10 August 2002: 930 Club, Washington DC, USA
From WikiColdplay
Setlist
- Politik
- Shiver
- Spies
- Daylight
- Trouble
- Everything’s Not Lost
- Don’t Panic
- God Put A Smile Upon Your Face
- See You Soon
- Yellow
- The Scientist
Encore - Clocks
- In My Place
- Life Is For Living
Reviews
I wasn't sure what to expect from this show. I had seen the band once before at HFStival in 2001 and was impressed by their short set. I was looking forward to seeing them in a more intimate setting.
The 9:30 club is a great venue - the acoustics are really good. My friend Ryan (who made the trip all the way from Jacksonville, FL) and I (made the trek from Richmond) arrived around 6.00pm - the line was already 40 deep or so by the time we got there. I wasn't looking forward to the 3 hour wait before the doors opened but we seemed to kill the time pretty fast chatting with fellow fans - 2 in particular from Philly, Andy & Christina.
Doors opened at 9.00pm and we ended up in the second row of people standing!! The stage was only about 4 or 5 feet away from us. The opening act was a film entitled "1 Giant Leap" about some of Coldplay's and other artists' social causes. Great Soundtrack.
During the film some 6'5" jackass (not to mention extremely drunk) and his girlfriend thought it would be fun to try and push their way to the front of the crowd. Those of us who had been there for 4 hours were not going to let that happen - so all the people in the front banded against him, I actually think Ryan was the first one who spoke up. I was so impressed - its very unlike Ryan to be confrontational and honestly I was a little scared because the annoying guy was pretty large and I didn't want there to be a scene. Then some yelled "Show of hands for everyone who wants this guy to leave" of course most of the front crowd raised their hands so he was a little outnumbered and peacefully walked away. Everyone then proceded to clap.
On with the show...
The set opened with Politik. This song was supercharged - Chris was pounding the piano keys and these awesome red lights were flashing with the music... great song to start the show with.
After that came old favorites Shiver and Spies which the crowd sang along with. Daylight followed. Next were more tunes from Parachutes (Trouble, Everything's Not Lost, Don't Panic) and then "God Put a Smile Upon Your Face", a rockin' tune from the upcoming album.
Next Andy (from Philly) yelled out a request for See You Soon and Chris stopped and said "That is the first time anyone has requested the song we're about to play" and he proceded with the song after shushing the audience (its a quiet song that you hold your girl to you know).
Afterwards was Yellow accompanied by yellow dancing lights. They ended the set with by far my new favorite song, "The Scientist". Its such an amazing song - the lyrics are thoughtful and the piano with it is almost haunting - somewhere in the song the guitar, bass, and drums join in and it is bliss! I just stood and listened to it in awe.
But that wasn't the end... we were treated to not 1 but 2 ENCORES!!
Encore #1 broke out with "Clocks", another great track from the new album followed by "In My Place" and some crazy stage antics from Chris. Halfway through the song he climbed up on the amp and jumped down onto the stage. Everyone was clapping and laughing it was great!
The crowd just kept yelling and clapping so the guys came out for yet another Encore.
Only 1 song this time which Chris called the "loudest song they had ever written" - I think its called 1:36 - the crowd was very into it.
But alas, all good things must come to an end. What a great show! I love the band's energy and the way they feed off the crowd. Everything about the show was amazing... the venue, the music, even the lights were really cool. Can't wait for the new album...
~Leslie Flahart
It started with waiting a few hours in line just to get a good position to see the band.
Ends up, we were in just the right spot because my friend and I ended up in the second row, right in front of the mic stand, behind two fairly short girls.
The DVD ("opening act") wasn't too bad, but it would have been nice to see a band perform. That was the only thing I would have changed about the entire show. From then on, things kept getting better and better.
As my friend and I waited for the band, a group of several people including a very tall 6 foot+ drunk man cut through all of the people in the front and tried to stand there. The great thing was, the fans weren't going to let this fly. I've been to several general admissions concerts, and I've never seen anything like this. People were telling him to leave depsite the fact that he could have beat the crap out of most of us. The issue was finally solved with a count of hands indicating that the drunk gentleman should leave. His departure was followed by roaring applause...absolutely hilarious.
From this point on, it was nervous anxiety waiting for the band to come out. The lights went dark, and the moment we had all been waiting for finally arrived. With pounding cymbals and bass drums and banging piano and flashing lights, the band appeared, almost scaring the audience with the moving power of Politik. Truly an incredible song; the picture I've included with this shows perfectly how perfect this song was for an opener.
Next came Shiver, and it was perfect. I was in awe the whole time, and right when the band began to play Spies, the manager on duty of the 930 club came to take my camera because it was digital :(
I was so preoccupied worrying about my camera and the pictures I had taken that I had a hard time concentrating on the rest of the show.
They played several more great songs Daylight, The One I Love, Yellow, Trouble, See You Soon, God Put a Smile Upon your Face, Don't Panic, The Scientist, Everything's Not Lost. All those songs were in there somewhere.
Some of the highlights of the show were when Chris forgot to start singing in Trouble because he was "thinking about his best friend" and when some guy yelled out during See You Soon, and Chris stopped playing and scolded him for hollering. These events showed off the band's sense of humor.
Then came the first encore: Clocks, In My Place, Life is for Living, leaving the fans wanting much more. The highlight of the show came before Chris started singing In My Place. He had been using a towel to wipe the sweat of his head throughout the whole show. Before In My Place, he wore this towel on his head for a few seconds before throwing it right into my hands. What a souvenir. At this point I had compeletely forgotten about the camera I was preoccupied with.
Persistent cheering resulted in a second encore and an explanation from Chris saying "This is the loudest thing we've got. We've never played it live before and we probably never ever will again." The song they played has been called 1:36, and it was loud.
In the end the band ran off the stage with one of the guitars tipping over causing feedback... it was awesome.
I call it the best concert I've ever been to.
~Ryan
Let me tell you the story of the most sought after concert I have ever attended.
Coldplay, with the success of Parachutes, and the high anticipation of their next full length release, A Rush of Blood to the Head, made their August 10th show at the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, a must-see.
Within minutes of releasing tickets for sale, the show sold out, leavinghundreds of eager fans, including me, without a ticket. But thank god for Capitol Records! It turns out that I entered a contest on the Coldplay website and won two FREE tickets to the show! I was blown away!
So now down to the show itself. Being that the gig was sold out I decided togo a little early, about an hour and fifteen minutes early actually. I shouldn't have been surprised but when I arrived the line had already gone backdozens of people (not to mention the amount of people pacing around looking for extra tickets). So I just took my place in line and waited. They finally let us in the club at around 9 PM. I raced to the floor and stood myself as close as I could, which turned out to be third row center.
The opener was a film from "One Giant Leap," an activist program which includedartists such as Bono and Michael Stipe from R.E.M. Running about 45 minutes in length, it ended at about 10:40 PM, and then the preparations for Coldplay began. At 11 PM, they took the stage. Although hidden by darkness, the crowd could vaguely see the band head out onstage and take their places. When suddenly, cymbals crashed and lights flashed for the spirited opener, "Politik." I had heard this song before, but I had never heard it like this. Chris's voice carried incredibly through the venue during the chorus singing, "Open up your eyes." The intensity didn't stop with the song. The band moved quickly into "Shiver," with a dozen red lights glowing and Chris moving about the stage fullof energy, his falsetto melodies never missing their mark. "Spies," also off Parachutes, serenely settled the crowd but still kept their eyes fixed to the stage. A new song followed, although I am not positive of which one it was, I think it was, "Daylight." I especially loved this song because the guitar and piano worked so well together.
Then finally, after blowing the roof off the place,they paused for a few to interact with the audience. "This is when we're like the Eagles," Chris said. "We go back to playing our own songs." He stepped up to the piano and played the first few notes of, "Trouble," and the crowd burst into applause. Almost immediately upon singing the first word, they stopped, realizing that they'd messed up their timing.
Chris saved himself, though still a little embarrassed, by saying, "I guess we're not like the Eagles, we can't even play our own songs right." They finished the rest of the song with grace and he again apologized for the mess up. Soon after came my favorite song, and the highlight of the night for me, which of course was when they played, "Everything's Not Lost." Much longer than the recorded version, the band extended the song to include an audience sing-along, guided by Chris and Will, the drummer. One of the oldest, and most crowd-pleasing songs played was, "Don't Panic," which sounded amazing with everyone singing along, "We live in a beautiful world." Chris then signaled over to Jon, the guitarist, who pulled out a harmonica and played a nice little riff for the crowd.
Another new one, "God Put a Smile Upon Your Face," was also a gem. It began with Chris on acoustic guitar swaying and moving to the riff he was playing, and then erupted into drums, bass and one of my favorite guitar riffs from Jon. And while the club was stable during the verses, the chorus ignited the lighting into a frantic flashing, much like it was for "Politik." Another important moment of the show was Chris' solo work on "See You Soon." For about a minute he played this beautifully orchestrated guitar piece, but right before he moved into the vocals, some fuck hollered. "Don't holler."
Chris told the jerkass after being interrupted, but still in a playful mood. He continued through the song and totally blew away myself and I'm sure the rest of the attendees as well.
Towards the end of the set, "Yellow" pleased the audience with yellow flashing lights, perfect melodies, and Chris' energetic onstage movement. Then it was, "Scientist," a song I'm really looking forward to owning, and then they were off. But that wasn't enough for Washington, D.C.
The guys came back on after a couple of minutes and played, "Clocks," a wonderfully written piano piece from their upcoming album. But it was "In My Place" that really got the crowd in a stir. Chris, stripped of any instrument, was therefore stripped of his self-control and was seen climbing the balcony of the club, nearly hurting himself on the way down. They left but were not done, a SECOND encore ensued and the boys played a tune they say to have never played live before. It was the hardest and fastest song I'd ever heard them play, and I'm sad to say I don't know what the name of it is. And that was it. The audience left the club still enthralled by the amount of talent, energy, and presence these four Brits brought. This being my first Coldplay show, I can definitely say it's the best I've seen them, and also one of the best live shows I have ever seen.
- Jon Greenert
