According to Bono, U2’s first rehearsal at the brand-new Sphere in Las Vegas “didn’t go very well.”
“Thank you for asking, though,” Bono joked to CBS News’ Anthony Mason. The singer described the rehearsal as “horrible,” to which the Edge added comfortingly, “It wasn’t that bad.”
U2 is scheduled to perform the first show of their new residency, in which they plan to play the entirety of 1991’s Achtung Baby, at the Sphere on Friday. The run will last until mid-December. The Sphere boasts an enormous, programmable LED exterior, plus 160,000 speakers and more than 260 million video pixels.
“That’s what we started out wanting from the very beginning of the band,” Bono added. “Just to smash the fourth wall, get to our audience.”
U2 will release a new song, “Atomic City,” and an accompanying music video on Friday.
U2 Without Larry Mullen Jr.
One thing will be different when U2 launches the residency on Friday: Drummer Larry Mullen Jr. will be taking some time off while he deals with health-related issues.
“It’s going to take all we’ve got to approach the Sphere without our bandmate in the drum seat, but Larry has joined us in welcoming Bram van den Berg who is a force in his own right,” the members of U2 said in an earlier statement when announcing Mullen’s temporary replacement.
READ MORE: Top 10 Post-‘Achtung Baby’ U2 Songs
Bono offered CBS News an update on Mullen: “He’s feeling good, and he can see a way back to fitness, but it’s gonna take time.”
Las Vegas MSG Sphere Photos
The innovative new venue’s exosphere was lit up for the first time on July 4, 2023.
