And another thing… U2’s done both the NBA Finals and the Superbowl now. Will they be whoring themselves out to the World Series next year? (Probably not, there’s no half-time to erect their giant pretentious sets.) I was impressed that Bono managed to make it back from pressing the flesh at the World Economic Forum in New York in time to don that oh-so-touching stars-n-stripes waistcoat. Do those guys spent any time in Ireland anymore?
(I actually like U2; I’m just having a knee-jerk reaction to their deification right now. Am I the only one who remembers Pop?)
KMac
February 4, 2002 — 8:23 pm
You’re just pissed b/c U2 is still the greatest and most influential band of our generation (like I will always argue v.s your REM). They don’t spend time in Ireland b/c they’re pretty busy trying to work for peace and justice in the world, a helluva lot more than REM (hahahaha) ever does anymore. And yes, they also stop to entertain the entire nation every once in awhile (ever wonder why THEY are always asked?)… The performance tonight was incredible, too, and their set was not pretentious at ALL… have you ever seen other Super Bowl halftime shows (ESPECIALLY last year)? U2 simply used their standard Elevation tour getup. Everybody I was with thought the set was touching and well-done. I’ve seen them a few times now, and they’re a zillion times better in concert than REM was, too…
Kris
February 4, 2002 — 10:46 pm
I especially liked the way they dramatically let the big banner with all the 9-11 names on it FALL DOWN WHEN IT WAS ONLY HALFWAY THROUGH. But, hey, you know, it’s important to mark the key change…
KMac
February 5, 2002 — 3:16 am
I’m pretty sure the rest of the victims’ names were projected out into the audience like they did at the concert i saw. Yeah, I bet it was their families’ biggest concern if their name didn’t make the damn U2 banner at the Super Bowl instead of the projection… is that seriously your best counter argument??
Moire
February 5, 2002 — 4:22 am
You’re both clueless. Radiohead blows both U2 and REM away. And you’ll never see them whoring themselves to the moronic masses by playing the Super Bowl halftime show.
Kris
February 5, 2002 — 11:18 am
No, but it was the best I could come up with drunk. 🙂
Actually I like Moire’s argument. I’m not a Radiohead fan (heck, I think I’ve only listened to, like, two songs of theirs), but I do know I respect them a hell of a lot more than U “popping out of lemons” 2.
(That said, Moire baby, I’ll forgive the diss on REM if you admit that they too would never play a Super Bowl show. 🙂 )
Anyway, the whole point of this post was just to provoke Kel into a frenzy, which has been accomplished. So let’s just leave it at that, okay? 🙂
P.S. You’ve seen a “zillion” U2 concerts, and one REM one. That’s a good basis for comparison?
Kris
February 5, 2002 — 12:37 pm
Some other people agreed with me.
Kris
February 5, 2002 — 12:39 pm
Me = flogging dead horse.
Re: REM’s non-existent (says you) charity work… Weren’t you in London when they played that big free concert for Nelson Mandela? And don’t they play the Tibetan Freedom Concert, like, every year? Hmmm… When was the last time U2 charged less than $80 to see them play? Hmmmm….
KMac
February 5, 2002 — 5:16 pm
All year, when U2 charged like $40 for all of the best General Admission seats in the arenas… allowing die-hard fans to get potential front row seats.
Kris
February 5, 2002 — 6:15 pm
Wow. That was very noble of them, especially since they were getting an average of $75 (source here) from everybody else.
Moire
February 6, 2002 — 2:50 am
Oh, okay, Kris, I’ll admit that I like REM, too. I used to get teased mercilessly by my uncle because when I was a small child I thought that Micheal Stipe was dreamy.
But I still think Radiohead rocks. Not only is their music wonderful, but they don’t bow down to convention or radio execs. Their last 2 albums have been pretty useless for radio airplay, yet they’ve sold millions of copies each. The last two albums are, in my opinion, some of the best music they’ve ever made, although their last commercial success (OK, Computer), is beautiful and sad and exultant, and if I had a choice to listen to one CD before I died, that would be the one.
Kris
February 6, 2002 — 11:46 am
Yeah. For some reason I’ve just never been able to get into them. One problem was living in London. The number of pretentious wankers who publicly espouse their love for the band just really puts me off, you know? Of course, if you like them that’s a good counter-argument. Maybe I’ll make an effort to give them a fair shot.