The Original Achtung Baby

My friend Dawn and I went to see a U2 tribute band called The Original Achtung Baby on Saturday night. They were playing at The Venue in Dumfries, Scotland 30 miles from where I live.

The Venue was quite a small club, and had black leather sofas and armchairs scattered around the floor, I've never seen that before in a place like that! But they were very comfortable and we sat in a raised area close to the stage. There weren't that many people there, maybe 40-50, and most of them were aged 35+, which maybe says something about the Dumfries crowd or U2's fan base.

The band took the stage at 9.10pm and opened with Where The Streets Have No Name. "Bono" looked strange because he was quite tall with long legs, nothing like the short, stocky real version! Facially he wasn't much like Bono either. "Edge" was actually quite like the real thing, but played the guitar left handed. "Adam" did have a bit of the look of Mr Clayton and he had his mannerisms off to a "t" as they say. "Larry" looked nothing like the real Larry, but I've found most Larry's in tribute bands are unlike him - maybe that's because "It's all about the drums".

The set only consisted of songs up to Achtung Baby, there were no songs from later in U2's career which I thought was very strange and disappointing. "Bono" could sing, but his voice didn't really sound much like the real Bono's and he didn't really establish a rapport with the audience either. "Edge's" guitar playing was quite good, but sometimes the mix wasn't brilliant and the guitar wasn't as upfront as much as it should have been.

However, on a positive note it was really nice to hear some of the old songs again. A treat was when they did A Sort Of Homecoming and One Tree Hill, both rarely performed by U2 in the past, and both favourites of mine. They also did my all-time favourite song Bad, I never tire of it and I find it hard to believe it's 25 years old! Hearing all those songs from The Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby made me realise the sheer brilliance of those albums and I feel U2, though still relevant, will never attain that level again.

The Original Achtung Baby were ok, but I wouldn't go to see them again, ZU2 who we saw last year were much better, and the now sadly disbanded NU2 were the very best. But it was nice to hear U2 songs played live again and it's an exciting thought that when we next hear some of those songs they will be performed by the real U2!

ZU2 Tribute Band

Ever since our favourite U2 tribute band NU2 split up earlier this year my friends and I have missed seeing a U2 tribute band every now and then for a fix of U2 music. So when my friend Dawn asked if I wanted to see ZU2 I jumped at the chance.

They were playing in a small Scottish town called Langholm, not that far from where I live. I met Dawn there and fist of all we decided to have a meal. Langholm closes in the evening and there were just two places open. The first place we walked into seemed to have been suspended in the late 70's, complete with garish, flowery carpets. We walked into the bar and there were three people in it who all stopped talking and just turned and stared unsmilingly at us. Dawn and I looked at each other and turned and walked out!

A short distance up the street was the Douglas Hotel and we went into the restaurant there. It was lovely, modern, full of people with friendly staff. We had sausages and mash which was absolutely delicious.

After this we drove the short distance to the Buccleuch Centre where the gig was being held. The venue was small but very nice, modern with a bar and large seating area and spotlessly clean toilets. The auditorium too was small but comfortable and perfect for the gig.

ZU2 came on at 7.30pm. The beginning of the show was based on the Popmart Tour opening with a screen at the back of the stage showing various graphics accompanied by Pop Muzik by M. It all brought back the feeling of excitement I'll felt at the real Popmart shows as this opening number blasted out. Can't believe all that was 11 years ago now!

The band came on and started with Vertigo. They were very good, and "Bono" was very like the real thing from the side with his glasses on. He had a good voice too, again very close to the real Bono's. He had Bono's movements off to a tee, all the little nuances were there.

The band did a very varied, well-balanced set which included surprises like When I Look at the World and Spanish Eyes - it was really nice to hear them played live. They did a scintillating Bad which gave me goosebumps! Just before the interval the band asked the audience to write down any requests during the break and hand them in at the merchandise stall and then the band include some of the requests in the second half of the set, a really good idea.

ZU2 are a full time tribute band and are very professional with the screen at the back showing animations throughout the show and very good lighting too. They even had souvenir tee-shirts and CDs for sale as well. I really enjoyed the gig I'd recommend them and would definitely go to see them again.