I think we’ve found that the fans’ appetite is for just that, and music that is authentic is better than a Las Vegas costume act. We just do our best to deliver the music in the spirit it was intended to have. 'We are not impersonators and we don’t do costumes like some tribute acts. For a lot of people this is the soundtrack of their childhood, their early adult years, and so we really strive to put that intensity across. “We try to get the music and the emotion of the music down.

“We’re really focused on the essence of U2’s music,” said Wilson. Those limitations to the physical show led naturally to The Joshua Tree’s focus on the music and feel of a U2 concert, and their success at that has been the biggest part of their reputation. There are only so many songs you can do in a night, so we didn’t have to add many newer ones.' We had also found, over the years, that fans really liked that early material. We still focused mostly on the early catalog because that’s what we grew up on. 'But then it evolved and we learned more of their songs. We didn’t have the foresight to do a full-on tribute to them, which covered all periods of their music. “We started out doing the songs from the album ‘The Joshua Tree.’ That was the music we loved and it had an immediate impact when we played it. “We’ve been doing this long enough to see a lot of different incarnations of U2,” said Wilson.

When the foursome started, the members were intent on playing the music from U2’s early days, with all its raw and fiery intensity. But as the years went on, U2 itself changed and evolved and experimented and became more of a pop sensation. The Joshua Tree had to keep pace.

We still have just a handful of indoor dates, but a lot of outdoor dates over the summer.” Keeping pace with U2 Most of our calendar now – including The Spire Center – is making up dates that had been postponed. I think the original Spire Center date we were booked for was almost two years ago. “During the lockdown, and then more so this summer, we have played a few shows here and there, mainly private shows that took place outdoors. “We have managed to keep the band together,” Wilson said. From 2017 to 2019, The Joshua Tree averaged more than 120 shows a year, Wilson said, and most of the members were able to be full-time musicians. But then the pandemic hit and a slew of dates went out the window in a moment. Over the years, the band built its stellar reputation by re-creating the music of U2 with precision and emotion, and it was consistently busy whether the real U2 was touring or not.

U2 the joshua tree