Coldplay perform without their bassist for the first time ever

In an unusual start to their run of gigs at Marvel Stadium, the band performed without Guy Berryman, who was, in the words of frontman Chris Martin, “vomiting”.

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MUSIC Coldplay | Music of the Spheres Wold Tour ★★★ Marvel Stadium, until November 3 More than anything else, a Coldplay concert is a spectacle. It has all the hallmarks of a big-bucks production: confetti, fireworks, streamers, flames, large balls bouncing across the crowd, light-up wristbands that pulse in sync to create a visual symphony. Coldplay scrambled to find a replacement bassist in the hour before their show.

Credit: Martin Philbey The music almost feels secondary to the extravagance on display, but even that is a long way from the British band’s stripped-back beginnings over 20 years ago – their more recent tunes have all the inspirational gravitas of a bumper sticker, but it’s all delivered with confidence by leader Chris Martin. This tour exclusively came to Perth last year, so it’s been a long time between drinks for east coast fans, who last saw Coldplay in 2016. In a career-first, the band is playing without its full line-up – Martin comes on stage before the show kicks off to explain that bassist Guy Berryman is unwell, and that a “strange, alien, weird friend character” will be taking his place.



The band’s co-producer and engineer Bill Rahko steps up to the plate, wearing a helmet for the whole show – and for a last-minute gig, he does remarkably well. Martin is a charming frontman with a dash of chaotic energy: he cracks jokes, tells zany anecdotes and has a huge grin on his face the entire night. Chris Martin is a charming frontman with a dash of chaotic energy.

Credit: Martin Philbey There are splashes of Australian culture throughout the show, from a few bars of You’re the Voice and Locomotion , to a tribute to Shane Warne with an acoustic performance of Sparks . It’s these lower-key moments that have more impact, allowing the music to stand on its own – when Martin takes to the piano for The Scientist and nails the falsetto in Fix You , you can hear a pin drop. Counter that with the presence of the Weirdos, the Muppet-style characters that have been a part of the band’s act since 2021.

They’re contentious even among Coldplay’s biggest fans, but for a casual concertgoer, they’re downright confounding. Appearing via the big screen, they even sing a song – Human Heart – and their leader, a female Weirdo named Angel Moon, instructs the crowd to don “Moon Goggles” towards the end of the night to enter a new world of colour. The goggles – disposable 3D glasses distributed at the point of entry – insert love hearts into the landscape.

There’s no doubt this is a great night out and a pop show for the ages – but all the platitudes about love and peace and joy and harmony feel generic. When the music speaks for itself, it’s far more powerful. The Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from Jason Steger.

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