1 December 2008: NIA, Birmingham, UK
From WikiColdplay
Contents |
Setlist
- Life In Technicolor
- Violet Hill
- Clocks
- Yellow
- In My Place
- Speed Of Sound
- Chinese Sleep Chant
- 42
- Fix You
- Strawberry Swing
- God Put A Smile Upon Your Face (partial techno remix)
- Talk (partial techno remix)
- The Hardest Part (Chris solo piano)
- Postcards From Far Away (Chris solo piano)
- Viva La Vida
- Lost!
- Green Eyes (acoustic)
- Death Will Never Conquer (acoustic - Will lead vocals)
- Viva La Vida (remix interlude)
First Encore - Politik
- Lovers In Japan
- Death And All His Friends
Second Encore - The Scientist
- Life In Technicolor ii
- The Escapist (outro)
Photos
Photos from this show can be found at Coldplaying.com in the Gallery thread for Birmingham. http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/1557
Videos
Videos from this show can be found in the first post of the Coldplaying forum live thread for this show at http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=45468
Discussion
All post-show discussion for this show at the forum thread: http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=45468
Fan Reviews
All fan reviews have been submitted to us by the members of Coldplaying.com[1], unless stated otherwise.
Just got home. what a fantastic night. my first coldplay concert. Lights, sound and band were on top form. boy, can they rock...my ears are still ringing and my voice has gone from singing so much. chris was on top form and said he had been nervous about coming back to uk after so long away but that tonight he felt welcomed home by such a great response from us all...ive got to admit that the crowd really got into when they played Yellow early in the set instead of encore.....talking of encore...oh my god we got the sceinetist and...............................the world live premiere of Life in Technicolour ii.......wow it is great life...im just buzzing from the whole wexperience. Hard tp pick a favourite moment as it was all great, but personal highlights were Fix You, The Hardest Part, Politik and of course Life in Technicolour ii........brilliant. If you havent seen coldplay I highly recommend it. One of, if not the greatest band that I have ever seen live and I dont give that accolade lightly.
[bundy12]
When they came on I though I was seriously going to pass out, Im soo glad I didnt though. I srceamed my way though every song, even the teary parts of Clocks, Yellow and Green Eyes. Still cant believe it, GREEN EYES for gods sake! And when they played LITii, it was absolutely mind blowing stuff. There was a bit of Back For Good (Take That) thrown in for good measure. Im afraid I got 0 photos and videos as I was far to busy screaming/ dancing/ crying to bother faffing about with zoomy cameras (I was Upper Tier)! I did however to get a bag full of butterfly confetti.
[Bebop28]
coldplay tour report number 1! a few days in and tour goes well. right now i’m in bed in my birmingham hotel after the first show of 3 nights at the NIA last night. fucking mint it was… great show for my eugene francis jnr mob. they even threw out some chocolate as it was december 1st. i stood on the side of the stage eating a fun size mars bar during the show. it was just lovely (well, besides having to fix the synth in a bit of a panic haha. job done though with seconds to spare!). massive old place too… 11,000 or so each night while we’re here.
i watched quite a lot of coldplay last night too… their live show is really incredible, whether you like them or not. i’d never have called myself a ‘fan’ but i really enjoyed it last night and am definitely liking them a lot. might even have to pick me up an album or two! they’re the nicest guys too.. it’s all a very friendly tour and eveyone is so helpful and nice. good times it is! there’s an amazing bit at the end too where they shoot about a million paper butterflies out of cannons all over the venue, then while they’re in the air they put UV lights (or whatevs) on and they all change colour. proper amazing! took a couple of photos of it last night but gonna try again this evening and try and get it looking a bit special!
anyway! almost time to leave for the venue… a nice spot of lunch in the amazing catering before getting to work for the day i think. perfick. 2 more nights here then a couple of days off in cardiff before hitting the scotland and the north. gotta buy me some gloves before then! is it snowing places? i thought it was gonna but i haven’t seen nothing yet up here…
[PeterHill]
Wave your mobile phone glow sticks!
Hello all,
Went to B'ham show last night, 1st December, ABSO BLOOMIN LUTELY FLIPPIN AWESOME!!!!
One thing dissapointed me was that entire crowd wasn't as 'up 4 it' as I had hoped so that atmosphere wasn't as good as I expected, (don't get me wrong it was FANTASTIC but I'm sure that it could have been better.)
Really big dissapointment was that there were very few mobile phone glow sticks during VLV remix when lads were coming back from acoustic set where Will sings Death Will Never Conquer on stage at the back of the arena. They even put footage on the Magic Balls of one of previous shows, (Paris?) where whole crowd did it but very few people in B'ham took the hint.
I was sooooo looking forward to seing, experiencing & being a part of something like that! If you have read Roadie #42's Blog you know that the band & crew love it!!! Why else would they put it on the Magic Balls???
C'mon Coldplayers let's start a campaign to make the UK gigs as awsome for the lads as the rest of the world was - in actual fact scrap that LETS MAKE THE UK GIGS EVEN BETTER THAN THE REST OF THE WORLD!!! This is their home country for goodness sake!
We took proper Glow Sticks & a few others in the crowd had done the same, (only £2 for 4 from Wilkinson - also available from fishing tackle or party shops.) I suggest that we all take a few packets of proper Glow Sticks & dish them out to people around us B4 gig & tell them what to do. If a few of us do it & spread the word I'm sure we can make the rest of the gigs even more awesome!!! At the very least we need to spread the word about waving our mobile phones.
I'm gonna be at the O2 on Dec 14th & this is exactly what I intend to do!
C'MON COLDPLAYERS JOIN THE UK VIVA LA VIVA REMIX WAVE 'YA GLOWSTICK CAMPAIGN!!!
[Pix]
Media Reviews
COLDPLAY have come a long way since they played Birmingham’s Ronnie Scott’s in 2000, just as their album Parachutes was hitting the headlines.
Now they are commanding three nights at the National Indoor Arena and are on the crest of a wave after the success of their most recent album Viva la Vida. When the concert opened with Strauss, it was as if we were in for a classical spectacular – and in some ways we were. The show was nothing if not a spectacle with Coldplay pulling out all the stops for special effects.
We had laser beams, we had huge globes lowering from the ceiling and projecting images, we had confetti, we had huge painted backdrops, we had moving images and flashing lights – it was one crowd-pleaser after another. And the music was just as likely to keep the crowds happy. New material such as Violet Hill, Life in Technicolour and Lost! were easily blended with old favourites such as The Scientist, Clocks, In My Place and Politik. Happily they avoided the temptation of keeping the anthemic Yellow until the encore although it was played under yellow light with the mic turned towards the audience to sing along.
Lead singer Chris Martin, dressed in military jacket, was bursting with enthusiasm. With two thrust stages into the crowds, there was plenty of opportunity for audience interaction but the band went one better by appearing on their own mini stage at the back of the auditorium for a couple of tracks.
Martin was in jocular mood, cracking jokes, urging the audience to sing loudly.Only too well aware that the band have long been absent from Birmingham he admitted he had been nervous of the reaction they would receive but with the crowds on their feet there was little doubt of their appreciation.
Coldplay rock at the NIA
It seems odd that British band Coldplay have been on the road so long before coming back to their own shores. But then, having taken the world by storm, it’s understandable that everyone now wants a part of the pie.
Regardless, this was Coldplay’s second British performance on their latest tour to promote new album Viva La Vida or Death And All His Friends. And it did not disappoint. Most bands keen to shift more copies of their latest offering would plough through a set full of new material, not so Coldplay, who clearly understand that their catalogue is rich enough and their fans demanding enough to want the classics.
To this end, Chris Martin led his merry men through the starter Violet Hill before performing some of the band’s signature tunes. A relatively basic set, starting with a huge backdrop with the album’s artwork, things only became more dynamic with the now traditional laser show to accompany the mesmerising Clocks. Elsewhere, a nice touch when a packed NIA seemingly thought the show may have been over when the boys hit the stands and weaved through the crowds, only to perch themselves smack-bang in the middle of fans to perform Green Eyes.
Speed Of Sound was a particular highlight, although performed in darkness, as were Viva La Vida, which surely must have rocked the arena’s foundations, as well as encore track The Scientist, which was blended quite beautifully with, no joking, Take That’s Back For Good. A beautiful performance from the band. Only let down was Chris Martin’s dress sense. He may have a tough time selling the one turn-up look on his trousers, but with a voice like that, he can be forgiven almost any transgression.
http://www.expressandstar.com/
Brummie World Beaters.
If my memory serves me correctly.. It’s been 22 shows since the last time I was able to say this. We have a new world record sign-up number for the Viva La Vida tour 2008! Oxfam has had an amazing night so far at the 1st Coldplay show, here at the Birmingham NIA. An incredible 2050 amazing Coldplay fans, signed to pledge their support for Health and Education For All. That’s almost a fifth of the audience! Thank you to our amazing 20 volunteers, organised by Kay, our star regional coordinator.
My condolences to the Ottawa volunteers, who held the record for over 6 weeks. I am sure that you will be able to see the positive side though.. thousands more people calling on their governments to act and continue supporting education, healthcare, sanitation and water improvement programmes for the worlds poorest people. What a great feeling. For those of you who remember Chris Akabusi on ‘Record Breakers’, “Dedication’s what you need”.
The guitars and drums just slammed into ‘Politik’. The night is almost over. Great work everyone.
http://www.oxfamblogs.org/coldplay/?p=114
Top show left me happy to be alive
Back on home soil after 80 dates away, the mighty Coldplay served up few setlist surprises in new songs for the second night of the UK leg of their Viva La Vida tour - but Trouble from the first album Parachutes, was added for British fans.
Other songs included Violet Hill, from latest album Viva La Vida, Clocks, In My Place, Fix You from X&Y, a techno version of God Put a Smile Upon Your Face, Viva La Vida itself and Postcards From Far Away, with frontman Chris Martin singing solo with just a piano instrumental. Another surprise was an acoustic version of The Scientist with a sample of Take That’s Back for Good at the end. Once the crowd got going, the atmosphere was electric and the band drew two standing ovations. With Martin urging the audience to “sing like you’re auditioning for X Factor,” the stadium was on a high. Martin didn’t just play and sing, he became one with the instruments, throwing himself around the stage belting out hit after hit.
With neon confetti, dazzling lights, a walk around the auditorium and some one of the best effects I have seen in a long time, the gig actually made me feel happy to be alive. The band have firmly cemented their place at the top spot.
http://www.shropshirestar.com/
Coldplay Tour Starts With Singer’s Outburst at ‘Tough’ Audience
Dec. 4 (Bloomberg) -- “My, you lot are a tough crowd,” Chris Martin says, staring into the darkness offstage.
He’s learning the hard way that there can be bad days, even for a singer like him. Martin’s band Coldplay, now with seven more Grammy award nominations, is starting another leg of a tour intended to crown its most spectacular year yet.
The audience in Birmingham, central England, has far more folded arms than clapping hands for the group hailed as the savior of EMI Group Ltd. Coldplay’s 2008 album “Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends” added to a career total of more than 40 million records sold, including No. 1 singles in the U.S. and U.K. this year.
On a cold night, the good folk in the National Indoor Arena take time to warm to Q Magazine’s “Best Act in the World Today.” Coldplay is gearing up for concerts in London, Japan and Australia. It has to work hard with its tried and tested formula of well-crafted, mildly alternative rock ballads.
“Life In Technicolor,” full of zinging oriental instruments, is as tingling an opener live as on disc. “Violet Hill” allows the band a little Led Zeppelin rock worship as the backdrop is exposed: a giant reproduction of Eugene Delacroix’s “Liberty Leading the People.” Used as the sleeve for “Viva La Vida,” it features the only naked breast that is likely ever to be seen at a Coldplay gig.
There follows a slew of the old hits: “Clocks,” “Yellow,” “Speed of Sound.” Archetypal Coldplay songs, these are all big tunes, carefully constructed to deliver non-specific heartfelt emotion. Middlebrow, invariably nice and approachable, their charms are infuriatingly effective.
Falsetto Gallivanting
Even so, Coldplay takes no risks. Will Champion’s beefy drumming and Jonny Buckland’s chiming guitar conspire to fill the venue. Martin throws himself into his role, communing emotionally with a small upright piano, then belting out his falsetto, exhorting audience singing and generally gallivanting up, down and around the stage. Dressed in a suspiciously well-tailored approximation of one of Delacroix’s more ragged uniforms, he performs like a trouper.
To little avail: the crowd, a more sensibly clad cross section of ordinary folk, by no means Coldplay super-fans, remains largely unmoved. Pumped up with stadium bombast, the songs lose their homely appeal. Martin thanks the crowd for having arranged babysitters and come along on a freezing weekday.
As Coldplay revels in “42,” from its Lennon-ist start through a Joy Division middle to its U2-aping rock conclusion, the audience finally starts more consistent outbreaks of singing, clapping and cheering.
Set Reprieve
“Fix You” from 2005’s “X&Y” album follows, rejuvenated and electric. The numbers “Viva la Vida” and “Lovers in Japan” are impressive and provide some reprieve for the 26-song, 105-minute set. Still, Coldplay came, saw and didn’t quite conquer Birmingham.
Martin is known for his superficially deep, platitude- riddled lyrics that would in other circumstances find him employment as an astrologer. His stroppy “tough crowd” comment is in line with his reputation, when not singing, for speaking passionately. He also apologizes for the recent dearth of British gigs and blames the band’s management.
Coldplay is guaranteed a good Christmas, thanks to the Grammy nominations, tour and sales of its new EP “Prospekt’s March.” If Martin’s directness came across in his music, the future may be even brighter.
Rating: 2 stars.
Coldplay is on EMI. Albums are available from about $18.98 in the U.S, or 9.99 pounds in the U.K. Download fees vary across services.
Full tour dates are on http://www.coldplay.com/live.php. The London concerts are at the O2 from Dec. 14. The Japan gigs follow in February 2009 and then Australia.
What the Stars Mean: 4 stars Excellent 3 stars Good 2 stars Average 1 star Poor (No stars) Worthless (Robert Heller writes for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=a2nSVo5FOtRU&refer=home
Coldplay pull out all the stops for Brum gig
COLDPLAY,
Birmingham NIA
COLDPLAY have come a long way since they played Birmingham’s Ronnie Scott’s in 2000, just as their album Parachutes was hitting the headlines.
Now they are commanding three nights at the National Indoor Arena and are on the crest of a wave after the success of their most recent album Viva la Vida.
When the concert opened with Strauss, it was as if we were in for a classical spectacular – and in some ways we were. The show was nothing if not a spectacle with Coldplay pulling out all the stops for special effects.
We had laser beams, we had huge globes lowering from the ceiling and projecting images, we had confetti, we had huge painted backdrops, we had moving images and flashing lights – it was one crowd-pleaser after another.
And the music was just as likely to keep the crowds happy. New material such as Violet Hill, Life in Technicolour and Lost! were easily blended with old favourites such as The Scientist, Clocks, In My Place and Politik. Happily they avoided the temptation of keeping the anthemic Yellow until the encore although it was played under yellow light with the mic turned towards the audience to sing along.
Lead singer Chris Martin, dressed in military jacket, was bursting with enthusiasm.
With two thrust stages into the crowds, there was plenty of opportunity for audience interaction but the band went one better by appearing on their own mini stage at the back of the auditorium for a couple of tracks.
Martin was in jocular mood, cracking jokes, urging the audience to sing loudly.
Only too well aware that the band have long been absent from Birmingham he admitted he had been nervous of the reaction they would receive but with the crowds on their feet there was little doubt of their appreciation.
VERDICT: HHHHH
Dec 2 2008 by Andy Richards, Birmingham Mail
