[29-May-2012] Coldplay @ Ricoh Arena, Coventry, UK

[Comicforce]

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Originally Posted by TracieMorgan;5309329
Holy SHIT you're fast,lol!! There are actually 8 of you on 8 computers, right?

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Originally Posted by Tash;5309330
Something like that

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LOL! yes Tash is really a superhero, and her hero ability is to split herself into 8! LOL! thanks for the wonderful photos.. I always look forward to coming into the live threads the following day to find all the lovely pics..

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Originally Posted by IpsRich;5309424
Wow! That was so, SO good! I saw the show at the o2 in December which was great, but this was so much better. Being outdoors clearly gives the stage guys so much more scope for the lights, pyrotechnics etc. There are fireworks aplenty, oceans of confetti, lasers and lights, but moreover, the boys are on top of their game. They gave their all tonight and were rewarded by a vocal and appreciative crowd at the Ricoh - very much sing-a-long-tastic, especially compared to the slightly disappointing o2 crowd last year.

Highlights for me: stripped back versions of Warning Sign (sublime) and Speed of Sound. Paradise is always a treat live; Charlie Brown ("took me to Cov-en-try"!) and Hurts Like Heaven is much better and rockier than its studio version.

Lowlight - group of sixteen year old kids getting drunk/stupid and ruining the show for those around them. Shame that some people's nights were spoiled by the selfish actions of these muppets. Fortunately they were slightly to my side so didn't spoil my fun.

I hope those of you going to Emirates, SoL and Etihad get as good as show as we lucky lot did. Weather was fantastic too, which helps with outdoor gigs.

Special mention to Rita Ora and Robyn who did good stints in support.

I'll add my photos and video hopefully tomorrow night.

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Thank you for your review. Going Saturday, so hope it's just as good!

[42rock89]

Had such a great time the boys were amagnificent really on top of their game should be able to review later and post pics and videos and btw that granny is a cult legend got the crowd going during robyn haha!

[teernabh5]

I really really wish politik was back in the setlist!

[busybeeburns]

From: http://www.flickr.com/photos/freeradio/

Coldplay at The Ricoh
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[busybeeburns]

Were you snapped at Coldplay last night?

Snapped at Coldplay
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[Written In Graffiti]

Amazing night!

[Blue Nails]

Wow this thread is dead, compared to Twitter where there's lots of talking about how good it was.

The Telegraph wrote a 5 star review. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/m...um-review.html

[Tash]

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Originally Posted by Blue Nails;5309575
The Telegraph wrote a 5 star review. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/m...um-review.html

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Coldplay, Coventry Ricoh Stadium, review
Neil McCormick reviews the opening night of British rock band Coldplay's 2012 stadium tour.




Chris Martin of Coldplay

When Coldplay first graduated to stadiums in 2005, I thought they were too drab to command the space. They had big songs but little charisma, four earnest men dressed in black in front of a black back drop. No one could accuse them of being colourless anymore. Quite the opposite, in fact, they may be the most colourful band on the planet, with a palette that could make a children's TV set designer queasy.

They storm onto a graffiti splashed set in hand crafted outfits wielding paint spattered instruments and turn the stadium into a sea of day glo light with flashing wristbands, giant red, green and blue balloons, fireworks, glitter, ticker tape, and every laser this side of Star Wars.

You can't even accuse the old bedwetters of trying too hard to make up for a lack of charisma, They throw everything at their audience, including themselves. This is the kind of stirring, sweaty, heartfelt, energetic, emotional and uplifting show that could give stadium entertainment a good name.

Coldplay have been around for over ten years now, and they have a catalogue of hit songs to match any of their stadium rocking predecessors. The crowd is singing lustily along by the second song, In My Place. Five songs in, they threaten to drown out Chris Martin on The Scientist. "We haven't even got to the good songs yet," he jokes. "We're just getting started."

Yellow opens surprisingly as a tender piano ballad then explodes into a screaming, stomping guitar anthem. The "Oh-way-ohs" that bounce around the stands at the end of Viva La Vida are fantastic, reminding you of the communal essence of great musical spectacle. When it comes to a big singalong, Coldplay are hard to beat.

The appearance of Rihanna on big screens singing her chorus from Princess Of China is a reminder of how easily Coldplay fit into the modern urban pop landscape. Although they have the drama, intensity and epic dimensions of rock music, their melodic instincts are pitched squarely at the pop mainstream. No shame in that. They may be the most poppy rock group since The Beatles.

They have earned their status as biggest band on the planet with massive singalong tunes. But they have grown into the role too, really using every inch of the stadium space, filling it with their personality as well as their songs, overloading the senses with every technological and showbiz trick in the book. The explosion of light and music on Charlie Brown is just amazing, maybe the most spectacular musical momemt I have ever witnessed. Coldplay have become one of those rare groups for whom bigger really does mean better.

[Tash]

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[Written In Graffiti]

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Originally Posted by Blue Nails;5309575
Wow this thread is dead, compared to Twitter where there's lots of talking about how good it was.

The Telegraph wrote a 5 star review. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/m...um-review.html

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Guess there weren't many Coldplayers there then!

For me it was an incredible spectacle of sound and vision. I've been to some amazing concerts in my time - U2, Foo Fighters, Oasis, Kasabian (they may not be the greatest band but they are superb live) - but this one tops them all. I've never been to a Coldplay gig before and I loved every single second of it. I was a little saddened by the fact they didn't change the setlist - I'd have given my left arm to hear a stomping rendition of Politik - but they pulled out all the classics and MX's best moments as well.

GPASUYF was definitely the highlight. ETIAW is a great closer as well.

[Tash]

Coldplay rock Coventry's Ricoh Arena


RECORD crowds welcomed Coldplay to Coventry as they wowed a sell-out audience at the Ricoh Arena on Tuesday night.

More than 40,000 music-lovers flocked to the arena for the hotly-anticipated first date in the band’s summer UK stadium tour.

It was the biggest turn-out for a single event at the Ricoh.

Fans waved with glowing wristbands as Chris Martin and his band emerged on the graffiti-designed stage in a haze of colourful fireworks and smoke to perform their high-energy opening track Hurts Like Heaven.

There were also huge cheers for the frontman as, mic in hand, he skipped along the runway into the crowd.

After singing In My Place, he told the audience: “Now that was an amazing welcome.

“Thank you so much. Let me firstly say how grateful we are for giving us your Tuesday evening.”

The dramatic visual display continued with further pyrotechnics, laser beams and confetti as they launched into The Scientist and tracks from their latest album Mylo Xyloto which topped the album charts in 32 countries.

Coldplay’s performance came after support acts from Robyn and Rita Ora, dubbed Britain’s Rhianna, who arrived at the Ricoh by helicopter.

Fans waited for hours in a queue that weaved around the home of the Sky Blues from early in the morning.

The Brown family, of Rugby, were among the ticket-holders waiting to enter.

Keith, aged 49, said: “We’ve been such big fans of Coldplay’s since we saw them live at the NIA in Birmingham two years ago.

“They were brilliant, really good, that’s why we came back.

“Coldplay are as good live as they sound on TV.”

Trish, 48, added: “It’s great that it’s here at the Ricoh Arena, it’s ideal for us.”

Dean Spencer, his partner Emma McInnes and her daughter Holly McInnes were equally excited after travelling from their home in Wythall, Birmingham, for the gig.

Holly, 14, said: “I’ve been a huge fan of theirs for ages.”

Brother and sister Heather and Alex Dooley arrived with their parents from their home in Solihull in matching Coldplay tops.

Their dad had bought the tickets without them knowing.

Heather, 19, said: “The whole family loves Coldplay so it was such a nice surprise.”

She added: “I love how Coldplay captures technology yet there is still something raw about them.

“It’s nice that they’re playing somewhere so local.”

Nearly 400 Ricoh Arena staff were laid on to make sure the show ran smoothly before Coldplay perform dates at Arsenal, Sunderland and Manchester City and head to mainland Europe.

Ricoh Arena officials were delighted with the gig’s success.

Liz Cooper, marketing director, said it had been a memorable night to welcome one of the world’s biggest bands to Coventry.

“The Coldplay concert attracted a crowd of around 40,500 which is the highest number we have had for a single gig at the Ricoh,” she said.

“Tickets sold exceptionally quickly and every ticket was sold whether it was standing on the pitch or the 2,000 hospitality packages we had in our corporate lounges.

“We gave Coldplay a giant card before they went on stage with good luck messages from their fans as they start their UK summer stadium tour which they loved!

“Fans started queuing around 9am yesterday which underlines their popularity.

“Everyone had a fantastic night.”

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[Tash]

Gig review: Coldplay create a piece of paradise at the Ricoh in Coventry



AT THE turn of the millennium Coldplay stumbled apologetically into the limelight, four skinny, sensitive chaps whose songs walked a tightrope between mercurial and mawkish.

How times have changed.

It is hard to believe the same band has grown into the superstars who stun the Ricoh Arena in Coventry with show of muscular magnificence.

The evening opens in inauspicious fashion.

Support acts Rita Ora and Robyn seemed an unlikely choice when they were first unveiled and the pair struggle to produce anything to justify the decision.

Ora inexplicably cuts short the chart topping hit Hot Right Now that made her name.

Meanwhile Robyn spurns her eponymous breakthrough album in favour of some decidedly dodgy dance moves over what sounds like electro-reggae before begrudgingly pulling out With Every Heartbeat to wrap up her set.

By the time Coldplay emerge nearly 20 minutes late there is a slightly underwhelming undercurrent.

But the moment the band set foot on stage the fireworks - quite literally - begin.

Coldplay hurtle through Hurts Like Heaven as the sky above the Ricoh lights up with flashes of red and smoke drifts across the packed arena.

Despite the stifling summer heat there is something festive about this stunning show.

Perhaps its the geezer of gaily colour confetti that erupts during In My Place, transforming the Ricoh into a stadium-sized snow globe.

Or the radio controlled armbands that flash a rainbow of colours as Paradise brings the concert to a crescendo, lighting up the arena like the world's biggest Christmas tree.

And the giant, graffiti marked beach balls that bounce like bauble across the surface of the crowd.



Major Minus, Life In Technicolour, The Scientist, Yellow, Violet Hill and God Put A Smile On Your Face are rattled off as a stunning sequence before Martin asks the audience if they are enjoying themselves and boldly declares that the best songs are yet to come.

Coldplay then ease off the gas for slower songs Princess Of China, Up In Flames and Warning Sign.

Princess of China is perhaps the only disappointment of the night as something of a missed opportunity.

Given Rita Ora's widely acclaimed status as the next Rihanna she would have been an obvious choice to deputise on this duet, but instead the band settle for a video rendition from the R&B queen on the big screen.

Martin and co. quickly resume their stride with Don't Let It Break Your Heart, followed by the thrilling trio of Viva La Vida, Charlie Brown and Paradise as a climax to the main set.

As the band retire for a well earned rest and to rehydrate the arena echoes to the refrain of Viva as 40,000 voices join as one.

The wristbands blinking like fireflies in the twilight complete a magical scene.



Martin emerges on a small stage at the rear of the stadium to kick of the encore, strumming through Us Against The World as his band emerge one by one to milk the applause as they join him.

Speed of Sound and Clocks follow before Fix You builds to a stunning sing-a-long finish.

Coldplay finish on a high with Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall as a fresh battery of fireworks light up the night sky.

Martin may have become increasingly aware how fickle fame can be, ruminating on a king who "sweeps the streets he used to own" on career high Viva La Vida.

But for now Coldplay rule the music world, a ubiquitous behemoth of a band capable of commanding the loyalty of quiffed indie kids while simultaneous straddling the charts.

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[Hulsey]

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Originally Posted by Tash;5309587
Life In Technicolour

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Did they mean Lovers in Japan?
If Life In Technicolor is at the Emirates I will be a very happy man!

[Tash]

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Originally Posted by Hulsey;5309589
Did they mean Lovers in Japan?

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[Tash]

Setlist

1 Mylo Xyloto
2 Hurts Like Heaven
3 In My Place
4 Major Minus
5 Lovers In Japan
6 The Scientist
7 Yellow
8 Violet Hill
9 God Put A Smile Upon Your Face
10 Princess Of China
11 Up In Flames
12 Warning Sign
13 Don't Let It Break Your Heart
14 Viva La Vida
15 Charlie Brown
16 Paradise
17 Us Against The World
18 Speed Of Sound
19 Clocks
20 Fix You
21 Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall