The personal website of Grace and Jason Rhee

U2 with Grace

by

Yesterday we saw U2 in San Jose. On a whim, I bought Red Zone tickets, which looked amazing at the time of sale. However, by the time the concert was laid out, the RZ areas were moved out to the side of GA with a small portion reserved for the ends of the main stage. After much research on the internet and reconnaissance from Sabs, I had a plan.

We got there about 15 minutes too late to get right on the rail, but we posted up 2 deep right in the middle of the center catwalk in regular GA. There was no single optimal spot for this show, and for part of it, the band are inside of the huge screen, which we could not see very well. After intermission, they moved to the b-stage, so we left our spots and moved closer to it. There was plenty of room in GA to move around. When they finished the show on the main stage, we finally went into the RZ and were only one row off the rail.

I think our maneuvering paid off and we got to experience the show from many angles. The band sounded great and the energy in the arena was amazing. Bono called an audible and they played Bad, which was one of my favorites.

Though still my favorite band, I’ll admit I haven’t been as into them lately and our last concert experience wasn’t great because we were so far and removed from the stage. I’m glad Grace was game for the additional overhead of gaming GA (even if she did almost get into a fight with an angry lady behind us). The setlist was unbelievalbe and was a great reminder of why they’re such a strong connection with my youth, even as we’re all getting older.

Set 1:

  • Intro
  • Beat on the Brat 
  • (Ramones song)
  • The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone) 
  • The Electric Co. 
  • (First time played since 2006,… more )
  • Vertigo 
  • (with “Do You Remember Rock ‘n’… more )
  • I Will Follow 
  • Iris (Hold Me Close) 
  • Cedarwood Road 
  • Song for Someone 
  • Sunday Bloody Sunday 
  • (acoustic: without final verse)
  • Raised by Wolves 
  • (with “Psalm 23” snippet)
  • Until the End of the World 

Set 2:

  • Intermission
  • (Johnny Cash animation on video screen)
  • Invisible 
  • Even Better Than the Real Thing 
  • Mysterious Ways 
  • (with “Young Americans” snippet)
  • Desire 
  • (on second stage, with “1969”… more )
  • Sweetest Thing 
  • (on second stage)
  • Every Breaking Wave 
  • (on second stage, Edge on… more )
  • Bullet the Blue Sky 
  • (with “America” and “19” snippets)
  • Pride (In the Name of Love) 
  • (with “The Hands that Built America” intro)
  • Beautiful Day 
  • (with “I Remember You” snippet)
  • Bad 
  • (with “Into the Mystic” and “… more )
  • With or Without You 

Encore:

  • City of Blinding Lights 
  • Where the Streets Have No Name 
  • (with “Mother and Child… more )
  • One