U2 Kicks Off Las Vegas Residency With Debut At Sphere – Setlist & Ticket Info

by Nina HauswirthOctober 2, 2023, 5:44 pmDaily Digest, Homepage Slider, News, News Feed >

The long-awaited opening for the Sphere in Las Vegas has come. U2 performed over the weekend playing at the debut of the stadium on the opening night of their tour U2: UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere.

The band performed many of their famous songs, drawing inspiration for their setlist from their album Achtung Baby. They played their songs “Zoo Station,” “Tryin’ To Throw Your Arms Around the World” and “So Cruel.” They will continue their tour until December 16 with 24 more shows to come.

The visuals have been described as similar to an IMAX theater movie. The Sphere was created by Madison Square Garden Entertainment and is currently the largest spherical structure in the world, taking up two blocks and is taller than the length of a football field. It includes amenities such as the highest and largest resolution LED screen in the world and covers the entire stadium.

Opening night had many A-list celebrities including, Oprah, Paul McCartney, Orlando Bloom, Katy Perry, Snoop Dogg, Jeff Bezos and more. Diplo, who was in attendance, shared some photos on X, formerly known as Twitter. He captioned the post, “I went completely insane at the @SphereVegas.. thanks for having me and @U2 for playing my favorite song ever🤍🤍.” He included some snaps showing off the amazing images and videos played on the screen throughout the night.

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The concert started Friday night at 8:30 p.m. with Bram van den Berg, Bono, Adam Clayton and The Edge appearing from the back of the stage. Van den Berg is currently filling in for Larry Mullen Jr. as Mullen is recovering from back surgery. The band hasn’t played without him since 1978 and paid tribute to him by performing “All I Want is You.”

A few songs were dedicated to their idols, including “Desire” for McCartney and a rendition of “Love Rescue Me” for the late Jimmy Buffet. Bono paid homage to his friend Buffet, saying, “It’s so hard to say goodbye to someone.”

Bono also memorialized Elvis Presley while the screen showed images of him. “Look at all this stuff. … Elvis has definitely not left this building,” he stated. “It’s an Elvis chapel. It’s an Elvis cathedral. Tonight, the entry into this cathedral is a password: flirtation.”

U2 also debuted their new single called “Atomic City,” which they released to the public after the concert.

Throughout the concert, they showed visuals of the Las Vegas skyline, a burning flag, crawling bugs, butterflies and kaleidoscope pictures. They ended the night with their Grammy-winning song, “Beautiful Day.”