IN THE NEWS:
That it's preposterous and audacious and not just a little bit silly is a given, this 20th anniversary spit-polished version of U2's "Achtung Baby."
U2 wrapped on their record-setting tour on Saturday night (7/30), closing the door on a two-year worldwide jaunt that set a new high-water mark for tickets and ticket dollars. 
U2 will stream its Saturday (7/9) night show at the Hippodrome in Montreal exclusively on the band's website.
The number of concert tickets sold worldwide went down during the first half of 2011, but the actual dollars spent increased to a whopping $1.65 billion worldwide, according to concert industry magazine Pollstar's annual mid-year report.
U2's appearance at Glastonbury over the weekend was met with protesters criticizing the band for transferring some of their financial operations from Ireland to the Netherlands, making them partial tax exiles in their home country.
As they close in on the final stretch to logging the largest grossing tour of all time, U2 capped a two-night stay in Southern California on Saturday (6/18) with a show long on big-box revelry but blended with moments of intimacy and grace.
At the close of U2's final Southern California show on Saturday (6/18), Bono called on the audience to remember Clarence Clemons with the light of a packed stadium's cell phones and a request to "think about the beautiful, symphonic sound that came out of one mans saxophone."
U2's 360 Tour has been on North American soil for about two weeks now -- enough time to get a sense of how music critics are seeing the elaborate outing.
Iconic rockers U2 are officially stateside, spending last weekend kicking off their North American arena tour with a sold-out Denver concert and picking up the Top Touring Artist Award at the Billboard Music Awards.
