U2 Fined for Loud and Over-Long Barcelona Rehearsals

U2 have been fined 18,000 Euros (£14,000/£22,825) by Barcelona City Council for rehearsals in the city last year which were deemed too loud and too long.

Complaints were made by local residents after the Irish band rehearsed at the the Nou Camp stadium, reports The Mirror.

A city hall spokeswoman said that the band went over sound levels deemed appropriate by city officials -- and that they also went over their allocated rehearsal time at the home of Barcelona F.C., playing two hours over their scheduled slot.

The newspaper also reports that the city is considering fining singer Shakira for riding a motorbike without a helmet -- amongst other misdemeanours that include dancing in a fountain.

The news of U2's fine for running over time will no doubt cause little concern for the music world's serial latecomer Axl Rose, who now infamously ran over time at the weekend's Reading and Leeds festivals (27 and 29 August), enduring a barrage of criticism as a result, as previously reported by Spinner.

The fine for Bono and co. meanwhile will have little ramifications for their bank balances, with the band topping this year's Billboard's Top 40 Money Makers List, earning $109m (£71m) last year in the US alone, as reported by Spinner.