July 15, 2008 18:57
Coldplay kick off North American tour in LA Coldplay Tickets
The band connect with crowd by performing in the 'cheap seats'
Photo Gallery: Coldplay
Photo: Pa Photos
Coldplay launched their highly anticipated North American tour in Los Angeles last night (July 14) with the first of two sold-out shows at The Forum.
The band, whose new record 'Viva La Vida' debuted at Number One in the US last month, came out with guns blazing - giving it their all from the very first song, 'Life In Technicolor'.
They didn't shy away from playing some of their biggest crowd-pleasers early on, and the crowd ate them up, erupting at the opening strains of familiar songs.
"This is the first night of our tour since we became the new version of our band," frontman Chris Martin said. "We thought where better to kick it off than our home away from home, Los Angeles. It's where we started here in America, but we'll probably end in Vegas," he quipped.
The band - dressed in their now-trademark pseudo-military uniforms -focused largely on their new album, playing only a smattering of earlier works.
Martin made the most of two walkways that extended down the sides of the arena by dancing, jumping and sliding down them throughout the night. Mid-set, the band set up on a mid-arena satellite stage for a couple of songs, giving the audience a thrill.
Before debuting a new arrangement of 'Speed Of Sound', Martin warned, "If it sucks, go get a hot dog." But the crowd loved it and screamed their approval. "It's a bit cheesy but we couldn't ask for more from an audience on a Monday night in sweltering July," Martin responded.
Before the night was over, the band ran up the aisles to the top of the arena where they performed a couple of songs. "Sometimes you've got to visit the cheap seats," Martin explained. Drummer Will Champion sang lead vocals on one of the songs, 'Death Will Never Conquer'. "We know our drummer Will will one day want to make a solo record like Phil Collins, so we thought we should give him some practice," Martin said.
Coldplay returned for two bombastic, confetti-filled encores before saying goodnight.
Coldplay played:
'Life In Technicolor'
'Violet Hill'
'Clocks'
'In My Place'
'Viva La Vida'
'42'
'Yes'
'The Scientist'
'Chinese Sleep Chant'
'God Put A Smile Upon Your Face'
'Square One'
'Speed Of Sound'
'Trouble'
'Lost!'
'Strawberry Swing'
'Yellow'
'Death Will Never Conquer'
'Fix You'
'Lovers In Japan'
'Death And All His Friends'
'The Escapist'
--By our Los Angeles staff.
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