20-Oct-08: Ottawa - Tickets, Preview, Meetups, Review/Photos [originally 21 Oct]

[Mimixxx]

Another glowing review

Coldplay heats up stage

Coldplay have been around long enough to know how to work an arena better than Jason Spezza.

But last night, the current kings of British pop brought a bagful of tricks to their gig at Scotiabank Place that only the very best can. The band that might be the next U2 -- singer Chris Martin, drummer Will Champion, guitarist Jonny Buckland and bassist Guy Berryman -- launched their North American tour here last night and judging by their show, few bands even come close to Coldplay in a live setting.

Back in June, the reviews for their fourth CD Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends were glowing, thanks in part to producer Brian Eno, who lit a creative fire under the band as he did for U2 with The Unforgettable Fire almost 20 years ago.

Eno inspired the band to aim higher than on previous efforts. Now, after only four discs, Coldplay is being compared to the best bands ever.

They lived up to that billing last night with a spectacular show at Scotiabank Place in front of 13,000 adoring fans.

With Delacroix's "Liberty Leading the People" draped across the back of the stage and round video screens that looked like giant Chinese lanterns hanging throughout the arena, the band opened in theatrical fashion with prerecorded chunks of The Nutcracker playing in the dark. The joint erupted in a huge ovation as soon as they heard the first notes of the instrumental Life in Technicolor and Martin's plaintive vocal wail on Violet Hill and all those piano triads that signalled the band's most radio-friendly tune Clocks.

Combining the best of their previous CDs -- Parachutes, A Rush of Blood to the Head and X&Y with a hefty dose from Viva la Vida, the band has plenty to choose from.

Dressed like one of the French soldiers in Delacroix's painting, Martin performed like a man at top of his craft. Charming as well as a prolific performer, he bounced lightly between piano and guitar, occasionally punctuating his performance with pratfalling dances like Charlie Chaplin.

The early setlist included In My Place, Speed of Sound, Cemeteries of London, all choreographed with an atmospheric light show that recalled a Middle Eastern desert tent. Even more miraculous was the superb studio-quality sound.

They had all 13,000 on their feet for Fix You, Strawberry Swing and a pared-down version of Talk, after which the band left a playful Martin alone at the piano.

"Another British band, Oasis, didn't have such a good time when they were in Canada a couple weeks ago and that's caused a horrible rift between our two countries," he joked, referring to the band being attacked in Toronto in September.

"I hope we can bridge that terrible gap tonight," he concluded before playing a solo piano turn on The Hardest Part, with drummer Champion moving beside Martin for Viva la Vida and Lost.

Later, in what seemed to be a calculated but playful move, the band joined fans down at a 100-level suite at the back of the arena, playing a bare bluegrass version of The Scientist.

Coldplay wound things down with Lovers in Japan and Yellow. As concerts go, it was brilliant, choreographed from start to finish with gorgeous playing, a varied setlist and enough theatrical magic to take your breath away.

The only thing missing was a little messy raw rock energy to add a little danger to the show. Oh, who am I kidding? This is Coldplay, after all.

---

Coldplay

Scotiabank Place

Sun Rating: 5 out of 5

http://www.ottawasun.com/Showbiz/Mus...49821-sun.html

[Jenjie]

Now all we need is for #42 to wake up and post us a blog

[Mimixxx]

Yes please

And maybe some nice people to upload some vids and pictures.

[Denise]

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by open6l;2589378
Videos (complete concert) in the morning after my 5hr drive back to Toronto

---

interesting

thanks in advance and have a safe journey back

boo for the setlist tough, guys change it a bit and play Glass fo Water

[Jsalyers]

Yes please #42

[Jenjie]

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jenjie;2589498


Now all we need is for #42 to wake up and post us a blog

---

I'm guessing it won't be soon though. According to google, its an 8.5 hour trip from Ottawa to Cleveland

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&...-8&sa=N&tab=wl

[Jsalyers]

Ahhhh boo!!!

But, ill be patient

[open6l]

hey guys - its late (5hr drive back - its almost 6am and i need sleep)... but here's a video to hold you over til i get the rest uploaded after I get some sleep...

Life in Technicolour and Violet Hill

YouTube - Life in Technicolour, Violet Hill

Clocks and In My Place

YouTube - Clocks

[SueDeNimes]

Thank you for the video!

Sweet dreams, open6l!

[Denise]

Great pics here

[Christa42]

so a little Politik, was this concert a little longer than usual?

[skanji]

Guys - was at the show last night and am a huge Pearl Jam fan. Just wondering if MP3s of the show are readily available between traders and if there is a huge Coldplay trading community for both audio and video? Would be really interested in the audio and video of both the show last night and the last time they played Ottawa.

Cheers - and fantastic show last night!

[SageDaddy]

Here's the Ottawa Citizen's review:

Coldplay begins tour leg on grand scale in Ottawa

Lynn Saxberg
The Ottawa Citizen

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Coldplay kicked off the North American leg of their world tour at Scotiabank Place last night, and it sure didn't take long to turn into a joyous sing-along as the four band members were caught up in a swell of about 13,000 voices.

By song three, singer Chris Martin had every man, woman and youth in the stadium belting along as he bashed an upright piano. After the processional Life in Technicolor and the rocking Violet Hill, two songs from the latest disc, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends, the familiar hook of the 2002 hit Clocks created a surge of energy in the near sold-out audience.

In My Place, another song from the Rush of Blood to the Head disc, had the same effect. With the stage lights up, Martin appeared tickled to see what he and bandmates Jonny Buckland, Will Champion and Guy Berryman had created. He bounced across the stage and down each of the two catwalks, bending backwards as he sang, a limber performer whose body was as supple as his voice.

Lovable and a bit goofy, the sandy-haired Mr. Paltrow never missed a chance to connect with the audience, sometimes even talking in the middle of a song.

"We're Coldplay," he said early in the concert, unnecessarily identifying one of the biggest bands in the world. "We really appreciate the fact that all you beautiful Canadians have come out to see a band from miles away. You could have been playing Scrabble or doing homework. We hope to give you some good entertainment."

Indeed they did, delivering a career-spanning set with Martin setting the enthusiastic pace. No longer a wallflower who hides behind his piano, he's blossomed into the gregarious host of a magnificent event. It was a concert on a grand scale, complete with artful lighting design and offshoot staging that helped bring the band members closer to the audience.

The opening act, Stars, showed they have a few things in common with Coldplay, starting with a shared penchant for melodramatic pop music. Fronted by the quirky duo of Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan, the Montreal-based band delivered a strong set, except for the brutal sound and tuning problems. The sound was muddy and the vocals out of tune through most of the songs, but they played well nonetheless, their dark, repetitive songs flowing from a whisper to a frenzied wall of noise.

The Night Starts Here made the perfect opening to the highly anticipated evening. Ageless Beauty was one of the songs that spotlighted Millan's little-girl voice, while Campbell not only traded verses with her in duet fashion, but also supplied falsetto background harmonies and played keyboards, trumpet and other instruments.

[kinet]

Here are a few pics from last night
We were Floor Section C14 AWESOME SEATS!!!

[kinet]

And a few more...