U2 coming to Amsterdam Arena

DutchAmsterdam.nl — U2 is coming to Amsterdam to play in the Arena stadium as part of its European U2 360° tour.

The hugely popular Irish band will visit the Arena on Monday, July 20th. Tickets for the concert will go on sale Saturday, March 14.

The stadium tour — the first for U2 since Vertigo in 2005 — follows the release of their acclaimed album, No Line On The Horizon.

It will kick off in Barcelona on June 30th, and then visit 14 cities across Europe including dates in Milan,
Paris, Nice, Berlin, Amsterdam, Dublin, Gothenburg, Chorzaw, Zagreb, London, Glasgow, and Sheffield. The final European concert is at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on August 22.

U2 then takes off for America [tour dates].

The name of the tour, U2 360° is a reference to the band’s unique stage design. U2 writes:

Long-time U2 Show Director Willie Williams has worked again with architect Mark Fisher (ZooTV, PopMart, Elevation and Vertigo), to create an innovative 360° design which affords an unobstructed view for the audience. U2 360° also marks the first time a band has toured in stadiums with such a unique and original structure.

“U2 has always been at their best when surrounded by the audience, this staging takes a giant leap forward. With 85 percent of the tickets priced at less than 95 Euro, general admission floor tickets priced at 55 euro and at least 10,000 tickets at every venue priced at the 30 Euro price range, we have worked very hard to ensure that U2 fans can purchase a great priced ticket with a guaranteed great view” says U2’s manager Paul McGuinness.
– Source: U2 360° Tour Revealed, U2.com, Mar. 9, 2009

Tickets for the Amsterdam event, priced at € 150, € 85, € 80, € 75, € 65 and € 30, will go on sale Saturday, March 14, at 10:00 am via LiveNation.nl [English]

• Buy various versions of No Line On The Horizon

Some fans upset

Reportedly some fans are upset at U2’s choice of the Arena over De Kuip in Rotterdam. According to them the Arena’s acoustics are questionable at best.