16 November 2008: Ford Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
From WikiColdplay
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Contents |
Setlist
- Life In Technicolor
- Violet Hill
- Clocks
- In My Place
- Glass Of Water
- Speed Of Sound
- Cemeteries Of London
- Chinese Sleep Chant
- 42
- Fix You
- Strawberry Swing
- God Put A Smile Upon Your Face (techno version)
- Talk (techno remix)
- The Hardest Part
- Postcards From Far Away (piano instrumental)
- Viva La Vida
- Lost!
- The Scientist (acoustic)
- Death Will Never Conquer (acoustic - Will singing)
- Viva La Vida (remix interlude)
First Encore - Politik
- Lovers In Japan
- Death And All His Friends
Second Encore - Yellow
- The Escapist (outro)
Photos
Photos from this show can be found at Coldplaying.com in the Gallery thread for Oklahoma City. http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/1551
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=44941
Discussion
All post-show discussion for this show at the forum thread: http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44941
Fan Reviews
All fan reviews have been submitted to us by the members of Coldplaying.com[1], unless stated otherwise.
JUST A TEASER TILL I GET A FULL REVIEW UP AFTER A BIT OF SLEEP! WHOEVER DID THIS....THANK YOU SOOO MUCH!! THE "GREEN EYES" DEDICATION TO KAREN NEVER HAPPENED! BUT!!!! EVEN BETTER!!!!!! ENGLISH SILKS FAVE SONG EVER IS HARDEST PART, AND THATS JUST WHAT CHRISSY GAVE HER!!!!! 3 TIMES, HE SAID, "FOR KAREN!"TO KAREN", FOR KAREN"!!!!!!!!! KAREN WENT *THUD*... THIS WAS THE BEST DREAM COME TRUE EVER!!!
EVEN THE SECURITY TEAM WAS HOVERED AROUND HER, EVEN TAKING HER CAM UNDER THE RAMP OF LOVE TO TAKE PICS OF THE BOYS GUITARS!!!! CHRISSY SLUNG THE SWEAT, KAREN CAUGHT IT! CHRIS RAN THE RAMP WITH HAND EXTENDED, KAREN CAUGHT IT!!
I CANT YET PUT THIS ALL INTO WORDS, IT WAS ALL SOOO AMAZING! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU (THAT GOES TO YOU KIMCHI BABY!)
[xxKels]
Hey, everybody long time reader first time poster on the site. Just wanted to share my story from an amazing weekend. It pales in comparison to the Karen/Kels, but is still pretty cool.
I go to school 3 hours from Kansas City but gladly made the drive on Thursday and missed my Friday classes to go to the KC show. I have two younger brothers who were playing there first college basketball games on Sat/ Sun. So I then drove to Topeka Saturday and Wichita on Sunday to watch them play. I was so blown away by the show on Thursday that I decided to drive from Wichita to Okla. City after my bros game to catch the Sunday night show. I didn't have a ticket but figured I could buy one from somebody. Long story short, I ended up center stage in the third row on the floor!!!! Call it karma or whatever you want ( I gave two tickets to the KC show to my bro and his gf cuz he couldn't afford them) but it was absolutely incredible!!!! I may try to load some pics later ( their poor quality cell phone pics) but, man, what an incredible weekend!!! I drove nearly 14 hours but caught two shows and 2 bball games. Totally worth it!!!!!
Oh yeah, I didn't know it at the time but I believe I saw Karen/Kels at the show. I was people watching as the show was being set up and saw them up front. I remember thinking it looked like a mother/daughter and thinking that was pretty cool...little did I know!!!
[Trevor41]
Well kids no one mentioned this but we got a song last night that
no one has heard before.
Coldplay did half of "Waiting for Superman" a cover from the local boys Flaming Lips. Wayne of the lips was probably there, I didn't see him, but I've seen him at the Ford Center for other alternative acts.
We got a new song! nananana hehe!
Same set list otherwise. I was waiting and hoping for Green Eyes, but the one off cover song was special, we can't get greedy can we?
On a personal note my girlfriend didn't realize we were at a coldplay concert until we sat down. I told her we were going to see a local band in club next to the Ford Center. When we were walking by the Ford Center, I said suuuurprize we are going to see a baketball game tonight. My girlfriend looked completely shocked. So I pull out the tickets and we go inside. We head to our section, and she asked why there was a stage and no basketball floor set up. I said it was an ESPN game and that they were probably having a concert beforehand. She looked very confused. Finally we sat down 12 rows center stage on the floor, and she looked around saw all the coldplay t-shirts and caught on. We were only in our seats about10 minutes before the lights went down.
Overall the crowd was better than expected, and as mentioned in another review posted "good for a sunday night in oklahoma". People really seemed to love the scientist acoustic bit. Fix You was so damn good too. That was the moment my girl really was hooked in to the show.
What a night!
[okcthunder]
I attended the Coldplay concert last evening in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and enjoyed the concert for many reasons but also noticed some areas of improvement for future Coldplay performances.
The Strengths
The drummer, Will Champion, may have stolen the show. His drumming pounded to the orchestated light show mixing with the bass riffs of Guy Berryman. Also, he moved to the center of the stage at one point in the show and graced the audience with a deconstructed performance of drums by using one large snare drum and an iron bell. Another time on a different part of the stage, he played a small electric drum kit. Overall, he created a unique sound of drumming that heightened the energy of the crowd. Finally, Champion played guitar on two songs and sang one of them–a country or maybe a folk song–while Chris Martin played the harmonica.
Jon Buckland’s guitar work has improved since his last performance in Oklahoma City, during the X&Y concert. He played more melodic notes over Martin’s lyrics and screeched the guitar in many different forms to songs that normally are clean and tight. Once again, Coldplay is at a stage in their career when they are no longer just pop stars; they played to their own desires at times, and Buckland imitated on the guitar the traditional Martin piano riffs while Martin ran across the stages in various directions as he bounced his body in seizure-like delerium.
They surprised the audience in different formats. They, of course, opened traditionally, but they played their quick hit, “Violet Hill,” first and moved on through the show in a rapid pace. Martin played the acoustic guitar more than I have seen in the past, and his movement from acoustic to piano was not clumsy as it has been in the past. At one point during the show, the lights were completely out, and all of a sudden, the band appears in a very small area literally cluttered together and performing with their instruments. After a few songs in this projected portion of the stage, Martin plays a bit on the piano, talks briefly, and sings a song with just his voice and the piano. He plays a bit on the piano again, stops, and then the band in their original place on the stage blasts into one of their hits. Everything was perfectly choreographed, as the crowd heightened with joy. Finally, their last format was to leave the stage altogether and walk through the audience…together. Typically, the lead singer leaves the stage alone, but here we see how much Coldplay has formed into a full unit beyond the voice and piano of Chris Martin. As they leave the stage, they arrive in another surprise location above the floor and on the 1st row of the Ford Center. Martin yells, “You on the front row can just go do your homework or get some pizza or something!” The crowd roared with excitement. Here, they played different instruments again: the mandolin, the acoustic guitar, the harmonica, and the bass.
The Weaknesses
Chris Martin, lead singer, may very well be the weakness of this concert. If you listen to the music with headphones, there is an intimacy between Chris Martin’s voice, the music, and the listener. At times, that intimacy is lost during this concert. When Bono of U2 performs, he captures that intimacy successfully, but Martin at times seems to be removed from the song’s thematic emotion and just sings the lyrics. He seemed more into jumping around the stage at times when he perhaps should not be jumping at all and heeding Bono’s advice and just lifting up his arms, singing a high note, and hearing the falsetto of his voice be another instrument to the audience. He does not have to show that emotional intensity on all songs, but even when he is alone playing the piano, his voice is there, but his connection to the harmonious rising of his soul is not.
Chris Martin, at times, does not finish his song. Or, he ends anti-climatically, even while the band rises to the occasion. I have seen him do this on television before as well. Instead of moving toward the last lyric, he pulls away too quickly and says, “Thank you,” or some other phrase to let the audience know the song is over. He has lost or forgot some of his ability to perform the song beyond performing the dance on the stage. However, I do like it when he sings the song a bit differently than the versions on the CDS. The audience cannot sing along at times, because his tempo is quicker or slower than what the song originally intended or what the band was originally performing. Yes, if the band was playing in 4/4 time, they sometimes had to listen to Martin’s movements and correct some of his meanderings with tempo. I didn’t see that so much as a weakness, however. It is a sign of the lead singer re-interpreting the music.
The encore was terrible. When they arrived on the stage again, they ended with “Yellow.” Yes, it is their hit, and they seemed a bit reluctant to play it. After playing it, they left quickly again never to return to the stage for another song. I expected more from the encore, and I even told the gentleman next to me that I hope they don’t even play that song. They could have dropped it earlier into the performance if they were forced to play it and then moved on to some of the more creative elements of their evolutionary band. For example, they mentioned the Flaming Lips. Why not end with a Flaming Lips song as a tribute to Oklahoma City. The crowd may have gone crazy! And then, they could have completed their encore performance with one other somber piece perhaps, such as “Til Kingdom Come” from their X&Y album, which they did not play.
Overall, I enjoyed the concert. I realize Chris Martin is a bit Attention Deficit Disorder on the stage. I also realize that he was definitely playing down his song performances to heighten the focus on the great music from Coldplay. They are a band that is growing musically, and to even hear them playing a mandolin in a live arena shows their movements into other genres of music and ideas. Godspeed Coldplay and come back to Oklahoma City again with your next grandiose performances!
Media Reviews
It’s hard to know what to love best about Coldplay — the music, of course, every rock ballad a smashing crowd favorite, but there’s also the high-energy stage presence of the band and its evangelical, marching-band leader. Then there’s the colorful retro grunge clothing reminiscent of the ’80s, the painted guitars and piano; and the pulsing laser light show complete with drop-down balloons that alternately change colors, go psychedelic or show images of the band in full symphony.
Coldplay’s debut concert at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City on Sunday night was a feast for the senses.
The band had two opening acts: Sleepercar, out of El Paso, Texas, which pleased the crowd with its strong vocals and nice harmony; and Jon Hopkins, who’s computer techno sound combined with animated graphics on a projector screen make one imagine a demented Dr. Seuss dropping acid.
But it was Coldplay the audience came to see, and from the opening swells of the first song, “Life in Technicolor,” the rowdy crowd was on its feet, dancing, singing and shouting appreciation — and the Brits more than returned the favor.
After the opening instrumental, Coldplay launched into “Violet Hill,” a song that asks, “If you love me, won’t you let me know.” The crowd roared its response. Martin’s piano was rolled onstage, and after a quick “Hi” the band played “Clocks,” a brilliant piano-driven piece that takes Martin’s voice through a range of octives. Lasers shot everywhere and the audience became almost frenzied. Next on the playlist was “In My Place.”
Martin displayed so much energy through each song — conducting the band, then the audience — all with a flick of the wrist or a wave of his arm. He skipped, twirled, marched, jogged in place, threw himself nearly into a backbend and ran from one side of the u-shaped stage to the other, at times appearing as if he would launch himself into the audience. At other times, he serenaded from his knees or even sang the final notes of songs lying flat on his back on the stage.
After “Speed of Sound” Martin said it was about time to say a proper hello. “We’re happier than we can possibly imagine to be here,” he said. Martin apologized for delaying the concert from its original scheduled appearance in July, but the crowd seemed overly pleased to have the band even four months late. Martin changed his lyrics several times to match his surroundings. On the eerie “Cemeteries of London,” the chorus became “and the night over Oklahoma City ...” In “Politik,” a line became, “Give me a street in Oklahoma City named after the Flaming Lips.”
As tradition in every Coldplay concert, Martin turned his microphone to his audience for the chorus on “Fix You,” and everyone sang along to one of the band’s most touching ballads. “That’s the best singing we’ve had in a long, long time,” Martin praised. Next, guitarist Jonny Buckland and Guy Berryman got the crowd to clap along to “Strawberry Swing,” from the latest CD “Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends.” The single “Viva La Vida” brought the crowd to a new level of energy, jumping, dancing, clapping and singing along.
The Ford Center, which can hold up to 20,5000, was packed to the rafters except for sections behind the stage.
“I have to say that as a band we’re thoroughly impressed for a Sunday night in Oklahoma,” Martin said.
The band moved from center stage several times during the nearly 2-hour set going to a lighted box on stage left to sing “God Put a Smile UponYour Face” and “The Hardest Part,” then later to a stage in the rear of the arena just under the second level to sing, “The Scientist.”
Coldplay was near perfect, sounding every bit as great in person as they do on albums. Ironically, the only moment of loss during the night was when Martin’s voice broke on the final notes of “Lost,” but with a bit of laughter at himself, the audience cheered him on anyway.
One of the best moments of the night was during the song “Lovers in Japan” when multicolored paper butterflies rained down on the audience in a neon confetti. After singing “Death and All His Friends” the band left the stage to return for an encore of “Yellow.” Martin told the audience they’d sung everything they possibly could and wished everyone happy holidays before sending them off fully content. Viva La Coldplay.
I attended the Coldplay concert last evening in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and enjoyed the concert for many reasons but also noticed some areas of improvement for future Coldplay performances.
The Strengths
The drummer, Will Champion, may have stolen the show. His drumming pounded to the orchestated light show mixing with the bass riffs of Guy Berryman. Also, he moved to the center of the stage at one point in the show and graced the audience with a deconstructed performance of drums by using one large snare drum and an iron bell. Another time on a different part of the stage, he played a small electric drum kit. Overall, he created a unique sound of drumming that heightened the energy of the crowd. Finally, Champion played guitar on two songs and sang one of them–a country or maybe a folk song–while Chris Martin played the harmonica.
Jon Buckland’s guitar work has improved since his last performance in Oklahoma City, during the X&Y concert. He played more melodic notes over Martin’s lyrics and screeched the guitar in many different forms to songs that normally are clean and tight. Once again, Coldplay is at a stage in their career when they are no longer just pop stars; they played to their own desires at times, and Buckland imitated on the guitar the traditional Martin piano riffs while Martin ran across the stages in various directions as he bounced his body in seizure-like delerium.
They surprised the audience in different formats. They, of course, opened traditionally, but they played their quick hit, “Violet Hill,” first and moved on through the show in a rapid pace. Martin played the acoustic guitar more than I have seen in the past, and his movement from acoustic to piano was not clumsy as it has been in the past. At one point during the show, the lights were completely out, and all of a sudden, the band appears in a very small area literally cluttered together and performing with their instruments. After a few songs in this projected portion of the stage, Martin plays a bit on the piano, talks briefly, and sings a song with just his voice and the piano. He plays a bit on the piano again, stops, and then the band in their original place on the stage blasts into one of their hits. Everything was perfectly choreographed, as the crowd heightened with joy. Finally, their last format was to leave the stage altogether and walk through the audience…together. Typically, the lead singer leaves the stage alone, but here we see how much Coldplay has formed into a full unit beyond the voice and piano of Chris Martin. As they leave the stage, they arrive in another surprise location above the floor and on the 1st row of the Ford Center. Martin yells, “You on the front row can just go do your homework or get some pizza or something!” The crowd roared with excitement. Here, they played different instruments again: the mandolin, the acoustic guitar, the harmonica, and the bass.
The Weaknesses
Chris Martin, lead singer, may very well be the weakness of this concert. If you listen to the music with headphones, there is an intimacy between Chris Martin’s voice, the music, and the listener. At times, that intimacy is lost during this concert. When Bono of U2 performs, he captures that intimacy successfully, but Martin at times seems to be removed from the song’s thematic emotion and just sings the lyrics. He seemed more into jumping around the stage at times when he perhaps should not be jumping at all and heeding Bono’s advice and just lifting up his arms, singing a high note, and hearing the falsetto of his voice be another instrument to the audience. He does not have to show that emotional intensity on all songs, but even when he is alone playing the piano, his voice is there, but his connection to the harmonious rising of his soul is not.
Chris Martin, at times, does not finish his song. Or, he ends anti-climatically, even while the band rises to the occasion. I have seen him do this on television before as well. Instead of moving toward the last lyric, he pulls away too quickly and says, “Thank you,” or some other phrase to let the audience know the song is over. He has lost or forgot some of his ability to perform the song beyond performing the dance on the stage. However, I do like it when he sings the song a bit differently than the versions on the CDS. The audience cannot sing along at times, because his tempo is quicker or slower than what the song originally intended or what the band was originally performing. Yes, if the band was playing in 4/4 time, they sometimes had to listen to Martin’s movements and correct some of his meanderings with tempo. I didn’t see that so much as a weakness, however. It is a sign of the lead singer re-interpreting the music.
The encore was terrible. When they arrived on the stage again, they ended with “Yellow.” Yes, it is their hit, and they seemed a bit reluctant to play it. After playing it, they left quickly again never to return to the stage for another song. I expected more from the encore, and I even told the gentleman next to me that I hope they don’t even play that song. They could have dropped it earlier into the performance if they were forced to play it and then moved on to some of the more creative elements of their evolutionary band. For example, they mentioned the Flaming Lips. Why not end with a Flaming Lips song as a tribute to Oklahoma City. The crowd may have gone crazy! And then, they could have completed their encore performance with one other somber piece perhaps, such as “Til Kingdom Come” from their X&Y album, which they did not play.
Overall, I enjoyed the concert. I realize Chris Martin is a bit Attention Deficit Disorder on the stage. I also realize that he was definitely playing down his song performances to heighten the focus on the great music from Coldplay. They are a band that is growing musically, and to even hear them playing a mandolin in a live arena shows their movements into other genres of music and ideas. Godspeed Coldplay and come back to Oklahoma City again with your next grandiose performances!
