Euphoria!

Wow, I suck at posting lately.
That said, let me move on to CHRIS MARTIN!!!

Yes, be jealous--I had floor seats to Coldplay in concert, and it was quite possibly the most phenomenal two hours of my life. I have seen a good number of live shows, but let me just tell you that Chris Martin alone blew them ALL out of the water. He was all over the place--grinning, running, jumping, spinning, and dancing with seemingly limitless energy, his smooth, mature voice sliding up and down his impossibly wide vocal range. The control he has over that voice is indescribable--it alone can plunge you into a mood spectrum ranging from relaxed (Fix You) to rocking (Politik) to nostalgic (Yellow), laid back (Strawberry Swing), colorful (Lovers in Japan), classic (Clocks), intense (Death and All His Friends), quiet (a slow, solo piano version of The Hardest Part), whimsical (a unique version of The Scientist with Martin on a harmonica), awesome (Lost?), sweeping (Speed of Sound) loving (Violet Hill), and magical (Viva la Vida, the show's crown jewel). The show opened with Violet Hill and closed with a rock-ish, upbeat encore adaptation of Yellow. Needless to say, I was on my feet screaming the ENTIRE time. The lights were shining bright colors onto descending, beach-ball sized sky props, and there was second-by-second video editing flashing live images of the band across the background screen in dramatic black and white. Chris Martin honestly gave it everything he had; seeing him live, it is wonderfully obvious that he puts his entire heart and soul into his music and the shows he plays. I mean, Coldplay is the number-one band in the world right now, and to see that Martin puts that level of effort into every single show is deliciously unbelievable. His accent was fun to listen to as he talked and joked with the audience, making up lines that involved our city ("Salt Lake City, won't you let me know?"). At one point (The Scientist), the band ran up into the far reaches of the audience, grabbing guitars and harmonicas to play from a different perspective. For his solo performance of The Hardest Part, Chris Martin pushed a piano into a sidebar that extended into the audience about five rows from where I sat. It was AMAZING--he literally played so close to me I could see the sweat on his face as he poured his soul into the soft, lilting piano version of the song. It was beautiful--I nearly cried. And during Lovers In Japan, crepe paper, neon and Mylar butterflies were poured into the audience from the rafters, filling the arena with pieces of glittering, vibrant color. Martin really got into the newest album's title track, Viva la Vida--he crooned the last few notes from flat on his back after skipping spastically all over the stage. I still can't believe I saw him live.
Me!
Chris Martin!
AH!

The concert was worth the $110 ticket a million times over. I only wish I'd bought more than one commemorative t-shirt--this'll live in my memory for a LONG time.
Viva La Vida world tour = ultimate win!!