Chicago (IL) - September 13, 2009

Location: Stage right, ~50 back (right behind red zone, on the rail in line with overhead stack)

Taper's comments :
That's more like it.

I can't put my finger on why the second night in Chicago seemed so much better than the tour opener on Saturday night, but the band seemed much more animated and adventurous with both new and old material; Bono in particular was more himself now that the opening-night jitters were out of the way. He was far more passionate with his vocals, the songs contained more interesting tags ("Amazing Grace" was a particular standout, and recalled his spine-tingling delivery of the song at the UIC Pavilion in 1985 when he was sick with a cold), and he broke into a full sprint around the 360 stage at the end of "Until the End of the World." The rest of the band seemed to feed off Bono's energy; I thought Edge in particular was better than he was on Saturday night.

The setlist was better, too. "Until The End of the World" and "Stay" found their way into the set, along with the world premiere of "Your Blue Room," a little-known song from the "Passengers" soundtrack. Can't say that I thought that song worked very well (will be interested in others' opinions) although it did fit in with the "spaceship" theme, but they have obviously worked hard on it --- there was a fully produced video and pre-taped accompaniment that came along with it. Bono turned to the crowd for reaction at the end of the song, and there was several seconds of befuddlement until muted applause broke out.

Maybe it's a function of hearing the new stuff for a second time, but the opening four new songs that I thought were a momentum-killer on Saturday seemed better tonight. And I actually like "The Moment of Surrender." (I still don't get "Unknown Caller," though.)

The recording is better than night 1 for some reason, though I was standing in almost the same location. I was able to get there earlier and grabbed a spot on the rail, so I was in line with the overhead speakers with nobody in front of me for about 20 feet -- perfect. There may be occasional clapping from the woman next to me, but I heard no crowd interference in the hour I've listened to so far.

I felt like I got my $65 worth tonight; hopefully the people in the "premium" $250 seats behind me (?!?!?!) thought so too.