"Why do people choose the substitute over God himself? Probably the most important reason is that it obviates accountability to God. We can meet idols on our own terms because they are our own creations. They are safe, predictable, and controllable; they are, in Jeremiah's colorful language, the 'scarecrows in a cornfield' (10:5). They are portable and completely under the user's control. They offer nothing like the threat of a God who thunders from Sinai and whose providence in this world so often appears to us to be incomprehensible and dangerous . . . [People] need face only themselves. That is the appeal of idolatry."
- David F. Wells
Saturday, March 26, 2011
It looks like U2's mammoth 360 Tour will close up shop in July. Where does U2 go from here? My brother and I kicked around a few ideas over lunch today, and hopefully with a little luck U2's manager, Paul McGuinness, will read this post (I'm pretty sure he has Thinklings on his reader) and implement our ideas. Here's what U2 should do:
- Within 12 months of shutting down the 360 Tour, they should release a low-key, stripped down album. Nothing too crazy.
- Within 18 months of shutting down the 360 Tour, they should embark on a worldwide arena tour where they would play maybe four or five songs from the new album, two or three anthems ("Streets" and "One" being two of the three), and the rest of the songs should be hardcore U2 fan favorites, of which there are many to choose from, like "Acrobat," "Angel of Harlem," "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me," "Breath," etc. The idea behind this tour is it would be a fan's tour, bolstered by the intimacy of arenas.
- Within 36 months of shutting down the 360 Tour, the new tour should be shut down and U2 should take a break for six months, regroup, and then start working on another mega-album in the vein of The Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby, or even All That You Can't Leave Behind and How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. I know it's practically impossible to force the production of a great album, but they should take at least 18 to 24 months and make it happen.
- Within 60 months of shutting down the 360 Tour, U2 should release the new, aforementioned album. It will change the world.
- Within 66 months of shutting down the 360 Tour, U2 should embark on their last enormous, worldwide stadium tour. The tour should last two to two-and-a-half years. It'll be the last great U2 stadium tour; everything after this tour should be done in arenas. By the time this tour ends, members of U2 will be pushing 60 years old, and they'll once again need to musically reinvent themselves, assuming they want to continue making music until they die (I'll bet that's at least Bono's plan).
There you go, Paul. No need to thank me.
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Comments on "The Future Of U2: A Detailed Plan":
2. Daniel Ross
- 03/28/2011 8:05 am CDT
Going to see the show in Nashville in July. Very excited. Once a decade isn't enough (saw them in KY. in 2001).
I have to say, I much prefer arena tours from almost every band, U2 especially.
5. Shrode
- 03/28/2011 12:20 pm CDT
Ummm, no offense bro, but you spent entirely too much brainpower on this.
Of course, we don't want to talk about what I've been wasting brainpower on. (With the new Christopher Nolan helmed Batman movies, I've been able to rest my brain however, because someone's finally doing what I was saying they should do for years.)
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somehow you left out the "Spiderman:The Musical" soundtrack...