When I went to the site to read this blog, for a second my timeline on the site was missing, and when I clicked on it, it took me to 2011! But it wouldn't show me the months, only stars (signifying new things). When I refreshed it, it went back to 2010 :( - but maybe new things are happening with the timeline?

 

That's been going on for a couple of weeks :)

That's been going on for a couple of weeks :)

 

Yeah I know, but this time it was a bit different! I've had it flash to 2011 a few times, but this was almost finished or something. Maybe it's nothing.

Live photoblog from Venice tomorrow

8 June 2011 5:21 pm

Join us for behind-the-scenes pictures and chat from Italy

 

Good evening. For the latest in our long-running series of live photoblogs, we're heading to Italy with Coldplay tomorrow for Venice's Jammin' Festival. Join us here on Coldplay.com from tomorrow afternoon for all the usual behind-the-scenes news, photos, videos and suchlike, as the band play their third festival headline slot of the summer.

 

Ciao.

 

Anchorman

areyoureadycoldplayingpeople.png :laugh3:

Is that what the picture is named? :awesome:

Yes :lol:

Haha amazing :lol:

A-man is the best :laugh3:

 

 

 

yes, i'm ready. :evilgrin:

Ha, that's great!

 

A shout-out for Coldplaying in disguise...

Got to love A-man :lol:

areyoureadycoldplayingpeople.png :laugh3:

:laugh3:

OHMY this is sooooo acurate!

areyoureadycoldplayingpeople.png :laugh3:

The greatest discovery of the day :lol:

haha cool

:awesome:awwwe makes us feel extrawonderfulness! :dazzled::dazzled:

Roadie #42 - Blog #134

9 June 2012 10:13

#42 and the days off that weren't days off

 

Doing festivals means a lot of days off. Or rather, it doesn't.

 

Following Rock am Ring, the band party headed off in a convoy of vans through quite the most dramatic thunderstorm I can remember since the Dubai show a few years back.

 

As the crew saunter down to Venice for a few days off, the fellas head back into the Beehive to give it some on a new track. I remember chatting to Rik Simpson at the end of the Viva recording about songs that came along late in the recording process - the last minute wonders.

 

Rik thought that it was probably something to do with the pressure being off a little, with the shape of the record being established and the urgency gone - but with the creative flow still very much in effect. Apparently some of the biggest tunes have come this way.

 

Maybe getting in front of a crowd and having a couple of great shows jolted something? Perhaps the relief of getting through the birthing of the show brought with it new inspiration?

 

Who indeed knows? But amidst the multitude of other jobs being done at the Beehive in the service of the new album, the walls in my office have been vibrated for the last three days by the sounds of the band thrashing through a new number.

Markus claims they've played this one straight and that it's all the better for it. I have to admit I've not been in the main room at all these last few days - I've been tinkering with cameras, so I've actually as little idea as you as to what exactly it sounds like.

 

What I do know, however, is that you can say what you like about these fellas, but they ain't shy of putting the hours in.

 

R42

 

So it was a new song...

Roadie #42 - Blog #134

9 June 2012 10:13

#42 and the days off that weren't days off

 

A blog from the future :lol:

hilarious! :awesome:

Ah well, they did use the BTTF theme as the intro, right? :lol:

Ah well, they did use the BTTF theme as the intro, right? :lol:

Yeah apparently. By bf is a huge BTTF-fan, but I still can't convince him to come to a Coldplay concert with me :(

:lol: I had not paid attention to the year! :laugh3:

^neither did R#42 :p

Jammin' Festival live photoblog

10 June 2011 5.28pm

We're back stage with the band for their third festival show of the summer

 

1.10am: So, we made it to the cars *just* in time. And now we're back in the UK. Everyone seemed very pleased with how the show went tonight, and spirits were high on the flight home (not least because the clock had just ticked into band PA Vicki's birthday!) Thanks again for reading. We'll see if we've got any more photos worth posting in the morning. Goodnight!

 

10.43pm: Right, the band are now playing their penultimate song - so one more and then we're doing a "runner" to the airport. And we're still sitting in an office a good five minutes from where the cars will be. So we're better run for the runner. We'll leave you with this picture. Thanks for reading - and for all your emails, and we'll try to get some more pictures to post later...

 

 

And with that, we'd better (literally) run - or we'll be spending rather more time here in lovely Venice than expected...!

 

10.38pm: Sorry, not the highest quality video you'll ever see - but it was filmed and uploaded on our phone (and literally only happened about ten minutes ago)

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McNK-eOejY8]YouTube - ‪Viva crowd in Venice‬‏[/ame]

 

10.37pm: Viva singalong video on its way....

 

10.32pm: OK, more shots...

 

 

 

 

 

 

10.30pm: Sorry for the gap in service folks, we lugged all our stuff over to the stage to use the wifi there, only to find that nobody knows the password. Gah! So we're back by the dressing rooms. More pictures coming...

 

9.54pm: And here's a bunch of live shots, taken during the first couple of songs...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9.49pm: So here's the traditional pre-gig hug, and a band shot taken literally about one second before they walked on stage.

 

 

 

9.44pm: They're on. The crowd are properly up for it. And we'll post some pics in a second...

 

(Btw, this office is a good couple of minutes walk from the stage. We might try to grab an office that's nearer...)

 

9.21pm: OK, the band are on in 8 mins, so we're going to go and get some pictures of them coming on etc. Now is probably a good time to make a cup of tea. We'll see you in a bit with some on stage pics...

 

9.20pm: The Champion is ready...

 

 

9.14pm: The Buckland is ready...

 

 

9.11pm: The radio packs are ready...

 

 

8.55pm: The crowd are doing the Viva chant again. We're quite a long way away back here, but it sounds *really* loud. It's all shaping up nicely...

 

8.48pm: Just 42 minutes until Coldplay are on, and Guy is changed and ready to go...

 

 

8.40pm: "What's your favorite song to see Coldplay perform live?" asks Noelia from Argentina.

 

Hmm. Tough one. Lost was the one that sprung to mind first, for some reason. Great memories of that one from Wembley Stadium with Mr Z. Arlene, from management, who's sitting opposite us right now says The Scientist or the new version of God Put A Smile Upon His Face.

 

8.34pm: Moving on from that moment of considerable excitement... long-term photoblog fans will know that we always try to give a photographic shout out to the wonderful Coldplay fan site Coldplaying.com. And so when we saw Coldplay's legendary soundman Dan Green just now, we thought we'd seize the moment. Problem was, we couldn't find any paper to write the message on. So, um we had to rip a bit off the band's setlist in the dressing room. (Shhh, our secret, right?)

 

 

And hello from the rest of us too. Thanks for all the support guys.

 

8.25pm: WE CAN HEAR THE CROWD SINGING THE VIVA CHANT...

 

8.23pm: "Where's Chris right now? What's he doing?" asks Giada, who sounds like they'd make a good private investigator. We don't actually know the answer. Sorry Giada. But we will try to find out.

 

8.21pm: "Will the blog stay up on the site after the show?" asks Susan in the USA, who's off to bake a cake because it's her son's birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUSAN'S SON! And, yes, it will.

 

8.19pm: Will's chilling outside the dressing rooms too now...

 

 

8.12pm: By the way, Coldplay have a single out this week. It's called Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall and it's great. You can buy it from the iTunes Store worldwide by clicking http://cldp.ly/itunescp (big thanks to all of you who already have) :-)

 

8.10pm: "What time does the band go on?" asks Brooke. 21.30 (ie in 80 mins). In fact, here are all of today's set times...

 

 

8.06pm: Quite a few of you asking what the capacity of today's festival is. We're told that it's 30,000.

 

8.02pm: So we managed to find Jonny, who's sitting outside the dressing room. Here he is, having a fascinating conversation with Coldplay's PA, Vicki.

 

 

And here they are when they couldn't hold the pose any more...

 

 

7.57pm: Are the boys quite nervous ??? - Laurie

 

No, they actually seem really relaxed and happy. We're guessing there would've been a lot more nerves flying around before the German shows. But having got those under their belts (and having really enjoyed them), they seem to just be looking forward to playing again.

 

7.55pm: What kind of camera does Chris use? ~ Deshani :D

 

Well, he pinched ours for those shots of the band - which is a slightly battered Nikon D40.

 

7.46pm: We've just popped to the dressing room to try and get some pics of the band. But none of them are around. Think they might still be eating, or having a bit of a wander. But we did get a few pics while we were there...

 

 

 

 

7.32pm: Right, so dinner was a very delicious pasta with meat balls, accompanied by a rather lovely rocket salad with parmesan and pine nuts. Very Italian and very nice. Phil and Guy both had that too. All agreed it was excellent.

 

 

We're also quite impressed with the long, thin soft drinks cans (same amount, just a bit more elegant).

 

 

7.27pm: Oh, forgot to post this from our wander. Suits you sir.

 

 

7.09pm: "What do the guys eat while in Italy? Something local or what?" asks Valentina. That is a very good question. We're off to catering to find out (and grab a quick something to eat). Back shortly...

 

7.06pm: Right, here are the pictures from our wander around the festival site...

 

This is, quite literally, back stage

 

Lots of people are watching Beady Eye from these little green tents. We'd quite like one.

 

Liam, being Liam.

 

Venice, looking very beautiful in the background.

 

A slightly odd tent at the very back of the field, with nobody in it.

 

7.01pm: "Are you going to have a ride on a gondola?" asks Raphaele. That's looking unlikely. We were hoping that's how they'd take us from the airport to the festival, but sadly not.

 

7.00pm: "What's the weather like there?" ask lots of you, to [email protected]. Well, it's very warm, but it's also quite grey and gloomy. There is talk of thunderstorms. Which could make it an interesting evening...

 

6.51pm: Right, we're back from our wander. While we get the pictures sorted, here's the final picture taken by Chris - of Jonny.

 

 

6.30pm: Here's Chris's photo of Guy. And with that, we're off for a wander around the festival...

 

 

6.18pm: Beady Eye (Liam Gallagher's new band) have just come on. It sounds VERY loud indeed.

 

6.10pm: Here's Chris's photograph of Will.

 

 

6.08pm: "Please, send a greeting to all users Coldplayzone present also in San Giuliano Park!" writes Gabrielle to [email protected].

 

Hello Coldplayzone people! Thanks for coming. Hope you packed your rain coats!

 

6.02pm: "Because it's an organised event do the boys still get their own dressing room?" asks Chris in Bristol. Absolutely. Each band at a festival gets their own little room. But we are quite tickled by the thought of Beady Eye, We Are Scientists, Echo & The Bunnymen and Coldplay etc all crammed into one portakabin. Now *that* would be worth blogging about.

 

6.00pm: When we all arrived at the festival a few minutes ago, Mr Christopher Martin pinched our camera off a table and took a picture of all of the other members of Coldplay (and one of us, which was nice.) We'll run the band photos one at time, in case we run out of things to take photos of later. Let's begin with Chris's shot of Phil Harvey, Coldplay's fifth member.

 

 

5.58pm: "Where were those new promo photos shot?" asks Christina F. The answer is Greenwich in London. Not exactly sure where. (Greenwich is where time was, sort of, invented.)

 

5.57pm: "Is it usually quiet on the flight, or does everyone talk and stuff? What music do you listen to on the plane?" asks Emily. Well, it was pretty quiet today. Most people were either reading the newspaper, listening to music or playing games on their phones (Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit seemed to be popular)

 

5.52pm: Here's Chris, with some fans who'd taken the trouble to come to the airport to greet the band.

 

 

5.48pm: Of course, as is the tradition with these live blogs, you're very welcome to keep us company, by emailing us on [email protected]. If you have a question, it's always worth sticking it in the subject of the email, please.

 

5.43pm: And here's a nice picture of Jonny and an "artfully blurry" one of Chris during the flight over...

 

 

 

5.42pm: Here's lovely Venice, from the other side of the plane...

 

 

5.33pm: Let's begin with this picture of Jammin' Festival from above, which was taken by the lovely Debs (longterm Coldplay friend, who actually discovered the band) out of her side of the plane...

 

 

5.29pm: We have just arrived. We have pictures. Stand by...

 

*I will post the rest of the live blog later tonight*

thanks!

Jammin' photoblog overflow

10 June 2011 8.02 pm

A few more pictures from yesterday's Venice trip

 

Good evening. So, as promised, here are a few more photos that didn't make it into yesterday's photoblog at Jammin' Festival in Italy.

 

We begin with Jonny, Guy and Will walking towards the stage...

 

 

Final preparations before going on...

 

 

And a bunch of pictures from during the show...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We'll try to get at least one more live blog in during the summer...

 

Anchorman

New Roadie blog ! Can't seem to properly scroll down though :p

 

http://www.coldplay.com/newsdetail.php?id=739

 

 

 

 

 

Roadie #42 - Blog #135

13 June 2011 8:40 pm

Roadie #42 and the solitary candle

 

 

So that’s the last two big, big festies out the way before what’s becoming known as G-Day (or Glastonbury to the rest of the world). These shows have been a great way to shake off the rust from the touring machine and get into gear for the big one. In so many ways, Glasto is just another gig - and given the fact that we’ve been doing huge festivals for the past couple weeks, that really is exactly what it is.

 

Except that it just isn’t. It’s a gig that perhaps more than any other, is way way bigger than any artist, any crowd or any amount of dry ice and laser beams. In many ways, headlining the Glastonbury Pyramid is a bit like owning a stately home. You can live there for a bit and maybe even feel like Lord of the manor if you’re that way inclined.

 

Really though, it’s your responsibility to uphold its history and protect its legend - pass it on to future generations every bit as grand and impressive as you found it. The fellas clearly feel the weight of expectation, but they’ve never been ones to shy away from a challenge.

 

 

The show though, has come together wonderfully well over this short little run of gigs and is in fine form to take its place under the pyramid in a week or two. The new tunes already feel very strong in the set - Charlie Brown getting the full-on bouncing-festival-crowd treatment every night now as it cruises in after Viva.

 

 

Talking of Viva, Venice marked the first show where the crowd were chanting the Viva melody a full half hour before the band even took to the stage. They were as warm, passionate and wonderful as you would expect any huge crowd of Italians to be, making for a solidly excellent show. I remember quite little about this gig apart from everyone telling me it was going to be terrible weather and a mud-fest. On the day, it was of course nothing of the sort. Still, at least I’ve got the emergency clothing back in the flightcase…

 

 

Pinkpop was also a wonderful day out. Especially so for being one of those excellent days where I get paid to watch Elbow perform. I first saw them at Leeds festival in the UK ten years or so ago and have seen them at regular intervals ever since. It’s an utter joy to watch them bloom and I can honestly say that if they ain't on your iPod, you’re a fool to yourself quite frankly.

 

Further proof of the above (if it were necessary) comes when I text Mr Champion a quick question about the setlist. I immediately hear a phone ping and realise that he’s standing just behind me grinning broadly as they go through their paces.

 

 

Chris meanwhile is off at one of the smaller stages checking out Ash, as they tear the place up. Festivals are nothing if not a great way to catch up with all your favourite acts…

 

The changeover between Elbow and Coldplay is one whole hour. Pinkpop is rather civilised in its organisation, allowing for a very relaxed and comfortable time getting the stage ready - without boring the pants off the waiting crowd.

 

Even after the hour of roadies running cables as the sun slowly dropped, it's still pretty much full-on daylight when the band takes to the stage. This brings about the rather wonderful comedy interlude where the pack of security folks, tour manager, stage manager and production manager who usually light the band’s way onto the stage are now waving super-powerful torches about in the broad daylight. Somehow the band managed to get to the stage using only their own eyes and the sound of 40,000 or so screaming punters to guide them.

 

 

Both these recent festivals saw Birthdays being marked on the journey home. Heading out of Venice, we celebrated the birth of lovely band assistant Vicki Taylor and coming home from Holland, saw Soundman / Co-Producer Dan Green getting the card and the sing-song. As is traditional, there were balloons, there were streamers, a banner and a cake. Both nights however, the cake held one single solitary candle. FAA rules apparently - not one more is permitted.

 

I expect that’s the war on terror won, then…

 

R#42