It’s a great day when a superstar classic rock band announces a new release. It’s a beautiful day when that band is U2, one of the most beloved rock acts in the world. U2’s final performance of the iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour will be released for Blu-ray, DVD and digital download on June 10th.
iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Live in Paris captures the Irish band’s trailblazing tour for two special shows at the AccorHotels Arena in December. This show had been originally slated for a November date but was rescheduled due to the Paris terrorist attacks. As you may remember, Eagles of Death Metal had been performing at the Bataclan when the series of attacks began. Best Classic Bands reported on U2’s triumphant return in December. This DVD spotlights the moment EODM joins U2 on the stage for the emotional Paris show, paying tribute to the victims of that fateful night.
The performance, shown on HBO, marked the first time a TV broadcast had topped the New York Times’ live shows list. As the Times said: “The Paris show that concluded U2’s Innocence and Experience tour was concert as personal memoir, archetypal story, prayer, exorcism and vow of unity.”
U2’s Tour, which kicked off May 2015 in Vancouver, grossed $152.2 million, and played to over 1.2 million fans in 22 cities across Europe and North America. No expense spared, highlights of the tour included multiple performance areas with state of the art 100 foot LED screen suspended above a 118 foot walkway running the length of the arena floor. Combined with an innovative suspended sound system, the tour delivered mind-altering sound and visuals to every seat in all its venues.
Related: Review of the iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE tour here
The film, which runs about 2.5 hours, includes guest performances by Eagles of Death Metal and Patti Smith. The Standard DVD features 30 tracks while the Deluxe DVD and Blu-ray formats come with bonus material such as Gavin Friday’s guide to “Cedarwood Road,”a behind-the-scenes documentary, on-stage tour videos for “The Wanderer” and “The Troubles” as well as six music videos commissioned for single releases from Songs of Innocence.
“Directing iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE was scary,” says the live show’s director Hamish Hamilton, who has worked with U2 in the past. “A technical nightmare married with a creative rollercoaster. It challenged everything I knew on so many levels… What blew my mind were the multiple narrative arcs combined with the number of emotional arcs you are taken through as you journey through the show. There’s a lot of good shows out there – but very few great shows.”
The band performs a stunning selection from its timeless catalogue, new and old: Career hits such as “Pride (In the Name of Love),”, “Vertigo,” “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” “Beautiful Day” and “Where The Streets Have No Name” are staples of the performance. From Songs of Innocence, U2’s 13th studio album, fans can hear “Cedarwood Road,” “Song for Somebody” and a stripped-down live version of “Every Breaking Wave.”
Highlights of the Super Deluxe Box collection include all of the above as well as an exclusive USB lightbulb, a 64-page hardback book, dog tags, stencil set, pin badges and a special code to download the video of the entire show. See below for more detail.
STANDARD DVD
1. People Have The Power
2. The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone)
3. Vertigo
4. I Will Follow
5. Iris (Hold Me Close)
6. Cedarwood Road
7. Song For Someone
8. Sunday Bloody Sunday
9. Raised By Wolves
10. Until The End Of The World
11. The Fly
12. Invisible
13. Even Better Than The Real Thing
14. Mysterious Ways
15. Elevation
16. Every Breaking Wave
17. October
18. Bullet The Blue Sky
19. Zooropa
20. Where The Streets Have No Name
21. Pride (In The Name Of Love)
22. With Or Without You
23. Stephen Hawking ‘Global Citizen’
24. City Of Blinding Lights
25. Beautiful Day
26. Mother & Child Reunion
27. Bad
28. One
29. People Have The Power (With Eagles Of Death Metal)
30. I Love You All The Time (Eagles Of Death Metal)
Deluxe DVD
1. People Have The Power
2. The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone)
3. Vertigo
4. I Will Follow
5. Iris (Hold Me Close)
6. Cedarwood Road
7. Song For Someone
8. Sunday Bloody Sunday
9. Raised By Wolves
10. Until The End Of The World
11. The Fly
12. Invisible
13. Even Better Than The Real Thing
14. Mysterious Ways
15. Elevation
16. Every Breaking Wave
17. October
18. Bullet The Blue Sky
19. Zooropa
20. Where The Streets Have No Name
21. Pride (In The Name Of Love)
22. With Or Without You
23. Stephen Hawking ‘Global Citizen’
24. City Of Blinding Lights
25. Beautiful Day
26. Mother & Child Reunion
27. Bad
28. One
29. People Have The Power (With Eagles Of Death Metal)
30. I Love You All The Time (Eagles Of Death Metal)
Bonus Material
1. Cedarwood Road – A Gavin Friday Narration
2. Out Of Control (December 6th 2015 – Paris)
3. The Future Better Hurry Up
4. The Electric Co. (November 11th 2015 – Paris)
5. i + e – Behind The Scenes With The Director
6. Bad / People Have The Power (With Patti Smith – December 6th 2015 – Paris)
7. The Wanderer
8. The Troubles
9. Music Videos:
• Ordinary Love
• Invisible
• The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone)
• Every Breaking Wave – A Film By Aoife Mcardle
• Song For Someone (Directed By Vincent Haycock)
• Song For Someone (Behind The Scenes)
• Song For Someone (Directed By Matt Mahurin)
