U2 under fire for their carbon footprint

U2 guitarist The Edge has defended the size and cost of their 360 world tour, as the band rocked Wembley Stadium on the first night of their UK leg.

Last month, protests delayed the removal of the custom-built set from Ireland, and it also came under fire from Talking Heads singer David Byrne.

The three steel structures cost between £15m and £20m each, offering a largely unobstructed view of the rock quartet.

The “claw” stage enabled an estimated 88,000 fans to watch U2.

The huge green and orange structure in the centre of the stadium projected smoke and lights as the crowd looked on.

Despite it being the most ambitious stage set of any band’s world tour, topping the likes of Madonna and The Rolling Stones, Talking Heads frontman David Byrne was not impressed.

He slammed the band on his blog and said their world tour costs were “excessive”, considering their stance on world hunger.

I think it’s probably unfair to single out rock ‘n’ roll. There’s many other things that are in the same category
U2 guitarist, The Edge

When asked whether the Irish rock veterans were stung by the criticism they received, The Edge told BBC 6 Music’s Julie Cullen: “I think anybody that’s touring is going to have a carbon footprint.

“I think it’s probably unfair to single out rock ‘n’ roll. There’s many other things that are in the same category but as it happens we have a programme to offset whatever carbon footprint we have.”

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