U2 creating new experience with Sphere Las Vegas concerts

LOS ANGELES (AP) – U2 is familiar with rocking major arenas and stadiums, but the legendary band will soon take the stage to create a new immersive concert experience inside a high-tech, globe-shaped venue in Las Vegas. But will descend

Live Nation and Sphere Entertainment on Monday announced the dates for U2’s upcoming “U2: UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere” show, which begins Sept. 29. A state-of-the-art audio and visual system designed for every concertgoer.

U2 guitarist The Edge recently said in an interview, “This is a space designed for entertainment, not play.” He first learned about the state-of-the-art venue after lead singer Bono sent him a link about the concept. He said the screen is 20 times larger than the one during the band’s Joshua Tree tour in 2019 – the last time U2 performed live in a concert setting.

“The game is a simple formula. You want to see action,” he continued. “But nobody really sits down when they’re designing one of these games and thinks about sound. So, way down on their list of priorities. But at this location, it’s among the first things they One of the things he thought about.

The massive circular venue will seat 17,500 with a scalable capacity of approximately 20,000 guests. As well as a high-resolution LED screen that wraps half around the audience, the venue is also equipped with thousands of speakers that will provide a “crystal-clear” multi-layer audio system for each seat.

As a musician, The Edge said the venue concept is a “wonderful idea” to help artists such as U2 capture the full essence of their sound. He added that his shows would provide an opportunity to “literally transport people to another place and time” and open up a variety of “creative possibilities”.

“What we’ve been able to do – because of the fidelity of the design and the sound – is not only feature the best sounding rock ‘n’ roll band in an indoor venue,” he said. “But at the same time, radical intimacy where you can really deliver a vocal or a simple musical arrangement that’s really delicate. People will be able to listen perfectly. Whereas if you’re trying to do that in an arena or a stadium, So it would be impossible.”

During the band’s rehearsals, The Edge has already noticed a significant difference from a circular venue compared to an arena or stadium—which generally applies to “your sound.” He said that his musical preparation hasn’t changed much, but he is trying to understand how to use immersive sound as a creative tool.

The Edge believed that the band’s performance at Sphere could be a “quantum leap forward” in terms of the sensory effects of a live concert.

“This is technology that has never been available,” he said. “We can literally be in the middle of the show and in the middle of the sound, not just in terms of sound, but also in visual terms, our audience watching the show. It’s sound all around you. … I already I’m starting to think about the mix and our songs and how this spatial audio can come into its own where we place different parts of our sound.

The Age said that U2 are ready to return to the stage for the first time in four years, especially after the pandemic. The band’s upcoming show will mark the first time it will be performed without drummer Larry Mullen Jr., who is recovering from back surgery. Bram van den Berg would serve as drummer in Mullen’s absence.

“We’re very excited,” he said. “We are on lockdown. I have been in the recording studio for the past 18 months doing the acoustic collection ‘Song of Surrender’. I can’t wait to get out there and be a part of something big like this.”