January 2003, University of Miami Convocation Center, Coral Gables, Fla.
I like to say that Gwyneth Paltrow destroyed Coldplay because, well, she did. Before she came along and stole away Chris Martin’s awkwardness and pain, the band played exciting songs that bordered between woeful and exuberant. I’m not against people finding happiness, but we do suffer for our art, and Martin wasn’t suffering much anymore
People joke about liking Coldplay, but after Parachutes and A Rush of Blood to the Head, what was there not to like about the band? What Parachutes started Rush completed, and I daresay it’s one of the better sophomore albums made in the past 20 years (we all know The Bends was the best). From the explosive “Politik” to the quiet “Amsterdam,” it contains the band’s best-known song (“Clocks”) and its best song (“The Scientist”). Chris Martin never writes “The Scientist” if he met Paltrow before it was written.
Rush was a huge album and took the band on a tour around the world and back, and if ever was a time to see this band, this was it. The Convocation Center was recently completed, and this was one of the first shows at the center. It was a decent-sized arena and had a packed crowd for a band that would soon be playing Wembley Stadium.
A piano sat in the middle of the stage, an instrument as important to Coldplay as any other. Much like Radiohead did in previous years, Coldplay knew when to use the piano as a way to give songs a different character. “Clocks” revolves around a simple repetition which might sound fine on guitar but has a certain resonance on piano.
“Politik” is the same way, the song the band opened up with to rousing success. There’s something about pounding the keys of a piano I find enthralling during a show. The band moved to “Shiver” and “Spies,” two quieter songs from Parachutes before “Daylight” and “Warning Sign” got things going a bit more.
The crowd was odd, half-sitting, half-standing, making for awkward instances in the stands. I was standing, like I do for most concerts, because for me live music is an interaction (unlike a movie), and I want to move. It’s not like that for every live music event — I wouldn’t do it for the symphony (though that might make it a bit more fun). But this was not the symphony.
“Don’t Panic,” “Yellow” and “The Scientist” (which ended the first set) were great live — “Don’t Panic” one of the band’s best songs. Martin moved easily around the stage, engaging with the crowd, while the rest of the band confidently did their thing. This was a band that was finding its way and knew there was a bright future ahead.
The encore led off with “Clocks,” much to the delight of the crowd, and followed with the excellent “In My Place,” the first hit off of Rush of Blood to the Head. “Trouble” was the final song of the night, though I saw later the band had planned a second encore but didn’t because the crowd was pretty much done for the night (which happens with audiences in South Florida).
Coldplay would go on the much bigger success with X&Y and Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, but I don’t think they’ve ever been as good as they were just after the first two albums.
