Jenjie

The hardest part is sitting down and thinking of how to describe the concert in this post. I can say that its indescribable, beyond my expectations and the best concert i’ve been to. The lighting, the music, the crowd, everything were just the perfect combination. They played a lot of the old music. Clocks, Yellow, In My Place, The Scientist and much more. And of course the new stuff, Viva La Vida and Violet Hill. When they played ‘Yellow’, they dropped yellow balloons on the crowd. The band even walked in the middle of the crowd and sang Billie Jean as a tribute to MJ. On our way out, they gave us this CD called ‘Left.Right.Left.Right.Left’ that has all their great music live. Five hours of waiting in traffic to get there. On the way back, it was around half an hour of traffic because the state suddenly decided it wants to repave a two mile section of the I-5 freeway at 1 A.M on a sunday. http://www.puddleofred.com/blog/?p=2692

are they not the people who were sending twitters for those sat back at coldplaying? I texted updates from one of the shows I went to in December. its still possible to have an immense time, and rack up 20-odd texts :laugh3:

COLDPLAY LIGHTS UP L.A. British super group Coldplay took down the sold out house last night as they rocked the crowd at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. Lights, color, energy, and tireless lead singer Chris Martin dominated the evening, with Martin making endless laps around the U-shaped stage as the super excited fans indulged the band and sang out practically every word to popular Coldplay classics like “Clocks,” “In My Place,” and “Fix You,”-songs packed in to the first half of the killer show. Chris was beaming as he joked, “We are grateful for your Saturday night choice. We know you have a lot!” and “I know all the ladies were lined up early to see David Beckham!” as the Home Depot Center also houses Beckham’s L. A. based soccer team the Galaxy. In fact, as Los Angeles is now Martin’s second home thanks to a certain actress with the initials G. P., he informed concert goers that this was the city outside of London that they have played to the most. Good work Gwyneth! The night was not without surprises as they band descended from the main stage, worked their way down the corridor, and leaped onto a second stage placed in the back of the house in the middle of the crowd. People were going nuts as they screamed for their rock heroes. Once a top their alternate perch, the Brits belted out acoustic versions of “Green Eyes,” “Sitting On the Dock of the Bay/Death Will Never Conquer,” and in an ode to the King of Pop Michael Jackson, they took on a sweet rendition of “Billie Jean.” Of course they night would have not been complete without some tracks from their new album, including “Life in Technicolor,” album title and hit song “Viva La Vida,” “Lost?” and “Lovers in Japan.” They ended their musical journey with Coldplay favorite “The Scientist” and “Life in Technicolor ii” which was accompanied by an explosion of multicolored confetti that poured over the cheering audience. And speaking of the audience, a show in Los Angeles wouldn’t be complete without a celebrity contingency, right? So who was there? The one and only Tom Cruise, songstress Katy Perry, Adam Brody, and self-proclaimed Coldplay fanatic Justin Timberlake. Shine on Coldplay! http://redcarpetroxy.com/?p=1248

We were lucky enough to go to Coldplay's second Viva la Vida tour. Neither time were we planning on going to the concerts. This time someone asked us two days before if we were going. We said no, then she said, "My sister has extra tickets that she'll sell to you at a discount!" That was the end of that. Although our seats weren't as good as last time, we still enjoyed the music and the atmosphere. Coldplay puts on such a great show. The lighting was spectacular, the back drops were cool, they walk off stage and sing on a little stage in the way back. I bet those people who thought they had bad seats were so excited when Coldplay came to sing right next to them. At this part of the concert they improvised a little and sang non-Coldplay songs, one being Billy Jean. I liked their version. At the end of the concert Chris Martin informs everyone they are giving us all a free CD, Left Right Left Right Left. It's the live version of a few of their songs. The crowd went wild. Lovers in Japan was still my favorite song. I was so glad they still shoot tissue paper butterflies into the audience during the chorus. The air was filled with them! For the encore they played Life In Technicolor, the version with words. Ja loves this song and I think it was his favorite part of the concert. We had a great time! The concert was at the Home Depot Center in Carson. If you ever go there parking is horrible so you need to go two hours before the event starts. We ended up parking at a Panda Express parking lot and walking almost a mile to the center because the line of cars was not moving at all. We did make sure that the lot didn't say "Panda Express Parking Only" before parking. http://jonathanlaura.blogspot.com/2009/07/coldplay-concert.html

and here they just seem to be randomly handing out drugs to people who can answer the questions correctly. of 300 people who were tested in one area only 20 of them actually had swine flu.

I'm about to go out, so will add you later. if you're not there next time you look, send me a PM to remind me :)

This evening is the last chance to buy the butterfly design for the moment. I'll be switching the design in the shop at some point tomorrow. not sure what time yet, depends what time I get up :lol:

we wait and see :D tbh I'm not too sure how it works from the Absolute t&c's. I know we have 1 entry a week from next week.

Thanks for all the entries and votes :D Our 4 entries are: guyluvsliz (24 votes) Chavi (19 votes) strawberryfields (15 votes) justjess (15 votes) The form was submitted to Absolute approx 2 mins ago, so good luck to everyone :)

no way!!! that's awesome :)

interesting discussion. Absolute's blurb says "It could be anything connected to live music; the time you watched a David Bowie gig from backstage, or got lost at Glastonbury and discovered Tibetan throat singing for example." Anyone who has submitted an entry deserves to be in the voting. They took the time and effort to put together their entries for the competition, so why shouldn't they be there? To me the competition is about demonstrating your love of seeing a band live, and that's always going to be a subjective thing. What makes me overwhelmed, bores someone else to tears and vice versa. I know many people who don't understand when I rave about the War Child gig, and what an amazing time I had. There are a variety of different angles across all 13 reviews, so if the fangirl reviews are coming out on top, does that not say more about the people who have voted so far? Its only 88 people out of however many thousands of members we have.

anywhere which doesn't involve too much walking to get to would be good :)

me too :cry: :o what've I missed?

count me out of the catching flu before wembley please :P I'd rather not have it at all.

there better not be :angry: i have an uncancellable train ticket, and too many plans to not be allowed out :cry: do I want to know how you found that picture? :P :laugh3:

OMG Alison, don't!! 50 days its just :shocked2:

the old-style one with London instead of Wembley will be in the shop from Aug 1st :)

I am awaiting delivery of a butterfly one

I agree :D

This is what I picture when I think of a cat called Buckland I just can't picture a Berryman cat.

Buckland is a cool sounding cat's name, more than Berryman

Part 2 The 7th of Feburary 2009 is a day known to all Australians as Black Saturday. Temperatures of 46°C (115°F) scorched Melbourne and the state and the towns of Kinglake and Marysville burnt to the ground. 173 people are confirmed to have died as a result of the many fires that burned that day and it is considered Australia's worst bushfire disaster in history. I didn't know how I survived through that day - it was the hottest day I'd ever been through. It was quite personal for me as well - I had been to Marysville a few years beforehand and it was a beautiful town enriched in history. My school held its Year 9 camp at Kinglake last year, and I went on it. The forests were stunning to say the least. The stories that emerged were of hope but also despair. Many homes were lost. Several aid efforts were announced, including that of Sound Relief on the 14th of Febuary. It would be a multi-venue concert held in Melbourne at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and in Sydney at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Funds would go to the Red Cross Victorian Bushfire Appeal and the Queensland Premier's Disaster Relief Appeal. Queensland had been the victim of floods in January and Feburary. I decided to wait until the acts were announced before I would go, to see if it would be worth forking out the money (in case tickets were expensive). The lineups were announced, and I talked things over with my mum about which we could go to. Sydney was the one we'd set on - two tickets, a ten hour roadtrip. Great acts, a nice city, and a weekend away. It'd be good. Tickets went on sale on the 4th of March, the day before my concert in Melbourne. After several tries on the internet and the phone, I got a pair of Red Oval tickets - the ones closest to the stage. It took me fifteen minutes of happy grinning and skipping about the house like an utter maniac to calm down. Included in the line-up were Coldplay, Wolfmother, Eskimo Joe, Jet, and The Presets. All favourites, especially Eskimo Joe. We started driving up on the morning of the 13th at 9am and arrived in the night at our hotel. Although a bit low quality as it was cheap and all we could get so short notice, it was nice enough for us to settle in well. We slept tight, knowing we'd need our energy tommorow for 11 hours of standing... My mum and I arrived at about 10am. The line was already quite large, I didn't think I was going to end up close to the stage at all. Gates were scheduled to open at 11. We made friends with the people standing in front of us, two ladies and one of the ladies' son, talking about the acts, where we were from, that sort of thing. The son, Zach, stayed with us for a lot of the day. He was most looking forward to Coldplay, he said, and so was I. Finally the gates opened and the people streamed in. When I walked in, the first thing I noticed was that the Sydney Cricket Ground was HUGE! It was so big, and the standing area seemed to go on for forever. I was wrong about being far away from the stage - I ended up getting quite close, 14th row if I recall correctly and could still see so not bad. Coldplay was the opening act at 12:15pm, and after seeing them just over a week before, I knew they were going to put on a great show. I took photos of the stage, the amazing view of the ground and the summer sky. Music videos of those performing were being played on the big screens on either side of the stage. Three giant inflated beach balls were released into the crowd, resulting in much fun being had trying to hit them around. Chants for Coldplay begun, and I knew it had to be soon. "Ladies and gentlemen... please welcome our first act for the day... Coldplay!" The crowd went wild. The familiar sound of Life In Technicolor began as the quartet arrived on stage, met with very loud cheering. Their second song was Yellow, you know, that song about the stars and the rivers and all the things you do? The lights turned golden and people exclaimed joyfully in recognition. Many giant yellow balloons were released into the crowd. With this song, you get a personal connection I think, well, I do anyway - 'it's true, look how they shine for youuu'. Chris Martin paused to pop balloons bouncing at him with his guitar. This was probably the best live performance of Yellow I've seen, each member of the band working hard to give the Sydney audience something special, and they responded, singing and dancing. I certainly didn't expect to hear the next song, Lost! at the concert, but I did. Chris bounded about with his quirky dancing, you would know it if you've seen it - returning to the keyboard towards the end. Yellow balloons still were being thrown about and the crowd were loving it. At the end of the song, Chris thanked the crowd and told them that that day was the only day they could be claimed to be honourary Australians. Everyone seemed to agree as he started playing their hit song Clocks. I don't remember anyone around me remaining standing through the whole performance of Clocks - they wanted to bounce instead, so bounce they did. The energy from the band spread to the audience back to band again. Great performance. Chris playfully joked about being "the 15th opening act for the BeeGees" before jumping into Viva La Vida. The background lights changed to a red and black Australia with 'Viva' written on it in white. Cheers and chants of the memorable "whooaa-ohhh" began the song, hands were in the air and people were moving to the beat, drummed with determind force by drummer Will Champion. Well after the song had ended Chris encouraged the crowd to sing it for the Queenslanders, people in Flowerdale and to everyone at the MCG in Melbourne. We were a bit confused as to what was happening next. It seemed to be something special, but nobody was sure what. Rumors flew about that Elton John would be performing with Coldplay near the end of the set, but nobody was certain. The rumors proved true when the beginning of You're The Voice was played. Confirmed by Chris saying with playful banter "ladies and gentlemen, please welcome, to sing the Australian national anthem, John Farnham." John Farnham himself ran on stage, singing You're The Voice. I can't really count how many retirement tours this guy's had, but that didn't seem to matter as he burst into song, Chris, Will, guitarist Jonny Buckland and bassist Guy Berryman playing in the background, Jonny playing the riff beautifully. His usually reserved and shy demeanor doesn't stop him on guitar. Everyone around me sang along, and Chris duetted with Elton during the bridge. I don't think we'll ever see another live performance of that happening again. Elton and Coldplay left the stage and Coldplay encore chants began. They returned for one final song, and what would be the most memorable part of Sound Relief - Fix You. Surprisingly the biggest singalong of the act was this song, loved by many, and written for Chris' wife in a time of hardship. The crowd clapped along and Chris rose from his piano after playing the two verses. What nobody did expect was what happened next - he hopped off the stage in the other direction from me, down a lane, jumped a fence and ran across an empty space of ground, the crowd and security chasing after him, proving faster than both pursuers. People streamed after him and Chris was stuck in the mass of people as the chorus began, the rest of the band singing. On the screens the video cameras showed a curly mop of hair popping up and revealing him. Security herded Chris back into the lane, the song seemingly ended, with him not back on stage. The exhausted smiling singer emerged and made it back to finish the end of the song, letting the crowd sing the last line. The end of their performance, and a while to wait until the next act for the charity concert. I'm obliged to write about the other acts, so here it is. Wolfmother seemingly imploded after the success of their last album, so I was a little anxious about what they'd put out. I have to give them credit, they played solidly despite having significant sound problems that only lightly affected Coldplay. I didn't think much of the Hoodoo Gurus... the next act Little Birdy also had some issues with their keyboard being too loud during Come On Come On but they played a good set. Architecture in Helsinki had a lot of people dancing and they were good also. You Am I were definitely not my style so I didn't get much from them, the same went for Josh Pyke (I'm no country girl) but his songs were ok. Then, the heavens opened and it rained. I lost my bud Zach after running from the rain, still looking for him. Brown hair, grey and black V-neck shirt with blue jeans was me, mum was blonde, we had a blue cooler bag and gave you water if you're still out there (I think you said you were from Macquarie?). The rain cleared for a short Marcia Hines set. Taylor Swift was next... I can't say many words for her, I'm not a fan. Eskimo Joe were brilliant - great performances, great reception. They played a good mix of new tracks and old. They ended the afternoon and Jet commenced the evening. Jet's a fairly well-known band in Australia, they had quite a few songs rotating on the radio a few years back. They were great. They commanded large singalongs and a lot of dancing. Ominous stormclouds stalked the SCG. I'm not a fan of storms so I scrambled to shelter. The heavens opened again. Lightning lit up the sky and thunder rumbled. Very few moved, as they knew whom was playing next. The Presets achieved huge success last year in Australia with their second album Apocalypso. The stormy weather and cold didn't shut down the electrical atmosphere of their performance. I doubt anyone would forget 50,000 people dancing and singing to tracks like Are You The One? and My People in a hurry. My mum wanted to see Icehouse perform next, and I enjoyed them myself. The multitude of bright colorful lights looked stunning on the wet ground. I've heard a handful of Icehouse songs before, and lead singer Iva Davies has still got it. We left after Icehouse and skipped Barry Gibb of the BeeGees fame. Where were we headed? Acer Arena, where Coldplay were playing that night. A kind taxi driver gave us some simple instructions to get there and we were off. We decided to wait at the loading dock to see if we could meet any of the band. I was certain Chris Martin would at least drop by, my mum wasn't so sure. Two fellow Coldplaying.com members showed up, one noticed who I was and introduced herself (yay). The after-effects after standing for ten hours or so at Sound Relief started to hit as I had to stand again. Many cars zoomed by... roll on 1:40 am. A light-colored car pulls up a distance from us. Everyone who is there gets up and is curious about who this could be. The security guard announces it's Chris. Excitement and the grabbing of cameras and items to be signed ensues. Chris gets out of the car with security guard Kelly in tow. Chris said it was autographs first, then anything else we'd like. Unfortunately the crowd bunched around in a way that meant I couldn't possibly reach him, so I walked around to the side of people with a copy of their latest album and EP, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends and Prospekt's March respectively. He went around and the two albums got signed. Then it was photos. I gave my camera to my mum and prepared to dive in between other people trying to get one. In I went, and asked if we could have our photo taken. "Sure" and an arm around me was the response. The moment was a blur, I vaguely remember him saying something along the lines of "look at that... classic pose", not knowing if he was talking about me or not because I had to keep looking at the camera. The photo was snapped, I walked over to my mum to have a look at how it turned out... and it was blurry, not clear at all! I knew why it happened, my mum hadn't given the camera enough time to focus (it's a bit finicky, see). I didn't get the chance for another picture, he finished with everyone quickly and said goodbye... ...But alas, I returned the next night. 1:20am, and Chris walked up the ramp with Kelly. I was a bit more nervous this time, and I shouldn't have been - he's a kind person, polite, humble and softly-spoken. Again, he did autographs first and I got my Sound Relief wristband signed. Chris announced he'd do photos with whomever stepped forward. Now, I'd gone over with my mum how to properly use the camera several times, so I expected result. We posed, the camera snapped. The result was once again, blurred. I gave my mum a quick reprimanding line and decided to try and get a second attempt. I walked up to him and explained my predicament - none of the photos worked, could we try taking another one? He happily obliged, and the picture was taken. He watched me check the camera, and I was disappointed. Blurry again, and given another second or two, the camera would have focused and the picture fine! I turned to him, saying it didn't work. He said he'd remember it, and announced he had to go. After saying our goodbyes, he walked past Acer by himself and seemingly disappeared. I trudged back to the car, not really fretting as much as my mum was that the pictures didn't work. One of the people on Coldplaying had snapped a clear one of us together when I was getting my Sound Relief wristband signed, so I didn't fuss and don't still. I did have some of the greatest experiences I've had yet from the 5th and the weekend of the 14th and 15th of March. Butterfly confetti, the Rod Laver wristbands, The Age Sound Relief souvenir edition, the two Sound Relief wristbands (one signed), my Sound Relief ticket and signed copies of their latest two CDs now form the top layers of my Coldplay 2008-2009 Time Capsule, but it's not complete yet. The only physical thing it's really missing is a copy of their live album LeftRightLeftRightLeft... but I'm sure that'll be another experience in itself. Viva La Coldplay.

Cobalt Late Entry 13) Cobalt. Part 1 Saturday the 22nd of November, 2008. The news I had been waiting for all year since the arrival of the album Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends had arrived on coldplay.com. My favourite band, Coldplay, announced their tour for Australia that morning. It included three dates for my lovely city of Melbourne: March the 3rd, 4th and 5th. I was ecstatic. My best friend and I had promised each other we would both go to our favourite bands' concerts, mine being Coldplay, hers being Green Day. Unfortunately, I got a call a few days later... she wasn't going to be able to make it! What was I going to do? I asked around. In the end I was forced to drag my non-Coldplay fan sister along to use up the second ticket. My dad would pay for the tickets, drop us off at Rod Laver Arena (the venue) and pick us up once the show was over. I wasn't allowed to go by myself at 15. I wasn't too pleased, but happy to be going anyway. The tickets went on sale at 9am on the 4th of December. I had my fingers crossed hoping that the powers that be were with me that day and we got the tickets. A phone call from my dad a while later confirmed - score! We had gotten a pair of General Admission tickets. The tickets arrived, and on Christmas Day I was finally allowed to see them. I ripped open the envelope expecting my Christmas card and opened it, only to have a ticket fall on my lap. A smile spread across my face as I read it. Coldplay, 5th of March, Rod Laver Arena... a fan's giddiness and glee occupied me for many days. The day of the concert couldn't come fast enough. But it did, and soon the 5th of March was upon me. It was concert time. Off we went! My sister and I were dropped off at the arena at around the time the gates were opened. We were able to walk straight in. We walked around, looking for our gate. After getting our tickets swapped for the General Admission wristbands, we waited for the doors to open. Eventually, they did, and we raced our way through the doors and down the stairs without aggravating security, whom were trying to get people to remain calm and walk. After finding our spot, I looked around and noticed something surprising. We were fourth row! I didn't expect that at all! After a period of time with more waiting, the first support act came on - Decoder Ring. I thought they were quite good, my sister thought they were weird. The second support act, Mercury Rev, didn't go down quite well with the audience. Their set was soon over and roadies set up the stage as music played. I overheard a girl near me chatting avidly about things that one could only be avidly chatting about if they frequently visited the fansite I was a part of, Coldplaying.com. I wondered if she was the other user that had been going that night, but was too shy to pick up a line and chat. I suddenly stood a lot straighter when I heard a particular song - JayZ's 99 Problems. I knew, from American concerts I had read about on Coldplaying, that 99 Problems and The Blue Danube were the last two songs played before the band came on. My excitement rose as everyone danced and clapped along to the last piece. Then, as it ended, the lights went down and a mighty roar came from the crowd around me. It was time. The sound of the start of the first song, Life in Technicolor, began. I could see four sparklers through the slightly opaque curtain in front of me and the shapes of the four men holding them. They started wandering to their places, and one in particular stepped forward. The silhouetted singer Chris Martin raised his sparkler to a loud cheer from the audience and many camera flashes. I and many of the crowd did not expect to see the band this close, but we were. Everyone danced along to the opener and a cheer followed. The concert had begun. "It was a long and dark december, from the rooftops I remember there was snow, white snow." The second-most successful single from the album, Violet Hill, played. Australians love rock and this song is no exception with a great singalong, the crowd knowing every word. Next up was one of my most loved songs by the boys (my affectionate term for them), Clocks. The lights were incredible! Blue and green lasers with the rest lighted red. Nothing else compared to it. Clocks turned into In My Place, a song famous on the Coldplaying community's fangirls for the "Ramp of Love" - the left ramp from the stage which Jonny Buckland, the band's guitarist walks down, and Chris bounds down after him. None the less this occurs towards the end of the song. Then, it's Coldplay's most well-known song that shot them to stardom - Yellow. The stage lights take on the song title's color and the crowd goes wild. Giant yellow balloons are dropped seemingly from nowhere and fall onto the mass of people, light showing that there's confetti inside. The balloons are bounced around in the audience and onto the stage, making for a magnificent sight. One cheeky fellow near me had pulled out a pen and was attempting to pop as many as he could. I caught some yellow confetti and stuffed it in the handbag I had with me, for a memento of this wonderful singalong and highlight of the evening. A less well-known song was next, Cemeteries of London, one of my favourites from the new album. The lights turn a rich dark blue, green lasers fly and orbs displaying colorful images drop from the ceiling. Everyone claps along to the beat. The song played after Cemeteries was new to everyone else, but I knew it, and looking to my left, that girl I thought was from Coldplaying knew it too - Glass of Water, from their EP released just four months prior to the gig, Prospekt's March. I know every word and sing and dance along to another of my more beloved tracks. "Live your whole life living... in the past. Going nowhere fast!" Glass of Water ends and the lighting darkens, except from a spotlight on Chris playing the piano and images of him playing on the screen behind him. The song 42 begins. The second part of the song begins, and piano becomes guitars and rock. The crowd dance along with orange and white lights, the song clearly going down a treat. Lyrics are sung about the supernatural and Chris returns to his piano to finish the last part of the song. The organ sounding chords of Fix You begin and everyone cheers. Fix You is a special song for many, interpreted in many ways - some for the deceased, some for relatives, others for friends and others for lovers, and it's met with great reception. This is probably the only live performance I've gotten teary at. After the last chorus, Chris swings the microphone to the audience to sing the last lines. He starts to join in, but instead smiles and encourages the audience, afterwards indicating everyone's singing was ace. Strawberry Swing is the next song. It's groovy and has people clapping and dancing along to themes of an idyllic sunny day spent with someone special. The lights turn a purplish-pink and the lights slowly swing to lower one side and then the other. When finished, Chris notes that the song was written in Melbourne and the crowd cheers. The boys move down the right-sided ramp onto a lit-up stage nearby. God Put A Smile Upon Your Face, a track from the band's acclaimed second album A Rush Of Blood To The Head, is played here, but not in its normal format - it's an 80's techno version that has people clapping along to the bass drum. The song skillfully flows into a techno version of Talk, although I would have honestly perferred it played as it is on the album as I adore the full piece to pieces. I'm just glad it gets played though so I can sing along to some of my favourite Martin lyrics. "I've been trying hard to reach you but I don't know what to do, and I want to talk to you..." An underrated song with a riff from the genius Kraftwerk. Following these two songs, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer Will Champion and Jonny seem to disappear from the little stage. Chris announced he enjoyed his birthday here in Melbourne,and shifts around in embarassment when his audience sings Happy Birthday to him, much to everyone's amusement. He explained that English people get quite embarassed at those sort of things, but I blame it on him just being Chris. He then played a short piano piece titled Postcards From Far Away. I noticed it wasn't just him playing - turned around - Jonny was playing along on his guitar too, his work complimenting Chris'. Chris moved back to the main stage and then began the biggest singalong of the night. Viva La Vida was Coldplay's hit single of 2008. Everyone knew this song. It was performed at the Grammys and it was performed here. It never fails to get a huge crowd reacting it seems and March the 5th was certainly no exception. Many were on their feet and bouncing along to a song speaking of a king fallen from grace. An excellent performance, the crowd refused at the end to give up their singing of one of the song's most pivotal points: 'whoaa-ohh, whoaa-oh'. Lost! was played next. People sang along and others were suprised by the booming beat of the song. Chris bounded about from one side of the stage to the next, down one ramp and up another, making sure none were forgotten. After this, the boys seemed to disappear. After a moment of confusion, looking around and chants of 'Coldplay!', they reappeared on a stage near the back of the arena - commonly referred to as the nosebleed section. Picking up their acoustic instruments, they played their 2005 hit song Speed of Sound, a cover of The Monkee's I'm A Believer and a song sung by drummer Will called Death Will Never Conquer (all three met with good reception). Chris then urged everyone to take out their cell phones for a remix of Viva La Vida. Everyone did. The view was stunning - hundreds and thousands of lights moving and bouncing around inside the dark arena. I unfortunately couldn't find mine in the deep mysterious depths of my handbag, but if you can't join in, enjoy the scenery. It's a highlight. Thumping chords were played and the strong rhythm of the encore and the song Politik began. Politik, the opening track of A Rush Of Blood To The Head, is my favourite song played live and a great opportunity for some moshing. After Politik was Lovers In Japan. Romantic images filled the back screen and confetti butterflies streamed out onto everyone. I tried to grab some, knowing that they would be a memorable souvenir to have. At first they were crepe-paper butterflies and then they were neon-colored. Everyone was in awe of so many of them falling through the air and onto their heads. It was a simpler set up for what was seemingly the last song, Death And All His Friends, and the band bowed and left the stage. But not for long! The people's faithful chants had earned them an encore, beginning with The Scientist, a rather haunting song, slow and enchanting. The lights darkened for Life in Technicolor ii, and another chant of the famed 'whoahh, whoahh'. The back screen lit up with a painting of the word 'viva' and The Escapist played, my favourite off the newest album. The boys took their final bow, everyone clapping and cheering. I was sad that it was their last song but all good things must come to an end. They left the stage and it was done. Many things happened because of that night. I learned to get more drinks in me and not eat salty food beforehand to avoid dehydration (I fell quite sick from it afterwards). My suspicions that the other girl was a fellow Coldplaying member was correct and confirmed online - next time I'll have a chat. My sister became a fan and loved the gig, go Coldplay! My dad asked me if it was worth getting sick afterwards. I responded, grinning: "Yeah, definitely." But I was still excited. It wasn't over... not just yet!

I don't believe you've asked to submit a late entry yet. You may have sent a lot of PM's but there's no questions in there.

the start of the shops are 5 mins walk from the station :) There's Urbis, the museum of the city (all cities around the world, not just Manchester). I think most of its free, I can't remember. that's nearer Victoria station, but still only about 15 mins walk from Piccadilly. and that's as far as I get off the top of my head so far!! :laugh3: