CityLife

Coldplay

Coldplay's Chris Martin

Chris Martin is eager to please. “Everyone ok?” he asks. “Thank you so much for giving us your Sunday night”; “There’s nowhere we’d rather be.”

It goes on like this all night. I’m giving you the expletive-free versions, but goes to show that for someone who drops the ‘f’ word near enough every time he speaks, the Coldplay frontman really couldn’t be more polite.

The feeling is mutual among the band’s Manchester audience as their heroes light up the M.E.N Arena – literally - with an energetic edit of their five studio albums. 

The band’s investment in a flashing wristband company has paid dividends with LED straps on every other member of the crowd sending tiny multi-coloured lights flashing around the arena in time to opening number, Hurts Like Heaven.

From there on, Martin bounds from guitar to piano and back again as he delivers some of the band’s biggest hits including Yellow, Clocks, The Scientist, Violet Hill and most recently Paradise – it goes on.

There’s a blunder (not how the frontman terms it) in the opening bars to Major Minus – but it’s just a blip.   Giant balloons bound around, with almost as much muscle as Martin, during Lost and Viva La Vida is so energetic it leaves him on the floor sweating and panting for breath.

Contrast with the hymn-like Fix You, Up in Flames and ‘Til Kingdom Come, dedicated to the Stone Roses and performed by the four-piece in the middle of their crowd.

Politik, from second album A Rush of Blood to the Head, proves to be among standout performances and as crowds leave they’re talking about Martin’s lyric change: ‘Two teams from Manchester at the top of the Premiership’. Now that’s a crowd pleaser.