‘Tis the season for record labels to push superfluous artist
products onto the masses. Be it a fifth or sixth Best of
album, or the live album recorded the previous summer, the
business side of music is in full swing this time of year, and for
good reason.

These are items that are great stocking stuffers, mainly because
fans don’t mind waiting until Christmas morning to get them; these
aren’t products that need to be bought the day it comes out.

Well, U2 have joined the rank and file in releasing U2 Go
Home: Live from Slane Castle, a live DVD that was recorded in
early September 2001.

Fans in the United States might think they are biggest and most
rabid U2 fans, but from the opening footage of the DVD, Irish U2
fans have every single one of us Yankees beat. From the opening
bars of “Elevation,” the 80,000-plus fans in attendance begin
screaming, jumping and dancing, creating an ocean of movement from
the stage viewpoint.

The band itself started off strong with the aforementioned
“Elevation,” moving into their huge hit “Beautiful Day” and live
favorite “Until the End of the World.” Things become more serious
with “New Year’s Day,” as Bono belts out the lyrics for peace as
though he were still the 20-something idealist he was when he first
wrote it. The band goes even deeper into its back catalog for “Out
of Control,” the song that Bono references as the single the band
was promoting at the time they opened for Thin Lizzy.

The pinnacle of the first set is “Sunday Bloody Sunday.” Unlike
the States, this song has particular resonance in Ireland, as they
experienced first-hand the IRA bombings that inspired the song. The
emotion is palpable both in the crowd and on stage, as Bono recites
names of those killed in the most recent IRA bombing. It is a
breathtaking moment, and one that should sit beside the band’s
Rattle and Hum performance of “Sunday Bloody Sunday.” To add
even more bite to the moment, the band goes into a somber, quiet
“Wake Up Dead Man.” These guys know how to pull at the
heartstrings.

After an R&B-infused “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out
Of,” all four members of band converge on the catwalk for a blues
“Desire” and an acoustic “Staring at the Sun,” for which only Bono
and the Edge played.

Anyone who saw them on their last tour should remember this, as
they seemed to do the same thing at each show. It is nothing
mind-altering, but cool all the same.

The rest of the concert is pretty much what one would expect
from a U2 performance: Great songs played by a great band, but
nothing that hasn’t already become commonplace for a band of U2’s
caliber. The overall editing of the DVD is fast-paced, and follows
the concert action nicely.

Also included is the revamped U2 documentary that records the
band as they record songs at Slane Castle and Windmill Lane Studios
for their album The Unforgettable Fire–specifically
“Pride.”

This is especially cool, as it shows the band dynamic in true
form, as well as a glimpse at the band back when the Edge had hair
and Bono had too much hair.