U2 – iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE – Live In Paris, On DVD/BD

“The Paris show that concluded U2’s Innocence and Experience tour… was concert as personal memoir, archetypal story, prayer, exorcism and vow of unity.”—THE NEW YORK TIMES

 

U2 – iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE – Live In Paris will be released worldwide on Blu-ray and  DVD  on Friday 10th June on Interscope/Island.  The concert film captures the Irish band’s groundbreaking tour as it returned to the French capital for two very special shows in December last year—one of which was The New York Times’ Jon Pareles’ #1 concert of 2015—despite the fact that he was not in attendance, marking quite possibly the first time a TV broadcast topped the Times’ live shows of the year list.

In addition to the guest spots from Eagles of Death Metal and Patti Smith, U2 – iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE – Live In Paris puts viewers inside the AccorHotels Arena with Bono, Adam Clayton, The Edge and Larry Mullen Jr.: the deluxe versions of the release also include a behind-the-scenes interview with live broadcast director Hamish Hamilton; exclusive tour visuals narrated by the band’s lifelong friend Gavin Friday; music videos; additional live tracks filmed during the tour; and much more.

“Directing iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE was scary,” says live broadcast director Hamish Hamilton who previously worked with U2 on their 2001 Elevation Tour. “A technical nightmare married with a creative rollercoaster. It challenged everything I knew on so many levels…what blew my mind were the multiple narrative arcs combined with the number of emotional arcs you are taken through as you journey through the show. There’s a lot of good shows out there – but very few great shows.”

U2’s iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour kicked off in Vancouver in May 2015 and, to date, has played to over 1.2 million fans in 22 cities across Europe and North America. Staged in the round, the tour features multiple performance areas plus a state of the art 100 foot LED screen suspended above a 118 foot walkway running the length of the arena floor. Combined with an innovative suspended sound system, the tour has delivered mindblowing sound and visuals from every seat in every venue, as every night has seen “U2 reinvent the arena show”  wrote Rolling Stone.

U2's The Edge Reflects on New Orleans' Music Rising Charity

10 years ago Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, leaving behind a trail of destruction that The Edge of U2 would soon witness firsthand during a visit to New Orleans’ hard hit 9th Ward. Moved by the devastation suffered by the local musical community, Edge teamed with legendary producer Bob Ezrin, Gibson Guitars, MusiCares and the Guitar Center Foundation to provide immediate aid to the musicians whose lives and livelihoods had sustained the most damage when the levees broke. In short order, efforts including donations of net proceeds from the sales of Gibson and Epiphone Music Rising special edition guitars and the providing of musical instruments to professionals whose gear was destroyed in the storm were implemented. In a PSA at the time, Edge explained the helplessness he would have felt in the face of such overwhelming loss as Music Rising replaced thousands of instruments in what would ultimately be the first phase of its still ongoing and continually expanding mission.

Reflecting on the 10-year journey of Music Rising, The Edge commented: Music is at the core of these communities. It’s an essential part of their identities, their hearts and their lives. So when these centers of musical culture are damaged, getting the music going again is a crucial part of the healing process.

With Music Rising, we and our partners continue to do everything in our power to help support this centuries old music culture so it can do its magic for many generations to come.