U2, United Center, Chicago, Illinois

For my second show of U2’s iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Chicago run, I arrived at 6:30pm, a bit later than before. By this time, the doors had opened, the line had dissipated, and we walked right into the venue and onto the floor. Despite our later arrival, there was still plenty of space up close to the stage. Though we probably started a bit further back, with all the shuttling I ended in more or less the same spot as the previous show. However, this time we were on the south side of the venue, putting us in front of The Edge.

The show started off similarly to the previous night. The setlist and performance was mostly the same, though there were a few changes here and there. One notable addition was the live debut of “The Crystal Ballroom.” Bono mentioned that fans following the band to each show of this tour had been requesting the song. As he also mentioned, I’m not sure how these people pull off following the band around, between school, work, families, and the overall cost. Furthermore, two nights of U2 was plenty for me. They’re not Phish or Dave Matthews Band who play a unique setlist each night.

Bono’s monologues stayed personal, though he touched on slightly different observations. For example, he noted that many rockers lose their mothers at a young age, including John Lennon and himself. He surmised that in hip hop, it’s losing your father when you’re young. On this particularly evening, Bono invited a young boy up on stage, maybe ten or eleven years old. However, unlike Joy the previous evening, the boy didn’t have any particularly duties. He just wandered around the stage with Bono during one song. Though the boy seemed like he was pulled from the audience, he looked a bit bored. He didn’t look like he even noticed nor cared that he was at a concert, let alone on stage with one of the biggest rock stars in the world. Perhaps he was just in shock. Continuing on another theme from the previous evening, he gave more shout outs to folks in the building, including his wife, Alison Hewson. He also requested that we help him sing “Happy Birthday” to his friend “John (Cusack).” Bono also referred to all Americans being heroes because of the good work that our country’s government does around the world. He kindly ignored some of the other not-so-good stuff that our country does around the world. Despite these oddities from Bono, which I guess for him, aren’t so odd, it was still a stellar performance, and I didn’t regret seeing U2 a second time in under a week.

Setlist:
The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)
The Electric Co. [with "Send in the Clowns"/"I Can See for Miles"/"Smells Like Teen Spirit" snippets]
Vertigo
I Will Follow

Iris (Hold Me Close)
Cedarwood Road
Song for Someone
Sunday Bloody Sunday [with "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" snippet]
Raised by Wolves [with "Psalm 23" snippet]
Until the End of the World
Intermission [The Wanderer by Johnny Cash]
Invisible
Even Better Than the Real Thing
Mysterious Ways [with "My Sweet Lord" snippet]
The Crystal Ballroom
Sweetest Thing [acoustic]
Every Breaking Wave [acoustic]
Bullet the Blue Sky [with "19" snippet]
Pride (In the Name of Love) [with "The Hands That Built America" segue]
Beautiful Day [with "I Remember You" snippet]
With or Without You [with "My Kind Of Town" snippet]
Encore:
City of Blinding Lights
Where the Streets Have No Name [with Mother and Child Reunion Intro and "California (There Is No End to Love)" snippet]
Happy Birthday, John Cusack [Mildred J. Hill cover]
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For [People Have the Power" snippet]