The Cheese Factor

Last night, I saw Coldplay in concert. I was very excited to attend, because I have been a fan of Coldplay for at least eight years. I remember seeing the music video for "Yellow" on my crap tv during my junior year in college (00-01) and asking my morally unbound friend to download their album from her Napster account. She then burned me a copy and our relationship was established. I have since pined to see them in concert. After a shameful status update(aka pathetic plea) informing my friends that tickets would make an amazing birthday gift, my college roomie, Colette, HOOKED ME UP! She got us great seats, too. We were spared the floor seats where all of the hardcore, annoying, loud-singing, slobbering fans stand. Don't get me wrong, I was once one of those fans. I have spent many a concert vying for a front row spot, secretly knowing in my heart of hearts that the lead singer was singing directly to me. There is something to be said for joining a throng of sweaty die-hards in pumping your fist and gyrating to a thumping bass. It can be amazing to get lost in the music and the show. These days, however, I just want to enjoy the show. I want to be able to hear the artist actually sing and actually play. I am officially old.

Back to our seats, we were in the first level directly in front of the stage. Good stuff. It was great because we could see the entirety of all of the extras like the crazy 80s inspired camera work on the big screens and the butterfly ticker tape falling from the ceilings. Coldplay really does put on a good show. It would have been a shame to have been on the floor, because I would have missed the crazy globes hanging from the ceiling that showed shots of Chris Martin's head in funny shapes and sizes.

In addition to the great seats, cool camera work, and great visuals, Coldplay sounded great. It was obvious that Chris Martin really does have a great voice. It doesn't take a bunch of computers to clean this band up. I have been to some concerts where you kind of look around and ask yourself, "Really?" as they are singing. Not so with Coldplay.

I titled this post "The Cheese Factor" because Coldplay definitely brought this factor with them. It always cracks me up when a band tells its crowd that it is the best crowd EVER!!! Wooo!! Wooott Woooooo!!! Seriously. I know that 80% of the people in the crowd know that this is just a morale booster, but I don't know why they all scream in appreciation. It drives me mad. Direct quote from Martin: "If we had known the Des Moines crowd was going to be so amazing, we'd a come much sooner!!" BS They also made up a song about Iowa and the Hawkeye state. I'm not saying I didn't enjoy it, it was just over the top cheesy. This song was preceded by the entire audience joining in a "mexican cellphone wave" (picture lights off and everyone doing the wave with their cellphones lit and in the air), and followed by a crowd sing-a-long to "I'm a Believer" by Neil Diamond. Cheese.

I really enjoyed this concert. I'm glad I got to go. My favorite part of the night was when the band left the stage to sing amongst the crowd. They were one section away from us and in the same row. I feel famous by association.