Recently in the U2 Station Original Stories Category

U2 brings the U2 360° Tour into Giants Stadium, sets a record for attendance and leaves the fans wanting more, but is "more" really necessary?

By Jonathan Wayne, U2Station.com Webmaster

Minimalism isn't something U2 does well.

Nor is disappointment.

On Thursday night in front of a record crowd of 85,000 people in East Rutherford, New Jersey, I witnessed the world's most grandiose and gargantuan rock band rock the socks off of Giants Stadium. With its 170 foot tall, 390 ton "Claw" (or Spaceship) rising into the air, 7 story, 500,000 pixel and 54 ton video screen, and 1.2 million watt sound system, the only thing missing was a rocket launch to the moon.

From my vantage point in the mezzanine level behind the stage and in a galaxy far away, I could barely see the pilon at the top of the "Claw" as it jutted out into the sky above. In the last row under the upper roof, the flourescent lights stayed on during the entire concert. The glare of the overhead house lights bounced off my glasses and enforced my realization that it really does create a different impression on where you sit (or stand) during a concert. Nevertheless, I was here amongst the tens of thousands to see U2 on the world's largest travelling rock n' roll production ever created.

by Jonathan Wayne, U2Station.com

U2 will be taking their U2 360° Tour back to Europe in 2010 with 12 new tour dates scheduled starting August 10. Amongst the dates are stops in Moscow, Russia and Istanbul, Turkey for the first time in U2's history. These dates may not be the only ones however as there are rumors of U2 playing a concert in Israel as well as Brussels. According to U2.com, additional cities and dates are to be confirmed.

Tickets for these shows go on sale next week. U2 will most likely perform in South America as well as Australia & New Zealand and possibly one last leg back to North America.

The list of dates can be seen below:

August 10, 2010 - Commerzbank Arena, Frankfurt, Germany
August 12, 2010 - AWD Stadium, Hannover, Germany
August 15, 2010 - Stadium, Horsens, Denmark
August 20, 2010 - Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland
August 25, 2010 - Luzhniki, Moscow, Russia
August 30, 2010 - Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna, Austria
September 3, 2010 - Olympic Stadium, Athens, Greece
September 6, 2010 - Ataturk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey
September 15, 2010 - Olympic Stadium, Munich, Germany
September 18, 2010 - Stade De France, Paris, France
September, 2010 - Olympic Stadium, Seville, Spain
October 2, 2010 - Stadium, Coimbra, Portugal

My Misadventures in Ireland, What's The Point?

By Brenda Clemons, Staff Writer

It would be several years before I returned to Ireland. During that time alot changed for me. I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma (a form of cancer closely related to leukemia). I endured eight months of intensive chemo therapy. My father was diagnosed with lung cancer almost a year to the day after I received my diagnosis. I survived but my father did not. He passed away only a month after I finished chemo therapy.

But, it wasn't all bad. I couldn't work during chemo and in order to keep myself from going insane I did volunteer work for a social justice organization in Washington , DC. On the days that I was able to get out of bed; I rode the train in to DC and did typing, filing, organization, helped with press conferences, and attended Congressional hearings.

It was through the volunteer work that I finally met Bono. Imagine that! I ran all over Ireland trying to meet this guy; when all I had to do was be myself. I have never mentioned to him the night I spent outside of his house but I bet he would laugh. At my volunteer job I must behave and pretend that I am not much of a U2 fan, because to do otherwise might very well cause me to lose the privilege of being able to work with him. Don't get me wrong; it's not that Bono doesn't want fans working with him, but it would not go over well if I went running into Senate chambers screaming, "Oh My God! Bono!".

My Misadventures in Ireland: Edge's House

by Brenda Clemons, U2 Station Staff Writer

Bono's security guard told us where Edge lived. The throbbing in my head made the up hill walk long and torturous. We stopped long enough to watch the sun rise over the Irish Sea. The changing hues of pink and purple only added to the vision of the dolphins playing; the purple hues of the sky being reflected off the splashes the dolphins made while jumping and singing.

When we arrived at the house that was supposed to be the home of Edge; I immediately thought that we had been on the receiving end of a practical joke. There was nothing about this place that looked like it belonged to a world famous rock star. There were no gates, no security systems, I didn't see any guards. In fact, the property looked very ordinary as if it belonged to the average family. The house would not have stood out at all if it weren't for the color--pink. Yes, dear U2 fans, The Edge lives in a pink house.

Bridget immediately went about inspecting the property. She walked around and found a few things that would seem ordinary if this were an ordinary house -- but it wasn't an ordinary house. This was the house that was supposed to belong to a legendary guitarist, therefore, a toilet sitting in the backyard was a remarkable object of interest. "Look", she exclaimed, "it's The Edge's toilet! He has a toilet sitting in his back yard." I am not as impressed as Bridget and I simply shrug my shoulders and say, "So? He is probably having his bathroom renovated."

My Misadventures in Ireland: Why it is Never a Good Idea to go to Bono's House Drunk at 1:00 am

by Brenda Clemons, U2 Station Staff Writer

While in Ireland I met Bridget. Bridget grew up in East Berlin during the cold war. She became a U2 fan when her older sister brought home a copy of "The Joshua Tree" which had been smuggled in from West Berlin. To Bridget, U2 were pure magic (never having been exposed to spirituality or religion; she could not understand any other concept but magic.) Now that the cold war was over and the Berlin wall had crumbled, Bridget was free to travel as she pleased. She came to Ireland to meet the people whose music was so special to her.

It was Bridget's last night in Ireland and we had spent the night drinking Guinness after Guinness after Guinness. I don't know how many of you have ever been drunk on Guinness--but let me tell you that every idea starts to sound like a good idea (maybe this is how the Pop lemon came about!). It was after 1:00 a.m. and the pubs were all closing. We had been drinking for hours when Bridget decided that we were going to Bono's house. "okay!", I said. We put our drunken heads together and decided that we had enough money between the two of us to take a cab to Bono's house and then take the DART back to Dublin at 6:00 a.m. the next morning.

by Brenda Clemons, U2 Station Staff Writer

Why is it so important to dig wells?

Rob Trigalet, Vice Chairperson of the African Well Fund: Everyday thousands of people in Africa, some of them children, die from illnesses due to the lack of clean water. What I'm talking about is people dying just because they have diarrhea or parasites, not AIDS or malaria, but a bug or a stomach virus. In the west, this would not be tolerated. 10 or 13 people getting sick from lettuce at Taco Bell is national front page news. So, wells are easy and inexpensive to do and that's why the African Well Fund thinks it is important. Because it's something we can do, so we feel that we should.

How many wells have you built so far?

Our last total was 43 water projects but we are waiting on several reports to come in for projects that are nearly complete.

Were you surprised at the amount of money U2 fans have donated over the years?

Absolutely. The first year we asked for donations (2003), our hope was to raise enough money to build one well. We ended up building 13 in Uganda with our first fund drive and have raised over $200,000 since inception. We here at AWF think that U2 fans ROCK!

by Brenda Clemons, U2 Station Staff Writer

1. Can you explain a little about the Jubilee Network. What it is that you strive to do?

Jubilee USA Network is part of an international movement focused on canceling debts of countries in the Global South (these are also known as developing or Third World countries, which is an historical and outdated term). There are Jubilee groups many European nations and over 60 in the Global South, which are collectively known as Jubilee South. Jubilee is an Old Testament principle about freeing slaves and righting relationships. The debts were often accrued under dictatorial or undemocratic governments, with the knowledge of Western (U.S., European) governments, and now the people must pay back debts, at the expense of basic needs like healthcare and education. The most famous example is probably South Africa, where about of their US$23 billion debts were given to the Apartheid government. When Nelson Mandela was elected President in 1994, he was given a bill for that debt, part of which was used to imprison him for 27 years.

We focus primarily on debts claimed by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). We do not use the word "owed to" because we feel that, in many cases, the debts have been repaid several times over or the "dictator" loans are illegal and should not be recognized. If for no other reason than it would allow governments to use the money to benefit the people,

Part 2 of My Mis-Adventures in Ireland

by Brenda Clemons, U2 Station Staff Writer

Like I said in the first part of my story, there was absolutely nothing to do on a Sunday in Dublin during the 90's. And it definitely wasnt a good idea to go wandering around the docks at night. So, I was more than just a little excited when I happened upon Dockers.

Now, of course I knew what Dockers was. Dockers is the Dublin pub famous for being a U2 hangout. However, I did come upon it by accident. I really wasnt expecting to find it, literally, just around the block from Windmill Lane. In fact, I bet if you looked on a map, it would be directly in front of Windmill Lane. Dockers definitely didn't look like a hang out for world famous rock stars. It looked more like the kind of joint where you would find rowdy mid-shipmen. The kind who have been at sea way too long and looking to blow off some steam.

When I walked in, the amount of U2 memorabilia overwhelmed me. You cant help but know whose hangout this is. U2's gold and platinum records are hanging all over the place. If that didnt give it away, then the photos of U2 taken inside of Dockers surely did. But, I didn't have much time to drool over the memorabilia. In fact, I had only taken about 3 steps inside of the door, when a Japanese man approached me and said,

You, rock star?

I think my reply was, Huh?

The Japanese man asked again, You, rock star?

My Mis-Adventures in Dublin, Ireland

by Brenda Clemons, U2 Station Staff Writer

Starting this week on the U2 Station, I will be writing about my (mostly) humorous but true accounts of my two trips to Dublin, Ireland. Of course, all the stories will have a U2 twist to them. I hope you all enjoy my (mis)adventures.

Every U2 fan is required to go to Dublin, Ireland at least once in their lifetime. It's like a sacred vow we all take. Muslims go to Mecca. U2 fans go to Dublin. My first trip to Ireland was during the making of the Pop album. (Of course, at the time I don't think anyone knew it was going to be called Pop.)

My husband and I had just separated. Of course I was angry and a whole bunch of other emotions. Getting even was definitely on my mind. It was part of the separation papers that our house was to be sold with the money being shared equally between the two of us. I knew what I was going to do with my half. There was the question of what to do with the diamond ring that I no longer wore. Sentimentality told me to keep it and give it to our son when he became an adult. Then I realized the truth of the situation -- he would probably give it to his first love interest; who would, in turn, probably throw it out a car window during their first real fight. Well, I'll not have a perfectly good diamond go to waste like that. So, I took it to the local pawn shop and got enough money for a down payment on a trip to Ireland. Since, I was mad at my ex; I knew that nothing would make him angrier than my "blowing" my half of the money on something like a vacation.

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