The Brit Boys are Big But Are They Getting Bored?
The reviews from Coldplay’s current North American tour have been mixed — by both critics and fans. People who attended the band’s Viva La Vida July 22 tour stop in Chicago said the sound was amazing and that it was one of the best live shows they’d ever seen. Expectations were high for last night’s show, and the sold-out crowd screamed every time Chris Martin said anything into the mic — even when being goofy and cheeky while saying some canned lines he likely says at every show.
The band came out strong, walking out to the instrumental “Life in Technicolor” and then launching into a rousing version of “Violet Hill,” which led to “Clocks,” where the band and audience were swathed in red light and penetrated with multi-colored lasers. They played possibly every track off the new album — “Strawberry Swing” was a personal highlight — but where were the songs from the first three releases? For a show that ran nearly two hours, the band played more of a blend of greatest hits: “Yellow,” “In My Place,” “Fix You” (which, in true Coldplay grandiose style, was layered and beautiful), “God Put a Smile Upon Your Face” (a cool remix version that was played on a small stage that jutted out into the crowd), “The Scientist” and “Politik,” which again proved the band can fill a stadium with their now larger-than-life presence. A high point came when Martin announced they were filming a video for “Lost,” which the band ran through twice — apparently something they did last night as well. The second run through was definitely tighter and more on point.
However, it would’ve been nice to hear more of a blend from all four albums (where the hell was “Talk” and “Everything’s Not Lost”?) and at some points, it felt like Coldplay was phoning in the performance. “Speed of Sound” didn’t have the energy of shows past. At times, Guy Berrymore — who couldn’t be bothered for some reason to return to the stage for the surprise encore of “Green Eyes,” despite Martin calling out for his longtime mate and carrying on anyway — looked like he’d rather be elsewhere. Same with Jonny Buckland. If Will Champion hadn’t been such a rhythmic bruiser on the drum kit, he too, may have wanted to meet up with friends at a bar instead of being on stage. To that end, the nice thing about Coldplay is that, for the most part, they seem like they enjoy each others’ company and like playing with each other — not an easy task for a major act on a worldwide tour. And this isn’t to say the show wasn’t fun, because it was. And they sounded great. But it would’ve been nice to hear them sound great on a wider variety of tunes. Hopefully they’ll mix it up for the rest of the tour.
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As a concert-minded songwriter, one of Chris Martin’s best moves was to name his biggest hits after colors — or colours, as he might say. Just ask the 11,000 strong at last night’s Coldplay show, who over the course of the night heard hits of a vivid trajectory: the early highlight was “Violet Hill,” sans the thirty seconds of white noise that precedes it on new disc Viva La Vida; the ultimate peak was a singalong version of “Yellow,” the sole concert cut from debut disc Parachutes; and the show ended with an acoustic take on “Green Eyes” from the excellent Rush of Blood to the Head LP. Even if you don’t particularly care for these tunes, they sure make sense in the midst of a lights show — which sure makes sense to do in an arena. Coldplay’s entire set, in fact, could be summed up as songs that made sense.
The four-piece Londoner ensemble, of course, is making more than a few cents off their latest album: Viva has sold 5 million copies in a month, and the accompanying tour is selling so well that bigger cities — Chicago included — are being treated to two nights of performance. I caught Coldplay’s second Windy City set, which Chris Martin promised was better than the first. And after two encores, two album-length takes on new single “Lost!” and two full hours of music, I can’t call him a liar.
Essentially, Coldplay excels at being recognizable. Their concert was the first where I knew every single song, even the deep cuts from the new disc — “Death And All His Friends”; a rollicking, pitch-perfect “42? — and the old ones cloaked in electronica and drum machine reverb — “God Put A Smile Upon Your Face,” from Rush of Blood. Outside of that, two songs tested unfamiliar waters: a traditional folk tune sung by drummer Will Champion and a two-minute take on “The Dubliners,” a new ditty that approximates an Irish drinking tune. The set was otherwise infectious, from a rousing rendition of “In My Place” (with crowd-sung “yeah”s) to a laser-assisted romp through the concert stock of “Clocks” (improvised harmonies included). And the decision to only play singles from X & Y — that’s the wide-eyed balladry of “Fix You” and the contemplative piano pop of “Speed of Sound” — was a wise one, as too much mediocrity would have chipped away the artistic armor of Coldplay’s new material.
That said, two brand new songs provided the night’s lowlights. The first was “Yes,” which was overly-reliant on synchronized stereo strings and plagued by Chris Martin’s ultimately-too-weak lower register. Then came the aforementioned double-take on “Lost!,” whose central organ riff was overwhelmed by an attempt to accurately approximate the song’s jungle-thump beat. (The band played two takes because they’re filming concert footage for the song’s upcoming promo video, but one good rendition in lieu of two formulaic attempts — both dependent on Martin’s anti-rock-god flagellantism — would have been better.)
Blunders aside, however, the show was an exercise in slightly exceeding expectations — which is more than enough from a band who tires of playing their material well after you tire of hearing it. Throughout the set, six giant orbs projected images of the band members high above the stage, and an arching video screen flashed images congruent to their simultaneous song: Bush clips during a soulful and more-relevant-by-the-day “Politik”; Eastern imagery throughout “Lovers in Japan”; even psychadelic fruit displays on “Strawberry Swing.” Then there was Chris, as self-deprecating as ever, who despite fame and fortune seems convinced he could lose it all as quickly as it came. But that’s the science of Coldplay, the science outlined in the lyrics of “Lost!”: “You might be a big fish…[but] along may come a bigger one.” The band’s just big fish for now, but that’ll do for a sea of people on a given night in Chicago.
. Anyway Chris and Will performed Green Eyes.
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