How long must you wait for it?

Much to my dismay, in the days of angry chick music and grunge, I was not old enough to attend concerts. However, after seeing Fiona last Thursday night, I have an idea of what those performances may have been like. Girl is crazy! Brilliant, but crazy. Apparently instrumental breaks are good for clawing at yourself, screaming, or curling up in the fetal position on stage. I find it extremely frustrating when, during an opening act, concert-goers are inconsiderate of others who may actually care about the artist who is performing. I can't imagine how it must feel for a musician to look out at people paying them absolutely zero attention. Maybe this is what Fiona was so upset about?



Once Fiona finished her set, and the lights came up, I started to get that "Oh my goodness, I'm so excited I could run a marathon right now" feeling in the pit of my stomach. Not unlike the feeling I got when I purchased tickets for the Death Cab/Franz Ferdinand tour. Only this, this was for Coldplay. Coldplay, that (in my opinion) has brought music to new heights. Coldplay, that has the ability to put on a show so amazing that your life may be changed afterwards. Coldplay, who is fronted by one of my favorite Brits.

[Quick aside - For anyone wanting to mention their opinion on how Coldplay is over-hyped, a "used to be good but is now a sell-out" band, or over-played - think again, shut your trap, and move on. I don't want to hear it. They make good music and despite their media attention and mainstream play, I will continue to love them.]

My first glimpse of real-life Chris Martin was in front of a huge ticking clock, singing the intro to "Square One", the opening track of the latest album.



My pictures are not the greatest, but I did my best considering I had to break a commandment to get my camera inside. I was forced to answer "no" to the scary man who asked me point blank, "Do you have a camera?" (My justification for purchasing such a small camera was that I would be able to easily sneak it into concerts. And I believe this was my first concert since purchasing it. Wow! I cannot believe I have been concertless for so long.) I could not find a happy setting between auto or manual and flash or no flash. Not to mention, I was warned once by the "security" to be careful with my camera because he didn't care if I took pictures, "but if the wrong person sees it they will tell you to put it away."



During "Yellow", they dropped big yellow balloon things from the ceiling in the back of Freedom Hall. They gradually made their way towards the front, popping and spilling confetti along the way. Two of the said balloons popped on top of Brianna and I, and I have the yellow confetti in the pockets of my coat to prove it!







The highlight of the show for me may have been "The Scientist" which was being played here:



I took a short video during "Clocks" which you can download here. And another during quite possibly my favorite Coldplay song of all time, "In My Place" which is available here. The quality is less than stellar, especially the sound, but you at least get an idea of their awesomeness. At the end of that "In My Place" video, you will notice that Chris Martin heads into the crowd. I ran back to where he was standing and tried to get a good shot. This is my best effort:



They closed the show with "Fix You" which was, of course, "life-changing" (according to Brianna). All the lights were down but one small bulb hanging by Chris Martin and his piano. The vast majority of the crowd whipped out their lighters and cell phones. This picture does not do it justice:



Towards the end of the song (and the show), the screen showed a four image split of each of the band members. This is probably the best picture that I have:



I am sad that the band is evidently taking a break after this tour, but I think it is the best thing for them. Chris Martin said that we are getting tired of them and they are getting tired of themselves. Neither of which is any fault of their own. No matter how long they wait to go back to the studio or back on tour, I am confident they will still be amazing.