I guess at least partly this is a function of their success. U2 fills big stadions - in such surroundings pretentiousness is always around the corner in my book. In the last 20 months I saw Simply Red twice: once in a small open air arena ~3000 and once at frankfurt fair ~20000. And yes, a concert in smaller surroundings is usually more "rewarding" per $ spent.
Partly similar to restaurants: high priced posh places often will give you lessv raw value per $, but sometimes it is nice to treat yourself something different anyhow...
>IMHO, U2 is too pretentious and not really as talented as many other bands. More ego and sales-based. Fergie on the other hand, while I don't really listen to her music, I caught her in the chintzy movie Poseidon and was surprised to discover that she really can sing. She also has a long list of writing credits that surprised me...
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>>Yet another of my musical recommendations. This is a video of the 25th anniversary of the Rock and Roll HOF show at Madison Square Garden. I have not even watched it all yet. The U2 segment on the second of three discs hits it out of the
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDu0NHhq7YE>>
>>The DVD version is much superior.
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http://www.amazon.com/25th-Anniversary-Rock-Roll-Concerts/dp/B003VRV9FY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293981287&sr=8-1