On This Day in 1987, U2’s Concert in Rome Rocks Too Hard and Sets off Earthquake Alarms

In 1987, Bono and U2 were at the peak of their popularity. At this point in their career, the group had released iconic singles such as “New Year’s Day”, “Pride (In The Name Of Love)”, and “Sunday Bloody Sunday”. Consequently, they had become one of the biggest bands on Earth, and they further solidified that unofficial title by releasing the Joshua Tree album and embarking on their Joshua Tree tour.

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The Joshua Tree tour is one of the most infamous tours of all time. There are a lot of reasons as to why that is, but one of the primary reasons for this opinion is that U2 played so loudly in Rome that they set off earthquake alarms. Yes, on this day, May 27, 1987, while playing at Rome’s Stadio Flaminio, U2 played so hard and so loudly that they actually set off earthquake alarms and scared neighboring residents.

To be clear, U2 did not instigate any actual seismic activity. Rather, their playing was so loud that it set off an earthquake alarm and left residents startled and frightened.

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During their performance on May 27, 1987, neighboring residents of the Stadio Flaminio reported extensive and forceful shaking to police and fire stations. Furthermore, the noise from the concert was so loud that it set off earthquake alarms in nearby areas. Officials investigated the matter and concluded that no seismic activity was occurring. Instead, U2’s music was so forceful that it had actually managed to mimic the general behavior of a legitimate earthquake.

According to UPI, the areas around the stadium that felt the effects were the neighborhoods of Parioli and Flaminio. U2’s performance at the Stadio Flaminio was the first night of the Joshua Tree tour’s European leg. Following that somewhat earth-shattering performance in Rome, U2 performed in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, and in their home country, Ireland.

Needless to say, the Joshua Tree Tour’s first impression on Europe was memorable. U2 received no major backlash from the earthquake scare, and luckily, they were able to continue on with their tour and cement themselves as acclaimed, international rock stars.

For a bit of context, other bands to incite earthquake-like effects or legitimate earthquakes during their concerts include Metallica, The Foo Fighters, and Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.

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