In Photos: U2 @ Rogers Centre – September 16, 2009

It may be a toss up over who has the bigger production in town this week — TIFF or U2.

Almost exactly four years since their last tour hit Toronto, Ireland’s biggest exports brought their otherworldly “Spaceship” (as Bono refers to it) to the Rogers Centre on Wednesday night, for the first of two sold out shows. The state of the art stage is something to behold, taking up half of the field, with giant claw-like appendages jutting out in all four corners. It is encircled by a 360 degree catwalk, with moving bridges to allow the band to move back and forth from the main stage with ease. It almost steals the show before U2 even arrive.

Appropriately, David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” blasted over the P.A. to signal that the show was about to begin, firing up the anxious crowd–some of whom had been waiting in line since early the day before. Making it very clear that the band are here to support their latest album No Line On The Horizon, U2 immediately launched into ‘Breathe’, the first of four new tracks in a row. It may be due to lack of some fans knowing the new material, but the energy in the building didn’t really pick up until the familiar heartbeats of ‘Beautiful Day’ kicked in and continued into “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” The set list comprised of seven new tracks in total, along with a mix of hits and even ‘Your Blue Room’, a Passengers song (U2’s mid-90s side project with Brian Eno).

While No Line On The Horizon has received mixed reviews, the band have added some polish to the songs for the live show. ‘I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight’ seems to have received the biggest makeover with a remix of bongos and a sped up rave-like tempo.

U2’s show is a completely different experience depending on where you are watching from. With general admission floor tickets you get the intimacy of being close to the band and are amongst many energetic hardcore fans who waited hours to get into the venue. With seats, you have the advantage of taking in the entire lighting and video production. Many fans go to multiple shows to get the full experience.

Stage fun facts: There are 3 custom stages that travel on the tour, to accommodate for the multiple days that it takes to set up and tear down in each town. The stage weighs in at over 180 tonnes and takes approximately 189 trucks to transport, including the lighting rig and sound system.

U2 fan, Dave Greco of Buffalo, NY, is one of the first fans in the general admission line, lining up for over 24 hours prior to the show to ensure he gets a prime spot on the floor.

In a rare occurrence, the dome was open for the evening, allowing The CN Tower to become an additional unique prop, with its own light show seemingly changing in sync with the stage lighting, and at some points reflecting the giant disco ball sitting atop the roof of the stage.

The show clocked in at just over 2 hours, and included 23 songs, along with a few cover snippets. Below is the set list for the evening, which was virtually identical to night 2 of Chicago a few nights prior. U2 are back at the Rogers Centre tonight and doors open early, at 5 p.m.

1. Breathe
2. No Line On The Horizon
3. Get On Your Boots
4. Magnificent
5. Beautiful Day
6. I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For/Stand By Me
7. Elevation
8. Your Blue Room
9. Unknown Caller
10. Until The End of the World
11. Stay (Far Away, So Close)
12. The Unforgettable Fire
13. City of Blinding Lights
14. Vertigo/Pump It Up
15. I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight
16. Sunday Bloody Sunday
17. MLK
18. Walk On

Encore 1:
19. One/Amazing Grace
20. Where The Streets Have No Name

Encore 2:
21. Ultraviolet (Light My Way)
22. With or Without You
23. Moment of Surrender

Carrie Musgrave is a Toronto-based music photographer. You can find more of her work at Live Baby Live.

Read an alternate take on the show by CityNews producer Steve Austin.