I recently logged on to see if there were any U2 tickets available for their upcoming concert at Giants Stadium this July. I haven’t been to the new Giants Stadium yet, I love U2, and I don’t have any more concerts scheduled for 2011. Those factors brought me to U2’s site and subsequently, Ticketmaster, once I perused the current setlists that U2 has performed.
The first thing I did was take a gander at the ticket price range. U2 had tickets for $300. Those were obviously not going to be purchased by me. $600 for me and Mrs. Vie to see U2? I don’t think so. Then I saw that there were more “affordable” seats available. I had two options. $30 (which came out to $41.25 with all the bastard fees), or $55 (which came out to $69.25 after the Ticketmaster rape fee). Either of those options seemed reasonable to me, so I logged on to check out what was available in that price range.
Nothing. Those seats were sold out. Plenty of $300 tickets available, but no $55 and under. That left one option --- the $110 tickets. I figured that although this was a high price to pay, it could be worth it. I’ve seen U2 a few times and I know how great they are in concert. So, I said “what the heck.” I figured I was missing DMB, no other tours were coming around this summer (at least none that were on my radar), so why not spend the extra money? I did my search and that’s when I found out that the $110 seats were nosebleed seats. Upper level, section 300 and higher, only. What the hell!? Why is U2 charging $110 for fans to sit in horrible seats that other bands wouldn’t charge more than $50 for?
Is it because of the big production of the 360 tour? I understand this tour is a bitch to set up/break down/haul away. I understand that this is a big spectacle of a tour. I understand that these types of tours cost a lot of money to put on. With all of that understanding in place, I still ask: “$110 dollars? Really?” U2, I thought that you were better than this. Apparently the greed of the corporate suits corrupted you as well. That kind of sucks.
Fans are coming to see you perform your music, U2. They don’t care about the elaborate stage setting. It may be cool for a moment or even half of the night, but the fans would come whether the stage was an enormous behemoth or the size of a postage stamp. The fans are coming for the same reason they always come --- U2 plays magnificent music and gives one hell of a performance. Their performance is amazing not because of their theatrics or elaborate settings, but because of the beauty of their music, their willingness to perform different songs every night, and their commitment to the fans in the dedication of their craft. Perhaps that last line isn’t as true anymore.
And it looks like if I want to see U2 this month, I’ll be watching videos on You Tube. That’s a real shame.
The first thing I did was take a gander at the ticket price range. U2 had tickets for $300. Those were obviously not going to be purchased by me. $600 for me and Mrs. Vie to see U2? I don’t think so. Then I saw that there were more “affordable” seats available. I had two options. $30 (which came out to $41.25 with all the bastard fees), or $55 (which came out to $69.25 after the Ticketmaster rape fee). Either of those options seemed reasonable to me, so I logged on to check out what was available in that price range.
Nothing. Those seats were sold out. Plenty of $300 tickets available, but no $55 and under. That left one option --- the $110 tickets. I figured that although this was a high price to pay, it could be worth it. I’ve seen U2 a few times and I know how great they are in concert. So, I said “what the heck.” I figured I was missing DMB, no other tours were coming around this summer (at least none that were on my radar), so why not spend the extra money? I did my search and that’s when I found out that the $110 seats were nosebleed seats. Upper level, section 300 and higher, only. What the hell!? Why is U2 charging $110 for fans to sit in horrible seats that other bands wouldn’t charge more than $50 for?
Is it because of the big production of the 360 tour? I understand this tour is a bitch to set up/break down/haul away. I understand that this is a big spectacle of a tour. I understand that these types of tours cost a lot of money to put on. With all of that understanding in place, I still ask: “$110 dollars? Really?” U2, I thought that you were better than this. Apparently the greed of the corporate suits corrupted you as well. That kind of sucks.
Fans are coming to see you perform your music, U2. They don’t care about the elaborate stage setting. It may be cool for a moment or even half of the night, but the fans would come whether the stage was an enormous behemoth or the size of a postage stamp. The fans are coming for the same reason they always come --- U2 plays magnificent music and gives one hell of a performance. Their performance is amazing not because of their theatrics or elaborate settings, but because of the beauty of their music, their willingness to perform different songs every night, and their commitment to the fans in the dedication of their craft. Perhaps that last line isn’t as true anymore.
And it looks like if I want to see U2 this month, I’ll be watching videos on You Tube. That’s a real shame.
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