The Weaver Family: October 2009

Okay, so Mari said I need to blog about U2 in order to hear about Mrytle Beach, so here it goes in one long, run-on paragraph...

So this U2 concert sold out before the tickets went on sale to the public. Kurt has a U2.com membership, but had forgotten to renew it a few years ago, so he was still considered a "new" member and didn't get priority status. What that all means, is that we had to find tickets on ebay/stubhub/etc. and we had to pay 3 times the face value. But how often do you get to see your favorite band so close to where you live, with willing babysitters nearby? So we got tickets at a "relatively" cheap price for how close we were to the stage (row 9). We had heard that parking was going to be a nightmare, so we left super-early for the show. I was able to give Kurt a driving tour of L.A. (Rodeo Drive, Sunset Blvd, Hollywood Blvd) before we headed over to Pasadena. We got there early enough to get parking near the stadium and we spend the next few hours just hanging out. It was too hot to be out in the sun, so we set up our lawn chairs under a tree near a water hazard (parking is on a golf course) and I took a nap while Kurt played games on his phone and listened to the band doing their sound checks. It was very uneventful, but I think that's what made it so nice. There were huge lines to get into the Stadium, but Kurt and I found a gate that was not be used and walked right in. Our seats seemed great. We were at the same height as the stage and really close to the VIP tunnel, but one of the legs of the set blocked our view of the main stage. The camera on the other side of the leg happened to have extra equipment, so we really couldn't see anything. So that's why our tickets were so "cheap". But it was a 360 tour, so there was an outer stage which was used a lot and the backstage which was also used a lot, so we saw a fair amount of the action, but next time we'll choose the higher seats with a front view of the stage. From the videos online, it was a totally different (and better) show from the front. Anyways, Fergie and the Black Eyed Peas opened and they sounded great and they got the crowd pumped up. Kurt was really excited when Slash from Guns N' Roses came out for a guest appearance and played Sweet Child O'Mine. It was awesome. I have a video that I'll post down below. In between the opener and U2, Kurt and I played "spot the celebrity". We were near the VIP room so we saw a ton of people, but only got a few good pictures. It was fun. Finally, U2 came on and they were great, they sound just like they do on their CDs. The stage was impressive and it was just an awesome show. We left during the last song and made it to the car pretty easily and had only a small wait to get out and get home. I'll post some pictures, but it won't really do it justice.

Before the show started, see how the camera/plastic shield block the stage :(