16 September 2011: Austin City Limits Festival, Austin, Texas, USA
From WikiColdplay
Contents |
Setlist
- Introduction (Back To The Future)
- Mylo Xyloto
- Hurts Like Heaven
- Yellow
- In My Place
- Major Minus
- Lost!
- The Scientist
- Violet Hill
- God Put A Smile Upon Your Face
- Everything's Not Lost
- Us Against The World
- Politik
- Viva La Vida
- Charlie Brown
- Paradise
ENCORE
- Clocks
- Rehab (Amy Winehouse Cover)
- Fix You
- Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall
Photos
Photos from this show can be found at Coldplaying.com in the Gallery thread for Austin City Limits Festival. http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/
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=76678
Discussion
All post-show discussion for this show at the forum thread http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=76678
Fan Reviews
All fan reviews have been submitted to us by the members of Coldplaying.com[1], unless stated otherwise.
I was there. Here are some of my thoughts. I must preface this by saying I'm not a huge fan of the new stuff, and I was pretty far back in the crowd. But this was my fourth time seeing coldplay, and it was not their best performance in my opinion. Having said that it was still excellent. a few general thoughts.
- I love the intro to GPASUYF! Really cool way of mixing it up.
- Great to hear everything's not lost live. Sounded awesome. (liked the kanye references here as well)
- Although I like the song people were seeming to lose interest during Us Agasint the World. Probably the lowpoint of the night.
- Politik is still their best live song.
- Lost still sounds great live, especially when the drum set kicks in.
- Paradise did sound better live, but I still hate it.
- Charlie Brown is the next great Coldplay song. Period. People around me who had never heard it before seemed to be into it as much as they were into viva. It sounded a bit more synthy to me and a bit less guitar driven. Still sounded excellent.
- Wawawaterfall sound a lot better live. I don't love it on record. It was pretty good though.
- I'm not as big a fix you fan as every other coldplay fan. Having said that it was the highlight of last night. The rehab tribute was kinda chilling and it sounded great. Loved it when he ran out and climbed the tower (kinda near me).
Overall, a great concert, but not their best. Would've been nice to hear Shiver or Life is for Living. 8/10
[winigwl]
Oh crap, I completely forgot that they didn't play Shiver! Now I'm sad. But it was a really great performance, they always sound so good live. My friends and I were able to get decently close seeing how late we actually headed over to the stage. We were perhaps a good 20 rows in front of the sound tower, so maybe halfway between the tower and stage? I dunno, I'm bad at estimating that kind of thing. Anyways it was a lovely performance, I enjoyed it a lot. Always great to see them live. One of my friends who was with me said it was amazing and the second best concert of her life (after Bon Jovi, who I think is her very favorite musician), so that's a pretty big complement. She wasn't even all that familiar with a lot of the songs, so that's pretty cool.
[ImLovingGuyBerryman]
I just saw the show and It was amazing!! Chris was full of energy (as usual) and you could tell all the guys gave it their all. I'm in love with Charlie Brown and I'm so glad they played Paradise! Definitely one of the best concerts I've ever been to!!
[Lynn42]
Just got back to my hotel room about an hour ago... The show was fantastic and there is nothing like seeing a Coldplay show from the front row. The boys were so happy and full of energy and crazy how Phil was sitting in front of us at one point!loved hanging out with Dianne, Jen, and Amanda all day!
[l0wxo2]
OK My story. First off the Taping. I didn't win. Didn't have a ticket but got VIP escorted to the first row. Have you ever heard the expression, if you can't dazzle them with your brilliance, then baffle them with your bullshit? Yeah, that's me. I totally bullshitted my way into the show. Once in, I met up with Franksie first. He was walking about. We talked about last time they played how it was so hot at the festival right after the hurricane and I told him how I was at their show in Dallas when the storm hit my house and a tree fell on it. Coldplay literally saved my life. Next out was Phil I think. Talked to him for a bit. Then I saw Vicki and she came over and we talked for a while. She left and then came back with a prezzie. A singed poster for me. Mike begs her to get the poster he bought signed and she did it! This woman has the coolest job in the world and is just sweeter than sugar! The volunteers passed out the Icon t-shirts and told us when to put them on. We were so close. The sound in this venue is absolutely amazing. (Even up in the balcony for the Arcade Fire show, best sound system in a venue EVA!) When they lowered the as R#42 so apply described it, "neon space junk" back drop, Gwyneth came out to see it. She tried to muscle Mike off his spot, but he wasn't giving up his space.
[Texasluvsjonny]
Media Reviews
Dallas Observer: It would be a pretty hipster thing to say that the Coldplay show at Austin City Limits Music Festival on Friday was cheesy and overly sincere. But you won't actually hear that. Because all the hipsters were on the other end of the Zilker Park with Kanye West. Sure, Coldplay's music expertly draws out the emotional side of college co-eds, but, aside from popular hipster belief, there is more to the band than aiming to pull at the heartstrings of fans. Nonetheless, their 2011 ACL performance, rather than featuring cuts from their forthcoming record, Mylo Xyloto, found the band pandering to the crowd. They played material from four different albums over the course of their first five songs. The whole show was very much a greatest hits performance. You've got to believe that they're tired of playing some of the old songs, though. You could hear that much, actually, in the changed arrangements and the improvised lyrics on more than a few songs -- like in "God Put A Smile On My Face," when Chris Martin sang "make some noise if you're having a good time."
The crowd roared in return, as if following some unwritten concert etiquette that says when the lead singer says anything, you cheer, no questions asked. But Martin and Company knew what they were doing. This was a crowd that needed help. It was only capable of focusing on the band when they were playing one of their huge past hits. So, that's what the band focused on. Every once in a while they'd play some songs from the new record, but they were hard to hear for all the chatter in the crowd. So, Coldplay kept it simple and stuck with the singles. "Yellow," surprisingly, was the second song of the night. Soon after came "Lost" from Viva La Vida, and then "The Scientist."
In addition to playing choice selections from a huge stable of hits, the band used some tricks that they've clearly picked up along the way. One of Coldplay's early influences was The Flaming Lips and in a very Lips like fashion, they dropped hundreds of balloons into the crowd a few songs in. Later, during the encore on "Fix You," which Martin introduced with a modified version of Amy Winehouse's "Rehab," Martin took a note from Bono and ran through the divider in the center of the crowd and climbed the scaffolding at the sound booth. But all of the energy was overshadowed by the fact that Coldplay has been reduced to the role of a babysitter, working tirelessly to maintain the crowd's fleeting attention. Nevermind that Coldplay has a new record coming out and that a massive festival might be a good time to test out some of the new songs. "Clocks" is all this crowd cared to hear, and Coldplay was happy to play it. But that wasn't the highlight of the set. That came with "Viva La Vida," a triumphant success thanks to the crowd's singing and dancing. The band still has something. Their cinematic songs connect with huge audiences. Sound like a certain Canadian band you might know?
Personal Bias: Coldplay started to lose me at their second album, completely lost me at their third, then perked my ears up again on their Brian Eno produced fourth record. It will be interesting to hear what this new one sounds like.
Random Note: Kanye's bass could be heard during the mellow lulls in Coldplay's set.
Random Note #2: Never seen so many people making out at a concert before
By The Way: Martin acknowledged Coldplay's core audience with this improvised lyric on "Everything's Not Lost": "You can feel it in your chest, when your girlfriend wants to watch Coldplay, and all the boys want to watch Kanye West." [2]
Oklahoma Daily: After a two-hour wait, Coldplay started. The Brit-pop sensation pleased the crowd with a few familiar favorites — "Yellow" comes to mind, with the stage bathed in yellow light — before teasing it with a few songs from the group's upcoming album. But whether it was playing an old song or a new song, Coldplay kept the crowd engaged in the show with call-and-response strains, a captivating light display and an entrancing stage setup featuring a huge screen behind the band. Finally, I decided to head out of the crowd a little early to catch the end of Kanye's set. Because there were so many people packed up to the stage, I still heard Coldplay's next big hit, "Charlie Brown," a song with a very full sound and an extremely catchy hook. I stayed near the back of the crowd, having just worked my way out of a big one at the opposite end of the park, and enjoyed a few of the self-assured rap artist's big hits including "Run This Town," "Gold Digger," "All of the Lights" and "Stronger." Near the end of the set, Kanye played a very drawn out version of "Runaway" that by the end felt more like a church altar call than a show as the rapper thanked everyone he could think of and took advantage of having the crowd's full attention.
After everything, though, the highlight of Day 1 for me was Coldplay. The band's big-hit songs — "The Scientist," "Viva la Vida," "Lost!" and "Violet Hill" — evoked memories of life from when I listened to the whole "Viva la Vida" album non-stop for a few weeks in 2008 or when I first heard the band sitting in a movie theater watching the music video for "Speed of Sound." And regardless of whether it's genuine, Chris Martin and Co. portray a strong connection and high level of care for their fanbase, which always makes for a more intimate show. [3]
Death & Taxes Magazine: Your Belated ACL Recap - I Skipped Kanye West to See Coldplay) Before you undoubtedly burn me at the stake, challenge my manhood and dismiss me as a tasteless moron, hear me out. Let me start by saying there is nothing wrong with liking Coldplay. Okay, now, take a deep breath and read the rest before writing your hate mail. I realize Coldplay isn’t the coolest band in the world, and their music is (scoff) catchy but sometimes forgettable. However when did it become a sin to know the lyrics to “Yellow?” Their music isn’t offensive to the ears, like Nickelback or Creed, nor are they controversial or overly political. Coldplay’s two biggest knocks are the fact that they’re (gasp) radio friendly and Chris Martin is married to Gwyneth Paltrow (legitimate gripe). There is nothing to vehemently hate. If the worst thing you can say about the band is that your girlfriend likes them and you think they lack substance, neither reason makes them god-awful. Liking Coldplay similar to admitting you enjoy the occasional chick flick — which I do — fucking sue me. Going into this year’s version of Austin City Limits the biggest news was the fact Kanye West would be the first hip hop headliner in the the festival’s history. It surprised many that the 10th anniversary of the popular festival would feature someone so far from it’s typical aesthetic. Some concertgoers even wore “Fuck Kanye” t-shirts. I was not amongst this contingent; in fact I’m a huge Kanye fan. I still vividly remember buying “The College Dropout” the Tuesday it came out. It was during the basketball season of my junior year in high school and I bought it from Sam Goody. I’ve loved every other album since, and agree with the incredibly high praise he earned for “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.”
I knew Kanye’s set had the distinct possibility of being incredibly star-studded. Bon Iver’s lead singer and ‘Ye collaborator, Justin Vernon, was rumored to make an appearance. Jay-Z, who has been attached to Kanye’s hip for the entire summer, was also a candidate for a guest spot. (Many forget that Chris Martin was to Jay-Z as Justin Vernon currently is to Kanye, which kinda makes Martin (double gasp) cool circa 2009.) I knew Kanye’s set would provide unparalleled pageantry and a bass that thumped so loud my balls would tingle. Knowing all of this — the fact that I might be passing up the rap concert of a lifetime — I willfully and unregrettably chose to see Coldplay over Kanye. The following two hours were a nostalgic trip through my adolescence. “Parachutes” came out when I was going into 8th grade. I remember watching the “Yellow” music video on MTV, when it was still showing music videos. I remember putting “Clocks” on one of my first burnt cds, along with “Still Not a Playa” by Big Pun and “Numba One Stunna” by Big Tymers. As you can probably tell, my alternative musical tastes never quite reached my palate until late in my college years. So quite frankly Coldplay was a blast, full of memories of being awkwardly too skinny and still listening music countdowns on the radio. Yea, I was so mainstream.
I’ve never understood the need to feel “musically challenged” during a festival concert. After a day full of too many 24 ounce Budweiser’s and Tex-Mex, listening to something agreeable, upbeat and fun seemed perfect after a day of enduring temperatures nearing 100 degrees. After a couple years out of the limelight it was good to see that Chris Martin’s band could still put on a genuinely exciting set. As for the lead singer himself, he was simultaneously charming and corny, but most of all he seemed authentically happy to be there and appreciative of the throngs of people who chose the British band over the rap superstar. This was the first time I ever saw Coldplay live. They will be coming out with a new record near the end of next month. I have no plans on purchasing the album, but it doesn’t mean I won’t sneak a listen when my mom inevitably buys it. Because while Coldplay certainly isn’t the coolest band around, they aren’t even close to the most insufferable either. In fact, last Friday night they might even have been considered memorable. [4]
Taping Reviews (from 15th September 2011)
Coldplay Ring In New Years Early For Appreciative ACL Audience
For about 2,100 lucky Coldplay fans who got to attend the band’s Austin City Limits taping Thursday night, the weekend’s Austin City Limits Festival started a little early — and New Year’s Eve came way ahead of schedule. The capacity crowd at the long-running PBS show’s new shared taping/live performance venue, dubbed ACL Live at the Moody Theater, helped the band count down to midnight and ring in 2012, despite the Sept. 15 date and temps in the 90s. Turns out the show will air on Dec. 31, presumably near the midnight hour. Even before that point, audience members hitting the three-day festival likely decided to head toward Kanye West’s set Friday night; no need for them to try viewing the Brit band from half a mile away after witnessing their tremendously energetic ACL performance. The show, now recording its 37th season (which kicks off October 1), even accommodated at least part of Coldplay’s stage set – which included the audience – during their taping, the band’s second ACL segment in six years. The graffiti that inspired Coldplay’s upcoming album, Mylo Xyloto (out Octber 25) morphed into the stage’s day-glo splatter motif, decorating lead singer Chris Martin’s upright piano, the drum riser and even the band’s guitars in amped-up pastel colors, and T-shirts with glow-in-the-dark symbols taken from the album art were given to floor-level audience members. After a kinetic “Viva La Vida,” fueled by drummer Will Champion’s center-stage tom-and tympani-pounding, and everywhere-at-once Chris Martin’s vocals, the T-shirts went on, the countdown began and confetti flew. Then a matching backdrop resembling a Rube Goldberg contraption (think OK Go’s video, only more primitive and still) came down.
By then, the band had run through half a dozen tunes from the new album (“Hurts Like Heaven,” ‘Major Minus,” “Charlie Brown” and the world debut of a beautifully falsetto-filled “Up in Flames” among them) as well as their biggest hits. With pants tucked into all-terrains that gave them a combat-booted look, the well-rehearsed foursome played tight arrangements of “Yellow,” “In My Place,” “Lost!,” “God Put A Smile Upon Your Face,” a sharp-edged “Violet Hill” and “The Scientist,” frequently evoking an only slightly less anthemic U2, right down to Jonny Buckland’s chiming, Edge-like guitarwork. “It means a lot to us to be playing ‘Austin City Limits’ for the second time,” a buff-looking Martin announced. “We play a lot of places where they never invite us back!” After complimenting the audience, then joking that they say that to all their TV audiences in an effort to pander for appreciation, he added, “It’s tough when you’re from England. Nobody likes you anyway. … Hope your Christmas was OK.”
Spinning, jumping from foot to foot like a boxer and careening from piano to mini-organ to acoustic and electric guitars, Martin stayed in motion, the band and crew moving seamlessly around him. Cursing as he forgot the words to a new song, “Us Against the World,” he and the band plowed on through, never losing momentum. With masterful, gorgeous renditions of “Clocks,” “Fix You” and the closer, “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall,” they reinforced the fact that even self-proclaimed geeks can “rule the world” – or at least, its greatest stages. [5]
Coldplay Debut Up In Flames New Song At 'Austin City Limits' Taping
AUSTIN, Texas — For any English band, playing this Texas hipster mecca's long-running PBS music show "Austin City Limits" is a big checkmark on the rock-and-roll bucket list. Coldplay got their second hash mark on Thursday night, taping a 90-minute special edition of the 37-year-old show just 24 hours before they take the stage for a much bigger crowd just around the corner at Zilker Park as part of the three-day Austin City Limits festival. Like plugging in at New York's Radio City or Nashville's Grand Ole Opry, it's the kind of honor that most bands would kill for just once. Only this time, unlike their 2005 appearance, there was also some "Masterpiece Theater"-style acting involved, as they were taping a show intended to air on New Year's Eve. That time-travel twist required a bit of cold-weather thinking in the midst of one of the hottest summers in Lone Star State history...
As they've done all year at other festival appearances, the band mixed such crowd favorites as "The Scientist" with half a dozen new songs, including one singer Chris Martin said they just finished last month. (And, as they've been doing on this tour, this was all after they walked out to the theme from "Back to the Future"; see above time-travel reference.) Martin started the night at the piano for the album's gentle coda, which segued right into the driving, triumphant "Hurts Like Heaven," during which the room filled with candy-colored laser blasts from a pair of neon target set pieces at the back of the stage. The new downtown 2,700-capacity "Limits" studio was decked out like a neon blacklight wonderland, with audience members handed paint-splashed T-shirts as they walked in, which were to be kept under wraps until a big reveal later in the show. The band's gear was also colorized, with brightly hued chalk-like scribblings covering their amps, piano and drums. It's hard to describe the rush of watching a band that plays to tens of thousands on stages so tall you have to crane your neck to see them from the front row as they plug in and play just a few feet off the ground, easily within arm's reach. And if you thought "Yellow" sounded huge in a field with 30,000 of your closest friends, imagine what it's like when you can count the veins popping on Martin's forehead.
For the new, ripping, U2-esque "Major Minor," I took a trip up to the control room and watched as the show's director called out rapid-fire cues while watching a bank of 28 monitors. You can't get a better feel for the band's subtle, easy dynamic than watching isolated hi-def close-ups of all four members loping their way through "Lost!" and observing the unspoken internal rhythm that makes their shows so seamless. Drummer Will Champion cranked it up for "God Put a Smile Upon Your Face," whip-cracking his kit with abandon as if for a moment he thought he was in the Foo Fighters. Ever polite, Martin apologized for being so sweaty — joking that his profuse perspiration is the very thing keeping his band off "The Bachelor" — before he unwrapped the world debut of the final song they finished for their upcoming album Mylo Xyloto. He said the gentle ballad "Up in Flames" — which features a memorable falsetto chorus and hypnotic tick-tock rhythm — was completed just five weeks earlier, just in the nick of time to make the cut.
That tune moved into another new mellow one, the acoustic "Us Against the World," which Martin started over again after dropping a barrage of not-safe-for-PBS f-bombs following a guitar mishap. The second time he got it right, as Champion joined him in perfect harmony on the line "slow it down," with guitarist Jonny Buckland adding in some tasteful, sustained-note Morse code soloing. It wasn't quiet for long, though, as "Politik" exploded with driving drums and piano. By the time Martin tinkled out the first notes of "Viva La Vida" on the piano, the audience was already whoa-oh-oooh-ing along. As it cranked up, they were on their feet, ecstatically clapping and singing along as the song built to its familiar crescendo. When the whoa-ooohs really kicked in, Martin jumped up on the drum riser and bounced on his toes, his arms held up like a triumphant prizefighter. With the crowd decked out in their paint-splashed T-shirts, Martin counted down to midnight, pretending it was cold outside, even though everyone in the chilly studio knew 85-degree nighttime swelter shortly awaited them. Confetti canons shot out paper butterflies and three screens covered the Day-Glo toys that descended for the new tune "Charlie Brown," whose final line, fittingly, is about glowing in the dark.
The set crashed to a close with another fresh track, the dark, funky "Paradise," which seems ripe for a beat-heavy remix (perhaps with a hip-hop break from pal Jay-Z?). The encore rolled out the driving 1-2-3 punch of the swelling "Clocks," slow-burn epic "Fix You" and recent uplifting single "Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall," which had Martin pogoing along with, and for a brief moment in the middle of, the ecstatic audience. It was one of those special nights when a band with a major arsenal finds a way to take its giant energy and squeeze it down into a much smaller space, without losing any of their arena-packing magic. [6]
The Oracle on 15 September 2011: Austin City Limits Taping, Austin, Texas, USA
January 3, 2012 - submitted by Salvador, United States of America
Q. Dear Oracle,
On New Years Eve I was just changing the channels on my tv and I found a channel where Coldplay was playing. Was it really live? If it was, I feel dumb for not knowing.
The Oracle replies:
If you mean this then no, it wasn't live. The band were playing live however in UAE on NYE. They celebrated New Year in Abu Dhabi.
