LAS VEGAS (CelebrityAccess) – Irish rock band U2 and live entertainment giant Live Nation announced Sunday (February 2) they are set to launch one of the world’s most technologically advanced venues – The MSG Sphere in Las Vegas.
U2 gave a sneak peek during a Super Bowl LVII (spoiler: Kansas City won) commercial which shows the rockers on “global travel.” The commercial gave a glimpse into their next project, titled U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at the Sphere – which will see Bono and Co. launch the MSG Sphere at The Venetian in Vegas this Fall.
The special run of dates marks the band’s first outing in almost four years, following the success of their Joshua Tree 30th Anniversary stadium tour and their 2018 eXPERIENCE + iNOOCENCE indoor tour which played to over 1 million fans across Europe and North America.
The full-length trailer can be viewed HERE and is a celebration of the global U2 fandom, featuring a select group of new and longtime U2 fans coming together for a futuristic ‘Achtung Baby’ adventure within a desert landscape.
The announcement confirms that drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. will sit these shows out to undergo and recuperate from surgery. Bono, The Edge, and Adam Clayton will welcome drummer Bram van den Berg who will be sitting in for Mullen onstage at the MSG Sphere.
Bono, The Edge, and Clayton said:
“It’s going to take all we’ve got to approach the Sphere without our bandmate in the drum seat, but Larry has joined us in welcoming Bram [van den Berg], a force in his own right.
The Sphere show has been in the works for a long time. We don’t want to let people down, least of all our audience… the truth is we miss them as much as they appear to miss us… our audience was always the fifth member of the band. U2 hasn’t played live since December 2019 and we need to get back on stage and see the faces of our fans again. And what a unique stage they’re building for us out there in the desert. We’re the right band, Achtung Baby the right album, and the Sphere the right venue to take the live experience of music to the next level. That’s what U2’s been trying to do all along with our satellite stages and video installations, most memorably on the ZOO TV Tour, which ended in Tokyo 30 years ago this Fall. The Sphere is more than just a venue, it’s a gallery and U2’s music is going to be all over the walls.”
Madison Square Garden Entertainment (MSGE) Executive Chairman and CEO James L. Dolan said, “MSG Sphere’s advanced technology allows a legendary band like U2 to bring its music to life in entirely new ways. The Sphere is a new medium that will redefine entertainment.”
Fans can register HERE to receive information on specific show dates and Verified Fan ticket information.
U2’s forthcoming release is a collection of the songs from the band’s catalog, re-recorded and reimaged for 2023. The album titled Songs of Surrender will be released on Friday (March 17). The new single “One” from the upcoming album could be heard playing during the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year Super Bowl feature.
