22 July 2011: iTunes Festival, London, UK
From WikiColdplay
Contents |
Setlist
- Intro (Back To The Future theme tune)
- Mylo Xyloto
- Hurts Like Heaven
- Yellow
- In My Place
- Major Minus
- Lost!
- The Scientist
- Shiver
- Violet Hill
- God Put A Smile Upon Your Face
- Moving To Mars
- Us Against The World
- Politik
- Viva la Vida
- Charlie Brown
- Life is for Living
Encore - Clocks
- Fix You
- Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall
Photos
Photos from this show can be found at Coldplaying.com in the Gallery thread for the iTunes Festival, London, UK. 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=77321
Discussion
All post-show discussion for this show at the forum thread http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=77321
Fan Reviews
All fan reviews have been submitted to us by the members of Coldplaying.com[1], unless stated otherwise.
First post but I've been lurking on here for a while. Luckily I was one of the competition winners and actually went to the gig last night. I've read a lot of negative comments about the crowd being shit or whatever but I still had probably the best night of my life, I was about 2 rows from the front and literally made eye contact with the band it was simply amazing. The only problem was it was DAMN HOT in there and a few too many people had there phones out for my liking. All things considered it was the best gig I've ever been to!
I'm guilty of taking a few photos myself, but they came out pretty awful as I took them on my blackberry. Let me know if you want me to upload them tho.
Song highlight was God Put A Smile Upon Your Face but What I really liked most was the laser show during Every Tear Drop... because it sort of sparkled when Chris put his hands through the mist.
[Inside_a_Bubble]
Just got back from the gig..
Me and my brother somehow got in. It was as DODGY as you get.. but who cares!?
10th gig and loved it. Especially as it was easily the smallest venue I've ever seen Coldplay in. Well expect a small thing called 'Pilton Party' which they played a million years ago..
Only thing is that crowd was AWFUL. My brother got spat at just for going a bit crazy during Politik. And generally they were dull as. It was definitely a 'competition winners' crowd but also the genuine Coldplay lot down the front were pretty tame. It's a shame that when they play in such an amazing venue they get such a shit audience.
Chris seemed to know it too. He was like begging everyone to get involved and then just gave up. He was always sweating a shit load as it was HOT in there. I went up on my brothers shoulders for 'Yellow' and got told.. "I didn't win tickets to see your back" - OMG. Get over it. You WON tickets. For free. They cost you nothing. She was a miserable cow.
Anyway.. rant over. Just wish people would realise it's a live concert and I'm there to have fun not just stand there like a statue.
[neb321]
Amazing! The show was incredible! its like the 100000th time i see coldplay live but I still don't get tired of the clasics! hope you enjoyed Moving to Mars like I did! Its not a song that will be played often! once in a lifetime (well not that much, but is not a song that the band will play in their upcoming tour) Lucky the people that heard the "U" song at the soundcheck... Im pretty sure some people recorded it, i wouldn't be surprised if it would appear later in youtube (i hope not), anyway, good night, and see you in japan! (not literally).
[Jack Bauer]
A great show. Not the best, but still great!
MtM...amazing...and very brave. On the stream at least it seemed to get one of the best receptions of the night
I'm amazed Chris didn't pass out in those hot conditions...and he looked to be struggling at times, but did amazingly well...very early on you could see sweat pouring off his wrists as he played the piano...
I think you could also see the extra pressure the boys (particularly Chris) feel when they play in London, and so (I guess) why they don't do it so much.
The crowd were pretty 'mixed' I thought, must have been hard work to play to at times. Damn those guests in suits, and casual gig goers. The true fans were exceptional though
Still think Lost could be, er, lost, and I personally hope MM will be too.
HLH, MtM, CB, UAtW...all mindblowing. That's a third of an album right there of absolutely astonishing material for me
Hope everyone who got in had an amazing time - sure you did
Goodnight all
[Tonsu]
Fantastic show. My ears are still ringing!
I was one behind the barrier at the gig. Such as fantastic sound and a great setlist. I'm so glad they played Moving To Mars, very magical moment.
My only qualm was being at the front and left I was at the mercy of Jonny's (wonderful) but very loud guitar amps, so I couldn't really hear Chris all that clearly.
Nevermind. I see alot of people saying the crowd were pretty dead. Well, considering I'd been there since about 4 o clock outside queuing, my feet were pretty gone, but I jumped and went for it! Compared to the Foo Fighters, the crowd were alot more tame.
With regards to the Pierces. I think they have a great sound, but it's abit MOR for me. I'd have preferred a slightly more energetic band to get me more pumped for Coldplay.
Also. It was SO HOT.
[TheFoxThatBecameGod]
Media Reviews
Stevie La Vida: Gerrard on the lash at Coldplay show
HIS Liverpool team may have had a pre-season nightmare up north but Stevie Gerrard has been living it up down south. The crocked Premier League captain hit the ale watching Coldplay in London just hours before his Kop mates were pumped by Championship side Hull City.
Chris Martin and his band were playing an intimate show at Camden's Roundhouse as part of the iTunes Festival.
And the G-Man - sidelined with a groin injury since April - went along with a bevy of his bessies. The England ace took his mates out for a posh dinner before they headed to the gig in North London.
Once inside, the group were ushered to a VIP balcony where they watched the band play a set including 2009 hit Viva La Vida.
One onlooker said: "Stevie was having a whale of a time. He was down there with a load of pals. They were loving it. They were knocking back the beers and singing at the top of their lungs.
"Stevie was loving letting off a bit of steam. He had a big grin plastered across his chops throughout."
And it seems like the rest of the Anfield squad are missing their midfield general.
They got thumped 3-0 by Hull on Saturday afternoon.
The Premier League is currently home to a crop of players with decent musical tastes.
Newcastle United ace and Morrissey fan Joey Barton is a committed gig-goer.
He's often found in sweaty venues checking out little-known bands with his new rock 'n' roll side parting.
His dedication to all things indie so impressed Vampire Weekend and White Stripes manager Ian Montone he has taken him on as a client and is aiming to improve his bad boy image.
And Spurs winger David Bentley has even been known to indulge in the odd spot of crowd-surfing at Kings Of Leon shows.
It beats the old days of listening to rubbish like Simply Red and Phil Collins...
"You have to jump to this," Chris Martin commands before "Viva La Vida". Only it's not really a jumping song, they're not really a jumping band. Although the rangy Martin, bless him, regularly bounces on the spot like a welterweight.
For this free event the indie four-piece are armed with a generous amount of gimmicky pyrotechnics and bombast – the Back to the Future theme announces their arrival, there's a fluorescent light show towards the finale, giant balloons are everywhere and pretty multi-coloured paper is fired from a cannon. Coldplay are a pretty polished and slick act these days. In fact, there's something a bit Vegas about Martin and his outfit. These are not gnarled individuals or twisted souls. They don't do politics, although one of their best songs and a highlight tonight is "Politik". They're not perverse, kinky or strange. And strange, in pop, is good. Their sound is calculating and stadium-friendly. There's little menace, spite or soul about them. And you can't dance to their solemn anthems. Sway possibly, raise your arm maybe. But it barely matters when Martin can bang out so many gorgeous pop melodies, the likes of "Fix You" and "Yellow".
Unfortunately, this freebie (As Martin jokes: "Twelve years ago we played up the road and had to give away all our tickets, turns out nothing's changed") in front of competition winners, well-heeled hipsters and celebs (Noel Gallagher and Jamie Oliver are here) is plagued by constant hubbub and chatter. "Everybody okay so far?" enquires a sweaty, slightly flustered Martin in a transatlantic twang. You almost feel sorry for this millionaire, with his Hollywood actress wife and hip-hop superstar pals (Jay-Z), as a section of the crowd don't feel engaged at such an intimate gig. Only on the rockier numbers, the Radiohead-like "Shiver" and "Violet Hill" in particular, where Coldplay look happiest, especially the imposing guitarist Jonny Buckland and ace drummer Will Champion, do the band manage to drown out the dinner-party hubbub. New songs, like the drone-heavy "Moving to Mars" and "Charlie Brown", are lost under the blather.
However, they end impressively with the emotive "Clocks", the lovely "Fix You" and the new release, "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall", their Big Country-style stomp. For all their effort, and Martin's swagger and strong vocals, this wasn't as stirring as it could have been. It feels a tad flat.
3/5 Reviewed by Ben Walsh
Coldplay are ready to reclaim their crown as the biggest band in the world, says James Lachno reviewing their weekend performance at the Roundhouse.
'Twelve years ago we played 300 yards up the road and had to give away all the tickets,” Chris Martin, Coldplay’s singer, announced during the band’s free iTunes Festival show at the Roundhouse in Camden. “Turns out nothing’s changed.”
Self-deprecating wit aside, to say that Coldplay have come a long way would be an understatement. The band have had four chart-topping albums in Britain, won six Brit Awards and seven Grammys and racked up record sales exceeding 50 million worldwide.
Three years on from the album Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, this sparkling performance suggests that Coldplay are ready to reclaim their crown as the biggest band in the world, and could be about to usher in their liveliest, most songful phase yet.
Anyone who has seen the video to the recent single Every Teardrop is a Waterfall will know that their new thing is neon. Before they started playing, orb-like structures of varying sizes shot beams of fluorescent light out across the auditorium. It seemed like a statement of reinvention, an attempt to challenge those who have always found the band humdrum or dour.
As it transpired, they had written some luminous tunes to match this gaudy new aesthetic. From the off, there was a vibrant swagger about the performance. The band opened with a new song, Hurts like Heaven, a pulsating rocker that belied its corny title. All driving drums and heartland hooks, it was unmistakably Springsteen-esque. What’s more, it really suited them.
It is telling that Coldplay headlining Glastonbury last month passed by almost entirely without comment. Among coverage dominated by anticipation of Beyoncé's Vegas spectacle and U2's questionable tax arrangements, Coldplay took to the main stage on Saturday night and proved yet again that they are the world's most efficient stadium rock band.
Tonight's iTunes festival show seems intimate by comparison, until you learn that it is being streamed live to 23 countries. It's a point Chris Martin acknowledges throughout the evening, delivering earnest thank yous to "those people who have bothered to make the effort to watch us on the internet". He also wryly acknowledges this show is a free gig for competition winners. "Twelve years ago, we played 100 yards from here, and we had to give all the tickets away," he says, gesturing towards the Bull and Gate just down the road. "I guess nothing has changed."
Tonight's freeloading audience, both actual and virtual, bear witness to Coldplay at their most propulsive and sentimental. It's barely fathomable that a band able to unleash glorious torrents of sound such as The Scientist or God Put a Smile Upon Your Face then choose to weigh them down with sub-Adrian Mole doggerel, of which the nadir remains Politik's: "Look at the earth from outer space/ Everyone must find a place." However, nobody here could care less.
The band unveil tracks from their imminent fifth album with their traditional self-effacement. "We've never played this song live before and, depending on the next five minutes, may never play it again," deadpans Martin, before Moving to Mars. As it turns out to be a sumptuous epic ballad with choruses that hang in the air like sighs, you suspect this will not prove its sole airing.
The secret of Coldplay's world domination is simple: the songs. They encore with the gorgeous Clocks and the Samaritans-of-a-song that is Fix You, then surpass both with the new tune Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall. Those aching for their demise may have a long wait.
• This article was amended on 25 July 2011. The original referred to the song Fix You as Fix It. This has been corrected.
Ian Gittins
http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/jul/24/coldplay-roundhouse-review
As attitudes go, "we're going to give it everything we've got" is as good as it gets.
Especially when it came as an early declaration from Chris Martin, whose Coldplay can and do sell out Wembley Stadium.
This year's iTunes Festival highlight saw Coldplay playing their smallest show in years, somehow displaying the hunger which took them from the Barfly across the road. "We had to give tickets away when we played there a decade ago," Martin quipped to the audience of competition winners.
"Looks like nothing's changed." Oh, but it has.
Regrettably, they no longer dress as Bastille-storming French Revolutionaries (I do love a band in uniform) and, scandalously, they still omit Talk. But they had giant balloons, that extraordinary drummer Will Champion, a bucketful of hits (live music surely gets no better and no more heart-stopping than the timpani-infused Viva La Vida) and the live debut of Moving To Mars, which suggested that the game is far from up.
Martin was crafty enough to thank the television audience and human enough to ask of guitarist Jonny Buckland "does anybody love him as much as we do?" The crowd were still singing as they left: it was that sort of night.
John Aizlewood
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/music/review-23972693-coldplay-roundhouse---review.do
