Every sweet tooth needs just – a – little – hit

09/23/2009 by Amy H. Johnson 2 Comments

If you know me – you know I am completely, utterly, devotedly in love with U2. That I have been for 25 years. That I have seen them in concert 20 times – Monday night being the magic 2-0. That I always see them with my mom and that we travelled to Dublin this summer for a show in their hometown and the fulfillment of a dream we’ve talked about for years.

At that show a song started that neither of us recognized. First it was just a rhythm and Bono exhorting “Come on all ye faithful!” then this insanely catchy bass line kicked in and Larry was out from behind his kit wearing a drum (called a Djembe) and we still were like “what is this? Because it is awesome!”

They have re-mixed “I’ll Go Crazy if I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight”from a perfectly lovely, U2-ish song into this insanely catchy, crazy exciting dance party version in which for 7+ minutes a rock concert becomes some sort of sweaty, delirious European disco. And it is one of the most exhilarating things I have ever seen U2 do before (this from the  girl who almost had an anxiety attack when she thought they weren’t going to do “Where the Streets Have No Name” the other night.)

This remix puts the album version to shame, quite frankly. It has a beat and bass line that get under your skin, it has Bono as a crazed cheerleader jumping around and ending on his knees, it has Larry looking so damn hot sauntering around banging that drum adding this primitive sound to the sleekness, it has the band looking to be having so much fun playing it, it has the audience dancing and jumping in unison and hollering the refrain like some sort of mad army, and the lights of The Claw lit up like some sort of tentacled alien disco ball. When it builds to the end it looks and feels like the entire arena is about to take off and spin out into the night.

It is all of that coming together in this one perfect lift-off of audience, band and sound that is what I imagine it would be like to be on Ecstasy. Seriously! I’ve never done drugs but this performance for me is what I’ve heard that feeling to be like. Total euphoria (if you did see me during this I am sure you would think I was on drugs because I lose. my. shit.)

There are videos on YouTube, none of which are going to do justice to how exciting and fun and sexy this performance is live. After it was over I leaned over to my mom and yelled “they should play it AGAIN!!”

I am now convinced this is what Bono means when he commands us to “meet me in the sound”