I apologize for the lateness of this review, but I decided that Jay should write it instead of me as I was mostly concerned about the deafness of my baby during the show as opposed to all the details Jay was paying attention to. Besides, he is an excellent writer. So here you go. In the words of Jay:
Coldplay Concert Review 11/13/08 - Sprint Center, Kansas City, MO
Most of us go to concerts for the entertainment value. I am no exception, but the parts of the show that entertain me are not necessarily those that entertain others. I am interested in seeing how large the sound board is, the scale of the production, lighting trusses, special effects, outfits, the number of wardrobe changes, stage plot, in-ears or floor monitors, song transitions, stage presence, musicality, dynamics and so on.
But the thing I look forward to most is discovering what song has been given the hallowed role of opener. In fact I typically play a game with myself in guessing what song gets the leading spot. Having played in bands for years, I’ve taken part in my share of set list discussions that typically revolve around three to four central questions; not the least of which is “What song do we start with?” So as you can imagine I like to try and apply my experiences in this endeavor and predict what other bands may do in like circumstances. When I saw Chris Tomlin, I guessed right. However, when I saw Radiohead, I was off the board. Typically the more artistic and more successful the band, the less predictable the song opener. At this point you are begging me to move on. I thought this was about a Coldplay concert!? It is.
I put a lot of thought into Coldplay’s opening song. I knew it had to be from their newest album, Viva La Vida. Rule of thumb is to start with a well-known, high-energy number but as I said before, curve balls are more commonly thrown by mega-bands. Prior to the start of the show, I had 4 guesses; Life in Technicolor, Lost, Lovers in Japan or Viva La Vida. The most energetic of those is Viva La Vida. However, I quickly cast that choice aside because that’s the hit single. It’s extremely rare for a band to lead with the hit single. I dismissed Lost. It just doesn’t seem like an opener. So then we are left with Life in Technicolor or Lovers in Japan. I thought either could be a possibility. Life in Technicolor has an intro that is way too long for opener status, but it occurred to me that if the band omitted the synth intro, we might have something.
In fact that was what they did. They skipped the introduction and began the song melody for roughly 30 seconds before the band came in at full strength. The bold light show commenced when the drums kicked in. As soon as Life was over, lights went black and Chris Martin immediately began verse one of Violet Hill. If you’ve not heard this song, you’re missing out. Adjectives abound. Marching groove, dynamic, colorful, textured, dirty, but most envious of all, enough attitude to fill an arena and have some left over. The eight quarter note diamonds that follow each chorus were brilliantly and appropriately accented with explosions of light. At the conclusion of this song, I was happy to have made the trip and looked forward to rest of the night. Judging from the crowd’s response, I was not alone.
The set list was thoughtfully crafted. Bands tend to play their highest card on the first hand. They start with a huge song, bright lights, painful volume and intense energy. As the concert progresses, it never reaches the same height the band had at note one. The coaster drops and rides flat for the remainder.
The Coldplay concert was not that way. In fact the band was very deliberate about managing momentum and tempering the use of non-musical production tricks so that the show more resembled hills on top of a plateau. The technological apex was not reached until the fourth song. Large white, semi-translucent balls descended from the rafters all over the center of the arena to varying heights. En route, colorful graphics were projected on the balls resembling enormous Christmas ornaments. The cool thing was the projection seemed to be coming from inside the ball. Moments later, a live video feed from stage cameras was displayed on the surfaces of these rotating balls.
The video was so precise and “distressed” that I presumed it was pre-recorded. I began to look for clues that may confirm my suspicions. I looked for discrepancies in wardrobe, movement, and background. It all matched perfectly. So much so that I don’t believe there was any possible way it was pre-recorded. So then my attention turned to just how they were applying video filters to live video feed in a way that looked so appropriate for the angle being shot and the musical moment. That was the single most impressive element of the “show”.
The concert also had notable congruence with the band’s marketing machine that pre-dated the concert. Several weeks prior to the start of the tour, the band released a video for Lovers in Japan. Many of the same props and outfits that were utilized in the video showed up on stage. The color palette of the outfits, props and lighting was in parallel to what you find in album artwork and the band web site. I appreciated the fact that this was noticeable but not overbearing.
The highlight of the evening came unexpectedly as Chris was finishing a piano ballad on one of the two auxiliary stages set up around the arena. A single, small, bright spot light lit up Chris and his piano. The arena was dark otherwise. Unknown to the crowd, the rest of the band had taken their positions at center stage in total darkness awaiting the completion of Chris’s vocal / piano duet. As he concluded the song, the small light faded slowly. Applause filled the darkness but was violently interrupted with the smashing start of Viva La Vida. All lights were full bore. Confetti exploded everywhere. The crowd was energized anew.
The drummer had left his typical spot behind the drum kit and was standing at center stage, playing a timpani, a large bell and what appeared to be a marching bass drum. He also was picking up the opening vocals. Very cool.
When all was said and done, I appreciated the attention to visual detail and the way the band managed momentum and crowd energy. Just when your mind was starting to wander, they would move to an auxiliary stage, alter the light show, use techno tricks, etc. Unexpectedly there were moments of sloppy instrumentation, which I attribute mainly to Captain Morgan. I was also a bit surprised at the amount of dead air between songs, but I suspect Coldplay was intentional about that detail as well. As the night ended, I found myself very pleased. The concert was clean and the band did what we paid to see them do. Money well spent and I hope to see you at a future Coldplay concert. Oh and as to the question, “What song did they end with?” Yellow. Naturally.
This was our project for yesterday...one that's been in the making for several years! I bought a few of these lanterns years ago and have been carrying them around ever since waiting for the perfect place to hang them. We finally found it! I painted a gold box on the wall above our new dresser (see previous blog). Then Jay took a leftover piece of wood from the bench/dresser, screwed it to the wall, inserted dowels, and hung the lanterns. I wanted it to have a bazaar feel and that's exactly the way it turned out. Initially I wanted to hang them over the bed, but Jay was afraid of dying in the middle of the night, a legitimate concern! But I'm very happy that we chose this spot instead. Eventually, when the room is completely finished, I'll take pictures all the way around with a real camera. These pics were taken with an iphone, so not that great.
