When the nation's capital leaves its public transportation system open an hour late, it generally means something huge is happening in town. This past Tuesday, that something had a very specific name: Bono.
From the moment he and his bandmates took the stage at FedEx field, it was obvious that this was not your typical rock concert.
However, the audience had probably already gathered that from the unnecessarily elaborate stage, dubbed "The Claw," which looked like an alien transport vessel out of War of the Worlds, parts of which extended beyond the top of the stadium. But this is U2, after all, so any element that adds to their dramatic stage presence is, in reality, an absolute necessity.
Opening for U2 was the British rock band Muse, who, according to Bono, is "number one in 24 countries, and will soon be number one in America." Regardless, it was clear from the first chord of "Knights of Cydonia" that Muse has a growing American fan base.
Throughout their entire set, Muse was in top form, with frontman Matt Bellamy throwing all sorts of incredible improvisations into his solos, both instrumentally and vocally.
By the time they reached their final piece, "Plug In Baby," even the audience members who were unfamiliar with these Englishmen were rocking out with the longtime fans.
After opening with a few songs off their latest release such as "No Line on the Horizon," Bono took a few minutes for introductions. "The nation-state that is U2 is a world force," he regally declared, "yet a democracy." And here I thought they were just a band. He then went on to introduce the individual members, Larry Mullen, Jr., Adam Clayton, and "the man who is the leader of my free world, The Edge." He then declared himself "tough when I need to be because democracy is hard work."
Throughout the rest of the night, it became clear that the title of the tour, 360 Degrees, refers not only to the stage and the outer ring connected to it, but also to the idea of spreading peace and democracy 360 degrees around the world. At one point during the show, a connection to an astronaut on the International Space Station was made and broadcast across the 360 degree screen that circled above the stage.
"Can you see Washington from up there?" Bono asked, to which the astronaut replied, "All I see is a big, beautiful Earth." This segued into the classic "It's a Beautiful Day," which drew huge cheers from the crowd, and not only because, unlike the album recording, Bono managed to remain on pitch throughout the entire song.
In fact, he stayed on pitch throughout the better part of the evening, especially impressive considering that the band played for over two hours.
Equally impressive was The Edge. He was ranked number 24 on Rolling Stone's list of "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time," and on Tuesday night, he demonstrated exactly why. Standing silently on the left-hand side of the stage in a black cap, he did not visibly stand out the way Bono did, though at certain moments, his guitar-playing sang out more loudly and clearly than his frontman.
On the main lick to "City of Blinding Lights", the sound of his Gibson cut beautifully through the stadium, stealing the show with grace. As soon as Bono began the first verse, however, The Edge fell back, allowing Bono to reclaim the spotlight, exactly the way a professional lead guitarist should do it.
About halfway through the show, the theme took a political turn. "Sunday Bloody Sunday" was set to images from the Iranian election protests held earlier this year.
Before the final verse, Bono helped a Middle Eastern man who was waving an American flag in the front of the audience onto the stage, proving that, while he cannot go a half an hour without making a political statement, he does his best to make them uplifting and inspiring.
U2 concluded their show with an encore that featured Bono in a futuristic jacket emitting laser beams as they closed with "With or Without You" and "Moment of Surrender."
While the last song may have been a little sluggish in comparison to the rest of the extraordinarily energetic night, when U2 promises a larger-than-life rock show, they deliver. And then some.
