In the name of friendship
Bono and ‘Brothers’ director Jim Sheridan share a bond.
By Geoff Boucher
December 9, 2009


U2: Bono and The Edge wrote “Winter” specifically for Jim Sheridan’s film “Brothers.”
(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

In 1977, an Irish teenager named Paul Hewson signed up for mime lessons at the Project Arts Center in Dublin. It marked the very last time that Bono, as Hewson is called today, made any serious attempt to stay silent onstage. Still, that class at the avant-garde drama collective did lead to an enduring friendship between Bono and Jim Sheridan, the arts leader who would go on to become Ireland's most celebrated filmmaker. ¶ "We have this relationship with Jim that's alchemical," Bono said of the bond between the rock band and the six-time Oscar nominee, who so long ago ran a Dublin hot spot for acting, music and the arts. "The Arts Center was a sort of progressive theater group run by Jim and his brother, Peter, and all kinds of bizarre characters were there. I think the first time that we played as U2, it was at a thing called Dark Space, a 24-hour music festival in this sort of warehouse called the Project Arts Center. There's so much history for us. . . . " ¶ The next chapter of that history is "Brothers," Sheridan's wrenching film that features the haunting new U2 song "Winter," written specifically for the movie. The story finds its axis in family, war and redemption -- it's a sort of "Best Years of Our Lives" for the troops in this modern American Heartland era of Wal-Mart, hard-luck economies, YouTube and desert camouflage.

The movie, which opened Friday, tells the tale of the Cahill brothers, Sam ( Tobey Maguire), who is a family man and a respected battlefield leader in Afghanistan, and Tommy ( Jake Gyllenhaal), the family black sheep who is fresh from a stint in prison. Sam is married to Grace ( Natalie Portman), who first mourns her husband when he is reported dead in combat and then finds out that he is alive. The Marine who comes home to her, though, is very different than the man she married and carries a dark secret back from the distant mountain ranges.

The film is a remake of the acclaimed 2004 Danish film "Brødre," and Sheridan said he was initially reluctant to take "a very good film" and transport it to America, but he found in the story too many compelling elements to let the chance go by. Bono said he and the other members of U2 -- the Edge, Larry Mullen Jr. and Adam Clayton -- had been "fiddling around, improvising and trying to find something" in the same thematic territories.

"We saw the picture and we said, 'Oh, yeah,' that's exactly where we wanted to go," Bono said. "We quickly drew the character in 'Winter' and it's based -- in no literal way, you try not to do that -- on that moment in the film where [Maguire's character] is locked up, down in a hole. In my head, that character starts scratching a diary."

Some of the lyrics to "Winter": "Now I'm 25 / I'm trying to stay alive / In a corner of the world / With no clear enemies to fight / It's hot as hell / We're like butter on toast / But there's no army in this world / That can fight a ghost."

The shards of imagery fit the film but don't attempt to mirror it, Bono said.

"If you're literal, you become part of the narration and that can be an irritation to the director," he said. "I think with this we tried to get to the essence of the story the loss of innocence and the reasons that people do put themselves in harm's way for the love of their country. That's a pregnant thought right now, isn't it?"

Movies were a huge influence on U2 -- no surprise for anyone who has watched their career focus on concert theatrics, grand narratives and potent visuals through music videos and photography. If there ever were a band that aspired to be both art house and summer popcorn, it's U2, but that doesn't even take into account the influence film music had on a group that has created soundscapes as different as the western sunsets of "Joshua Tree" and the Berlin siren wails of "Achtung Baby."

Giorgio Moroder's "Midnight Express" score and the screen music of Nino Rota in Fellini films were key compass points for the band early on, as important in some ways as the Beatles and Ramones, Bono said.

"In Dublin, there weren't a lot of gigs, and going out to movies . . . that's part of who we were growing up and the music we made," Bono said. "It's very easy for us to see things from a director's point of view because we think of it like that," Bono said.

The great treat for Bono was escaping his usual first-person approach to songwriting. "It is great to not have to dig up your own dirt and try to find diamonds in somebody else's ground."

The Edge agreed: "Jumping off someone else's work is always fun. . . . It can lead to all sorts of opportunities and, in this case, they came quickly."

It's paid off for them before. Their song, "The Hands That Built America," from Martin Scorsese's "Gangs of New York," was nominated for an Oscar.

And it's not the first time a Sheridan film has featured the sound of old friends. The title track for "In the Name of the Father" was performed by Bono and Gavin Friday (another Dubliner from that same mime class' invisible walls). Friday and Bono also wrote "Time Enough for Tears" for "In America."

Sheridan also added U2 directly into the story of "Brothers" -- in one pivotal scene, Grace and Tommy have a breakthrough in their trust and affection for one another while sharing a joint and listening to "Bad," one of the band's mid-1980s classics of epic swoon. Tommy makes a wisecrack, expecting Grace to be an 'N Sync fan; Sheridan said he didn't think twice about the inclusion of his old mates.

"It felt right as far as their life and marking time, their age and the story," the director said. "It fits, so that's what I used. Their music is a touchstone for a generation."

Despite that praise, Bono said he and his bandmates didn't have to stretch their arms to catch all the bouquets that Sheridan threw their way on the project. He was demanding, just the way they hoped, just as he always has been.

"It's like family, but that makes it sound too . . . comfortable," Bono said with a chuckle. "It's not comfortable. Jim will push you and we like to be pushed. The film is about friendship and fraternal relationships and, by the way, when we're with Jim, we talk about little else."

geoff.boucher@latimes.com

latimes

Green Day Named Top Artists Of The Decade By Rolling Stone Readers
Punk icons took best single, album and artists of the '00s in poll.
By Gil Kaufman

December 9, 2009


Rolling Stone readers love Green Day ... a lot. In the magazine's Decade-End Reader's Poll, the Berkeley-bred punk-pop trio grabbed the #1 spot for Best Single, Best Album and Top Artist of the '00s.

As the #1 single, readers picked the ballad "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," one of two Green Day tunes the made the cut, along with "American Idiot" (#13). The rest of the top five were Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", U2's "Beautiful Day," Britney Spears' "Toxic" and Mariah Carey's "We Belong Together."

Also getting love in the top 15 were Kanye West, Avril Lavigne, My Chemical Romance, Kelly Clarkson, the White Stripes and Coldplay.

A number of acts notched two albums on the list of the decade's top releases. While Green Day took the #1 spot with American Idiot, Radiohead landed at #3 (Kid A) and #5 (In Rainbows). U2 scored a two-fer at #6 (All That You Can't Leave Behind) and #15 (No Line on the Horizon), and Kelly Clarkson hit #8 (All I Ever Wanted) and #11 (Breakaway).

The top 20 also featured discs from Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Avril Lavigne, Christina Aguilera, My Chemical Romance and Justin Timberlake. A notable absence was Eminem, who was deemed the top-selling artist of the '00s by Nielsen SoundScan but failed to get a single mention on the RS readers' albums list.

Green Day topped the Artist of the Decade list, followed by Radiohead, U2, Coldplay, the Black Eyed Peas, Justin Timberlake and Bruce Springsteen. Slim Shady finally worked his way in on that list, dropping into the #8 slot, just ahead of the White Stripes' Jack White, Jay-Z, Kings of Leon and Fall Out Boy.

Despite having last year's biggest album and becoming hip-hop's reigning superstar, Lil Wayne checked in at a modest #18, coming in behind the Arcade Fire (#13), M.I.A. (#14), Wilco (#15), Bright Eyes' Conor Oberst (#16) and Bob Dylan (#17).

Rolling Stone readers' top singles of the decade: 1. Green Day, "Boulevard of Broken Dreams"
2. Beyonce, "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)"
3. U2, "Beautiful Day"
4. Britney Spears, "Toxic"
5. Mariah Carey, "We Belong Together"
6. Kanye West, "Stronger"
7. My Chemical Romance, "Welcome to the Black Parade"
8. Avril Lavigne, "Complicated"
9. Kelly Clarkson, "Since U Been Gone"
10. White Stripes, "Seven Nation Army"
11. Black Eyed Peas, "I Gotta Feeling"
12. Coldplay, "Viva la Vida"
13. Green Day, "American Idiot"
14. Christina Aguilera, "Beautiful"


Top albums:

1. Green Day, American Idiot
2. Kanye West, Graduation
3. Radiohead, Kid A
4. Avril Lavigne, Let Go
5. Radiohead, In Rainbows
6. U2, All That You Can't Leave Behind
7. Britney Spears, Blackout
8. Kelly Clarkson, All I Ever Wanted
9. Jay-Z, The Blueprint
10. Lady Gaga, The Fame
11. Kelly Clarkson, Breakaway
12. Beyoncé, I Am ... Sasha Fierce 13. Christina Aguilera, Stripped
14. My Chemical Romance, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge
15. U2, No Line on the Horizon
16. Mariah Carey, The Emancipation of Mimi
17. Justin Timberlake, Futuresex/Lovesounds
18. Coldplay, Viva la Vida
19. Bruce Springsteen, The Rising

Top artists:

1. Green Day
2. Radiohead
3. U2
4. Coldplay
5. Black Eyed Peas
6. Justin Timberlake
7. Bruce Springsteen
8. Eminem
9. Jack White
10. Jay-Z
11. Kings of Leon
12. Fall Out Boy
13. Arcade Fire
14. M.I.A.
15. Wilco
16. Conor Oberst
17. Bob Dylan
18. Lil Wayne
19. My Morning Jacket
20. Beyoncé
21. Kelly Clarkson
22. My Chemical Romance
23. Kanye West



mtv

Bono says U2 'humbled' to play Glastonbury
By Tim Masters
Entertainment correspondent, BBC News



U2 will take a break from their North American tour to play Glastonbury

Bono has said that U2 are "delighted and humbled" to be headlining at next year's Glastonbury Festival over its 40th anniversary weekend.

The band will lead the line-up at the Somerset show on Friday 25 June.

"Everyone in the band is very excited about it," Bono told the BBC at the launch of an anti-Aids/HIV campaign.

It will be U2's first festival gig for more than 25 years and will see them make a flying visit to the UK in the middle of a North American tour.

Asked if he would use the festival to promote the campaign, Bono said: "I think it will just be about the music on that day, and that spirit that seems to take over everybody in that sacred ground."

He added: "We'll certainly be well-rehearsed, we'll be coming straight from the tour."

Red laces

Bono was in central London on Monday to launch the "Lace Up. Save Lives" campaign - a partnership between Nike and the (RED) brand, which was co-founded by the U2 frontman.

He was joined at the launch, just ahead of World Aids Day, by Chelsea striker Didier Drogba and several other international football stars.

The campaign encourages people to buy red laces to help fund AIDS medication and education programmes in Africa.

Next year's Glastonbury takes place from 25-27 June - during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

No other headliners have yet been confirmed. David Bowie has denied that he will join U2 on the bill, but it is rumoured that stadium rockers Muse could appear.

Tickets for the event sold out shortly after they went on sale last month.

bbc

The Daily Swarm Interview: Steve Lillywhite on U2, Eno, Lanois, Dave Matthews, Phish, Rick Rubin, MGMT and more...
Sam J.C.
November 20, 2009


Steve Lillywhite is the man responsible for producing the debut albums by U2 and Dave Matthews Band as well as many of their subsequent million-selling releases. While Bono and Dave have both consistently trusted Steve to fit their visions between the speakers, so have artists as diverse as The Rolling Stones, Peter Gabriel, Johnny Thunders, Ultravox, Guster, She & Him, XTC, Jason Mraz, The Pogues, Counting Crows, Siouxie and the Banshees, The La’s, David Byrne, Morrissey, Chris Cornell, Phish, Matchbox 20 and many more.




The Daily Swarm: When you began, were there any specific albums or producers that initially inspired you to pursue a career in music production?

Steve Lillywhite: I was a big David Bowie fan. The Tony Visconti records and the Ken Scott records of the early 70s were fantastic. produced by Ken Scott - interview with Tony Visconti

And of course, I loved Phil Spector. In fact some of his “wall of sound” records probably influenced me during the early 80s. Some of the records I made during that time were quite dense sounding. But in general, my favorite records are ones you don’t hear production. You just hear a great record



produced by Phil Spector

How would you define what a record producer does and how has the role of a record producer evolved over the decades?

It was always a very wide thing because sometimes the producer is the guy who sits back and doesn’t do anything and actually nowadays a lot of producers are not even in the studio. Even though it says, “Produced by…” they are much more of an overseer.

The term record producer is very broad. Basically you’re responsible for the quality of the end product however you do it. So when people say, “Oh, Rick Rubin is never there,” if it’s a good record, it doesn’t matter because he doesn’t need to be there. I wish I could be like that but I tend to feel I need to be there to make half decent records.

I tend to be a little more hands-on. If I do your record, I’m there all the time, so I’ll never do two albums at the same time. Some people do three or four albums at the same time. I find I have to concentrate fully on what I am doing to hopefully make a good record




Do you act as the engineer on all the albums you produce?

I am not an engineer. I always have to have a technician with me. I sit at the desk and I push the faders up but I don’t consider myself an engineer.

I love balancing the music. I let my engineer do all the mic settings and all that stuff unless I see something I don’t like and I say, “Let’s do this.” I allow people the space to be creative on all fronts

Have recording budgets gotten smaller in recent years and does that affect how you are able to get the job done?

Different records have different budgets. You work with U2 and there doesn’t seem like there’s any budget whatsoever. You work with other people and it’s different. I like a nice budget but I like nice music even better

Have recording budgets gotten smaller in recent years and does that affect how you are able to get the job done?

Different records have different budgets. You work with U2 and there doesn’t seem like there’s any budget whatsoever. You work with other people and it’s different. I like a nice budget but I like nice music even better



You produced the first three U2 albums on your own and then Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno were hired as the producers for The Unforgettable Fire. The three of you have worked together as co-producers on almost all the subsequent U2 albums. Were you initially hesitant to work in such an unconventional “team” scenario with Eno and Lanois?

No. After the first album I said U2 should work with someone else. And then certainly after October, I said, “Look, guys, this hasn’t done as well as the first one. You should definitely work with someone else. And they went, “Okay.”

And they went and did some tracks with some other people. They didn’t like what they heard and they came back and said, “Steve, I know you said you wouldn’t but what are you doing in September?” and I said, “Nothing.” And they said, “Would you like to do our third album?” And I said “Alright, then.”

Nowadays it’s very rare for any one producer, let alone three producers, to work with a particular artist across their career. Can you describe your working style with Eno, Lanois and U2 and why it works?

The best way to describe it is it’s not just mixing. A lot of people are just mixers and they do a great job but what I do with U2 is way beyond that.

Are you familiar with the game of baseball? They have this guy that comes in to pitch towards to end: the closer. I think that’s pretty much my job with them. Whether I start pitching in the 9th inning or the 7th or the 5th, my job is to help finish it.

Eno and Lanois do a great job of getting it all prepped and then I come in. I think it has a lot to do with the band seeing me and they’re going, “Oh, Steve’s here. We’d better get to work.”

I was the very first studio experience for them when they were young kids so they sort of revert to type a a little bit…but maybe not. We’ve had success and U2 doesn’t analyze really. It’s all about the heart. All they know is that when we get in a room together, things happen

Do you have a lot of communication with Eno and Lanois during the process?

Yeah, yeah, we’re great friends, especially Brian Eno. He is one of the most intelligent, witty, self-confident people I have ever met. He always has great ideas as well.

He’s not really a fan of the band, so his job is to bring something that is not U2 to it. And my job is to bring it back to some form of U2

Beyond U2 and throughout your career you’ve worked with very diverse artists. Is there a thread that connects all the people you’ve produced?

One thread I hope is that they are all great songwriters. There was a time in the early 80s where I used the same sounds on everything I produced. And then I made a record with a guy called Marshall Crenshaw that sort of didn’t work with my sound.

Subsequently, I realized there really are no rules. You have to take each artist completely from their own perspective and work for what’s best for them. So after working with Marshall Crenshaw, I realized that I thought I had a formula but I didn’t. If I ever think I have formula, I am not as good a producer as I want to be.

Are there some specific personality traits of yours that have enabled you to be a successful producer?

I’ve been around a while but I still feel like I have something to pass onto people and younger bands because I am very good at getting the best out of musicians. I don’t ever want to change what they do.

If I decide I want to work with someone, I have great faith that I can bring out the best of what they are. I am not a songwriter and I don’t want to be an average songwriter. I am not trying to steal anyone’s thunder.

I want to make the best record for them. So when I take on something, I feel that’s really a big decision for me because I don’t want to fuck anyone’s career up.

I haven’t batted 1000% but no one ever does. I think most artists I work with enjoy the process and enjoy the end result. They can play it for their grandchildren and feel confident that what they’re playing is something that they really believed in. And that’s what I want to do.

I love arranging artist’s ideas. If they have too many ideas, I love that because my job is to filter and I am very, very good at that and I find it very easy as well.

From Morrissey to David Byrne to Bono you’ve worked with musicians who seem to have a very strong personal artistic vision. Is it difficult introducing new ideas to such people and why do they trust you?

I try to expand. They present their ideas and my job is to fit them in a format as a way that is best for them. I have my ideas and I discuss with them and we have a lot of talking conceptually as to how we want it to be. I have a good sense of self-confidence in what I do.

I remember when I worked with Phish about ten years ago. They came out of the studio and said, “Steve, we’ve never felt more like musicians than we do now.” And that was because I enabled them to not think too much. I enabled them to do what they do best and that’s all I want.

I want musicians to perform from the heart. If they’re performing from the head, I am not so interested. I have ways of trying to make them work from the heart. I can make people relaxed. Quite often after making an album, artists will go, “My god, how did that happen. It all seemed to just go.”

In the 80s, you tended to work with a lot of British alternative and new wave artists, and then in the 90s through the 00s you made several albums with the two biggest American jam bands, Phish and the Dave Matthews Band. Considering what your musical background was, what attracted you to work with these two particular groups?

It was very weird but I’ve always tried to spread what I do based on just whether I think it’s good or not. I worked with Peter Gabriel in 1980 and he was very different from Sioxsie and the Banshees and the punk rock that I was also doing

Games Without Frontiers - Pete...

Carcass - Siouxsie And The Ban...

Dave Matthews was before Phish. I remember hearing their independent CD called Remember Two Things and hearing a song called “Ants Marching” and just thinking, “Oh my god. I love this song. This is such a smash.” And after that saying, “I have to go and produce this band.”

I was living in London at the time and they’d actually decided to work with someone else. So I had to come over to America and basically pitch myself to such an extent that I wouldn’t take no for an answer because I knew I was the guy for this band.

A lot of people thought, “Oh, they’ll never be successful because it’s too jazzy or it’s too this.” I never think like that. If I like it I think,“how can I put it in a format that people will also enjoy?”

.............(it continues)

...it continues....



It’s like when I saw Guster for the first time. It was just two acoustics and bongos but there was something great about them and a challenge to take what they had and make it work.

In addition to Dave Matthews and Phish, in recent years you’ve produced Matchbox 20, Counting Crows and Jason Mraz. Are you thinking about commercial viability in all cases when you go into the studio?

Absolutely. My fundamental belief, which goes to my soul, is the fact that art and commerce can coincide together. They can coexist together. But I have never made a record for commerce. I’ve always made records for art.

All I thought with Dave Matthews was how short should a 10-minute song be? So I did a lot of editing, a lot of making it seem just the right length, the right amount of soloing. But obviously solos become exactly the same thing when you play them over and over again.

Were Phish or Dave Matthews reluctant for you to shorten their songs?

No, no, no. This is the confidence that I have. I can allow an artist to be musicians and I let them play and they let me produce. But I have to earn that right and I earn that right by explaining to them and by my actions.

You only earn any right by your actions. I wouldn’t produce anyone if they just thought, “Oh, we’ll have Steve Lillywhite because of what he’s done.” I would think they would want to say, “Steve, how would you be able to help us out?” I want to be able to sell myself

Do you require that artists do a lot of preproduction such as rehearsing the songs before you begin recording?

I don’t like preproduction. I like discussions and conceptualizing and talking about how and where it’s going to go; some big picture ideas.

And they let me produce but I have to earn it. So many producers loose their nerve. If it’s going wrong and they don’t know how to fix it, they just blindly move forward.

I’ve made records for so long that if I sense something’s going wrong, I’m so ahead of the game, I can normally fix it before it actually does go wrong. And I am not big headed. Some producers are good at some things and I happen to be pretty good at that



In 2002, you began working for Mercury Records in the UK with the title of Managing Director. Can you describe that experience?

I went corporate for a little while and I really enjoyed it. We had some hits. I signed a band called Razorlight in England who became very successful and some other pop things.

But during the last couple of years, that was when U2 called me for the How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb album. So I decided to leave that job to produce the U2 album and from that I got a Grammy for Producer of the Year… so that was very good

U2 - New Music - More Music Videos

What exactly did your job as a Managing Director entail?

The Managing Director is like the president. That’s the British term for president. And then I had a job with Columbia Records in America over here in 2006, which was a similar sort of position. I was a Senior Vice President and we signed MGMT when I was there.

But it was not such a great time for the music business and then my boss got fired. They had different ideas and decided to bring Rick Rubin in.

As someone who comes from the creative side of the business, was working for a corporation a culture shock?

Perhaps I didn’t do my homework so well. It was a culture shock. The creative side of that job with Mercury I really enjoyed. Dealing with accountants and marketing people was a little bit more difficult for me but I did it.

Since I was 17 years old I’ve been used to dealing with creative people so dealing with people who consider it “a job” was different. I wouldn’t say I disliked it but my soul is better when I am around creative people.

Did you feel pressure that the artists you were signing would affect the financial viability of such a large company?

My belief is still the same. Art and commerce can run in tandem. If you have that as a belief it doesn’t matter if you are a producer or if you’re an A&R man or whatever you are doing.

I think you can look at MGMT. There’s a great example of good art and good commercial success




What initially attracted to you to MGMT as a good signing for a major label?

I thought it was very good signing. A band like MGMT will get you other very cool bands. All of sudden, someone will want to sign to the label that has MGMT. I thought of it like that. And you know, those songs are hits.

Now that more alternative-sounding bands like MGMT are being embraced by the mainstream to a certain degree, how can record labels adjust their business models for selling a lower volume of music perhaps across a broader market place?

It’s not the end of the world. If you structure deals accordingly I think it’s good. But sometimes you don’t even need a major label.

Look at Phish for instance. We recorded this new album ourselves and you know, it’s not going to set the world on fire but it really helps. I think Phish are bigger now than they’ve ever been. It’s incredible.

However, with the changing economics of the music business, what kinds of commercial and artistic considerations do you make when deciding which artists to produce or sign to a label you are working for?

I look at a band like Fleet Foxes. I see it as a career, I don’t see it as one record. Maybe Fleet Foxes didn’t sell as many as Britney Spears but I think Fleet Foxes, if they’re clever, are going to have a long career with great sales and a great life.

I am not in the world of Britney Spears. She’s fine. She can do what she wants. But I’m much more interested in artists who think about their art and who see it as art.

In fact, because I’m doing this interview, can you put in a plug? I’m looking for something really cool. It doesn’t matter if they’re successful or not successful. I am very excited about doing some quick records.

People can contact me however they need to. People can find me if they want me. I’m very excited about young artists and I feel I’ve got something I can offer them



You sound so invigorated. Do you ever get burned out after all these years?

No. The difference is I can’t go back to back on records anymore. In the 80s I could just do one after another and not get burned out. Now, I would get burned out if I did that.

So I’m like a boxer now who needs a little bit more time between bouts. But I’m ready right now.

Because more recording studios like the one where you got your start in the 1970s are closing in today’s tough economic environment, what advice would give a kid interested in being “the next Steve Lillywhite”?

It is getting more and more difficult but I still believe in studios. So just send letters to your local studio and try and get some experience. Find the local band that you love and try and record them.

Believe in your heart and not in your eyes. So many people look at music. Everything is on a screen now. That’s important but it’s also important to go where your heart goes and go where your ears go




For more information, Swarm readers can click here to listen to online radio segments from Steve Lillywhite’s regular radio show on NPR which he hopes to restart soon. These segments include Steve’s reflections on classic records he’s been involved in as well as on-air live performances produced by Steve with artists like The Pretenders, Albert Hammond Jr., Goldfrapp and Dr. Dog.



Los Angeles-based writer/musician, Sam J.C. has written for Filter, Vapors, Buzzbands LA and Variety. He can be contacted at samjcmusic [at] gmail.com

thedailyswarm

U2 360 Tour Profile
SEEKING INTIMACY ON A GRAND SCALE
Dec 1, 2009 12:00 PM, By Kevin Becka
Photos: Steve Jennings



The 170-foot-tall steel structure and stage at University of Phoenix Stadium (Glendale, Ariz.)
The U2 360° tour that recently ended its first leg in the U.S. has taken the stadium show to a new level. The sheer scope of the production is mind-boggling. It took two years to design and develop, travels on 180 trucks, employs more than 400 people — including 12 system engineer/techs — and uses an astounding amount of audio and video gear. The best thing about the show is the communication and contact between the band and the audience provided by the 170-foot-tall steel structure perched over the stage.

Originally inspired by the Theme Building at Los Angeles' LAX airport, the four-legged “spider” incorporates all of the lighting, some of the 12 manned cameras and spots, massive speaker arrays and a huge 360-degree vertically expandable LED video screen. And as ridiculous as it sounds, once the show starts, you forget it's there: Instead of being the elephant in the room, the structure focuses attention on the band and how they interact with the crowd, both near and far. The inner ring nearest the main stage gives more than 3,000 fans close proximity to the band, while the outer ring gives the band access to standing and seated concertgoers farther out. At different times during the show, The Edge, Bono, Adam Clayton and even drummer Larry Mullins Jr. use two moving bridges to perform between the areas and are followed by video and audio all the way.

Of course, you'd expect the audio system used for such a massive setup to be huge — and it doesn't disappoint. The setup comprises the latest in digital tech offered for live sound and, surprisingly, some tried-and-true analog gear. The tour's look and systems design was a collaboration between the band and audio director/front-of-house Joe O'Herlihy, show designer Willie Williams, production architect/designers Jeremy Lloyd and Mark Fisher, and Clair Global R&D and engineering teams.


Front-of-house engineer Joe O'Herlihy (left) with senior systems engineer Jo Ravitch
The speakers used are all Clair and comprise FOH left/right hangs of 36 i5 and 36 i5B; 24 i5 and 24 i5B rear; 16 i5 and 16 i5B at house left; and 16 i5 and 16 i5B at house right. Main stage front-fills include 24 FF2 and 24 BT218 subs, while the “B” stage area carries 72 S4 subs. There are also two towers carrying 32 iDL delay cabinets. That's 336 separate enclosures, all powered by Lab.gruppen PLM 10000Q and PLM 14000s and Powersoft K10 amps that are positioned at each leg of the structure and are fed audio from the stage racks. All EQ and control is via Lake/Dolby I/O software Version 5.3, with most of the processing resident in the Lab.gruppen PLM 10000Q and PLM 14000 amplifiers; system tuning is via EAW Smaart software.

Consoles at FOH are redundant DiGiCo SD7s, each running identical shows. Jo Ravitch, senior systems engineer/Clair Global crew chief, says, “There are two main stage racks, one of them distributes AES to each leg and there's a backup system of analog feeds to each amp, as well. If we have an issue with anything in this setup, I walk over here and switch to analog and Joe [O'Herlihy] walks over to the other board and picks up the mix.”

The front end for Bono and The Edge's vocals and some of the compression for the guitars called for some unusual gear choices. Ravitch says, “When the tour started, there wasn't very much [processing] available on the board so we're using outboard stuff.” For Bono's vocals, O'Herlihy calls on the Manley Vox Box; The Edge's vocals take an Avalon 737. Compression for the guitars is on a Summit Audio DCL-200 comp/limiter, with the rest of the limiting provided by the SD7.


In monitor world, from left: Niall Slevin, Alistair McMillan and Dave Skaff
The system was a game-changer for O'Herlihy, who has been with U2 for more than 25 years. “The approach to the mix in the context of the way the sound is distributed has been enlightening, to be perfectly honest,” he says. “The size of the system has created an experience that is incredibly responsive. We now have something that's almost touch-sensitive. When you make a move, there's a large physical element of immediately hearing what you do.”

Because of the staging's scope and design, the textbooks had to be thrown out and a system designed that would cover everyone. O'Herlihy says, “From the mix perspective, you have to get your head around the whole concept of having an inside column and an outside column, and how you distribute your gain structures accordingly.”


The players' audio experience onstage was an essential element in the system design. “Any time you do things in 360 degrees, the apex of that circle is right where the drummer is,” O'Herlihy continues. “It would normally be a difficult place to perform while being hammered with all that bass.” This is where the use of the 72 Clair S4 cardioid subs around the outer ring comes in. “The cardioid movement works extraordinarily well in nullifying bass, so it's a clean, clean stage that is a good performance area,” the FOH engineer adds.


O'Herlihy has seen an exponential evolution in tour sound technology. He had his digital education on the DiGiCo D5, which was innovative at the time. On the Vertigo tour, he had the benefit of the D5 being around for a few years before he took it out. He did not have that luxury with the SD7, but trusted that it was the only console that could get the job done. The SD7 was the only solution that let him put each and every individual channel where he wanted it without using external equipment that would have meant another link in the chain that could possibly fail. Still, the SD7 was a leap of faith and trust in DiGiCo. “We've had our glitches along the way with software updates, but like everything else, we're in virgin territory here and we felt that that the SD7 is what made this whole thing work.”

Underneath It All

Monitor mixers Dave Skaff, Alistair McMillan and Niall Slevin make their home under the massive stage, which is also where offstage keyboardist Terry Lawless plays. Because all three mixers don't have a view of the stage, they watch what's going on via TV monitors at each station. And as the band is moving around so much, each station gets a four-camera split specially switched for their benefit, resulting in the band being visible at all times.


Skaff mixes for bassist Adam Clayton, drummer Larry Mullins and Lawless on a Digidesign D-Show Profile. The tour's redundancy mantra carries on below stage with Skaff mixing on one Profile with another right next to it ready to go. “With just a couple of switches hit at the same time, I'm fully up on the second rig,” says Skaff, who worked for Digidesign on the VENUE console project from the beginning. In his mixes, he uses a variety of plug-ins from Waves, McDSP and the Phoenix plug-in from Crane Song, and also records every show to Pro Tools HD.


Using digital consoles has made it easier to provide specific mixes for each bandmember. The Edge has six guitar amps onstage and two under, while Clayton has five bass guitar feeds, and they rely on the team to provide the specific balances they need for each song. Skaff points out the advantage: “Without digital, it would be a madness of markers and 3×5 index cards. At soundcheck, Bono will do half a song, shout out another song, do 12 bars of that song and shout out another. It would be impossible to get all that to come back without the digital consoles.”


Mixers Slevin and McMillan provide audio for The Edge and Bono on two DiGiCo SD7s, each running dual engines fed via MADI. Each desk runs both mixes, the thought being that if one console quits, the engineer can jump to the second engine on the working console and continue to work until the downed desk can be revived. The stage racks and local racks used for processing are also duplicated and can be quickly switched if needed. McMillan is recording the show to Steinberg Cubase on two independent Apple G5s, which top out at 90 tracks, 20 of which are ambience. “I feed [Bono] quite a bit of ambience,” says McMillan. “He enjoys hearing the audience reaction.”


To help with latency, McMillan keeps Bono's vocal on an analog path by getting a split from the stage, which he sends through a Rupert Neve-designed Amek preamp and then into a channel on a Midas Verona analog console. The rest of the band and effects are sent to a second channel on the Verona, which all go directly to Bono. For the singer's reverb, he's using the Bricasti M7, McMillan's favorite new toy. “It's more like glue than a reverb,” McMillan says. For Bono's delays, he uses a TC Electronic 2290 and a variety of verbs from Lexicon and Yamaha across the rest of the band.

McMillan, who has mixed monitors for Van Morrison, came primarily from a studio background, having worked extensively at Windmill Lane in Dublin. “These guys have made me raise the bar within myself,” McMillan says. “After 20 years, you get set in your ways. Here, I had to start again and I love that.”


For The Edge, Niall Slevin runs 40 inputs per engine into his SD7, sharing the same rack feeds with McMillan. He uses an AMS reverb and a Lexicon PCM 80 for his mixes but duplicates his rack effects with onboard equivalents in case of failure. He also has duplicate analog processors in his rack for McMillan's mixes should Alistair need to jump over to his console. Slevin feels the SD7 is a big sonic improvement over the SD5, but he is realistic about its abilities. “It still has a few reliability issues, but we're pushing it to the max, especially with the redundancy. Effectively, we're throwing it out the top floor and seeing if it will fly. At the moment, it's gliding, but it's getting there. No one has had these consoles and pushed it as much as we have. When we find things out, DiGiCo has been very good about fixing it. I can't imagine a situation at the moment in a rock 'n' roll theater or any other audio application that this couldn't deal with.”


The band is using Future Sonics in-ear systems transmitted over newly upgraded Senn- heiser G3 wireless systems, which the crew credits with adding more definition and top end. With this large of a setup, RF is a big challenge and the team has found themselves going back to old-school techniques of placement using line-of-sight and shorter cables. Skaff says, “The wilder it gets, the more we seem to go back to basics to make things happen.”


A show of this scale being launched during tough times is easy to pick on. But it's hard to argue with its success both in record-breaking attendance and integration of new technology. At a time when album sales are not driving revenues, live performance has stepped into the spotlight and blazed a trail where other methods have failed. Did the band achieve “intimacy on a grand scale” as Bono proposed during the show? Only you can be the judge, but from my seat, it was dazzling.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Kevin Becka is Mix's technical editor.


mixonline

Sting and Bono: should rock stars stay out of politics?
By Neil McCormick - December 2nd, 2009


Sting: the man behind the beard Photo: JANE MINGAY

Sting got a grilling on Newsnight this week. Appearing by satellite link up to discuss his latest campaign to protect the Kayapo tribe of the Amazonian rainforest, he got well and truly Paxman’d. The famously scornful host dragged the rock star out of his celebrity comfort zone, challenging his real understanding of the issues and his commitment to cause and generally treating his position with scornful scepticism. “You’re not being blamed for it (the global environmental crisis), you’re just being accused of hypocrisy, that’s all,” said Paxman, with trademark sneering reasonableness.

Sting was visibly squirming in his seat as he tried to defend himself, not a good look for a rock star. Not even his claim that he had demarcated an area the size of Belgium to “ameliorate” his “admittedly large” carbon footprint was enough to satisfy Paxman. “The difficulty is, of course, that as long as you are open to the accusation of being a hypocrite, it potentially damages those causes with which you are associated,” sneered the presenter. (Meanwhile, I’m still wondering where Sting keeps this carbon offset area the size of Belgium? Maybe it is Belgium!? Could he have secretly bought the country to convert it into sustainable forest?)

Imagine if all celebrity interviews were like this. Cut them off mid-sentence and force them to justify their very existence. “I’m sorry, Sir Elton, you haven’t answered the question. How can your statement, and I quote, ‘Saturday night’s alright for fighting’, be viewed as anything other than an explicit incitement to violence? It’s not really the kind of sentiments we might expect to hear from the head of an AIDS foundation, is it? Self-appointed or not.”

Sting’s discomfort in the face of Paxman’s confrontational approach suggests he is ill-suited to the realities of the political frontline. Or at least ill-prepared. When politicians appear before the media, they have teams of people ensuring they have their facts up to date, advising them on how to present the issue, and media training them to stonewall in the face of uncomfortable questions. Sting didn’t even look like he’d brought his stylist. Most celebrity interviews are shallow, fawning affairs (if entertainment journalists are going to stick a knife in, we usually wait till our subject’s back is turned). But if celebrities are going to use their fame to champion political causes, then they surely have to be ready to defend their position in the rather more brutal arena of political debate.

That other rock and roll champion of the down-pressed, Bono, gets this all the time. This week, speaking at the launch of yet another charitable initiative (Nike’s Lace Up, Save Lives campaign), he batted off accusations of hypocrisy by essentially admitting them. “I’ve been blessed and I’ve been over-rewarded for what I do and I’m trying to give my time and my resources. But, you know, I’m a rich rock star, so shoot me.” Possibly a dangerous invitation, but his essential point was clear, and delivered with winning humour.

Between the lines of Paxman’s bullying of Sting lay the implicit question ‘should rock stars (and other celebrities and unelected individuals with an audience, from movie stars to our dear Prince of Wales) stay out of politics?’ Personally, I don’t see why. They are human beings, interacting with the world, and if they become engaged by an issue, then they have every right to put their time and energy (and often their art) in service of their beliefs. Mostly what they are doing is an extension of their roles as entertainers: banging a drum for a cause. As Sting pointed out, “my concern was that the voice of the Indians was not being heard in this issue, they are very rarely listened to. I went to Sao Paolo last week and convened a press conference and the BBC came, and they wouldn’t have come without the “celeb” or the “lovey” turning up, that’s just the world we live in.” Sting defined his job as “to try and give a platform to people who have no voice.” Certainly the plight of an Amazonian tribe whose existence is threatened by the building of multi-billion dollar dam by the Brazilian government wouldn’t have got a look in on Newsnight were it not for the rock star’s involvement. Which surely makes Paxman complicit in the very area of celebrity politics he was pouring so much scorn on.

It might not have been the easiest gig he ever played, or the most receptive audience, but ultimately Sting got the job done.

Meanwhile, I am indebted to my colleague on Twitter, Mapsadaisical, for this sneak preview from a forthcoming episode of Newsnight, in which Paxman tackles the vexing topic of The Righteous Brothers ‘You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling’.

Paxman: ““Instead of repeatedly pointing out that someone has lost something, why not help them to look for it? Suggest that they retrace their steps, perhaps? Ask them when was the last time they remember actually having that loving feeling.” Paxman removes glasses, stares hard. “Mr Righteous, are you just going to STAND THERE or are you going to DO SOMETHING?”

telegraph