U2 - Live at The Sphere, Las Vegas - 26th January 2024

Photo by Rich Fury

U2 do not shy away from big.

The four-piece are the one of the biggest stadium acts of all time, second only to The Rolling Stones, but – unlike Mick and co – have pushed the boundaries of what can be achieved within the format.

From the pioneering Zoo TV tour in the early 90s, the overly extravagant PopMart shows in 97/98, the ‘Claw’ shows of 2009 through to 2018’s Innocence + Experience shows (which included the band walking through a 96-feet long screen), their M.O has always been about making each night An Event.

But. This time ¾ of the band (Larry Mullen Jnr absent because of a back injury) are competing with the venue: the brand new Sphere is a technological marvel, 516ft wide, 366ft tall and comprising of an LED screen of over 268 million pixels. Even as you enter, with only a DJ and a (purposefully) uninspiring backdrop of brickwork (perhaps a nod to the Berlin Wall, see below) the sheer scale of the venue is breathtaking. It will be in place long after U2 have completed their residency, each artist who follows undoubtedly putting their own stamp on the place.

That said, U2 get first crack and – no fools – have brought their A-game in the form of one of their best albums, Achtung Baby, their ‘chopping down of The Joshua Tree’.

They take to the stark stage (the sound comes directly through the screens) and, after a hymnal opening, Bono pointedly applies his famous ‘Fly’ sunglasses, the booming drums of ‘Zoo Station’ soundtracking the ‘wall’ crumbling before it splits open into a huge, venue-filling cross.

https://www.live4ever.uk.com/2024/01/review-u2-live-at-the-sphere-vegas/