THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
The Telegraph recently wrote a headline saying, “Why ‘uncool band’ Coldplay are the best live band in the world right now”. And the paper’s James Hall said, “The concerts are cementing Coldplay’s status as the best live band in the world. In a fickle music industry that has been hollowed out by the streaming industry and in which success can disappear overnight, it might seem surprising that four gawky former students are perched at the top branch of the global music tree. But their shows have become must- see events. The band has tapped into something that is all too rare in this digital age: a sense of togetherness, joy and bonhomie.” Rolling Stone agreed, stating that Coldplay live in London were ”a dazzling stadium spectacle”.
The band’s Music of the Spheres is already the most attended concert tour in history according to Guinness World Records. It has a planned 225 shows, entertaining 12.3 million people and earning $1.38 billion already – I saw the 219th show. A special team of technicians was hired to develop new strategies to reduce CO2 emissions over the two year tour. Exercise bikes and a ‘jumping platform’ are available at every venue for fans to use to create energy for the tour. But it hasn’t been smooth sailing for the band. As I write, they announced that two of their record-setting 10 dates at Wembley (Taylor Swift previously had the record at 8 during her Eras tour) have been postponed due to tube strikes in London, leaving fans fuming. And don’t forget the cheating Astronomer CEO Andy Byron who was caught on the Jumbotron cavorting with an HR executive at a Coldplay show in Boston, sparking global headlines. “It was a humiliating 6 weeks,” admitted the band. (Incidentally, Gwyneth Paltrow came to her ex-husband Chris Martin’s rescue by doing a promotional video for Astronomer, saving Coldplay from possible legal ramifications.) Also Martin has recently had the very public breakup with his partner of 8 years, the beautiful actress Dakota Johnson, all over the tabloids. Coldplay has had quite a summer. As I headed to Wembley, there was a sense that anything could happen!
I was never really a Coldplay fan in their early years. The ‘Trouble’ video, with Chris Martin tied up as a hostage with a shaved head, seemed strange and morose. There was also the car crash video for ‘The Scientist’ with Chris Martin walking backwards, weirdly mouthing the words of the song on a rainy beach, ‘Odd’ I thought, and the music sounded melancholy as well.
A critic once said that Coldplay was for ‘bed wetters’ – that seemed harsh. This was the time the band was new and young, just out of University College London, (my son’s Alma mater) and the critics were having their say. But that was before their breakthrough album Viva La Vida, when the music turned upbeat and celebratory. The band was colorful and playful and thrilled the audience at the 50th Super Bowl in California along with Beyoncé and Bruno Mars. Chris Martin, although not a dancer, stole the show. Martin then married Paltrow, had two kids and wore cool and multicolored clothes. I once saw him pushing his baby daughter, Apple in a pram outside our door in London – Gwyneth was presumably shopping on nearby Elizabeth Street. He looked me straight in the eye and said ‘Good morning’. I became a lifelong fan at that moment!
‘Viva la Vida’ was my late husband’s song of choice while doing a modest strip tease (only waist up) on our balcony. His moves were unique and he punched the air with glee while singing ‘I used to rule the world…’ No one can resist singing along and getting that warm and happy feeling while listening to the Coldplay track.
When I heard they would be in London at the end of the summer, I had to see the spectacle for myself. I purchased tickets ‘in the mosh pit’ (I had never been without a seat at a concert but they were the only tickets available for the last summer date at Wembley.) I wanted to to see if the band was still standing after all their summer drama, and what mood the lead singer was in.
Upon arrival, we received an LED wristband and (for me a first) a festival-like wristband for the ‘floor’ area in bright blue and yellow, plus plastic glasses for – mysteriously – ‘later in the show’.
My son and I entered the Wembley pitch in time to see the excellent warm up artist, Beabadoobee. Staying firmly away from the ‘kiss cam’ Jumbotron, we tried to find the best position among the throng of fans. Sadly, those had been taken several hours earlier, so we settled in the middle of the arena floor just right of the music control center tent (where all the lights, sound and monitors are manned by technicians.)
The cameras followed the band as they came through the bowels of the arena and walked along the venue, shaking hands and patting backs with security and fans before climbing onto the stage. A lovely touch as most bands just appear behind the curtain! Luckily, there was an opening in the tent where we could see Chris Martin (with a full, bushy head of hair – he later commented in the show that he was in danger of looking like the fictional character ‘Napoleon Dynamite’ and needed a trim) on the runway, but mainly we relied on the giant screens.
There is no better frontman than Martin. A mixture of self-effacement, sincerity and swagger, he brings astonishing intimacy to a vast stadium of 90,000 people. He was joined by the remaining three members of Coldplay – Jonny Buckland, Will Champion and Guy Berryman. The foursome have firmly stuck closely together ever since their UCL days. During the show, Martin read out signs held up by fans and effusively thanked everyone for going through all the ‘shenanigans and headaches’ to get to their show.
The concert opened with ‘Higher Power,’ one of the bounciest, most feel good songs in their repertoire with the wonderful line, ‘Happy I’m alive at the same time as you’. The first 45 minutes contained hit after hit in a flurry of giant balls floating around, exploding cannons of confetti, pyrotechnics on the stage and fireworks in the sky. All the while, the audience’s LED wristbands flashed and turned the venue into a pulsating sea of color. Even the stadium’s iconic arch was lit in rainbow colors. The hits were fast and furious, almost hard to appreciate fully as there was no slow song to cool off before being pumped up for another mega hit. I was already buzzing, and the young ladies behind me were ‘live streaming’ and often bumped into me, pulled my hair or had me in their shot. ‘The Scientist’ acted as a tearjerker four songs in as Martin took to his stand up piano, followed by ‘Viva La Vida!’, joined by another support act, Gustavo Dudamel‘s Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela,
Martin changed his ‘chest clinging’ tee shirts often. “The sleeves on his shirts are so small and the shirts are so tight” pointed out my observant son. It’s true, the physically fit Martin at one point, even pulled up his tight shirt while skipping across the stage exposing a toned torso. He first appeared in blue, then changed to pink with a heart, then one with the slogan ‘everyone is an alien somewhere’. They all were, in fact, a size or two too small for him, but looked great! Of course he had multiple colorful friendship bracelets on both wrists as well as multicolored running shoes. At one point he wrapped himself in a rainbow flag but that almost seemed redundant!
A song from their new album Moon Music, the introspective ‘We Pray’, was especially high energy with guests singers, Shone, Elaynna and Burna Boy, who added flamboyant theatrics to Martin’s ever-cheerful charisma.
Martin invited two audience members to sing ‘Magic’ with him. When he asked where the girls where from, they responded, “Israel”. Boos emitted from the crowd. Diplomatically, Martin said ‘We are so happy to have you here but let’s welcome those from Palestine as well.’ Peace was resumed.
During ‘The Scientist’ the audience chanted “Back to the start”, and the whole performance was rewound in fast motion on the screen after the song ended. Martin was presumably changing his tee shirt, and the band got ready for the ‘alien’ part of the show where they all appeared in large extraterrestrial masks. The only time Martin used an AR Track was when his head was engulfed in a huge blue alien contraption, otherwise his voice was live and pitch perfect throughout the show. One of the best parts of this sequence was when a burly and seemingly unaware security guard was picked by Martin to come onstage. At first he stood largely with his arms crossed and a stern expression. Martin put his huge ‘alien’ mask on the guard who didn’t flinch and continued to stand at attention. But with the energetic tempo from the song, ‘Something Just Like This’, the guard started to sway his hips and punch the air. This continued into a full and fabulous dance routine. It was clearly staged, but a surprise nonetheless. It made everyone smile seeing this large security man twerking in a blue alien mask clearly having the time of his life. The crowd loved it.
‘Clocks’ had Martin sitting at his upright piano – the song was paced faster than the recorded version and the lighting was dark green, with dark green halos circling the stage and sky. I love this song and think it has the most fabulous piano intro of any song ever written!
The whole of Wembley was then turned yellow by 90,000 LED wristbands as a precursor to the next song. It was an easy call to guess which song was coming next. The entire stadium sang every word to ‘Yellow’.
‘A Sky Full of Stars’ was especially poignant, as there was a stadium full of star colored wristbands. It was a stirring extravaganza of flashing lights and hands in the air, and Martin stopped the song and asked the audience to put their phones away; just to experience the moment and send love to those in the crowd, all accompanied by the explosion of fireworks. Tears were running down my face. “It’s such an honour for us that people from everywhere in the world can put aside their differences and join us on a Sunday night just to celebrate life and music,” said the frontman.
A grateful Martin thanked everyone – the band, the crew, “those who follow us around in cargo pants with tools attached to their belts”, security, the audience, the arena workers and even the tube drivers who “are creating a considerable headache for me right now but I’m sending them love anyway.” (The London Underground drivers were striking, causing the band to postpone 2 of their final shows.) He was especially grateful for the array of nationalities in the audience all celebrating the music together. ‘
The concert (we thought) ended with ‘feelslikeimfallinginlove’ from Moon Music, the LED wristbands shaping big hearts in the stands as well as finally giving the audience the cue to put on the mysterious ‘special glasses’ which made the every light and firework appear surrounded by a rainbow heart. A tremendous finale to an unforgettable night.
As we gingerly made our way through the floor crowd, Martin said, ‘We have one more song you can sing along karaoke style with us’. It was the fun and breezy ‘All My Love’. In the video, Martin donned a red, shaggy wig and carried red balloons around Karaoke bars in an ill-fitting suit, singing the song. He actually did this in real life for days while shooting the video, surprising onlookers who may or may not have recognized him.
As we exited into the night air, fireworks once again shot out of the arena into the London sky, illuminating the aptly multicolored Wembley arch.
