Coldplay deliver spectacle with epic Perth show

One of the world’s biggest bands is touring Australia - but they’re only playing Perth. Here’s the incredible show the rest of the country is missing.

Chris Martin of Coldplay performs in Perth. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty

REVIEW

Coldplay have, for a while now, been one of those bands that people tend to shy away from claiming to like, shunned into department store music territory and met with a collective sigh from the kids in the back seat when Dad plays them on the school run.

As a Brit myself, it’s built into our DNA to know every word to classics such as Fix You and Yellow, but I’d be the first to admit I’ve not truly connected to Coldplay as a band in quite sometime.

Chris Martin of Coldplay performs on stage at Optus Stadium on Saturday night. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty

However, my initial trepidation about attending their sellout Perth show dissipated within minutes of Chris Martin hop, skipping and jumping around the 90,000 capacity stadium in a display of fitness matched only by that of the most over zealous Peleton instructors.

I quickly realised this was not just a concert, it was a spectacle.

Seemingly not a band that indulges in foreplay, a barrage of technicolour lights, sounds and vibrations are thrust upon the audience from every corner of the stadium within seconds of Martin and his bandmates appearing onstage. The LED wristbands given to every member of the audience turn into crowd into a magical oscillating light show that makes you feel like Alice in Wonderland moments after she fell into the rabbit hole.

Between the lights, confetti cannons, cartoonish costumes, and Chris Martin acting like a toddler overdosed on sugar, it all became a seemingly feverish dream that drew me in and held me there until the very last note echoed around the stadium.

The Brit band have taken many forms over the years having explored an eclectic mix of genres from indie rock to dancefloor bangers, and Martin’s powerhouse vocals soared over the choruses of some of their greatest hits over the course of the two and a bit hour show, effortlessly traversing genres with ease.

Chris Martin of Coldplay rocks Perth. Picture: Duncan Barnes

Despite managing to play the majority of their latest album, Music Of The Spheres, the entire experience somehow still managed to feel like a greatest hits show.

Thankfully there were a few brief moments of reprieve, allowing my senses time to recover while Martin turned the stadium into an intimate acoustic set as he performed The Scientist and Sparks on a tiny stage in the middle of the stadium. Getting to hear Fix You surrounded by 90,000 other people felt truly like one of those cathartic experiences you remember for life.

And that was despite a hilarious flub from Martin at the start of the song, the band having to re-start after he came in at the wrong point - watch the candid clip below (language warning):

Chris getting fix you wrong 😂#ColdplayPerthpic.twitter.com/SpA8LOsazl

— Huguette ✨ is seeing Coldplay in Perth! 🫶🏻 (@HeyHuguette) November 18, 2023

“When you try your best but you... did I get it wrong? F**k, I f**ked up. Just pretend that never happened,” he told the crowd, before changing the lyrics to the song: “When you try your best but you don’t succeed - like just then...”

Martin paid tribute to Western Australia near the end of the band’s set, singing a song about Perth being the country’s “Emerald City”, and there was heartwarming moment where he invited a young cancer surivor on-stage and serenaded her in front of thousands.

All in all, Coldplay’s brief visit to Perth is a masterclass in showmanship from both Martin and his bandmates, and the rest of Australia can only pray that they decide to return soon because their concert is not one to be missed.

UPDATE: We’re in luck! Coldplay have now announced a string of 2024 stadium shows for Melbourne and Sydney.