The launch sounds like it could be a space shuttle flight. "We're good on deck, good for show", a male voice intones over a wireless communications system, writes News.com.au in a preview to the forthcoming Live 2012 concert film, due out later in November, and the Australasian tour that starts in New Zealand on Saturday (10th November).
The "show" is Coldplay's Mylo Xyloto world tour. Within only the first 30 seconds of their Coldplay Live 2012 DVD, as the goosebumps rise along your arm, it becomes apparent this ambitious light and sound extravaganza could be the musical equivalent to a rocket launch. The technology involved in assisting these four musicians - Chris Martin, Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland and Will Champion - to realise possibly the biggest show on earth by a rock band is mind-blowing.
There are the LED wristbands, the confetti cannons, the lasers, the state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems - if Coldplay is making money on this tour, it isn't much. Yet for all the bells and whistles, Chris Martin and his bandmates remain the focal point. And, even with his tongue firmly in cheek, the frontman [pictured] admits some nights are tougher than others.
"In the build-up to a concert I just get really excited. I'm aware of everyone running around. There's always a panic about something," Martin says. "You know, the rain's coming down or ... the wristbands aren't working ... or Will's bench-pressed too much and his abs have burst. I don't know what the problems might be - Guy's just become too handsome to be lit properly ... or Jonny's fingers have started moving too fast and he's gonna play too many notes. Whatever the problem is, I always enjoy watching it get solved before 9pm."
Martin is a marathon performer, almost sprint skipping across the stage and down the lengthy runway into the middle of the crowd, designed to give those up the back that closer look at the action. The rock'n'roll myths fade away when you see him backstage, contemplative one moment, exploding with energy the next. "Then I start getting real adrenalin and start doing Rocky shadow boxing and all that kind of stuff. So I get as excited as anyone else," he says.
Buckland explains that the concert's graffiti bursts of psychedelic colour, accentuated by the fluoro shades emanating from thousands of wrists pumping the air in concrete and steel stadiums, stemmed from a much simpler concept. "I think the initial image we started with for the Mylo Xyloto album was a rose bursting through concrete. That was the kind of starting point of the whole thing ... the splash of life and colour and passion in a bleak, grey place," he says. Off stage, Coldplay describe themselves as a "circus family".
They play football and cricket and like any modern business person who has to travel for work, they miss their families. Drummer Champion felt the heartache of absence on the last tour. "The toughest bits are when you're away from home, from family. I remember we were playing in Las Vegas, which is a very silly place at the best of times," he says. "I got a call saying that one of my kids was in hospital and there I was in Las Vegas, you know, and I just thought ... there couldn't be a worse place to be when you know your kid is not very well. So it's hard and anyone that travels has that kind of thing to deal with often. We're not the first band to come across these problems by any means. But, yeah, those moments are pretty tricky."
For every tough moment, there is a triumph. All four band members, and their tightknit team, cite the Mylo Xyloto tour as Coldplay finding freedom in the connection with their fans and no longer caring what the haters think. "I see this tour is the last, kind of, shackles being thrown off of being worried about what anyone thinks. Through the course of Mylo Xyloto I'd say that as a band we're functioning better than we ever have," Martin says.
"We've been through the breakups and addictions and arguments and financial disagreements and ... not working properly together in the studio or falling out about which hours someone likes to work. We're a very private band, we don't tell anyone very much. We definitely don't tell anyone about all the darker side of things, because we don't really believe in that rock'n'roll cliche, myth thing." [Article ends]
Coldplay Edit (thumb) by Romy_MX
New Live 2012 screenshots (via EpixHD):
Don't forget to check out your tour discussion thread if you are getting Coldplay tickets or just getting excited for the European & North American 2012 shows and other forthcoming appearances:
FEBRUARY 2012
8 Los Angeles, CA @ Club Nokia (iHeartRadio) [discussion]
9 Los Angeles, CA @ Jimmy Kimmel Live [discussion]
10 Los Angeles, CA @ GRAMMY Week MusiCares Person of the Year tribute [discussion]
12 Los Angeles, CA @ 54th Grammy Awards, Staples Center [discussion]
16 Sydney, Australia @ 2DayFM, Mobile Live Set (intimate show) [discussion] [CANCELLED]
17 Sydney, Australia @ Sunrise (intimate show) [discussion] [CANCELLED]
21 London @ Brit Awards 2012, O2 Arena [discussion]
MARCH 2012
2 New York, NY @ Good Morning America [discussion]
4 New York, NY @ The Secret Policeman's Ball, Radio City Music Hall (Amnesty International) [discussion]
APRIL 2012
17 Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place [discussion]
18 Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome [discussion]
20 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]
21 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]
24 Portland, OR @ Rose Garden Arena [discussion]
25 Seattle, WA @ KeyArena [discussion]
27 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]
28 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]
MAY 2012
1 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]
2 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]
3 Los Angeles, CA @ American Idol show [discussion]
4 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]
5 Los Angeles, CA @ KROQ's Weenie Roast y Fiesta [discussion]
18 Porto, Portugal @ Dragao Stadium [discussion]
20 Madrid, Spain @ Estadio Vicente Calderón [discussion]
22 Nice, France @ Stade Charles Herman / Nikaia [discussion]
24 Turin, Italy @ Olympic Stadium [discussion]
26 Zurich, Switzerland @ Letzigrund [discussion]
29 Coventry, UK @ Ricoh Stadium [discussion]
JUNE 2012
1 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]
2 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]
4 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]
7 Sunderland, UK @ the Stadium of Light [discussion]
9 London, UK @ Wembley Stadium (Capital FM's Summertime Ball 2012) [discussion]
9 Manchester, UK @ the Etihad Stadium [discussion]
10 Manchester, UK @ the Etihad Stadium [discussion]
22 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]
23 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]
25 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center [discussion]
26 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center [discussion]
28 Tampa, FL @ St. Pete Times Forum [discussion]
29 Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena [discussion]
JULY 2012
2 Atlanta, GA @ Philips Arena [discussion]
3 Charlotte, NC @ Time Warner Cable Arena [discussion]
5 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]
6 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]
8 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]
9 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]
23 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]
24 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]
26 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]
27 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]
29 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]
30 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]
AUGUST 2012
1 Auburn Hills, MI @ Palace of Auburn Hills [discussion]
3 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]
4 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]
7 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]
8 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]
10 St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center [discussion]
11 St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center [discussion]
28 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Parken Stadium [discussion]
30 Stockholm, Sweden @ Olympic Stadium [discussion]
SEPTEMBER 2012
2 Paris, France @ Stade de France [discussion]
4 Cologne, Germany @ Rheinenergie Stadium [discussion]
6 The Hague, Netherlands @ Malieveld [discussion]
7 Los Angeles, US @ Shrine Auditorium (Stand Up To Cancer) [discussion]
9 London, UK @ Paralympics Closing Ceremony [discussion]
12 Munich, Germany @ Olympiastadion [discussion]
14 Leipzig, Germany @ Red Bull Stadium [discussion]
16 Prague, Czech Republic @ Slavia Eden Stadium [discussion]
19 Warsaw, Poland @ National Stadium [discussion]
22 Hannover, Germany @ AWD Arena [discussion]
NOVEMBER 2012
10 Auckland, New Zealand @ Mt Smart Stadium [discussion]
12 Sydney, Australia @ MAX TV intimate show [discussion] [NEW!]
13 Melbourne, Australia @ Etihad Stadium [discussion]
17 Sydney, Australia @ Allianz Stadium [discussion]
18 Sydney, Australia @ Allianz Stadium [discussion]
21 Brisbane, Australia @ Suncorp Stadium [discussion]
Read also: European Stadium Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the Europe tour)
Read also: North America Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the US/Canada tour)
Read also: 2012: Live Appearances - Easy Thread Finder (last updated - 12th January 2012)
Read also: 2012 tour date rumours (please post dates for ALL countries in here)
Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]
The new range of Coldplaying merchanise (unofficial of course to the official shop) has hit our stores, with our biggest range of goods so far. Prices are as low as they can be for a Cafepress shop so more people will be able to afford them. We don't take any profits for the sale of the merchandise as a result. Take a browse in one of the online stores nearest to you: UK | US | Canada | Australia | European (shipping is worldwide, but you can choose what currency to pay in) - simply alter the country dropdown menu at the top of the shop page. [thanks to TracieMorgan and zzz]
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