The weather in the morning and afternoon of the 29th was incredibly dismal. Not quite raining, but not the gorgeous sun and blue skies we'd become accustomed to over the past couple of weeks of May. This does not bode well for a concert held in a venue with no roof... Anyway, trying to stay optimistic, we arrive at the Ricoh, and the weather seems to have kicked itself into gear and is now absolutely boiling. Not too bad when you're outside the Ricoh, as there's a nice breeze. Once you're inside though, that's a whole other kettle of fish. We are in a bit of a pickle as we are sat RIGHT where the sun is hottest. Brilliant.
Anyway, so on the way in, we're handed these bracelet wristband things. It's a small, brightly coloured, plastic square on a brightly coloured piece of thick material. The stage looks brilliant, with the backdrop decorated in the style of the new album, 'Mylo Xyloto'. The theme running through this one was a kind of neon/graffiti/scribble type thing (sounds messy, but it actually works). In front of that are what look like 5 massive speakers, but with projections on, showing messages to the audience to put on their wristbands as it's "part of the show". I, as an avid Coldplay fan, had already researched and found out about the wristbands, but with most other people they were a mysterious gift waiting to present their true role in the show. There's also what looks like a catwalk going through the middle so that the band can interact more with the audience.
The first of the two support acts, Rita Ora, bounced on stage with not much more warning than her face and name briefly appearing on the projector-speakers and what seemed to be a dubstep remix of the song that shot her to fame, 'Hot Right Now', featuring DJ Fresh. After the success of this song, I personally felt that her second track, 'R.I.P', fell a bit flat. For 'Hot Right Now', her voice was incredibly strong, and had a lot of depth and colour to it, whereas 'R.I.P' didn't really show off her vocal abilities. However, when performed live, the depth and flare is once again present, and I really enjoyed it. There were no other real stand out tracks to be honest, but the overall performance was very enjoyable. What was also very enjoyable was how humble she seemed; at the end of her set she looked as though she was just drinking in the experience, and looked very thankful. At only 21, she's doing very well for herself.
The second of the support acts was Robyn. Remember her? I only just did. I won't lie, I was simply very bemused by her whole performance. It looked as though she was trying to convey some sort of space theme, with her band dressed up in what looked like boiler suits. Robyn herself had this very stern expression on her face the whole time she was performing, which, combined with her very bizarre hair, odd outfit and crazy dancing, meant that I just could not take her very seriously at all. The two songs that I actually knew ('With Every Heartbeat', 'Dancing On My Own') were quite good, as she does actually have a good voice. However, the rest of the set I could only have enjoyed whilst being slightly inebriated at a music festival.
Anyway, on to the main event. About half an hour after Robyn has vacated the stage, and all the stage hands have fiddled about with everything enough, we are once again directed by the omniscient projector-speakers to adorn our wristbands. '99 Problems' by Jay-Z starts to play, presumably as a homage to Chris Martin's unlikely best mate. After this song, the theme from 'Back To The Future' is played. I have trawled the internet to find out why this is being played at the beginning of each show, and the only answer I can find anywhere is that Chris Martin "likes the film". Ah well, it does the job to get everyone massively excited for the arrival of Coldplay onto the stage.
When this album came out, Coldplay said that they wrote the album meaning for it to be listened to in one go, as a whole. So there are a couple of tracks on the album that lead into other songs; for example, the title track, 'Mylo Xyloto', is the first track on the album, and is just a very happy and joyous sound. It then leads straight into the second track on the album, 'Hurts Like Heaven'. This is what happened at the concert. Throughout the playing of 'Mylo Xyloto', the bracelets all suddenly lit up simultaneously in this brilliant moment (similar to the one captured below), fireworks went off. It was a truly amazing moment.
'Hurts Like Heaven' was explosive, with the wristbands and audience going crazy, and lasers flying around everywhere. It was amazing! After this song, they went almost straight into the next, and there was a big communal sigh of appreciation as the opening riff of 'In My Place' is played. Martin does not sing a single line by himself. At the big "Yeah" moment in the chorus that everyone screams, confetti canons start blasting out tissue in the shape of butterflies, hearts, M's and X's, and again, it's one of those moments of absolute euphoria, where you know that 20,000 other people are feeling exactly the way that you are feeling at that time.
Something to be said for Coldplay, and Chris Martin in particular, is their absolute commitment and pure enthusiasm about their music. If you look at their faces while they're performing, you'll see that they are totally into it, completely in the zone. Obviously, with Martin this is a lot more obvious, as he throws himself around the stage with the excitement that you often see in young children. How anyone can say that a concert of theirs would be boring and not worth seeing is utterly beyond me.
Coldplay then heat things up with arguably the "rockiest" track on the album, 'Major Minus'. The screech of the guitars sound immense in this massive stadium, and the crowd in the standing area are jumping up and down, throwing themselves into the music, and even though we are slightly restricted for space in the seating area, we are still going for it, even the people who are obviously 60+. That's something else nice about this; there are people of all ages in attendance, and we are all unified in our love for Coldplay.
There is a brief pause, and then the oriental chimes of 'Lovers In Japan' ring through the stadium. Again, the confetti canons shoot tissue shapes at us, and they rain down through the crowds, everyone grasping frantically at the air to try and grab some as a souvenir. Another brief pause, and then another sigh of appreciation lovingly enters the space as Martin sits down at the piano and begins 'The Scientist'. It's always nice when your favourite bands play your favourite oldies that you think they've forgotten about. Everyone is singing along, each person having a different personal connection to this song as we sing of the loss of love.
We then have time to collect our breath. Whilst we do so, a blast of smoke appears, accompanied by a a yellow light. A familiar set of chords are played by Martin on the piano, instantly recognisable as my personal favourite, 'Yellow'. A beautiful version, as it begins solely with Chris and the piano. After the first chorus, he picks up his guitar and counts the rest of the band in and they complete the song in it's original style. At the end of the song, the yellow lights turn to a purpley-blue, a clear indication to the hardcore fans as to what song is next. 'Violet Hill' is another slightly heavy song for people to dance and stamp their feet to. As the song draws to a close, Chris sings the last few notes at tempo rubato (slowing down as he goes, slightly lulling, no longer a strict rhythm). It slips gracefully into the next song, and they start it off slowly again. 'God Put A Smile Upon Your Face' is absolutely buzzing with energy, and again the screech of the guitars in the breakdown is sensational.
They then move to the end of the strip and go into 'Princess Of China'. The synths begin and everyone's hands shoot into the air. The driving drums and bass that run through the song are ever present and are so effective as it bounces off the stadium walls. There's a small part of me that hopes that Rita Ora will make a small reappearance and sing Rihanna's part as I really think she'd do it justice, but it doesn't happen. Instead, they play a video of Rihanna singing her part, dressed in and oriental-style costume. It has been said that this will be part of the music video, due to make an appearance on music channels any day now. This was a stand out track for me on the album, so to hear it live was brilliant. It was definitely a stand out track of the show as well.
'Up In Flames' was next, and I must admit it was the only song I sat down for. 'If Princess Of China' was a stand out track on the album, this was one I skipped every time. It makes Chris' voice sound whiney, and it doesn't really do anything for me. However, straight after this was a glorious surprise. This next song was used on the soundtrack for 'The Last Kiss', a film starring Zach Braff that came out in 2006. This song is absolutely beautiful, speaking of mistakes made and regrets in love, and ends in a plea for forgiveness. 'Warning Sign' was on the album 'A Rush Of Blood To TheHead', which helped Coldplay really make their mark on the music industry. It was simply amazing, and myself and everyone else just stood in awe; a definite highlight of the concert.
We are then played 'A Hopeful Transmission', another of the album "breaks" like 'Mylo Xyloto', and the band head back up the strip to the main stage. It joins straight onto 'Don't Let It Break Your Heart', a song in a similar bracket to 'Lovers In Japan', just a happy, joyous song that provides a lot of energy after the slow-moving 'Warning Sign'. 'Viva La Vida' then explodes out, moving from one high energy song to another, and all the while I still cannot fathom how Will Champion has the energy not only to hit that drum consistently and in time throughout the song, but also hit the bell at the same time in the chorus, and then sing harmonies on top of that: literally astounding. The audience are always left singing the "woooah"s long after the song has finished.
'Charlie Brown' was another one on the album that stood out for me. It had everyone jumping and dancing around. It's a very bouncy and happy track, and it was live as well. It starts off slowly and builds up, until it begins properly. After 'Charlie Brown' comes my personal favourite on the album, 'Paradise'. I was massively looking forward to seeing this song performed live, and I was so not disappointed. The bass again was brilliant in this song, really pulled you in. After this, the lights went down, as if to signify the end. But the audience weren't done yet, and slowly but surely the "wooah"s from 'Viva La Vida' emerged around the stadium until the sound was almost deafening. Chris Martin reappears on a little stage towards the back, armed with his trusty acoustic guitar. He begins to talk about how humbled he is by us all, and how this next song was going to be performed by the members of the band slowly joining in. He tells us how the press can twist things, but they'll always have each other. 'Us Against The World' is a lovely song, and anyone can relate to the message that is conveyed throughout. Chris sings the first verse and chorus by himself, then Will Champion appears on the piano and harmonising (is there nothing this man can't do?) Jonny Buckland appears on the rhythm guitar in the second chorus, and Guy Berryman comes in just after this. It is incredibly intimate and lovely.
It then rolls straight into 'Speed Of Sound', and I'd forgotten how brilliant this song is, with the lasers filling the stadium. The band then head back up to the main stage, reassuring us that they'll be back. The arpeggic motif of 'Clocks' plays, and everyone is belting out the words along with the band. This song is always brilliant. It then comes to the point of the concert where everyone throws their arms around their family members/friends/complete strangers, sing their hearts out and bawl like babies. 'Fix You' is always an anthem to enjoy. They close the show with an absolute belter, 'Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall', the first single released from the album. I will admit, I did not enjoy it the first time I heard it, but I loved it after about the third playing. It is a brilliant way to end the show.
As the wristbands flash for the last time, and the realisation that they will never flash again sinks in, there is a small sense of grief. We all feel as though we are drifting out of a dream and fading back into reality, the mind-blowing past 105 minutes a mere memory, and normal life will resume once again in the morning.
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'Charlie Brown' was another one on the album that stood out for me. It had everyone jumping and dancing around. It's a very bouncy and happy track, and it was live as well. It starts off slowly and builds up, until it begins properly. After 'Charlie Brown' comes my personal favourite on the album, 'Paradise'. I was massively looking forward to seeing this song performed live, and I was so not disappointed. The bass again was brilliant in this song, really pulled you in. After this, the lights went down, as if to signify the end. But the audience weren't done yet, and slowly but surely the "wooah"s from 'Viva La Vida' emerged around the stadium until the sound was almost deafening. Chris Martin reappears on a little stage towards the back, armed with his trusty acoustic guitar. He begins to talk about how humbled he is by us all, and how this next song was going to be performed by the members of the band slowly joining in. He tells us how the press can twist things, but they'll always have each other. 'Us Against The World' is a lovely song, and anyone can relate to the message that is conveyed throughout. Chris sings the first verse and chorus by himself, then Will Champion appears on the piano and harmonising (is there nothing this man can't do?) Jonny Buckland appears on the rhythm guitar in the second chorus, and Guy Berryman comes in just after this. It is incredibly intimate and lovely.
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