U2

U2 Perform Atomic City at Sphere in Las Vegas

Chapters:   Achtung Baby Live  •  Concert Videos  •  General Admission  •  Zoo Station at the Venetian  •  The V-U2 Experience  •  Sphere Experience and Postcard from Earth  •  Vegas Legends  •  Venetian and Tao Beach  •  Vegas, Baby!

A verse from the Frank Sinatra classic My Way leads into the song U2 wrote specifically for their Sphere run of shows, Atomic City, at Sphere on 7 October U2023.

I absolutely love this song and the video the band produced to accompany it. That video was shot in part as a live performance (with Larry on drums!) on Fremont Street and in part at Sphere, before the run of shows began, to showcase the enormity and "otherworldliness" of the new venue.

In this video, the giant Sphere had gone dark, the dome covered in moths and other insects following the song Love Is Blindness. Then, with Bono in purple Fly sunglasses and belting out My Way, the bugs go away and reveal Las Vegas — a geographically accurate presentation of the Vegas strip as it relates to Sphere, including the parking garage right out back. It's a brilliant use of Sphere's capabilities. Then Vegas is deconstructed and leads to the original desertscape. With that backdrop, Bono sings Where the Streets Have No Name. During that song, with blue sky covering the Sphere's interior, it was like having broad daylight indoors.

The focus here, though, is Atomic City. As Bono sings, "If your dreams don't scare you, they're not big enough."

Fun Fact: Casinos used to promote staying at their location for a great view of the atomic blast testing going on down the road. Ah. Those simple times. A romantic weekend of gambling, wining, dining and radiating.

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