Last night, M and I attended a Coldplay concert at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View. We arrived around 5:30 PM in the hopes of getting a good spot on the lawn. I thought we would be too early, but as it turned out, we were on the late side of early. The prime areas were already taken, but we still found a nice spot.

It was actually fascinating (in a History Channel sort of way) to see how folks used what little they had (beach blankets, lawn chairs, small children) to mark their territory. This must have been how westward pioneers staked their claims back in the day when the cost of the land upon which the Amphitheatre sits was cheaper than the price of a Coldplay concert ticket.

With our plot claimed, I had ninety minutes to sit, relax, and watch the crowd file in. It was interesting to see how most people naturally found and followed the path of least resistance. It was like watching a river. Human streams flowed around and between obstructions -- mats, blankets, sandals, and precariously placed beverages; one person after another. Whenever a way became blocked, the streams seamlessly rerouted. Of course, there were a few people who had no clue how to navigate and would cause human eddies resulting in squashed toes and awkward apologies.

By the time the first band took the stage, the human streams had weakened to mere trickles and the sun had sunk low enough in the sky to allow shade to reach us. The opening act, Kitty, Daisy & Lewis, played an eclectic set of music that defies categorization. They were a good group and surprisingly young for their sound (they ranged in age from 16 to 21 years old).

The second opening act, Amadou & Mariam, was an energetic group that was heavy on percussion. They were probably very good, but by this time (around eight o'clock), I was growing impatient for the main act, so I didn't pay much attention to them.

Coldplay took the stage just after 9:00 PM. The next two hours were incredible. They played all the songs I wanted to hear ("Clocks", "Yellow", "Viva la Vida", "Fix You", and "The Scientist") and plenty of songs I was happy to hear. Admittedly, there were a few songs I wasn't keen about, but they were easily forgiven and forgotten.

1. During "Yellow", they released giant yellow balloons for the crowd to bounce in the air. Several landed on the stage. At one point, Chris Martin got so caught up trying to hit a balloon, he nearly forgot about singing.
2. When the band abandoned the main stage and raced to the small lawn stage for a short acoustic set. They were so close (read: actually visible), it was fantastic. I have never seen so many digital cameras appear so suddenly. The whole field was instantly awash in white flashes, orange beams, and the glare of LCD screens. At this very second, a thousand people have a thousand unique photos of the back of my head.
3. Martin orchestrating the cell phone wave. Thanks to the darkness, the effect was spectacular (in a somewhat disturbing way).
4. Coldplay's cover of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean". The joy came from how unexpected the song was (to me) and how well Martin sang it. It was the first time I ever heard it performed live.
5. The crowd singing the last chorus of "Fix You". So many people, so many voices, singing together, and sounding wonderful. It was a magical moment.

On the way out, we all received a free CD version of the band's live album, Left Right Left Right Left, which I've been listening to all day today.

The low point of last night came after the concert. It took an hour to exit the parking lot (one of the worst large venue lots I have ever experienced) and another hour to get home.

In all, an amazing concert. Coldplay would be worth seeing again, but only in a different (read: smaller) venue.