The bill for U2’s latest gamble is the $150 million it will cost to keep the band’s 360° tour, which starts June 30 in Barcelona, on the road for 18 months. On past tours, U2 has adopted the conventional approach of building a stage at one end of the stadium. This time, the band will perform on a circular stage and runway in the middle. Perching above on four spindly legs will be a steel colossus bearing the lighting, speakers, cables and a giant conical video screen. Looking not unlike an alien sea monster, it is 50 meters high, or about 165 feet, weighs 390 tons and packs away into 180 trucks. (U2 is buying carbon offsets, but no one embarks on a rock tour with a clear eco-conscience.)

It will take a day to install the screen, stage and kit at each stadium. As the steel structure requires four days, three versions have been commissioned. While one is in use, another will be under construction at the next venue and the third in transit, to squeeze as many shows as possible into the tour.

“Our work is all to do with the logistics of building a very large piece of technical infrastructure in a very short time, and to make something interesting out of it,” said Mr. Fisher. “Why do people go to shows like this in the digital age? It’s for the huge collective experience, the social and spatial and memories. This set will contribute by creating a massive sense of anticipation and delivering an amazing kinetic performance.”