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14-Nov-08: St. Paul - Tickets, Preview, Meetups, Review/Photos [originally 8 Jul]

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nesjon

nesjon

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i just got back from the concert... it was amazing. They did play the hardest part and yes. No green eyes though. And nothing new.

 

Does anyone know what the name of the artist/song is that they play on the loud speakers right before the lights go off and coldplay takes the stage? Thanks

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ZapShazam

ZapShazam

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I know I promised a review the minute I got home, but my head is killing me, so it'll have to wait until tomorrow! I only just got in, the concert was by far the most amazing show I've ever been to. I was really far back, like two rows away from the very back of the floor, but I was on the end of my row and the boys ran RIGHT past me and up the stairs directly next to me for their acoustic set, I was just a few steps away basically, so I've got an incredible video of The Scientist for you all tomorrow :D

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busybeeburns

busybeeburns

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Coldplay knows how to work a crowd

 

Had British foursome Coldplay performed at the Xcel Energy Center in July as originally scheduled, we would have witnessed the band at the beginning stages of a world tour, fueled by nervous energy and excitement.

 

Instead, the band postponed that July show to allow more time for pre-tour production and stopped by the X on Friday night for a confident and competent performance for a crowd of 16,153.

 

Ever-affable lead singer Chris Martin apologized for skipping out this summer. "We would have been absolutely s—," he said with a laugh.

 

Of course, he's full of it. One of the many charges leveled at Coldplay is that they were careerists from the start, shamelessly stealing all the best bits from U2's playbook. And even an under-rehearsed Coldplay concert would trump most of the competition.

 

Friday's show unfolded with near-military precision, so much so that the live video feed on the big screens looked like an expertly edited concert DVD. Yet, what the concert lacked in spontaneity it more than made up for in grand gestures, epic songs and stunning staging that approached, but did not surpass, the group's triumphant 2005 stop at the Target Center.

 

Take, for example, "In My Place," the band's 2002 single. The pleasantly stirring recorded version sounds great on light-rock radio, but in concert, Martin and company transformed it into an audience-participating, world-conquering monster. It's a trick Coldplay pulled over and over again, elevating "Fix You," "Clocks" and "Lovers in Japan" into chilling and thrilling anthems. (The latter even arrived with fancy glow-in-the-dark confetti.)

 

The band focused on its most recent, fourth album, "Viva La Vida," a disc created with the help of frequent U2 collaborator Brian Eno. And, for the most part, the fresh material sounded terrific live, from the uplifting title track to the mini-suite "42" to the dreamy "Chinese Sleep Chant."

 

When it came to the older stuff, the band wasn't afraid to mess around with the arrangements, which didn't always work, like a dance-beat driven "God Put a Smile on Your Face" that buried the track's original charms. But an acoustic take on "The Scientist" provided a clear highlight of the evening, even if the band hadn't pulled the nifty trick of playing it in the middle of a bank of seats at the back of the arena.

 

Still, for all the polish and bluster, at times one could sense the band has shifted into autopilot, an almost inevitable effect of five months of hard touring. Perhaps next time the band hits the road, the Twin Cities will catch them while they're still learning their lines.

 

http://www.twincities.com/ci_10989920?nclick_check=1

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busybeeburns

busybeeburns

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A chilly start, then Coldplay was hot

 

stpaul1.jpg

 

The British group had a lackluster start then found some spirit and ended with truly magical moments.

 

Coldplay still hasn’t found what it’s looking for.

The biggest rock band of the ’00s, the British quartet aspires to be as big as U2.

 

But the group’s sold-out concert Friday at Xcel Energy Center was like one step forward and two steps back. The show wasn’t as consistently exciting as Coldplay’s first Twin Cities arena concert in 2003 nor as visually dazzling as the group’s 2005 effort.

 

Friday’s 95-minute concert lacked momentum, urgency and depth. The key culprit was the pacing. For the first 45 minutes, Coldplay subjected 16,153 fans to 10 pretty but stiflingly similar medium-tempo tunes.

 

The redundancy in tempo, texture and dynamics — not to mention the largely unimaginative light show (playing “Speed of Sound” in the dark was not dramatic, it was dunderheaded) — leaves a listener comfortably numb. But in arenas, we want our rock to be transcendent, cathartic and just plain fun.

 

When Coldplay started to mix things up, it became clear that Chris Martin and company could be big-time contenders someday.

 

The turning point was “God Put a Smile upon Your Face,” recast as a throbbing techno tune that was warm and fresh compared to Coldplay’s surfeit of shimmering, sonically pristine songs.

 

Then left alone on a piano on a runway extending from the stage, Martin apologized for having postponed this concert, originally set for July. (“We would have been absolutely [bleep],” he said. “We weren’t even ready.”). After finally showing some emotion in conversation, he broke into the heartfelt “The Hardest Part,” a straightforward piano pop piece.

 

Martin, 31, rejoined his bandmates for “Viva La Vida,” this year’s buoyant hit that on Friday was as rousing as a Barack Obama victory song. The singer danced joyously as the band, driven by Will Champion’s pounding timpani, played a simple song (for a change) devoid of Coldplay’s usual atmospherics. The crowd sang along festively — “oh — oh, oh, oh” — like it was a Bon Jovi concert. The perfect followup was “Lost,” with a primal beat that evoked Fleetwood Mac’s “Tusk.”

 

Finally, for two consecutive songs, Coldplay had turned into a rock band with a sense of urgency and excitement, living up to its long-held desire to inspire.

 

Having completely won over the audience, Coldplay could take even bolder steps. So the four guys literally walked through the crowd, climbed up into the cheap(er) seats in the bowl end of the arena, and sang two acoustic tunes, including the hit “The Scientist.”

 

After returning to the stage, Coldplay carried on with vigor and vitality. They flexed their rock ’n’ roll muscle on “Politik” (though Martin, who had been blatantly political on past tours, made no political statements this time) and partied on “Lovers in Japan” as day-glo tissue-paper butterflies descended from the rafters, creating a visual spectacle not unlike the Republican National Convention did in the same building earlier this fall.

 

By then, Coldplay and the thrilled crowd had finally found its magical moment.

 

http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/music/34499469.html?elr=KArksi8cyaiUeyD8_o8cyaiUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU

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Say Hello 87

Say Hello 87

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hey all, just got home and finished editing my photos from the show, i was rather close (7th row on the floor) and so i got a few really cool/weird pictures of chris and johnny rocking out together and stuff, including a picture of when i thought chris was passed out before launching right into "Lost?".

 

The setlist is correct, although the coolest part of the show for me was when they came back on for their first encore and launched right into "Politik", that song is one of my favorites but just the way the did it where no one was expecting it anyways was the coolest feeling in the world.

 

But the best song of the night for me for some reason was "The Escapist" because live the song transitions soooo much better then I could have ever imagined, and it totally sounds horribly bad on the record compared to a live setting.

 

They played "Chinese Sleep Chant" as well, which was a incredibly treat and they also did a very, very cool techno version of "Viva La Vida" on the speakers inbetween their "in the crowd" acoustic section. If anyone knows more about that part and where I can find that techno version please let me know, I loved it, along with the 5 minutes straight of cell phones that litup the entire place. it was beautiful.

 

So for a first Coldplay show, it was the best show I have ever been to. Cant wait until the next U.S. tour or next album!

 

I do have pictures, but I dont know how to upload them through here yet.

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busybeeburns

busybeeburns

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hey all, just got home and finished editing my photos from the show, i was rather close (7th row on the floor) and so i got a few really cool/weird pictures of chris and johnny rocking out together and stuff, including a picture of when i thought chris was passed out before launching right into "Lost?".

 

The setlist is correct, although the coolest part of the show for me was when they came back on for their first encore and launched right into "Politik", that song is one of my favorites but just the way the did it where no one was expecting it anyways was the coolest feeling in the world.

 

But the best song of the night for me for some reason was "The Escapist" because live the song transitions soooo much better then I could have ever imagined, and it totally sounds horribly bad on the record compared to a live setting.

 

They played "Chinese Sleep Chant" as well, which was a incredibly treat and they also did a very, very cool techno version of "Viva La Vida" on the speakers inbetween their "in the crowd" acoustic section. If anyone knows more about that part and where I can find that techno version please let me know, I loved it, along with the 5 minutes straight of cell phones that litup the entire place. it was beautiful.

 

So for a first Coldplay show, it was the best show I have ever been to. Cant wait until the next U.S. tour or next album!

 

I do have pictures, but I dont know how to upload them through here yet.

thanks for the review! You can add your pics to flickr or photobucket etc and then hotlink to them in here by using the URL inside [] IMG tags :)
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busybeeburns

busybeeburns

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St. Paul. MN.

 

It is cold. My hands are feeling all crinkly. I went outside in a t-shirt earlier and regretted it. We are a long way from the Florida sun that shone on our tour buses a few days ago. The confetti canons have just blown butterflies over a crowd of 14’500.. From where I’m sitting, at the Oxfam stall, I can see a few of them fluttering down, when someone opens the curtain to go through to their seat. When it’s closed, I just see the glow of the lights, in time with Will Champion’s kick pedal foot.

 

Our amazing group of volunteers will be back from their amazing seats, any second now. They all sat together behind the mix desk tonight. I’m sure the show, and sound there, was the best anywhere in the arena. Great seats..

 

Great effort with the campaigning too. Over 630 more people signed up to find out more about how they can join Oxfam in fighting poverty, and countless more who will maybe see the Oxfam sphere or click a mouse button and read online. Even more great.. is the actions they can all take now - signing a petition to call for health and education for all, or by setting up a college group to become more active in fighting poverty..

 

The crowd are cheering for the encore now. I think the arena is going to be filled with a certain colour very soon. Some of these people leaving early to beat the traffic will probably run back inside too when they hear it start. Seems like the band have had a great time tonight. Loving every minute of this tour which winds it’s way across America once more.

 

Peoples footsteps are already dragging those poor butterflies out onto the street. They really do get everywhere.

 

Here come the masses.. Leaving the venue like it’s on fire. It never ceases to amaze me how fast these places empty.. I don’t just mean the crowd either. 14’500 fans. 4 band members. Band party. 55 crew. 12 trucks (and all their contents). 5 tour buses (and all their roadies). Venue staff.. Security.. Load out has already begun inside. Up here.. It’s a bit like a busy road or a flooding stream. I mean, if you stop, you have to work pretty hard at not looking like a salmon..

 

I’m going to go with the flow tonight. Hop on the bus. 12 hours later.. Fingers crossed.. We will be in Oklahoma City. Never been there on a Saturday. There’s a first time for everything.

 

http://www.oxfamblogs.org/coldplay/?p=106

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thescientist06

thescientist06

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hay guys. went to the show last night, SO much more fun than the X&Y tour! But I'm kinda disappointed in most of the audience. I mean, I assume they paid as much as I did for tickets... It didn't feel like anyone was getting into it at all. Even the people on the floor in front of the stage weren't really grooving that much. Everybody works a different way I guess?

 

Anyway. Wow. Very very good show. Can't wait for the next tour ;)

 

Maybe I'll post some pictures... Possibly not, though. My seats were really decent, and I got some great photos of Jonny and Chris on the catwalk RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME making love with their eyes in front of hundreds of people. Yesss.

 

I'm sad about: Them playing second half of "Yes", but not first part. :(

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thescientist06

thescientist06

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stpaul1.jpg

 

The British group had a lackluster start then found some spirit and ended with truly magical moments.

 

........

 

The redundancy in tempo, texture and dynamics — not to mention the largely unimaginative light show (playing “Speed of Sound” in the dark was not dramatic, it was dunderheaded) — leaves a listener comfortably numb. But in arenas, we want our rock to be transcendent, cathartic and just plain fun.

 

 

 

http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/music/34499469.html?elr=KArksi8cyaiUeyD8_o8cyaiUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU

 

I saved the review from the 2005 show and he used those exact words then too. Lazy.

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