I was less than excited by Coldplay's Music of the Spheres album when it came out (and still feel the same - lots of filler, only one good tune: Higher Power) but we purchased the concert tickets before its release.
They cost a small fortune, £230 each (£242.10 after fees) for seats in the main stand opposite the stage but the cheaper, standing tickets were not an option as my wife would have had a Tuesday staff meeting after work (if she hadn't subsequently given up teaching), preventing us from arriving early enough to snag a good spot. When we saw Coldplay last time at Hampden, we'd bought the cheaper seats on the west side and we both agreed the view was less than satisfactory. Anyway, that's how I justified the expense. Plus some of the ticket money was going to charity (although Ticketmaster never asked us to tick a Gift Aid box).
The second support act, H.E.R, was more of a mystery to me. I'd streamed a few of her tracks and they did nothing for me so I wasn't expecting to enjoy her. Coming on with her musicians and posse of backing singers, she belted out the opening numbers and I got bored. It sounded like generic R&B to me. My wife even asked me if she was singing in a foreign language because we couldn't make out the words. A large proportion of the standing crowd were loving her performance though, singing along and waving their arms in unison. She just wasn't for me.
Until she pulled out her electric guitar.
Then the show rocked, and I mean, ROCKED. The whole stage dynamic came alive. Her cover version of Lenny Kravitz's Are You Gonna Go My Way? totally killed and she maintained the momentum until her time was up and she quickly ran off stage.
As the daylight faded, Coldplay took the stage, with pyros, fireworks, giant balloons, confetti bombs and glowing wristbands all being used to create a sensory overload to complement their music. My photos do not do justice to the overall effect but my videos (which do) have files too large for Blogger. Our seats were great for the forward B stage but we still needed to rely on the screen for the performances from the main, A stage. The C stage was miles away on our far right but the special guest was Edwyn Collins so no big loss.
They played most of the Spheres album, finishing on Biutyful (including a performance from the puppet from the video), so I was less satisfied overall with the show than my wife who thought it was the best outdoor show she had seen (I had to remind her we'd seen Queen and Adam Lambert outdoors). The older numbers were still great and stirred the whole crowd to sing along. Was it worth the cost? Probably not. Did I enjoy the show? Definitely yes.
Chris Martin is a unique performer. I kind of wonder if he operates on a different plane of existence, one where it's normal to sing to puppets and watch stars fall from the sky like confetti. He may not be living in the same world as us but his one seems a far nicer place. It was great to spend a couple of hours with him and the band, radiating love out into the world.
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(TAPE) Light Through the Veins (Jon Hopkins song) (sustainability video intro)
(TAPE) Flying Theme (John Williams song) (from "E.T.")
(TAPE) Music of the Spheres
Higher Power
Adventure of a Lifetime
Paradise
Charlie Brown
The Scientist (with excerpts of "Oceans" in intro, and backwards outro)
B-Stage
Viva la Vida
Hymn for the Weekend
Don't Panic (piano version)
A-Stage
Politik
In My Place
Yellow
(TAPE) Sunrise (with Louis Armstrong's spoken intro speech to "What a Wonderful World")
Human Heart
People of the Pride
Clocks
Infinity Sign (shortened; with excerpts of " Music of the Spheres II" and "Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall")
Something Just Like This (The Chainsmokers & Coldplay cover) (shortened; pre-recorded vocals with Chris performing in sign language + band wearing alien head)
B-Stage
Midnight (remix; contains elements of Lone's "Blue Moon Tree")
A-Stage
My Universe (Coldplay x BTS cover)
A Sky Full of Stars (restarted, asks audience to put phones away for this song - most do, but not all)
C-Stage
Sparks (with guest pedal steel guitarist Nicole Lawrence)
A Girl Like You (Edwyn Collins cover) (with Edwyn Collins) (with Nicole Lawrence)
A-Stage
Humankind
Fix You (with excerpts of "Midnight")
Biutyful
(TAPE) A Wave
