News

U2 Fined By Their Home Town

3:57 p.m. · November 13, 2009 · by Chris Bosman

U2 may be the biggest band ever from Dublin, Ireland, but that doesn't mean that Bono and crew get any special consideration from their home town. Over the course of their three concerts in Croke Park this July, the band broke the city's noise level restrictions on 12 separate occasions and, accordingly, the city council is fining the band €36,000, or roughly $53,000.

The trio of concerts was already a point of contention for citizens in the area around Croke Park, who also complained when a continuous 44-hour work order was allowed for the dismantling of the U2 stage following the shows. Croke Park director Peter McKenna admitted that serious rethinking was going to be necessary on how the venue would stage large-scale events in the future.

The outrage over the events of the concert goes to show that the goodwill that comes from raising millions for AIDS research, releasing albums like The Unforgettable Fire and The Joshua Tree, and penning an enduring anthem for his home nation's struggle can all be squandered simply by writing "Vertigo." [The Daily Swarm]