Tell us something about yourself, who are you and what do you do for a living?
I should probably state my first name is not Hans, which I got from the villain in the first Die Hard film, Hans Grubber, and it has since become my internet alter ego
. I was born, and currently live in the east of England, although I have spent the last 5 years at university in Newcastle.Last year I left university for a career in Town Planning, where I assess planning applications for development. Town Plannings probably a pretty poor name for my profession as I don’t actually get to plan anything; it’s really about assessing the impact of proposals and whether they are acceptable, but it’s a challenge and a good career to develop in.
How did you become a fan of U2, tell us how it happened?
To be honest this story is probably one of the more boring. I got myself a large ipod and wanted to put some of the classic bands on it. With knowledge of some of the bigger songs such as Elevation and Vertigo, I got myself U218 singles, and it went from there really. I can’t remember what my first full album was, but I do remember watching Live from Chicago and loving the Achtung Baby encore long before I had heard the original album itself.
Did you ever have a special U2 experience like a live concert? Can you tell us something about it?
I’ve only seen U2 live once, their first night at Wembley in 2009. It’s hard to recall a particularly special moment, because it was all special. It was the climax of months of excitement and anticipation; excitement on this site that summer, the set list parties and members all over Europe awaiting their big moment to see the boys live, many for the first time. Finally, with the UK having the last dates of the first leg, having my big moment.
Where do you most prefer to listen to U2?
Alone, browsing the internet whilst having a beer or two. It’s the only time I don’t feel embarrassed about having a sing-a-long.
What does your U2 collection look like? What kind of stuff do you have and how is it organised?
I’m not really a collector to be honest, I like to have the physical CDs but don’t really go beyond that. I do however have the ambition to buy and paint an old Trabant, Zoo TV style. That’s probably something I will save for my midlife crisis if they haven’t all rotted away by that point.
Can you tell us one song (U2 or not) that you wish you had written?
Grace.
Which U2 song do you feel the most "attached" to, or means the most for you?
Miss Sarajevo. I’ve always had a fascination of that area of the world from a very young age, partly because it was my first, not particularly pleasant, picture of Europe. I first listened to the song on the U218 Singles, live from Milan iTunes download when I was first discovering the band, and began to read into the bands involvement with the city from the Zoo TV and PopMart tours. That’s when I started to realise U2 was more than just Bono and Africa. Sarajevo has been number one on my list of cities to visit for a long time partly, but not entirely, because of that song.
What is your favourite U2 book, and why?
Well I only have one, ‘U2 by U2’, so I guess I better say that.
You're a fan of Muse. They (Muse) seem to be going in more of an electronic direction as of late than previously. With Invisible and its' electronic elements (drum machines, more obvious keyboard/guitar synths), what are your thoughts between both bands taking this direction?
What attracts me to both bands is the desire to change their sound as their careers progress, ensuring they don’t become stagnant. I understand Muse, with their next album, will be moving back to the more raw sound of their first few albums, which is welcome considering their last album probably wasn’t as well received by their older fans as they wanted it to be. I’m not so sure I would consider U2 to be taking a more electronic direction based on the little we have heard so far; although I would love to see them have another attempt at making a ‘POP’ record if they still have it in them. I guess it’s all down to what Bono thinks is ‘relevant’.
What are your hobbies and interests away from U2, musical or otherwise?
I have the misfortune of being a Tottenham Hotspur fan, and follow them around the country as much as possible. Only last weekend I was up in Stoke watching them grind out a 1-0 victory, and a few weeks before that getting thumped 4-0 by Liverpool. The joys of being a football fan. I’m a big rugby and F1 fan, and usually try to get to one race in Europe a season. This time I’m off to the exotic landscape of the English midlands for the British GP.
I’m also a budding mountaineer. I live in fenland where we aren’t particularly blessed with hills so that’s probably why I’m intent on climbing them. I guess with this in mind I should probably say my ambition in life is to climb Everest, but for the time being I have Mont Blanc as a challenging but achievable goal for next few years.
I have a fascination with Central Europe, particularly Slavic cultures, and I’ve spent the last few years trying (and mostly failing) to learn Polish. As part of my university course I had the opportunity to spend a semester in Bratislava beer tasting (and university work in my spare time
),and the city as well as Slovakia as a whole has a special place in my heart. Linking back to climbing, I intend to go back in the summer to do some hiking, including climbing a mountain called Krivan in the Tatras; it’s one of Slovakia’s national symbols and some of you Europeans may notice its outline on the back of Slovak Euro coins.Dovidenia!
Thanks for this interview Hans23!
Note: Our crew members randomly pick fans of the month, you can't sign up for it.
That is some hell of an ambition!!! 
Great interview, congrats mate!! 
