U2 Coming To Minneapolis

Here's the 411 on U2's 360° Tour – the biggest, most expensive concert trek ever – coming to the U of M

Jon Bream
Minneapolis Star Tribune
July 16, 2011

Bono always thinks big. He had a vision for rock's biggest concert tour. "Let's play an entire stadium, not just part of a stadium," he told his longtime designers, who also did the Beijing Olympics opening ceremonies. So it's U2 in the round (dubbed the 360° Tour) that will be the first concert at the University of Minnesota's two-year-old TCF Bank Stadium.

For U2, it's the home stretch (only three shows left), but for the Twin Cities, it's the first big-time outdoor stadium show in 33 years. With the so-called Claw stage (for sale after the tour ends), Bono has more places to climb than Spider-Man. But, given last year's tour-delaying back injury (this gig's original date: June 27, 2010), the lofty-thinking Irishman will perform with both feet on the ground, thank you. Most fans, however, will have their eyes fixed on the huge cylindrical live-video screen making Bono, as always, larger than life.

I'm biting my tongue on this one thank you.

Why?

Roofless U stadium will rock

Jon Bream
Minneapolis Star Tribune
July 21, 2011


Stage construction has begun at TCF Bank Stadium for U2’s Saturday concert. The band has spent approximately $850,000 a day to keep the show going during the tour, underscoring the amount of money that superstar acts can make putting on outdoor stadium concerts.

Welcome back to the major leagues of music, Minnesota.

For the first time in 33 years, the Twin Cities will host a big-time outdoor stadium concert Saturday, when U2 rocks for 58,000 people at the University of Minnesota's TCF Bank Stadium.

"We're re-entering the outdoor concert world," said Kathleen O'Brien, vice president of services at the U.

After nearly three decades of concerts in the Metrodome -- where the sound bounced around like a baseball on the turf -- the Twin Cities area boasts two sparkling new outdoor sports palaces. So concert promoters are watching Saturday's show with special interest.

"Minneapolis is a very strong market for us, and we're shopping these buildings for shows," said Chris Weathers, regional director for Live Nation, the world's biggest promoter and presenter of U2's 360 Tour.

Don't bet the mortgage payment on a championship run of concerts, however. The Twin Cities probably won't see more than one stadium concert a year because of the economics, logistical challenges and the limited number of blockbuster attractions who can draw 40,000-plus fans.

"Arenas are so much more efficient than stadiums," longtime Twin Cities promoter Randy Levy said. "It costs at least 50 percent more to stage one concert in a stadium than to do two arena shows."

U2 spends about $850,000 a day just to keep its show on the road -- a stadium-only show that will pull in a record $717 million after its 110th and final gig next week in Canada.

A chance to show off

Both of the new Minneapolis stadiums want concerts.

"It brings people onto campus that might [attend] the U or might have their children come to the U," said O'Brien of the university's two-year-old football stadium. "We want the people of Minnesota to feel an association with their university. We want the value of ownership by the people of Minnesota in their stadium, their community center."

Across town at the year-old Target Field, concerts "contribute to the brand of the ballpark and fill a community need," said Twins president Dave St. Peter, who turned down "multiple shows in 2010" but is optimistic about staging a concert in the next year or two. "We believe Target Field ultimately will be the best outdoor concert amphitheater in the region."

Of course, it's still untested. Negotiations for a Paul McCartney show ended after the ex-Beatle changed his schedule. And the Twins have limited slots for the seven-day window needed to set up and dismantle a massive stage and make the field playable again.

U2 crews started work Monday at TCF Bank Stadium, laying a floor over the artificial turf. Stadiums with grass require even more TLC. At Busch Stadium in St. Louis, U2 took the simpler approach of paying to replace the grass.

Few acts can fill stadiums

The last big outdoor Twin Cities stadium concert was in 1978 at the Twins' original home, Met Stadium in Bloomington. More than 65,000 endured pouring rain during the Steve Miller Band's set before the Eagles hit the stage.

While the Metrodome had a run of concerts from 1986 to 2003 featuring Bob Dylan, Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones, George Strait, 'N Sync and Metallica, stadium concerts "haven't been a big part of the concert business for a long time," said Gary Bongiovanni, editor of the concert journal Pollstar. Since the mid-1990s, when superstars switched to tiered ticket prices -- charging big bucks for the best seats -- the grosses for arena shows can compete with stadiums, he said. Hence, "there are fewer stadium shows every year."

Unless the Stones, Pink Floyd or Led Zeppelin come out of mothballs, there are few attractions that can fill stadiums of 40,000 (Target Field) or 58,000 (TCF Bank Stadium). This year, McCartney booked four U.S. baseball stadium shows, country superstar Kenny Chesney opted for 11 NFL stadiums along with numerous arenas, and Taylor Swift picked eight stadiums and more than 50 arenas -- including two sold-out nights at St. Paul's Xcel Energy Center -- for her North American tour.

"Stadium shows are a high-roller game," said veteran promoter Gary Marx, who works with Chesney.

To give a sense of the cost, Marx contrasted the number of semitrailer trucks needed to haul equipment for Chesney's concert at Xcel Center in March (16 to 18) vs. his recent stadium show at Green Bay's Lambeau Field (52). But his paydays reflect the rewards: Chesney grossed $4.95 million in Packerland and $1.02 million in St. Paul, according to Pollstar.

Sometimes promoters will package several stars for a one-day stadium festival. A few superstars also do isolated stadium gigs with emotional tie-ins: Jay-Z and Eminem teamed up this summer in their hometowns, New York and Detroit, and Neil Diamond has packed Boston's Fenway Park, where his "Sweet Caroline" is played at every Red Sox game.

Could the Twins book Prince? That might be a field of dreams.

U2 is over-the-top yet intimate in big venue

Jon Bream
Minneapolis Star Tribune
July 24, 2011



It was the beginning and the end in the same night.

U2's concert -- nah, the Bonolicious spectacular -- Saturday at TCF Bank Stadium ushered in a new era of big-time outdoor stadium concerts (after a 33-year, Metrodome-dominated hiatus). It was also one of the last nights on U2's record- setting two-year, 110-concert (only two more to go) 360° Tour, which will gross an unprecedented $717 million.

"I think this is the place to begin the end of the tour party," said Bono.

Funny thing about the 360 Tour in Minneapolis -- it went full circle in the Twin Cities outdoor stadium concert history. The last biggie in 1978 at the old Met Stadium featured the Eagles and a hard-driving rain during Steve Miller's set in front of 65,000 people. On Saturday, the drizzle eventually turned into a deluge, and Bono and the boys played on, getting pelted by the downpour, along with nearly 60,000 jubilant fans.

"Unbelievable," Bono declared after "Walk On," "I cannot get over this."

Yes, it was an unforgettable show -- for U2's unstoppable fortitude, uplifting music and the invigorating rain.

Despite having the most expensive touring production in the history of popular music, the $25 million stage came with no roof. So U2 improvised with equipment (Bono held a U.S. flag umbrella for a bit and bassist Adam Clayton took his shirt off) and in song (with snippets of the Beatles' "Rain," "Singing in the Rain," and, of course, Prince's "Purple Rain").

Before the rain came, it almost felt as if the much-hyped stage was going to be the star of the show, not Bono or the music. Dubbed the Claw, the stage looked like a collision of a spider and a spaceship or a crab and a cathedral. The mammoth four-legged monster afforded the fans a 360-degree view of the band.

Despite all the bells and whistles, U2 gave a performance that was both over-the-top and intimate, both epic and informal, both highfalutin' and fun. The quartet kept it intimate by playing on a relatively small (for a football stadium) stage, surrounded by a circle walkway that every band member (including Larry Mullen Jr. on conga once) used to good effect.

Moreover, there were quieter musical moments, most notably "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of," a duet by Bono and the Edge (who unleashed a stunning falsetto). In introducing the song, Bono mentioned that it was written for INXS' late singer Michael Hutchence but on this day, it would be dedicated to British pop star Amy Winehouse, who died Saturday.

Just two voices and an acoustic guitar made it feel like a living room performance -- inside a football stadium.

The Edge's wondrous electric guitar framed every song. Often sounding like a one-man orchestra, his vibe was less majestic than on previous tours but just as potent. He went for wah-wah funk on "Mysterious Ways," chilling sweetness on "Beautiful Day," punky slashing on "The Fly."

Bono, 51, came on like a rock icon, in leather jacket and pants, with his Tom Hanks hairdo and tinted glasses. But he was also very in the moment. The Irishman was well aware of where he was, acknowledging the new stadium and bringing out a former Twin Cities resident, Somali rapper K'naan, to sing a bit of Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" at the end of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For."

The set list was heavy on hits, with a few tunes from 2009's "No Line on the Horizon" sprinkled in. There were many highlights but none brighter than the closing "Moment of Surrender." Bono asked for all the lights in the stadium turned off, as he delivered the soulful hymn, which took on a new meaning on this night, about U2 and their fans refusing to surrender to the rain.