I saw U2 twice, once in high school when they were touring for “The Unforgettable Fire,” and then again a few years ago at Madison Square Garden, when they were touring for “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb."  In between I did not pay attention.  Then last weekend, while out with high school friends at an Irish bar, I spotted a U2 poster on the wall and it sent me back, reeling, wanting to fill in the missing years.

Between "Fire” and “Bomb” U2 were practicing astounding stagecraft.  Looking at clips from the 1997 “Pop Mart” tour, I barely recognize the band or the boys.  They arrived on stage in a lemon-shaped disco ball and performed beneath a giant LED curtain, framed by a single Golden Arch.  And they wore costumes designed for them by the most fevered and irreverent of the Antwerp Six, Walter Van Beirendonck.  It’s a bit like the avant-garde schtick Lady Gaga is doing now.  The CD they were touring for, “Pop,” isn’t great, but the costumes are undeniably super-great.  Edge is dressed as a space cowboy, Bono as a prizefighter, a cartoon superhero, and the Unabomber, and Larry, who seems less enthusiastic about the whole business, in embellished black tees.  But it’s Adam whom the outre costumes serve best.  He’s dressed in flashified work uniforms: a dotted orange Hazmat jumper, camouflage suits, hard hats, and face masks.  I can’t believe I missed the spectacle of it all.