In their latest tour, the legendary music band U2 is using amazing gadgetry of a double-sided screen to immerse themselves fully with fans during concerts. It was seen at the SAP Arena, their second stop on their 2015 Innocence & Experience tour, which took place the evening of May 19.
On these two screens are huge animations, which show colorful images to the audience. The screen, which bisects the roaring fans, creates a surreal effect. The band performs between the 1’s and 0’s of the screen, in the gap between the animations. It’s a visual powerhouse of technology, pop-art, and music.
Along with the big tech screen, the gadgetry connected to U2 dates back several years. Lead singer Bono was friends with Apple icon Steve Jobs and, as well, Bono assisted in the co-founding of the VC firm Elevation Partners.
The U2 concerts this year are peppered with tech references, such as was done at the SAP Arena in mid-May. There was the moment when Bono dedicated the song Every Breaking Wave to Laurene Powell Jobs, the widow of Steve Jobs. He said, to quote his line whispered to the crowd, “Laurene, this is for you.”
When the band played Sunday Bloody Sunday, the massive screen behind them displayed images of Irish civil rights protesters killed in 1972 by British troops. U2 were using gadgetry to communicate a powerful message of politics and a rawness that could not easily otherwise be shown to such a big crowd.
It will be interesting to see the future ways U2 uses technology to share messages with their devoted fans. The bigger-than-life screen will travel with the band to the future shows on the 2015 Innocence & Experience tour. Other stops on the tour include Denver, CO, Chicago, IL, Boston, MA, and New York City, NY.