I wanted to survey the audience to see if anyone was enjoying "Cemeteries of London" as much as I was, but I didn't want to take my eyes off the stage — you know, where the music was actually being made — and miss the opportunity to engage the song. Upon its conclusion, I decided by grand right the title was mine; I did enjoy it more than anyone else.
I'm sure I didn't get the title for "Fix You," but I didn't come in last. For starters, I like that song more than I should. Second, I was at least present. One of the most shocking observations of the night — even more shocking than the accidental observation of earlier — was that as Martin started this song, 2/3 of my row was empty. I'm willing to bet everything in my wallet right now against everything in yours that a vast number of fellow attendees came to the show looking forward to this song as much as any other, yet somehow they were in the porta-potties or the beer line when the moment came.
I almost felt sorry for them, to have spent all that money only to miss one of their big moments. I quickly changed my mind. I'd needed to go to the restroom since somewhere around 0.8 miles from the exit. I held my fluid and stayed in place until the concert had come to a complete stop. I felt like Linus in the pumpkin patch; I waited, sincerely, for my songs to be played. I saw the Great Pumpkin. They went trick-or-treating. They got a Bud Light and missed their song. I saw their song and mine and didn't assault my tongue with Budweiser.
Ambivalence crept in when the band left the main stage and headed out to a miniature stage near the leftmost bleacher seats for a miniset . On the one hand, I thought it was very nice and egalitarian to play to the whole crowd, including the cheap seats. On the other, I'd paid top dollar for eighth row seats and wanted them to get their ass back down front where they belonged. I felt the same way about the arrangements of "God Put a Smile On Your Face" and "Talk," both performed with an odd, techno feel.
While on this mini stage, there was a sweet bit of irony as Chris Martin told the crowd about seeing Bruce Springsteen in concert recently and learning the difference between a crowd booing and a Springsteen crowd's chant of "BRUUUUUUUUUUUUCE!" It would have been ironic if we'd had to go to a Coldplay show to hear a Bruce Springsteen song, and for one brief moment that's what 11 and I thought they were about to do. Instead, Martin played "The Hardest Part."
Article comments
1 - Glen Boyd
Wow, dude...that was longer than two of my most indulgent Rockologist columns. I'm going to see these guys in July though, so thanks for the preview. And for clearing that thing up about the free CDs at the end (I downloaded it, but you still had me a little worried). Hopefully, as I'm still single we'll get the added bonus of the "2009 model" thingies in Seattle too...
-Glen
2 - El Bicho
"It would have been ironic if we'd had to go to a Coldplay show to hear a Bruce Springsteen song"
That would have been awesome since I believed I called that a few days prior