17 April 2012: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Canada

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17 April 2012: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Canada

Contents

Setlist

  1. Mylo Xyloto
  2. Hurts Like Heaven
  3. In My Place
  4. Major Minus
  5. Lost!
  6. Yellow
  7. The Scientist
  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
    encore
  18. Clocks
  19. Fix You
  20. Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall

Photos

Photos from this show can be found at Coldplaying.com in the Gallery thread for Edmonton. http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/1933

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=90960

Discussion

All post-show discussion for this show at the forum thread http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=90960

Fan Reviews

All fan reviews have been submitted to us by the members of Coldplaying.com[1], unless stated otherwise.

Just got back!! And had an amazing time!! Best part was, stranger girl beside me knew all the words to ALL the songs too!!! Oh man, I can't remember any of the others, if I missed any! I was in a dancing heaven the whole time, so forgive me The wristbands were AWESOME in person... the roar of the crowd once they figured it out, too cool. I also ran down to the main floor and a nice man let me run in and grab some confetti!! Little did he know, I grabbed handful after handful after handful hahaha! It was brilliant all in all... to be honest though, I liked the Viva tour a little better than this show, but I have 3 more chances to have my mind changed! I think the best part is how upbeat the songs are on this album, so I had so many chances to dance! Tomorrow, I am off to the Calgary show! I found the Edmonton crowd a little lame though, there were a LOT of empty seats And wouldn't my luck have it, me and my sisters were literally in the last row at the top, and the girls in front of us were picked to go sit closer!! Where, I don't know, but they were gone for the whole show. Damn! But sitting that far away doesn't matter, I was able to absorb everything in its entirety. There were also some funny looking balloons/blow ups that went up for one of the songs, 4 of them in different parts of the arena. I didn't expect those! I wish I had some photos to upload right now, but that'll have to wait until I have a few minutes of extra time! I'll try my hardest! All-in-all, SUCH a great show, Coldplay is entertainment at its finest. My throat hurts from singing and screaming. Can't wait until tomorrow!! [thanks storm99x]

Fucking. Amazing. Another night to remember as I was at the last concert they had here in 2009. Both amazing shows. .....Warning Sign totally caught me offguard, HUGE smile on my face! [thanks Escapist99]

I’ll be Mylo, and Penny Quinn with be Xyloto. Rick’s Review will be brief and to the point (comparable to my meeting with the band in the visitor’s locker room, and the concert to kick off Coldplay’s World Tour). - the band pulled out all of the stops (confetti, lasers, balloons blocking the upper level concourse exits, balloons falling from the Skyreach, and what about the bracelets (Made in Canada) that lit up Rexall?). - was Rihanna a hologram? - a shout out to the Great One (I was hoping for a story about the band walking the River Valley or something). - Chris Martin was not out of breath, he didn’t keep asking the crowd ‘how we were doing?’, he kept on falling but he held each note while dancing like it was the first time in a long time. - 1 guitar that flew in the air - 2 songs had false starts but the crowd ate it up (and so did Mr. Martin because he had to burp for one of them). - the songs from Mylo Xyloto were the standouts of the night (Charlie Brown, Paradise, and Us Against the World). - 90 minutes wasn’t long enough [thanks sonic1029.com]

I purchased VIP tickets so my friend and I were on the floor 6th row in the middle between main stage, catwalk and the X-stage. We checked in early at our designated sign-in time and got our VIP tickets, lanyard and Xylobands. Our t-shirt, lithograph and “exclusive tour gift” are going to be mailed out to us sometime next week. I was able to obtain a copy of the rehearsal schedule from Monday evening (yes, the boys were in town Monday morning. They spent most of their afternoon and evening at Rexall rehearsing, and rehearsing), and no I did not feel the need to post any sighting info or the set list in advance. I’m sure I’ll get asked why and the answer is while I am a pretty big Coldplay fan, when they aren’t on duty (ie: show day) it isn’t in me to go out of my way to attempt to find them or post any spoilers. My friend and I also took sometime to visit the Oxfam booth. Please, do visit them if you go to a show..

Glad they were able to slightly mix up the set list from what they had during the first leg of the MX tour. The experience seeing them again was magical and brilliant. I was just a baby when they first came to Edmonton in 2003 and they have been on my bucket list since. When they returned in 2009 my mind was completely blown away and Tuesday night was no exception. I was impressed with POC, such a shame to those who weren’t into it. The Xylobands were fabulous, it was a pleasure meeting the man behind the Xylobands – Jason Regler. It was a quick encounter; he seemed shocked when I called him out, asking if he was Jason. We exchanged a few words and I was on my way. [thanks aa.]

Media Reviews

17 April 2012: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Canada

Toronto Sun: It’s flattering when a world famous band chooses Edmonton to launch a world tour. Either that or it’s “paid rehearsal” — because if they screw up in Edmonton, who cares? The Coldplay concert Tuesday night was no place for such negativity. This was a happy, shiny offering of British pop-rock goodness of the highest order. We are blessed. There was little sign this band was ironing out its show for more prestigious gigs in Los Angeles or Prague or wherever.

Sure, singer Chris Martin screwed up the intro to God Put a Smile On My Face, but he glossed over it gracefully and from there was in fine, often ferocious form, spinning himself dizzy at every opportunity. The rest of the show was a slick display of pure Coldplay hit power. The band sounded great — spine-tingling and powerful when required, sensitive when called for (and they called for it a lot) and at times too perfect when you noticed there were lots of sounds coming from the stage with no live musicians creating them — just a little pet peeve of mine about allegedly live rock concerts, but no matter. The show looked amazing, too. Bonus points were awarded before Coldplay even played a single note, having offered every one of the 14,500 fans at Rexall Place a free — free — electronic glowing wristband, remotely activated to light depending on the songs. Wow. Eat that, gouging glowstick merch-men at Selena Gomez concerts.

The sight of 14,000 glow-bands going off all at once in the brisk opening song Hurts Like Heaven was spectacular. Some fans demurred, perhaps fearing it to be a brain-controlling device: All Hail Coldplay. Too late. Resistance is futile. As way of introduction, Martin shouted, “Is there anybody out there?!” — thrice, got the expected response (thrice) and led the band into the first of the massive power ballads of the evening, In My Place. Ba-bam! Confetti cannons blanketed everyone in the floor seats with paper snow. A little later, in Yellow — the second of the massive power ballads and the hit that launched the band’s career — 100 giant balloons floated down from the ceiling. All sang along, “I wrote a song for you, and all the things you do, and it was called Yellow.”

Twenty minutes in and the place looked like Cirque du Soleil had exploded. This was basically a stadium show packed into an arena. Each song was a grand singalong anthem of U2-ian proportions, each ending was a potential show stopper, each musical climax was more dramatic than the last — right down to the impossibly sensitive last encore ballad, Fix You. All sang along, “I will try to fix you.” Not sure that’s a healthy emotion. Here and there, Martin brought the energy level right down and sat behind his day-glo graffitied piano, as on the delicate not-so-power ballad Scientist and again during a centre stage interlude, but the band shifted back into its feel-good arena-rock anthems with ease. Later came the heavy hitters like Viva La Vida — which almost demands to be heard in an outdoor stadium. Likewise Clocks.

During the encore set, Martin acknowledged Edmonton being the launchpad of the tour, thanking the crowd for “cheering in all the right places and forgiving all the mistakes” — before promptly going off the rails in the Celtic strummer Us Against the World and having to start it over again. How ironic. Expectations are high when it comes to the world famous band’s opening acts, too. Coldplay did not disappoint here. The Pierces, a band of New York sisters who sound like (young) Stevie Nicks to the power of two, impressed a very sparse crowd — where was everybody, in the parking lot getting lit up? — with its powerhouse neo-folk sound, superb vocals and songs about various kinds of self-destructive behaviour. Deadly combination.

To name the next act is to know them: Metronomy, the British electro-disco band whose crisp metronomic grooves gave a new wave-Brian Eno-Talking Heads-like shape to their unusual songs. Call it “new rave.” So weird, in fact, was this band that its more “conventional” songs — that is, songs that sounded like songs — came off as dull. They were at their best in zany arrangements, some completely instrumental — and some completely, jaw-droppingly off the wall — rich in squeaking, blooping, wheezing vintage synthesizers and chord changes not found in nature. There is no understanding the British. That’s part of why we love them so.

Four out of five Suns [2]

17 April 2012: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Canada
Edmonton Journal: At the root, innocence. With a mix of studied stadium rock moves and innovative use of brightly coloured tech, Coldplay on Tuesday night didn’t make us feel cool or mad or even self-servingly alienated — they made us feel like wide-eyed children. It started with neon-coloured wristbands handed out at the doorways – all urged by circular hanging trampoline screens to put them on and be part of the show. Chris Martin took about a minute to get into his first “whoa-oh-ohh” as Hurts Like Heaven began the London band’s North American kickoff show; our wrist devices suddenly signalled by radio to turn the coliseum into a giant bowl of flickering Skittles. Next, for the aptly named In My Place, confetti cannons fire! Now whose mom is supposed to clean that mess up? “I hope you’re as happy to be here as we are,” the cheerful 35-year-old singer said. “Playing Canada is always a f---ing pleasure.

“Tuesday’s normally a s--- night,” Martin joked saucily. The handsome fellows broke in with the one that opened the wormhole for them, and as Martin crooned a muscled-up Yellow, giant balloon balls dropped from the roof. More toys! He finished this one on solo piano, our big crowd accompanying, then one of the band’s absolute best The Scientist rolled out, it too a big fat singalong. “Let’s go back to the start,” Martin sang, which is of course our theme: innocence. How many hands held, lips kissed, first dances at weddings has this band had a touch of? It’s just uncountable, and directly due to the fact they sincerely serve their audience exactly what they want, the last of the mega-bands never driven to artistic obscurity, 50 millions records later still on the path U2 and Radiohead got too big or weird to walk, mid-tempo rock designed no longer for stereos but laser-lit audiences alone.

In front of their black-light graffiti backdrop, Martin ended Violet Hill with “If you love Wayne Gretzky, won’t you let me know?” The singer stopped God Put a Smile Upon Your Face to burp with an excuse me, a recorded Rihanna looming over the band for Princess of China. Another guaranteed, Viva La Vida, and Martin held his mic up dancing down the catwalk with a huge grin, rolling in the confetti in the dark. And again the wristbands turn Rexall into a giant bowl of blinking Christmas. I am a cynical human, but this was magic. The Pierces flicked the first power switch on with their alluring-sinister Love You More. The Alabama-born sister duo sang forlorn harmonies, on Kissing You Goodbye boldly tapping a nostalgic post-psychedelia. Allison Pierce turns her pop music slightly dizzy and uneasy, with a swell touch of evil. Coldplay’s Guy Berryman produced their last record, incidentally. Watch their song Boring online to consider their range; these guys are sublime at times, and did well as the crowd’s 14,500 beetled in slowly. Next up on stage, twitchy four-piece U.K. electro-poppers Metronomy, who’ve smartly given over to the urge to sing. After a bit of discordant but intentional tunelessness, they pounded out The Bay, drummer Anna Prior glittering in purple with a beat to match the band’s flashing heart-lights. Bass is the backbone of this band, really belonging up close in a sweaty club past midnight, though they gave it their all. “How’s everybody at the top?” singer Joseph Mount asked the cavern before their rainy-day sexy The Look.

For Coldplay, the arena exploded with Paradise (a lone elephant costume standing outside before the show asking for Lucy’s freedom), Jonny Buckland leaning extra into his guitar before we played the encore game. Playing Us Against the World, yes, from the seats across from the stage under the retired Oilers’ numbers, Martin noted, “You’re cheering at all the right places and you’re forgiving all the mistakes and it makes us feel great so thank you.”

Beautiful moment. Through us, they ran back to the stage and it’s Clocks, 17 songs in, and we each remember ... old things. Then, another killer emotional app, Fix You, and again the room is one voice. Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall ends the show. “I turn the music up,” Martin starts it off and all the toys and colours and energy become one warm and friendly thing. Here they come, North America. Now about that mess... [3]

17 April 2012: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Canada
GigCity: It was spectacular. It was amazing. Every other concert this year at Rexall Place will be measured against Coldplay. Edmonton got the first North American glimpse of the Mylo Xyloto world tour on Tuesday night – opening on a mammoth set cascaded in neon colors to the tune of the “Back to the Future” theme, into the first song, the new single “Hurts Like Heaven.” There was a dazzling array of lighted wristbands that were given to almost all 14,500 in attendance, creating a sea of bedazzling, flickering lights. The band then cascaded into “In My Place,” which was accompanied by a large battery of uber-powerful confetti cannons. Vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Johnny Buckland were seemingly swallowed by the flying bits of colored paper as they walked out to the end of a long runaway jutting straight out from the main stage. Early in the main set the band also played “Yellow,” with large balloons falling from the rafters, which all seemed to magically gravitate towards Martin and the other band members on stage. The band kicked some of them playfully back into the crowd, but there were just too many, and roadies had to pop them.

The band did a stellar job of mixing new material with early songs. The band played most of their renowned hits, including “The Scientist,” “Violet Hill”, and “God Put A Smile” early on, then performed a trio of songs on what they referred to as the “X Stage,” which was at the end of the runway, including a duet with Martin and Rihanna – “Princess Of China” – featuring a video of the latter on the many screens spread throughout the arena, high and circular, with pictures so clear and precise you might’ve thought you were watching your HD screen at home. Shortly afterwards, inflatable shapes with “MX” logos appeared in a number of the exits in the top section, as the band performed “Up In Flames” and “Warning Sign” before retreating back to the main stage for another suite of songs, including “Viva La Vida,” ending the main set with “Paradise”.

Their encore opened with the band performing “Us Against the World” in the back of the arena, halfway up a corner section, which I’m sure nobody in the vicinity had any idea about before they arrived at Rexall earlier in the evening. It wasn’t a large stage, and the band seemed a little cramped, but they managed perfectly, and it was such a treat to see them amongst the crowd – then they raced back to the main stage for “Clocks”, and an extraordinary, mind-boggling rendition of “Fix You”. The light and laser show was more than spectacular. The pinpoint lasers streaked through the darkness towards the back of the arena, reminding us all of their immense power in many of the band’s videos. Martin masterfully moved between singing, guitar and piano – plus a second piano that was somehow manoeuvred onto the “X Stage.”

The evening wasn’t flawless, with Martin having to pause to burp early in the set, then re-starting the acoustic song in Section 108, saying “we’re a bit rusty on this one.” But this was the first gig on the tour. And it just made it seem that much more real, that much more intimate. The audience even sang happy birthday to bassist Guy Berryman, before the band closed out the night with “Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall.” Time stopped for the few fleeting moments we were with Coldplay. Ninety minutes, to be precise. It’s such a shame for us to part, but we have no other choice but to share them with the rest of the continent for the rest of the year – but we still got them first. [4]

Roadie #42 blogs about the Edmonton concert

Twitter Updates

17 April 2012: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Canada
  • @Jayreg1969: twitpic.com/9ajjw2 - Edmonton is coming together nicely !!! Lots hard work from all the crew !!
  • @Jayreg1969: Testing for first show !!! [twitpic.com/9ajlt2 twitpic.com/9ajlt2]
  • @Sperounes: I'll be livetweeting Tuesday's Coldplay concert at Rexall Place, the first date on their North American tour. #coldplayeg
  • @livenationwest: Coldplay set times in Edmonton & Calgary: Doors 6pm, Pierces 7pm, Metronomy 7:45pm, @Coldplay 9pm (subject to change) bit.ly/HRvPSV
  • @Jayreg1969: Rehearsals Done -- went really well - set list sorted !! first show 2012 tour tomorrow night - Pressure is on
  • @Xylobands: Coldplay rehearsals done, #Xylobands ready... going to be a great night in Edmonton!
  • @coldplay: This was coming into Canada. Very excited about tonight. We have the best audience in the world. Thank you. CM pic.twitter.com/Np5KROVg
  • @Jayreg1969: Day 1 2012 tour Scared nervous excited Its been a mad 3 moths getting this done Good see Band ! Here we go !! let the Glowing begin !!!
  • @coldplay: Mylo Xyloto world tour kicks off today. Make it loud #Edmonton! PH
  • @Jayreg1969: wow the rollercoaster i can nearly get off !!! the anxious wait for new wristbands is over ! THEY HERE WE READY LIGHT UP EDMONTON !!
  • @dpreiss19: Coldplay tonight! Too Stoked.
  • @ScantlanSiobhan: Coldplay tonight! #excited #gonnabegood
  • @bryce12buelow: Off to the Coldplay concert in Edmonton!!! :D #EXCITED
  • @Jayreg1969: Sound check new wristbands look amzing !!!!! Cant wait for tonight its going be bright !!!!!
  • @coldplay: Falling in love with #Metronomy here in Edmonton. PH
  • @martinaocean: Does coldplay have enough busses? Lol
  • @martinaocean: Like 12 trucks and 8 tour busses wtf
  • @Jayreg1969: Edmonton its a wrap -- hope you enjoyed it as much as i did !!! We had the place glowing !! AWESOME !!
  • @vwayner: My third Coldplay concert I'm Edmonton. It was great but their show in 2009 still better in my books #coldplayeg
  • @coldplay: Edmonton you have my total love and respect . What a great night. PH
  • @coldplay: "I am a cynical human, but this was magic." A lovely review of last night's Edmonton show - t.co/AWXBR8pY A
  • @Liann_Cameron: The @Coldplay show was soooo good last night and meeting the boys before the show was amazing! I can't wait to see the pic! #coldplayeg
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