July 19, 200917 yr My Review Feb 28th 2009, Perth, Australia I sit here, behind a glowing computer screen in a dark room, wondering if there is one word that could encapsulate my experience. One word that could start off the divulgence of my amazement and awe of the worlds biggest band. After 20 minutes I have found no words, and that is simply because, there are no words that could possibly describe it. I look to my left and I see a ticket perched next to a lamp. It reads "COLDPLAY - Sat 28 Feb 2009 7:10pm. Gold - Standing Front". Funny how those 42 or so characters printed on that ticket changed my life... It was the second time seeing Coldplay in so many days. The previous night they had their opening concert of the Australian leg of their Viva La Vida world tour. The Burswood Dome in Perth, Western Australia isn't the most ideal of locations for concerts. The acoustics are terrible, the seating is crap, and the location is a nightmare. This plagues nearly every band who enters through the doors. Yet on this evening, all of that was insignificant. All of that was a million miles away in peoples minds. My excitement today was ten fold over the previous day. I was sitting up in the sky the night before. Today, I was on the floor. First in line with a good friend waiting to sprint our way to the barrier as soon as the doors opened. It was a long hot day, in searing 35ºC heat with no shade, and hardly any people. As the old saying goes, no pain, no gain. I ducked off for a while and left my friend to hold the fort. The fact she did so without a batter of an eyelid showed me how lucky I was to be a part of this band and have friendships with their fans. I met her through the Coldplaying website originally, a true testament to how band forums can play such a brilliant role in making gigs even better. By the time 5pm rolled around we entered the doors. Though entered may be too soft a word. Piled in with no regards for peoples safety is a more accurate description. The next 20 seconds were a blur. My feet propelled me as fast as they could towards the front. In enough time as it turns out. I was slap, bang on the barrier. Just in front of the main microphone. Perfection. The pre-acts were clearly there for one reason. To be so bad that Coldplay looked even better when they eventually came on stage. It was a lengthy 4 hour wait, but the time flew by as quickly as the atmosphere built around me. Once U2 passed on the sound system, Jay-Z had his spot, the Blue Danube came on, and I knew it was time. The lights went out. The crowd roared. Coldplay, were here. The moment Life in Technicolor started playing I was so nervous, it felt like I was reaching in for my first kiss. As soon as the boys came out though I realised this would be a lot better than my first kiss! Once Life in Technicolor ended the curtain dropped and my ear drums exploaded from the uproar behind me. Chris Martin pursed his lips to the microphone and the tender ressonance of Violet Hill bounced around the arena. Jonny Buckland's guitar crashed in with a mighty force, Guy Berryman's bass sunk in to everyones skin, and Will Champion's drumming seemed to hold the whole song together somehow. After the crowd classics In My Place and Clocks, and a few new tracks, came the first real highlight of the evening. Yellow. Being right there in front of the band as they played this true British classic made me realise what a brilliant band they are. Such a beautiful song, yet such an anthem as well. Yellow balloons made their way to the pit, and the energery was electric. The feeling after the song ended was one of pure jubilation. A few more tracks then came one of my favourites, Strawberry Swing. It wasn't the perfect execution of the song itself that made me have a heart attack, it is what happened at the end. Chris Martin took the pick he was holding, the one that had just plucked the strings of his hand painted guitar, and threw it towards me from the stage. It fell just short of me, which as you can imagine, did not leave me feeling so fantastic. A kind word to the security guard near me and within seconds I was holding Chris Martin's pick in my hand. The moment was surreal. I was holding something that had moments before been sitting in Chris Martin's sweaty palms. I quickly pocketed the pick so I could continue enjoying the concert. Yet the rest of my night my hand drifted down every so often for a quick pat, just to make sure it was still there. The band did a short set on the B stage, which included a techno remix of God Put a Smile Upon Your Face and Talk. It showed how Coldplay are able to keep up with emerging and popular music trends, yet keep their roots firmly in place also. The scene flipped 360º after this, and an acoustic rendition of The Hardest Part was played by Chris on piano. Soft, elegant, and charming, it made the hairs on my neck stand up on end and my eyes well up as the lyrics seemed to tug on every heart string I had. However there was no time to reflect. The energy rose once more when the band cranked up Lost! from their Viva La Vida album, and then launched in to the title track. This was a moment like no other. Hitting number one all over the world, everybody knew the lyrics, and everybody was ready to chant the chorus. My feet jumped off the ground by themselves, it was an experience like no other. When the crowd started singing the "woooaaaahs" the roof lifted off its supports for a good 3 seconds at least, it was that intense. It wasn't like a typical sing a long. This was something different altogether. Thinking about it now still sends shivers down my spine. The band moved up in to the crowds to do a short spell of acoustics songs, the show seemed so much more intimate now, and suddenly the fans up in the sky had the same feeling us down the front did. After an interlude they came back down to play the epic Politick, Death and All His Friends and sandwhiched inbetween those was my favourite Coldplay song of all time, Lovers in Japan. As the song got in to the swing of things, confetti butterfly reigned down, glowing under the stage lights. A party atmosphere was definitely flowing through the crowd. The boys took a short break then burst back on stage for the encore. The Scientist was an instant, mellow crowd pleaser, and then the band jumped up, donned new brightly coloured jackets, and belted out their latest single Life in Technicolor ii, a great high to leave the show on. The band were gone as quick as they came. As the multi coloured set faded away to black and the roadies came on to pack up, it seemed the engergy had been flicked off with a switch. I had blinked and the concert was over. Any feeling of sadness was instantly erased with pure ecstasy. I collected some butterflies, and headed out of the venue with my friend. She is a smart thinker, and detoured via the front of house in the middle of the arena. A perfect way to end a perfect evening was picking up a setlist for herself and I. We walked out as if we had been to heaven and back in 2 hours. My concert experience didn't include meeting the band, or having something truly extraordinary happen. But in all honesty, I didn't set out to try because there was no need. The sweet taste left in my mouth was from the music, the band, the feeling, the way I couldn't shut up for days and weeks afterwards. The fact that I got Chris Martins pick and a setlist was a bonus I would never have imagined. Being right there front row, was something I would never have dreamed of. And the lasting effect it had on my life, well, thats something I take with me in every second of my life. Some people may say it is stupid that a concert can change a persons life. But when music that is so powerful and personal is played mere metres in front of you, somehow it always remains at that distance, from the instance you leave the concert. From the moment you take a breath of fresh air. From the moment you walk to your car, and start echoing the Viva chant with the hundreds of other fans around you.
July 19, 200917 yr Author Thanks guys :D The entry part is now closed. Voting part will be up in the next few mins :D Please don't vote & run :) To qualify for the competition, the forum needs to discuss the entries, so it would be nice if you posted something in the voting thread. You don't have to tell us who you voted for if you don't want, but you could tell us which were your favourite reviews, and why.
July 20, 200917 yr Failsome me didn't see entries were closing yesterday so left it for today. Fail Cobalt is fail. Good luck to all entrants though :D
July 20, 200917 yr Re: But a Dream's Story!!! I love your story! Thank you so much for sharing it! *^_^* So this is my story. I don't have much of a blow-by-blow live review but more of the experience of going to their concert. Comes in 2 parts, but they link together. March 14 2009, Acer Arena, Sydney, Australia This was my fourth time watching Coldplay live in 2009 but only the second concert I managed to get pit tickets to, so I was determined to snag a front row position for myself. Armed with my ‘Jonny Is My Guitar Hero’ banner, which I had previously unveiled in Perth (eliciting laughs from Chris and Jonny), I took the earliest train to the Sydney Olympic Park where Acer Arena was situated. I was the third in line, and managed to pass the hours by chatting with the friendly people in the queue. Most were amazed to find out I flew in from Singapore to Australia to watch Coldplay and were tickled pink by my banner. When the doors into the venue were opened, my newfound friends and I were lucky enough to grab a standing spot at the barrier just left of centre. The camera man at the left side of the stage saw me with my banner and walked up to me. ‘Hey it's you again! I remember that banner!’ ‘Haha, yes, I was front row at Perth as well! I remember you too!’ I laughed. It was an amazing show, the energy emanating from the band onstage matched only by the overwhelming enthusiasm of the Sydney crowd. I was jumping non-stop and singing along to every song, and every time Chris came up to the front of the stage just two arms’ lengths away from us, we shrieked uncontrollably and tried to reach out to touch him. After Death And All His Friends, when the band started walking around the stage clapping and bowing, I knew they will be leaving the stage shortly for an encore. I whipped out my banner and held it high to catch Jonny’s attention. As he came to the front, a flicker of recognition crossed his face as he saw it. He looked me in the eye and smiled widely. Time stood still as he dug around in his pants pocket to find his guitar pick, bent down and threw it to me. He threw it a little short, though, as it ended up in the security area between the stage and the barrier. In an instant, everyone in the front row started screaming and asking the security guard in front to pick it up. A veritable tangle of extended arms was jostling for that one guitar pick Jonny had intended for me to have. Fortunately, the guard passed it to one of the people who spent time with me waiting in queue, who immediately turned to me, placed the guitar pick in my palm and grasped my hand close. ‘You deserve it, love.’ They were simple gestures from Jonny and my fellow concertgoer, but I was nearly choking back tears at that moment. March 23 2009, Singapore Indoor Stadium, Singapore Still hyped up from the five Australian concerts I just attended, I could not contain my excitement when Coldplay popped by my own country for a one-night-only show. With my trusty ‘Jonny Is My Guitar Hero’ banner again, I waited around the stadium to see if I can catch a glimpse of the boys as they arrived. One of the concert organisers was extremely irritated to see me, and said to the security guard, ‘Can you please get that fan away? I don’t want her to be around when the band arrives.’ I was extremely angry because he had no right to do so, but I held my tongue. The guard told me to move behind a barrier about 5 metres away from the entrance and I obliged because I did not want to get into a fight, and besides it was still close enough to catch the attention of the band. A while later, a lot of people started to move out of the stadium, being guided out by the concert organisers. The band is coming, I whispered to myself, and I got myself ready. Soon enough, a van pulled up, and out stepped Chris, Will, Guy and Jonny. I didn’t shout out to them but waved to them quietly from the barrier, while holding up my banner as well. Will and Guy nodded at me, and Jonny gave me a wave and a smile, and the three of them ducked into the stadium. Chris, however, started walking up to me with a smile spreading across his face. Much to my surprise, he gave me a small hug and said ‘Nice to see you again!’ I was in shock, but I managed to regain my composure quickly. We had a short conversation, and Chris asked me ‘So do you have tickets for tonight?’ I told him I did, but he still offered me a few tickets for my friends. I was stunned and couldn’t thank him enough before he had to leave for soundcheck. By this time, the concert organiser who previously snubbed me and the stadium staff were gawking. I shrugged my shoulders and smiled, embarrassed at the stares, but my mind was racing at a million miles a minute as I was still in utter disbelief at what just happened. A couple of Coldplay roadies walked by and one of them smiled knowingly at me. 'I remember that banner!' Still in a dazed state, I could only giggle like a silly fool. When I went to collect my tickets at the box office, I told the attendant that I was on the guest list. ‘Are you with the promoters?’ She looked around the counter for the tickets. ‘Umm, well no. I’m with the band.’ She took a good hard look at me, a girl in jeans, a band t-shirt and a cap. Shaking her head, she asked me for my name, and I gave her my last name. She scanned through the band’s guest list and smirked, ‘I’m sorry I can’t find you on here.’ I craned my neck to look at the list and pointed out my first name near the bottom of the list, one of the two guests with tickets from Chris. Without saying anything more, she searched for the envelope with my tickets and passed it to me. My friends were ecstatic. The seats were along the catwalk with an unobstructed view of the B-stage. One of them told me she could see the blue of Chris’ eyes as he performed The Hardest Part on the piano. It was an all-seated concert, but I stood up the very moment I got the opportunity. My own ticket was for a seat third row centre on the floor. Chris caught sight of me in the middle of Lost! and he pointed at me and winked. I grinned back at him as I waved my hands wildly in the air. Thank you, Chris. Thank you, Coldplay. Thank you, everyone who made it possible.
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