1EQQ8ZzGD

with a blazer!
You like the idea of being a guy who’s into live music, but
the last few concerts you’ve been to were (a) too loud, (b) too
crowded, (c) too foreign (you were lucky if you recognized
one song). You’ll snap a few photos with your smartphone
and tell your bros about it to get some street cred, but let’s
face it: you didn’t enjoy yourself. There are millions of you.
And you’re willing to drop cash to have a concert make you
feel cool again.
product market fit
Then you learn that U2 is coming to town — U2! earnest,
melodic, oprah-endorsed U2! $200 a ticket? no problem. You
get a sitter. Your wife is excited — this is going to be great!
You invite some friends from college to join you.
on the way, you listen to the “early stuff.” The Joshua Tree
pumps through the speakers of your Lexus SUV (no judgment
— you have two kids!). The harmonies soothe. The lyrics
are straightforward. You recall a simpler time before car seats
and prostate exams. The nostalgia is so thick you have to wipe
it from your face. You haven’t looked at your phone in nearly
eleven minutes.
You arrive at the show and see yourself everywhere. Tasteful
north Face and Patagonia jackets abound. The stands are
awash in earth tones. no one is shoving. no one has a nose
ring. These are your people.
usaBility
The band begins with A SonG YoU ReCoGnIZe! You’re
on your feet. You’re drinking “craft” beer. everyone is singing
terribly.
And the best part — YoU CAn DAnCe HeRe! eighty
thousand people surround you and there’s not a coordinated
movement in sight. even the band sets a low bar. Bono
doesn’t so much dance as lunge and bounce. The other guys
seem content to nod and rock. All around you, middle-aged
people are rocking and lunging and bouncing and singing
badly. Is that guy wearing Tod’s loafers and a Barbour jacket?
Yes, he is. And he’s in the zone.
The set is basically a greatest hits playlist. The band gra-
157