Recap: Coldplay at Soldier Field

Source: Twitter – @coldplay

This past Thursday I was among the crowd that witnessed Coldplay’s massive show at Soldier Field here in Chicago. I use the term massive in more sense than one, considering that not only were they playing before a stadium crowd, but this concert was also broadcasting live in virtual reality for fans around the world. Fans of all ages were looking for an adventure of a lifetime, and lucky for them, Chris Martin and company sure delivered a set worthy of this stage to prove why Coldplay deserve to be one of the biggest acts around.

Izzy Bizu opened things up and though she came out to little fanfare, with the stadium barely at about 1/10 full, her set filled with smooth rhythms sure caught the attention of those in the stadium. Her warm and jazzy number, reminiscent of headliner’s “Viva La Vida,” was definitely a highlight, with a bouncy and sweet delivery that only got sweeter during the upbeat chorus. The thumping track “Someone That Loves You” was a great follow-up with her soothing vocals. The ballad with just her vocals and a piano accompaniment was tender, and it worked so well as the sun was setting, so the spotlight was shining that much more vibrantly and the wind started blowing just enough to add to the drama of the performance. It felt as intimate and personal as something you’d expect to find in a small club/lounge, even when it was thousands of us that were witnessing it; it got the loudest applause of their set for all the right reasons. “White Tiger,” the finale, brought up the energy before they left the stage and it showcased their dance Pop appeal. It’s more of a cool secret party vibe than that of sweaty packed clubs, but that’s the charm of it. The trio were not the most energetic bunch, but they came in and performed a set worthy of captivating a stadium crowd.

AlunaGeorge livened things up some more. Aluna is a real presence, from her enticing vocals, to her mesmerizing dancing, and add on top of that her red, fringe outfit. The fringe was a great choice as it flowed with the blowing wind. There something so organic to AG’s brand of Electro-based Pop that translates so vividly on a live setting. The three piece outfit are putting together quite the catalog, filled with Pop jams to get your arms swinging and your hips gyrating. “Trust me I mean what I mean” saw her take out her most sensual side, with a lot of sass and dope dance moves; even a MJ-esque crotch grab. One of the highlights came when she asked the crowd to raise a hand during “I remember” saying that “raise one hand up for that special someone” and the lights were turned up to showcase the thousands of arms that soon began to sway. During “who’s in control” she came down the runway, taking advantage of the stadium coming and closer to being at capacity. That was the moment this set really came alive. The chorus got so much of the crowd dancing and chanting along. Took some time to give a s/o to Chicago as one of the best cities (this coming from someone from London) and giving props to Izzu Bizy for a great opening set and thanked “the kings of England” for having them along.

“One day when I’m 100 years old I want to say to my grandchildren that the best crowd that we played to was in Chicago… can you guys help that dream come true?” Coldplay came out swinging from the very start. Classic “yellow” was the second track to much fan surprise and delight. “I turn my music up” was filled with confetti and fireworks and not just the end but throughout…. only the stage lights for the intro to “the scientist” made it feel like it was just us and the band for those next minutes. It was amazing how few people had their phones out; enjoying the performance more than trying to capture it for Snapchat and (older crowd usually) FB live. “This is the last time we’ll be in Chicago for a while… maybe we can sing a chorus together ” for a loud Scientist… the song was a lot more energetic and filled with swagger, getting fans to jam and chant… during paradise you got a dope song along to the chorus but the real winner was whoever was on the field dressed as an elephant, who got a full 10 second on screen. Shoutout to the dude in front of me who was calling his buddy apparently named Ben so he can hear the performance. His dance moves for the super electronic number are nothing short of a drug fueled production, but it felt so damn right. For the slow track they came to the stage down the runway, all of em. Seeing them all together made it more real that they’re a unit, and not just a Chris Martin show.

“Good thing is our music is waterproof and so is our show.” Asked us to send love to Charlottesville, Venezuela, Syria and everywhere else that needs love. “Let’s send it out to everyone who needs it” and went onto perform “everyglow”… clocks was pretty decent… midnight had a cool effect with a hazy light flashing for the screens. “We have to celebrate 2 things, first that the rain and wind has stopped… and second is that we’re alive and that anything can happen… let’s just for one song put away the phones and share this moment together. It doesn’t matter if you’re under 12 or over 50… maybe 65k of us can get along for a bit” it was cool cuz the cameras pointed to the runway and made it look like we were emitting a radio signal of love to the world. Martin commanded people to raise their hands as “we’re going to jump higher and higher”… even incorporated chance’s “all night” in the break for adventure of a lifetime… went off stage and the screens talked about hospitality. Before cutting to “amazing grace” (by Obama?)… they wound on the other end of the field to perform “in my place”. It was pretty perfect actually. Though it wasn’t unplugged since it definitely had all the electronic instruments, but stripped from all other production, with just white lights touching the band together and it felt so damn right….

they joked about season 3 episode 9 game of thrones and their drummer being secretly the most important character of the show. “We live in a beautiful world” (they reminisced about the first time they played in Chicago back in 01 and how they’d never guessed they’d someday wind up at soldier field joked about the song being written before a lot of the fans there were born…. let’s take a request from Instagram. Fan wanted “us against the world”. They revealed how they’re recording a live album and how they keep recording the same songs and how perhaps this performance can wind up on the record. Shout outs to Caroline in the crowd, who’d originally discovered them. They screen kept panning to couples hugging and swaying. Cute af…. more reserved version of “I want something just like this” still explosive and filled with chants… people danced enthusiastically to the final song “cuz you’re a sky full of stars”… during the last track he called back to Chicago always bringing rain on his shows. We got one more showing of the elephant, hanging front row with friends holding up a poster board with the band’s Love logo as fireworks lit up the sky. Martin mentioned “the reason we chose Chicago is because you guys are fucking awesome!… I think we’re allowed 3 swear words and I think we used them wisely.” He revealed that this show was being broadcast around the world in virtual reality.

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