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Posts Tagged ‘coldplay’

A week ago from today I went back to my favorite place in the Midwest, Alpine Valley, to  go see Coldplay during their Viva La Vida tour.   They only play in the United States once every 3-5 years, so I figured I better take my opportunity now and run with it.   Who knows, next time they are back in the United States, I might have 2 dogs, 2 children, and I will be married with a full-time job.  Gotta jump at these opportunities when I have them, because I might not have them later in life.

Do be brutally honest, I was expecting to be somewhat disappointed after seeing Phish a month earlier.  Could it really get any better than seeing Phish?  No, not at all.   However, Coldplay caught me by surprise, and I enjoyed the show exponentially more than I anticipated.  Coldplay puts on a completely different type of show than any other band I’ve saw live, filled with theatrics, movie screens, and sing-alongs.

Coldplay opened with “Space Odyssey 2001″ as it segued into their mysterious themes from the Viva La Vida album, swinging lighted “lanterns” as they came onto the stage. You can kind of see this in the YouTube video off of my iPhone…sorry for the poor quality.

It was a cold and rainy day to go to a show, but that didn’t stop anyone from entering or leaving the Alpine Valley gates.  Stacy and I threw a blanket over our heads and that seemed to work fine for the duration of the evening.   The rain dampened the sound a bit (no pun intended), but that is not Coldplay’s fault, its just something I noticed with the rain coming down sidways with a 20mph wind.  Alpine Valley always has good sound, the acoustics of the 3 wood pavilions are engineered perfect for the landscape in which it is built on.

Confetti, balloons, some slight improv, and a WWI themed show was the golden ticket for Coldplay putting on a good show.  Coldplay, while not a musically sophisticated band, held all sorts of energy with simple guitar riffs, and powerful techno synthetics as they wandered through the audience.  Coldplay was kind enough to make their way through all sides of the Amphitheater, playing songs from two sides of the lawn (getting us quite a bit closer to the band). They even played “Billie Jean” at the center lawn, their own tribute to Michael Jackson, which was pretty cool.

Here is a video of the “Billy Jean” tribute.

If you ever get a chance to see Coldplay on their next world tour, do so.  Tickets are cheap (about $30 per ticket).  Here is a video that should give you an idea of the type of energy Coldplay brings to the stage.

Everytime I go to a show at Alpine Valley, I feel as if it is time to move away from Houghton.   I love it here, but I feel as if down in Wisconsin, out towards Red Rocks, the Gorge, or Deer Creek is really where I want to be.  Music is a wonderful thing, and when you are in a live music setting, I find it interesting that people come together with different interpretations of the music, yet as a group of 40,000 people, we all find some sense of euphoria in what we are witnessing.   It is truely a remarkable experience that words cannot describe.

Anyway, a week and a half until I see Phish at Toyota Park.  They are playing the best sets yet.  I think that the month of July really helped them gain back any lost chemistry.  June was a magical month for the band, now they are well on their way to being who they were in 1996, 1997, 1998.   I will keep you posted on my third Phish experience, sets 5 and 6 of my short Live Phish career.

Ahh, yes, concert season has arrived, and what a year it is going to be.

As most of you know, Phish, my passion above and beyond any other band, has returned to the stage after a four year hiatus.   I get to see them in June.   Recently, I just bought tickets to Coldplay, the worlds most popular band today.   Tonight, I went to my first of many gigs, Trampled By Turtles.

Trampled By Turtles was very good, as expected.  There were only a couple hundred people at the show, but these guys really know how to rock out and improvise.  Their performance shows why they are one of the more predominantly known Newgrass groups touring today.

April 18 TRAMPLED BY TURTLES

June 20-21 PHISH

The most anticipated weekend of the year, at least for me.  I expect Phish to pull about 60 songs out of their hat this weekend, with extended jamming and a polished sound.   This is the last two days of their early summer tour, so I assume they’ll do something ecstatic.   Can’t wait!

July 24 THE MARSHALL TUCKER BAND

This one just came to my attention last night.  These guys are coming to the Calumet Theatre.   A perfect prerequisite to what who I get to see the following evening, Coldplay!

July 25 COLPLAY

Claimed to be the most popular band in the world, when these guys come to the United States, its a must-see.   These guys put on a magical show.

August 22 GAELIC STORM

These guys are something else, and I’m pretty excited they are coming back up to the Copper Country.   They have some talent when they really let loose, though this song does not necessarily expose that talent.

TBD EVE 6

Then you have Eve 6, the pop-punk band from the late nineties.   I used to listen to these guys all the time, and as my values changed, I don’t really keep up with the punk rock genre of music much anymore.   Nonetheless, its a show in Houghton, and I’m all for seeing these guys as they should put on a pretty good show.

Well, thats the arsenal for the year 2009 at this point.   I’m pretty pumped.   Maybe, if Phish plays in Chicago or Minneapolis for New Years Eve, I can spend my NYE party with them, but those days haven’t been released yet.   Dave Matthews Band should be playing songs off their new album, so if the price is right, I would like to see them this year as well.   Bob Dylan, Neil Young, and The Faces are also on my radar, but those tend to be $200 tickets a pop.   Maybe next year….