Starchild771 said:

I also went to see MJ at Wembley Stadium, although I was older than 15 at the time(!) and although not even half way back from the stage on the seated tier, I couldn't see him clearly. I watched pretty much all of the show on the huge screens. Sure the atmosphere was great but when I go to see a live show, I want to SEE the artist I am going to see, not watch them on a screen. I was in row U of block 102 one night at the 02 which is almost right at the back of the lower tier and I could still see Prince quite clearly. That's what it's all about!

My one and only time seeing Michael Jackson at Wembley Stadium I was also 15. Got to the queue at 7am with my friends and a packed lunch That tour as rubbish - blah, HIStory tour which was good when there just for the atmosphere (and far and away the most diverse audience I've ever seen) but utter shit on video, but making a whole day of it and getting to the front row was worth it.

319aprilsnow said:

The weird thing was that at the gig I was at, there were times when I could not quite make out what he was saying and in general, my ears are fine. But when I listened back to my recording, I realised just how sensitive a pair of mics can be, because it came through very clear.

I just think that in the round gigs, no matter what venue you are at just never sounds right. There is no real speaker stacks and the speakers that are there are aimed at different areas of the venue so unlike an end stage, you just don't get any real power of sound (if you get what I mean) and of course, the bass is never as hard hitting and yes, I know some end stage gigs also can have poor sound, but generally, when on the floor,its normally the best place to be.

I do agree with you re. the standing floor - I stood front centre for Scissor Sisters at Wembley Arena last year and the sound was phenomenal, very crisp and defined. I was sat in N3 the night before and the sound was muddy at best. Good job I knew all the lyrics already! The problem with standing is that only the first few rows get a decent view, whereas in the seats you can see from almost anywhere. I suppose you can't have everything

motr said:

Ellie said:

Yeah tenacious D was awesome at the Hammersmith Apollo

I personally loved the 02, and having the stage in the middle. I thought the whole complex was superbly designed, and "in the round" setting made the whole event seem more intimate than your average arena gig. Having said that, i was in the lower tier for the one night i attended (21st!). Not sure i would like to be in the upper tier, it looked really high and steep up there.

K1ttycat said:

Sorry, but i disagree.

Wembley Arena is probably the worst venue ive ever beed to - for sound, seating/view, facilities and transport links.

The O2 on the other hand is one of the best arena sized venues i've ever been to. For sound, seating/view, facilities and transport links!

I have to say that the sound has been better when at one end rather than 'in the round' - but still better than Wembley, Earls Court, NEC (is it still called that!?!?) and the like. The sound bounces all around Wembley Arena!

As for the lighting - were you facing the stage??!!! All good from every seat i sat my arse in!

And, unfortunately, Wembley Stadium was never gonna be an option this time round....and i don't think it does an artist like Prince justice anyway. A tad too big.

...anyway...those be my opinions

I think there are a few reasons why Wembley wasnt chosen, all of them for the better IMHO.

Firstly, I have been to stadium gigs and even reasonably close to the front you still can only just make out the figures on the stage. At the other end of a football pitch and up a stand there are a good proportion of people who will be over 100 metres away from the stage!

In the O2 I can honestly say in all of the places I sat I had a good view, and from the first few rows of the lower tier, an absolutely perfect view.

The other reason will be a management, financial and practical one. The promoter in effect will be going around getting the best deal to put on the show/shows. Perhaps Webley didn't have the schedule open, and perhaps they were more expensive!?

Indeed, I would not be surprised with the heavy, heavy sponsorship from O2 of the building, the fact that the ancilliary sales of beer and food will be large, and the fact that Prince would be a block booking that he would have got a great deal - indeed with the amount of exposure the O2 got out of it, I wouldnt be surprised if the venue was offered at cost price...

...thus the tickets could be £31 each!

And this of course is all part of the wider plan. Realistically if Wembley was booked it would be for a single show, with perhaps a second show if sold out. The cost of hiring Wembley per show would have been greater, and thus the ticket price would have had to have been higher... Maybe £60-£150.

And *that* is all part of the wider plan too. Prince performed for 21 nights at £31 a pop, just after he gave away his new CD for free. Perfect for those semi-fans or a new generation of fans to come along, whether they own a Prince album or not. At £30, that is the same price of a few drinks in London - perfect for the casual fans.

If maybe out of the 400,000 people there were 200,000 casual fans, this is a big chunk of people who will now be interested in buying future Prince albums, and even more importantly his very big back catalogue!!!

I work in the music business and I must say that either Prince or his management is a marketing and business genius. What he has done this summer is one of the most gutsy moves I have ever seen, and he pulled it off brilliantly. Its a perfect outcome for him and fans alike!

the 02 location was Fine, lots to do, chil out, drink and gather with friends etc..nice complex!

The moment I got there, I instantly fell in love with the O2. It’s such a bright place and looks beautiful from the outside as well as the inside. It has great facilities and is so easy to get to.

As for the arena itself, I loved the idea of the stage being in the middle, sadly it is true that the sound wasn’t too good from the floor seats, but I've had worse and I don’t think it has anything to do with the O2 itself. And it certainly didn't stop me from having a fantastic time. Also you do get a good view from every angle, even at the back and never really feel too far from the stage.

The IndigO2 is a perfect aftershow venue. I loved the sleek design, intimate atmosphere, first-class sound, and very professional staff.

The O2 definitely contributed towards my whole Prince experience... and I won't complain if he decides to do all his future gigs there.

motr said:

"security ! we got a bootlegger!"

I think that the sound problems were more to do with it being in the round. If you were on the floor all the speakers were way above your head so all you got was the bass. If you were in the gods then you got the best sound.
I personally think the O2 is a great venue. Good transport links, bars & restaurants & the Thames Clipper is Fab! Not to mention Indigo. Give me the O2 over Wembley any day.

I've been to a few different arena's and regardless of what the sound etc was like I loved the o2 for the fact that it's the 1st time that the venue figures in my memories as well as the show. Beeing able to have drink in a nice bar and something decent to eat really made a difference, it's got a good vibe.

alexandernevermind1999 said:

Yep, of nearly 20 years. Record all concerts I go to as it's my hobby. Got fed up of buying crap and overpriced bootlegs at record fairs and have been trading for many years.

I saw Prince at his Wembley Stadium show back in 1993 and it was fantastic. The atmosphere at a stadium gig is always amazing. However, I was lucky, I was front row so had a great view. I also saw Michael Jackson there but that was not so good as I ended up a fair way back on the pitch so spent most of the concert watching the video screens.

The build up to a stadium show can be fun - going there early and queueing all day, talking to other fans etc. However, I liked the O2 because you could go there early, get a drink and some food and take your time about it. The disadvantage was that the availability of the bars meant that lots of people were late going into the concerts and it was a mad rush for them to get into their seats as Prince started his show (and the sound wasn't that good either!).

I also found the location to be a bit of a pain, Wembley is relatively easy to get to for those of us who live up north, but the O2 is the wrong side of London and I would think twice about driving down for a show there. This time I was staying with a friend, so was OK getting the tube (and, after the aftershow, the Thames Clipper - which was great).

quote]Did you not read Brian May's summary of the show and the O2?[/quote]

nope

CarrieB said:

regardless of the sound??? I was there for the music!

pity i didnt do the aftershow!
[Edited 9/27/07 5:10am]

I loved the o2.

It was easy to get to from the 'North'. Just drive to Stanmore, park up and get on the Jubilee line.

We had great sound at 3 of the 4 Prince shows that we saw.

The bars/restaurants at the o2 make it a great place to meet friend before the show and pass the time.

I'd much prefer the o2 to Wembley (although I have not seen a show in the new stadium yet)

K1ttycat said:

nope[/quote]

Brian May's opinion, taken from his website:

"Incidentally, the O2 arena, for my money, is everything London has needed for along time ... as a concert venue, it succeeds in every way that the sterile new Wembley Stadium fails so miserably ... sound, view, atmosphere, infrastructure, comfort, intimacy, sense of occasion ... all great. Finally a place with the energy potential of a Madison Square Garden. Prince had the whole place dancing; I'm sure Zeppelin will unleash a different physical reaction - I can almost hear the roar ...."

Starchild771 said:

Brian May's opinion, taken from his website:

"Incidentally, the O2 arena, for my money, is everything London has needed for along time ... as a concert venue, it succeeds in every way that the sterile new Wembley Stadium fails so miserably ... sound, view, atmosphere, infrastructure, comfort, intimacy, sense of occasion ... all great. Finally a place with the energy potential of a Madison Square Garden. Prince had the whole place dancing; I'm sure Zeppelin will unleash a different physical reaction - I can almost hear the roar ...."[/quote]

he obviously doesnt know what he's on about He's getting on a bit...i bet his ears arent as good as they were.

Starchild771 said:

Brian May's opinion, taken from his website:

"Incidentally, the O2 arena, for my money, is everything London has needed for along time ... as a concert venue, it succeeds in every way that the sterile new Wembley Stadium fails so miserably ... sound, view, atmosphere, infrastructure, comfort, intimacy, sense of occasion ... all great. Finally a place with the energy potential of a Madison Square Garden. Prince had the whole place dancing; I'm sure Zeppelin will unleash a different physical reaction - I can almost hear the roar ...."[/quote]

Not sure intamacy is a word I would use to describe the O2. For me it's very similar to the Evening News Arena in Manchester and the Kolnarena in Cologne.

I am talking about the inside here but I have to say, for sound alone, it does not compare to the Kolnarena which sounded fantastic.

BUT, to compare, I think you need to compare it against stage end gigs as that is the only in the round gig I have seen at the O2.

But I do think Brian May is using apples and oranges by comparing a 90,000 outdoor stadium to a 20,000 indoor arena.

K1ttycat said:

I think most people were there for the music strangley enough. My point is that on the whole it is a much nicer place to be than most arenas for pre & post show. But the sound was pretty good the times I was there, no complaints.

motr said:

Unless he was talking about Wembley Arena. That had a re-vamp too. It was closed for half of 2006 and was completely renovated inside. It's better than before with the back half of the floor on a slope, nicer toilet facilities and a lot more food/drink vendors, but the O2 just kicked it down 10 notches less than a year after it re-opened.
[Edited 9/27/07 5:56am]

Ellie said:

Yes, he must have been talking about Wembley Arena, but it's always been a crap venue. I remember on opening night (2/4/06) for the first DM gig, it was like 'well, is that it then?'.

As you say, nicer facilities and all that, but still very average sound. I'm surprised it wasn't knocked down actually.

It still has its place for gigs though, because 20000 is just too big for many touring bands.

What does Wembley Arena hold then? It can't be much less that 20,000. It feels bigger than the O2. I suppose the floor might be larger as there are fewer seats at the side.

Earlier this year we did a last minute Sugababes concert at Wembley - was fun seeing the biggest girlband on the charts since the Spice Girls still have to have a massive black sheet draped over a large portion of the back due to low ticket sales. My word they give a boring show, don't know why I was surprised though.

Ellie said:

I agree that it looks better now but I think Wembley Arena's bars and catering facilities are appalling. They missed a real opportunity when they did the refurb to put in some decent places to drink and eat.

Ellie said:

Wembley Arena holds 11,000 - 13,000 depending on configuration

The one thing they couldnt alter on the refit a couple of years ago is the wired glass roof which some fool had listed!

Wembley Arena has always had bad sound as a result

The old Wembley Stadium had great acoustics, the new one however suffers from a dreadful sound backwash off the the end opposite the stage so while you are listening to the sound from the front, what you have already heard hits you from behind

No venue has great sound in every part of it, even the Royal Albert Hall had to install acoustic "mushrooms" hanging from its ceiling to correct problems, Brixton Academy has a dead spot directly below the center of the domed roof that is 30 feet in diameter, the Kentish Town Forum has a dead zone at the back of the downstairs area etc etc

The O2, like all venues will have crappy sound spots, the good thing is it seems to have fewer and smaller ones than most other venues

K1ttycat said:

I saw Muse as Wembley Stadium in June and the sound was terrible. It was slightly better for live earth. Wembley Arena isn't much better either as it's just an old swimming pool. The sound is poor and the sitelines are terrible.

The o2 is on a completely different level for sound and vision than either of the Wembley venues. I'm so glad he chose it. I was in the Lower tier for my 3 gigs and the sound was great for an Arena of that size. Although the sound in the Indigo was just awesome.

In general though - the bigger the venue the worse the sound. trust me, if he'd played Wembley Stadium the sound would have been a lot worse - it's a sports stadium at the end of the day.

PS I was at Wembley Stadium for the Act II (Symbol) Tour in July '93 and the sound was pretty poor.

K1ttycat said:

Why not Wembley? Because the sound is dreadful. And where were you sitting in the o2? Where I was (Lower Tiers) the sound was excellent for the size of the arena.