the concert, and then some...

I’m often reluctant to blog. I love writing when I get started, but thinking about Coldplay and trying to break it down for you guys intimidates me. I haven’t really sifted through those thoughts yet so I guess that’s what this is for. I am confident with the way I structure my expression of thought, but after reading through this I feel so redundant in my vocabulary, grammar, and sentence structure; it feels juvenile. Fortunately for me, none of that really counts for anything here. So I’m sorry if I’m a touch off my game today.

I know the last few blogs have been real intense so my hope is that this one is lighter. I needed to get those out of my system and I can’t promise that will be the last of them. I’ve been under the impression that family and a few friends check this thing but ever since the arguable controversy of my last few posts I’ve been informed of many other people that read my thoughts. It’s surprising but also intimidating. I’m not ashamed of me. I love talking to people and being real with them, but wow, I have to admit I’m a touch more gun-shy now. I do appreciate all of your support and responses. The single most encouraging thing since this new journey I’ve set out on (putting all I’ve known to the fire to see what survives it) is the patience and tolerance of the people in my life. You all deserve to be applauded for outlasting and debunking stereotypical Christian responses that the world might place on you. People have been supportive, they’ve listened and understood, they still VALUE me as an individual even though our priorities may not line up, and I still feel loved. That is huge. There may not be an awful lot any of you can do about me and where I am (and that’s ok) but one thing you can do is all of these things I mentioned. It doesn’t go unnoticed. I’m sorry for all the confusion and disappointment that some of you may or may not be experiencing. Hang in there…this is a process.


The concert…
We spent all day Friday at our outreaches. Mine is dry bones in Denver so when I was finished I met up with a couple other students who were going to the concert. We shopped a bit and then got sushi since we had time before it started. We finally meet up at the Pepsi Centre at our seats and the first band started playing shortly after. They were terrible. I mean, I guess from another vantage if it were a different night at a different venue they may have been okay, but in anticipation for the immensity of Coldplay they were minimized in my mind. The songs were generic and the mix was disappointing. I don’t even know what the band was called.

The second band was altogether different. It wasn’t a band; it was one man with a projector. To summarize the experience I would call it artistic, creative, and kind of that modern expression of individual originality that we’re more tolerant than ever of these days. I think his name was Jon Hopkins. Basically he was a DJ mixing beats while video was going on behind him through the projector. The media stuff reminded me a LOT of Dr. Seuss, like trippy repetitive cartoon stuff. I don’t think the people I was with liked it that much and I’m kind of surprised that I was so intrigued by it but it was definitely an interesting experience. Kind of like Cirque De Soliel (I’m stretching, I know) how it is so weird but at the same time you are in awe.

The sheer scale of this concert was enough to overwhelm me. The most I’ve ever paid for concert tickets is maybe 20 bucks, so when I dropped 55 for nose bleed seats I wasn’t at all comfortable with that. The Pepsi Centre is real big. I mean it’s a typical professional arena. We happened to be there the weekend prior for Dare 2 Share if you remember.

I don’t even know where to start. I guess with what it looked like. There were about 8 large balls hanging from the ceiling and then one very large ball, which they lit up according to the lighting theme for any given song. Sometimes they did some live video stream or video effects through the balls too, which was interesting. The stage stretched along the entire main floor surface, and then protruded on either side out into the crowd. At the end of one of these extensions was another small stage that was made up of white-lit boxes on the floor where they played one or two songs. I can’t remember the backdrop entirely because it changed in progressively breath-taking manors throughout the concert. I will say that it was always appealing and it stretched from the ground to the ceiling. Another thing was the lighting. I’ve seen some good headliners who used well-coordinated lighting before but nothing at all like this. The timing and power of the light system was incredible. As for how they dressed, the guys all looked awesome. They all felt like they belonged there. There is nothing more frustrating than seeing a band you really value and then notice that there is one (if not more) of their members who just demand a critical and judgmental eyeball. They throw off the entire band. Everyone in Coldplay just fit – all 4 of em. They had a bit of a typical band look to them but its not like they were trying to look young or generic, they just looked good. At the same time also, they had that clear European look to them, which I appreciated. They didn’t rock out so hard that it was awkward, like they were trying too hard, but they definitely moved; a really healthy look while playing music because you believe they are into what they are doing. I think that’s a pretty thorough picture of the main visual details.

This was a highly professional display of musical ability. They deserve to play in arenas and go on worldwide tours. I guess to describe it, I would say they were secure and mature enough musicians to lay low during songs but had the potential to steal every ounce of your attention if and when they each chose too. That is when you know you’re seeing a good band. They don’t feel like they need to relentlessly impress you with stuff that doesn’t necessarily sound good, but perhaps is just hard to play. They would bust it out in tiny windows though throughout the performance just to remind you they could. The singing was astounding. I’m a little bit paranoid when it comes to performances of this scale and trying to decipher what is legitimate and what has been tampered with or doctored. Hearing the ways that he would creatively sing the melodies or just talk there was no question that it was pure. And he was good. Not just him though, every member sang and they were all good. So we’re talking thick harmonies all over the place. Another major problem with many bands is they overemphasize things on their records, but then if you’re lucky there is only one guy in the band doing harmonies. Probably weak harmonies. The sound above all of this was ideal. I was nervous beforehand, but it turned out so well. The only problem I had was that there wasn’t enough bass in the mix but that could have had something to do with where my seat was.

As for song selection it couldn’t have been better. I’m a reasonably fickle Coldplay fan, so up until this last album I basically heard singles and maybe a few full listens above that. I love this latest album through and through, so I was pretty confident in this show since it is a tour for that record. They probably played 2 songs that weren’t singles (which I still recognized), then 5 or 6 singles from other albums and then the rest from Viva. Mmmmaaybbbeee 15 total?

The entire night was a highlight but if I had to talk about a few specific ones I might choose these:
During the middle of the concert he just said something and then, “see you guys in a bit” and I’m like, what? So they all run across the arena floor to the back and then up to the top of the first section where there happened to be a stage. They bust out three acoustic-ish guitars (they weren’t typical guitars) and play scientist. Oh, and the lead singer played a harmonica. It was a pretty good push to the ever-growing climax. My favorite part of the night was Fix You. He led the song by himself and cracked a superb joke about the band taking a break to go drink and email their girlfriends, but then, come to “lights will guide…” the harmonies kicked in. It was so beautiful. And then of course you remember the build at the end (“tears stream down your face when you lose something you can not replace”). I think I almost lost it I was so worked up and emotional. Hah, actually I wasn’t going to say this but I decided too because its funny. That song felt exactly like the moment in church when you feel the music moving toward its’ climax and “the spirit is moving”. I almost wanted to lift my hands it was so stirring. Haha, Such a spiritual-like experience in such a spiritual-less context. I know at least one of you who would want to argue me saying that place had no spiritual credit. I guess I could argue that too. Either way, I’ll never forget that. I might have taken a video of it on my camera. Lastly, after a strong and unwavering 10-minute eruption at the end of the show, they came back out for the encore made up of Yellow. The lights were all in strong yellow theme, and they had explosions of confetti from the ceiling a few times during the song too. It was like a celebration – the perfect send-off.

We went and lingered around town a little while longer after the concert until finally heading home. I hope that breakdown was sufficient but not exhausting.





And then some…
The weather has been strange as of late. We had a real warm week and haven’t really seen significant or lasting snow for a while now. The week prior to that it snowed almost everyday. So the mountain is in rough shape. They’ve got a legit base but it’s rather icy. Even given the ice, people here still ride almost every day. Yesterday for outdoor education we went snowboarding all day. Pretty rough huh? Didn’t even have a choice. Had to go to the mountain all day! Actually, even though it was busy and icy we all had a great day. We’ve had about 8 minor injuries in this past week alone. 2 or 3 sprains, one fracture, one broken nose, a couple tree accidents, and then countless bruises. I’m terribly sore but I think I’m going for a few hours again this afternoon. But I’m not going alone, I’m bringing my best friend Tylenol. I’ve noticed some real improvements in my game. There aren’t many hits in the park and everything is too icy to get serious. There are only 3 runs open thus far, so basically we’re just working the flat-ground game. Yesterday I got switch 180 butter 180, noseslide 270, nollie 360, and a few other neat little things. If my regular riding is 100% then I probably ride switch at about 80%, so I’m getting quite comfortable. It’s a lot of fun and it drastically affects overall board control when you fool around and get stuff like that. It’ll be interesting when we get some true snow and the mountain opens up to its potential. Hope I get a taste before Christmas. And I hope some you folk come ride next semester.

The ice rink here has been active and used for roughly a week now too. There are about 3 serious hockey players here, and there is a handful of aspiring hockey players who are out there all the time. I haven’t even gotten out once yet. Every time I think about going I get lazy or reluctant, but one of these nights I will. Next semester we’ll skate an awful lot I’m sure. I need to get my skate legs back. It’d be so straight to get good and come play pick up back home next year.

I realized the other day on the phone that after losing the two most meaningful things in my life (faith and love), I discovered an identity for myself and that’s why I felt the way I did. Not that it was the right identity but it was my own. I was faced with one of these things the other night and even though I wanted it I realized I couldn’t because it contradicted who I now was. Of course that isn’t completely sound reasoning, I could be me and still engage those things, but they flood too many memories of someone different that I didn’t entirely like. My hesitance is now clear to me because I make the connection from being a Christian or being in a relationship to many of the things I used to hate about myself. That is at the forefront of my infrequent thoughts – how to think seriously about those things without disowning the positive things I’ve discovered. Both are valuable and both are appealing to me not now but perhaps somewhere in my future.

I think about Christmas and those three weeks almost everyday. A warm festive home, family, catching up with friends, football games, poker tournaments, birthdays, new years, and on and on. Its gunna be a memorable few weeks. I’ll try to give you all as much attention as I can.

Take care and live like you mean it.

Brought to you by Jimmy.