Pop

Published: Wednesday, April 30, 1997

Wednesday, 4/30/97 Pop U2's new "PopMart" show promises to rival the "ZooTV" tour with impressive special effects and the band's renowned stage presence.

By Mike Prevatt Daily Bruin Contributor If you needed any proof that U2 is still the world's most dynamic and exciting live band, Monday night's PopMart show in San Diego was the place to be. U2's glitz-and-kitsch tour rolled into Jack Murphy Stadium to a crowd of 20,000-plus fans, who have waited over 4 1/2 years for the Irish foursome to tour again. After the groundbreaking, high-energy ZooTV tour in 1992, any other tour would be a hard sell. But with a fair mixture of exciting new songs and old classics, U2 found satisfied customers. The band did several things Monday night. It bridged the gap between its anthem-rock old catalog of hits and new, technocentric songs by putting a new musical angle on the older material, allowing for a more consistent sound but never altering the favorites in any major way. It went to new lengths to revolutionize stadium shows with cheesy yet awesome props. And it fused its mainstream popularity and high-art music with avant garde artistry, showcasing the work of Keith Haring (during "One"), Roy Lichtenstein ("Bullet the Blue Sky") and Andy Warhol ("With or Without You") on the huge screen behind the band. But most importantly, U2 did what it's been doing for almost 20 years now: It connected with a crowd that fed off the band's boundless energy and passion. Rarely do bands keep up the emotional momentum and crowd interest as U2 did Monday night for more than two hours. The band can outlast bands 20 years younger and, as evidenced in San Diego, leave the crowd begging for more. U2 has been known for years as one of the greatest live bands ever, in the tradition of the Who and Queen. With Bono's charisma and soaring vocals and the band's excellent live presence, U2 could have easily just built a square stage with a few lights and put on the same amazing shows as they did during the "Joshua Tree" era. Instead, it used a visual spectacle unlike any other to augment the music's power and enhance the audience's experience. Despite being in the shadows of ZooTV, "PopMart" still awed the crowd with all its neon and bigger-than-life pop culture symbolism. It allowed U2 to retain its throne as king of the live-show extravaganza. But perhaps what is more amazing and important is that U2 still keeps the stage and the props in the background enough to make the music come first. It's good to know that it hasn't forgotten that. Rage Against the Machine built up the excitement as the show's opening act. Despite not being the typical U2 opening band, it got most of the crowd pumped with a 45-minute set which included hits like "Bulls on Parade" and "Killing in the Name Of," which the audience sang back to Rage frontman Zach de la Rocha. The most impressive part of the set was the closing song "Freedom," when an extremely intense and jumpy De la Rocha screamed, "Your anger is a gift!" Yet despite the well-received, intense performance of Rage Against the Machine (a couple nearby was heard saying, "Those are some angry young men there!"), the crowd was ready for some fun and frivolity (it was already bouncing around plastic inflatable lemons and dolls). When the house lights dimmed, a remixed version of M's "Pop Muzik" blared through the speakers and the crowd got up to its feet. Everyone looked dead ahead for the band to appear on the massive stage with its 100-foot "golden arch," 100-foot toothpick with a 35-foot olive, 35-foot lemon mirror ball and 170-foot-by-56-foot mega-screen (billed as the largest LED television screen in the world). However, the band was nowhere to be found. Instead, roars came from the rear of the stadium as a crowd of security guards brought U2 out, in perfect boxing-match style, to the second stage located in the middle of the stadium. Members of the band were dressed outrageously, with guitarist the Edge donning studded leather and a cowboy hat, and Bono wearing a boxer's robe. As Bono shadow boxed with the crowd for a few minutes, revving the audience up, the band began "Mofo," the most intense song on U2's new album. The crowd was mostly quiet through the largely unfamiliar song, but that changed as the band revved into its 1981 classic "I Will Follow," with Bono as physically energetic as he has ever been. When the song ended, Bono walked toward the crowd and said, "We've just come back from Las Vegas. I guess you're the first REAL people to see us! Opening night starts here!" With that, U2 began a streak of uplifting rockers, from "Even Better Than the Real Thing" to the new, techno-ish "Do You Feel Loved?" Bono removed his black coat to reveal a skin-tight, muscleman shirt, cranked his fists into the air, and screamed, "Pump it up, San Diego!" The crowd obliged loudly as U2 kicked into its mega-hit, "Pride (In the Name of Love)," singing along with Bono and waving their own fists in the air. The crowd sing-along got louder and more enthusiastic on "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," as Bono reached out to the fans and yelled, "It's gonna be one of those years!" U2 followed that with amazing performances of two new songs, the better-than-album "jam" version of "Last Night on Earth" and the groove-orientated yet passionate "Gone." It was during this segment of the show that the Edge really showed his talent as a guitarist. "Last Night on Earth" especially showcased his sonic, emotional sound, which never missed a beat. And Bono complimented the Edge's high-charged guitar, playing beautifully with his singing and physicality, always keeping the crowd's full attention. This continued during the fan favorite, "Until the End of the World," as Bono danced wildly during a barrage of visual effects and lighting. The show calmed down as just Bono and the Edge performed short segments of their tender new ballad, "If God Will Send His Angels." As Bono began the trek from the center-stadium B stage to the main stage, he interrupted his singing, saying, "Man, it's a long way back here!" Bono played off the crowd's laughter as he continued to say, "I like San Diego. But be careful of compliments from rock stars!" On that note, U2 began its current No. 1 hit, "Staring at the Sun." Bono left the stage for another wardrobe change, and the Edge came out to the main microphone among crowd roars. He sternly told the crowd, "Let's cut the crap!" and with that, he and the crowd sang along karaoke-style, in one of the show's big highlights, to the Monkees hit "Daydream Believer." Bono, U2's other joker, emerged from the main stage in a colorful leather jacket and black hat for the ultrahip "Miami," which showed off his new trip-hop rap skills flawlessly as he strutted around the catwalk. He did the same for a new, more funk-driven version of the aggressive anthem "Bullet the Blue Sky," full of spotlights lighting up the night sky and an amazing rhythm section led by drummer Larry Mullen Jr. and bassist Adam Clayton. The political theme continued with "Please," where drummer Larry Mullen Jr. teased the crowd with the signature drum beats from U2's classic anthem "Sunday Bloody Sunday." The crowd seemed disappointed to not hear the actual song. However, it didn't take long before they gave the night's most enthusiastic response to a 10-minute version of "Where the Streets Have No Name." With the rousing "Streets," Bono improvised with different lyrics, which he had done earlier in the show as well, and about 100 floodlights lit up the entire stadium, further emphasizing the kinetic energy of both the massively popular song and the audience. As the band left the stage, the lemon-shaped mirror ball moved toward the B stage during a thumping, remixed version of "Lemon" (sadly, the only song played from U2's last album "Zooropa," whose songs were never played for the U.S. legs of the ZooTV tour). After five minutes of buildup, the top came off of the shimmering lemon and the band emerged from it, positioning itself on the B stage right in the middle of the riled crowd. The encore began with an alternative version of the hit "Discotheque." The crowd went even more insane as U2 played a pleasantly longer version of "With or Without You," and kept up the screams and sing-alongs with the 1995 hit, "Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me." After "Mysterious Ways," U2 ended the two-hour, five-minute show with a tender version of its hit "One." Even as the house lights came back on, the crowd would not leave or quiet down. After five minutes, the mirror ball starting moving again and almost all the fans frantically ran to their seats, hoping for more. And even as the stage crew began removing bits and pieces of the stage, more than half the fans remained, screaming for their heroes (who had already left the stadium) to come back. Related Links: Ticketmaster online , Purchase U2 tickets online