CONCERT REVIEW
U2 Rocks Foxboro
by Seth Rogovoy(FOXBORO, Mass., July 2, 1997) -- Pop music has always had a love-hate relationship with commerce. In pop, the artistic impulse dances uncomfortably with salesmanship, but the two are inextricably linked, since at its essence pop is a mass-produced, consumer product, albeit one sometimes disguised as art.
Midway through the triumphant spectacle of U2's concert at Foxboro Stadium on Tuesday night, Bono directly addressed this dilemma. Referring to the downside of the group's massive, international, pop success, Bono said he had been afraid of being swallowed up by the corporate monolith of the rock industry, and in the process losing touch with the basic ideals -- "one guitar, three chords and the truth," to paraphrase an earlier U2 lyric -- that originally powered the band of idealistic Irish rockers.
"And so," said Bono, the group's lead singer, lyricist and frontman, "we decided to eat the monster before the monster eats us." Hence, "PopMart," the group's current stadium tour, which does battle with the by-now cliched conventions of stadium-rock, and in large part claims victory over them.
All this high-minded theorizing played itself out in practice in front of a giant, "sci-fi disco supermarket" stage set, including a 100-ft. tall toothpick topped by a 12-ft. wide, stuffed olive, a 35-ft. high mirrorball lemon, a 150-by-50-ft. computerized video screen, all straddled by a 100-ft. high golden arch. The video presented images -- occasionally digitally manipulated -- of the band performing, alternating with animated scenes that somehow ironically related to the theme of consumerism.
How well all of this related to the music the band performed is questionable, and perhaps ultimately besides the point. Bono undoubtedly programmed the evening's set list to tell a story; there was a definite feeling of a narrative, however fuzzy, unfolding over the course of the show. Some of the songs, particularly new ones from the group's recent album, "Pop," overtly made reference to the same themes. Others gained new resonances in the context of "PopMart."
What made the show a triumphant performance was not Bono's socio- cultural theorizing but U2's ability to break through the trappings of the commercial rock show and foster the illusion of sincerity and communalism. It helped tremendously that, however unintentional, U2's anthemic, chiming rock songs are tailor-made for stadiums. U2's guitarist, known as the Edge, has a signature style of playing that rang through the electronic din of "Mofo" like a clarion call to humanity. On the band's classic songs like "New Year's Day" and "I Will Follow," Bono intoned simple, wailing, Celtic-influenced vocal figures that bounced and soared over the foundation laid down by the Edge, bassist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen, the greatest power trio in contemporary rock.
Contrary to earlier reports, the concert only included a smattering of U2's newest music. Instead, the group dug out such tried-and-true stadium favorites as "Pride (In the Name of Love)" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," both of which got boosts from the eager, stadium-sized chorus. The band's newer, electronica-influenced material surfaced occasionally, but these songs also featured the most dramatic video accompaniment and special effects, as if to boost audience interest in them. This was most notable on the first encore, "Discotheque," the band's fusion of hard-rock and house music, during which the band reappeared on stage delivered by the mirrorball lemon.
The show was particularly well-paced, too, with the group's darker, gloomier material followed immediately by its more positive, upbeat anthems. The stage set included a runway into the audience, and Bono and his bandmates made ample use of it, even inviting a few audience members up to become part of the spectacle.
In the end, no matter how artsy or pretentious Bono and U2 try to be, there is no getting around the visceral power and appeal of the group's melodies and rhythms. They can dress and gussy them up in high-concept shtick and layers of irony and meaning, but when it comes down to it, the payoff is the direct, emotional appeal of the band's anthems and ballads, which hit listeners not so much in their heads but in the large area between their hearts and their knees.
[This review originally appeared in the Berkshire Eagle on July 3, 1997. Copyright Seth Rogovoy 1997. All rights reserved.]
Seth Rogovoy
rogovoy@berkshire.net
music news, interviews, reviews, et al.
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