Last night, U2 broadcast a live stream on YouTube of their concert at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. I don’t know if a band has ever done that before, but I think something like this really demonstrates the “democracy of the Internet,” or whatever phrase it is people use about the culture of information technology.

I mean, forget about forking over a couple hundred dollars for a concert ticket, plane ride to the show and a hotel room. All you needed was a computer and an Internet hookup, and you were pretty much there. All right, so it wasn’t “even better than the real thing,” but it was close. And for about $20 less than your average concert DVD.

It could be that such a gift is only feasible if you’re already raking in millions from a sold-out stadium tour and Blackberry endorsements. But say you’re a band that’s just starting to generate a little buzz. You put a little house ad on the front page of YouTube, get people to watch your show, and make them think, “You know, I wouldn’t mind seeing that band in person,” or, “I’m going to go buy that album now.”

Maybe it’s just a fad, or maybe this “direct to your living room” kind of attention is the new thing in the fan-pop culture relationship. I mean, we already have Twitter. One thing is for sure, and it’s that YouTube is definitely not just for piano-playing kitties and mash up artists anymore.