that just permeates the entire experience. I’m pretty sure that’s how people feel about the big guy, so that’s why I draw the comparison. Not that I believe Bono is the Messiah or anything. Of course not – that would be The Edge. Duh.

There was much hand-wringing on Friday night as we debated whether or not we’d be able to bring cameras. There was nothing printed on the tickets about a photo or video policy, but we found a U2 message board post that that mentioned the person who answered the phone at Soldier Field box office said no cameras, period. I’d packed both my Rebel XTi and my trusty old workhorse, the S3 IS. At that point I figured I wouldn’t bother trying to bring in the Rebel. Too much of a hassle. The camera tends to get furrowed brows from security unless you have a photo pass, anyway. But I decided to see if I could get the S3 in, so I placed it in the bottom of my purse under my sweater. Just as I suspected, they barely glanced in my bag. And EVERYONE had a camera. Of course I’m mad that I was forced to use a point and shoot on this holiest of holy occassions, but what can you do.

The show was simply outstanding. I love the stage and the set up way more than the Elevation tour – we were all saying that even though it is monstrous in scale, we somehow felt closer to the band. The catwalks and ramps and 360-ness of the stage allowed them to interact with the crowd with relative ease.  The setlist was pretty much my dream list (with the notable absense of The Fly) and the boys were on point, sounding better than I’ve ever heard them since the first time I saw them in ‘92. With that, I give you just a few of the shots that were in focus and somewhat presentable. I also have 2 short video clips here if you are so inclined to take a listen. We were not nearly as close as I would have hoped given the high price tag of our tickets, but I guess I’m not totally surprised. Here’s hoping our seats in Dallas will be just a teency bit closer!

Check out the video for Magnificent – definitely my favorite track off the new album!