Sydney concert-goers were spoilt this past week; first we got the iconic Radiohead; then reformed punk gods Refused; Melbourne hip-hop heavyweight Bangs; Harvest festival and its many sideshows; and two stadium shows from arguably the biggest pop-rock band in the world, Coldplay. Between all the damaged wallets and hipsters pompously screaming “my favourite band is better than your favourite band,” Sydney’s music lovers revelled in the week’s onslaught of good music (ok, maybe except Bangs).
Never a band to be outshined, Coldplay’s Sydney graduation from arenas to stadium was celebrated with a lavish, excessive production that included each and every audience member turning into flashing beacons of light via LED wristbands which were distributed at the doors.
Before we were to witness the spectacle in store, support bands came in the form of American band The Pierces and our very own indie-heroes The Temper Trap. The former came first and proved to have some nice songs on offer but their sound was obviously not intended for a stadium. As they played through their relatively short set, their music seemed to fall on deaf ears while fans marched into the stadium to get the best possible spot, often talking over the music, unfortunately a common occurence throughout the whole concert.
While The Pierces left with little fanfare, but undoubtedly some new fans, The Temper Trap burst onto the graffiti-covered stage with style and opener "London’s Burning", which set the pace for a set that more than qualified them to open for one of the biggest bands in the world. Despite being in deep waters, the local boys did an excellent job getting us in the feel-good mood with early hits like "Fader" and "Love Lost".
Vocalist Dougy Mandangi let us know just how powerful his voice can be, soaring in between the Barry Gibb-esque falsettos that make The Temper Trap really stand out amongst our brightest bands. The Melbourne boys proved to be a big hit with the crowd, especially with this year’s excellent "Trembling Hands", epic instrumental "Drum Song", and the ubiquitous "Sweet Disposition", which were the highlights among 11 of their best tracks.
Chris Martin’s BFF Jay-Z got some promotion in as "99 Problems" blasted over the speakers, right before the main event. As Hova’s hit ended, the Back to the Future theme began and melted into the short instrumental "Mylo Xyloto", before an explosion of fireworks drowned out the deafening cheers for "Hurts Like Heaven".
Coldplay put themselves at risk of ‘overdoing it,’ but the excess is what made the larger-than-life production so effective, and for the first few songs we barely had time to breathe with confetti cannons, large confetti-containing balls, and our now-activated LED wristbands all coming together to set the scene for a string of hits including "In My Place", "The Scientist", and "Yellow".
Fan-favourite "God Put a Smile upon Your Face" was given an interesting stadium-rock reworking which had Will Champion pounding away on the drums and Chris Martin altering the lyrics to do what he does best - pander to the crowd.
While Mylo Xyloto wasn’t their most exciting album, the British boys did a great job in translating songs like "Charlie Brown" and "Don’t Let it Break Your Heart" into a live setting, instantly improving upon the recorded versions and even managing to make some of their less-loved material some of the highlights of the night. Though, this may have been exaggerated by the awe-inspiring production and the LED wristbands activating, making the whole stadium look like it was a massive Christmas decoration.
Long-time Coldplay fans were given a few treats amidst a sea of radio hits and Mylo Xyloto material - the brilliant "Warning Sign" was given a piano strip-down and sounded as beautiful as ever, marred only by the hundreds of people talking over the song because it wasn’t familiar [my biggest gripe of the night]. A cover of Elton John’s "Rocketman" also snuck into the set [second night got "What a Wonderful World" instead], and while short, was a great rendition.
The forgettable "Up in Flames" was just as mediocre live, even with some sweet electronic drumming; the same can be said for acoustic performances of "Us against the World", and unfortunately "Speed of Sound", which were both performed on an island stage near the back of the crowd.
After pleasing fans, over and over again, with his self-deprecating interactions and constant Sydney references, Chris returned to the main stage with his band and began the final stretch with a flawless one-two punch of "Clocks" and "Fix You".
Coldplay said their goodbyes and expressed their gratitude ahead of closer "Every Tear Drop is a Waterfall" and we were met with a stadium full of jumping lights, and with another elaborate fireworks show to cap off what was truly a spectacle.
Whether you love them, or used to love them and now hate them to look hip, Coldplay put on a show that any music lover would shower with praise. While it was far from a perfect night - with a set-list that would disappoint most hanging out for something like "Politik" or "Amsterdam"– the reigning kings of pop-rock gave us much more than our money’s worth.
Highlights: Hurts Like Heaven, In My Place, Violet Hill, Warning Sign, Charlie Brown, Fix You.
Set List
(main stage)
Mylo Xyloto (Introduction)
Hurts Like Heaven
In My Place
Major Minus
Lovers in Japan
The Scientist
Yellow
Violet Hill
God Put a Smile Upon Your Face
(x stage)
Princess of China
Up In Flames
Warning Sign
Rocket Man (Elton John Cover)
(main stage)
Don’t Let it Break Your Heart
Viva La Vida
Charlie Brown
Paradise
Encore
(c stage)
Us Against the World
Speed of Sound
(main stage)
Clocks
Fix You
Every Teardrop is a Waterfall
