Concerts thread: Best/Worst/Next/Last one you attended?

I understand what they were trying to do - you can't get Jimmy Page, Angus Young, and Jack White in a room all talking about playing essentially the same way, so Edge was a nice choice, on paper.

But, yeah, when Jack White is talking about how effects are ruining rock 'n' roll, and then you show Edge bragging about how lame and easy the riff from "Elevation" is if it isn't run through a million effects pedals, there's some cognitive dissonance for the viewer.

It actually might have been interesting to explore those different philosophies a little more, but the film maker never went there.

 

Yes. They play a few songs from War and The Unforgettable Fire, and then play The Joshua Tree start to finish. Then they took a break, and came back for an encore with stuff like Beautiful Day, Elevation and One.

Our show closed with Bad and I Will Follow, which was just about perfect.

 

And I think Page comes off really well in the movie. For having a reputation as a tough interview and, back when, an occultist, he presents in the movie as a amiable guy who just loves guitar.

 

Yep. He seems genuinely giddy to talk guitar with those guys.

 

Did you see they had never played "Red Hill Mining Town" before this tour, ever? I guess Bono didn't think he could hit the high notes earlier in his career.

 

Yeah - I read an interview with The Edge where he said they only play a few mid-tempo songs because they just don't really work well live, and that one never made the cut. It was good live, though. You wouldn't have guessed it was only the 4th time they'd played it.

I will say, the end of side two of The Joshua Tree kind of drags, and you really feel it live.

 

I have mixed emotions about a band playing an album straight through. I know Pearl Jam fans love it when it happens, though that's probably the element of surprise elevating the experience. Part of the fun of a live show is seeing how the band chooses to sequence its catalog for maximum effect.

On the other hand ... it will be pretty cool to see a band play a stone cold classic live start to finish.

 

"Red Hill Mining Town" is my fave song on Joshua Tree. And any show with "Bad' is a great one.

 

They are so perfectly situated to close shows because their very early hits are huge anthems.

 

Saw the show last night, and it was mostly tremendous. But I think it seems strange to close with a new ballad that nobody knows while leaving anthems like "Bad" and "I Will Follow" on the shelf. I like when bands surprise or offer deep cuts or other rarities at shows. But this seems like an odd choice.

 

Next up Dwight Yoakam in two weeks