Multisensory Aesthetic Experience (or M.A.E.) is a term that's been coined by Christian rock band Mae. But you add an "A" in front of it and you have an Amazing Multisensory Aesthetic Experience, otherwise known as Coldplay live! Thanks to my friend Zeena, I had the opportunity to enjoy the British quartet's roughly 2 hour set recently and it was incredible.

Now I would really consider myself a new Coldplay fan. Besides a few of the more popular singles, I never really got into any of their music. That was until Viva La Vida was released. This was the entire reason for me wanting to catch them live. Their music is legendary and it's no surprise when they're compared to bands like U2. Therefore it's also no surprise that their live set was one for the books.

The set list contained nearly every single you could probably remember from "Fix You" to "Speed Of Sound" with "Clocks" and finishing off the entire show with "Yellow." Any good concert starts just like its album does, so this one jumped off with "Life In Technicolor" which lead into HUGE crowd (and radio) favorite "Violet Hill." While gliding through "Cemeteries Of London" and on down to "Strawberry Swing" the stage was turned almost theatrical. Lasers scattered through the crowd, massive glowing balls gracefully floated above the four gents dressed in garb reminiscent of Les Miserable.

Midway through was a pleasant surprise. All four members picked up everything and moved to an impromptu stage that popped up off to the side (conveniently a mere 5 feet from our seats). For this we heard "God Put A Smile Upon Your Face", "Green Eyes" and "Postcards From Far Away." At one point it was as though we had our own private concert with Chris and his piano. Perfection. And it didn't stop there: Near the end of their first set (perhaps the end of the "official" set), the band left the stage entirely to venture way up into the crowd. This time it was completely acoustic version of "The Scientist."

For the first encore the focus was set on Viva La Vida. With "Loves In Japan" and "Death And All His Friends" it was quite pleasant. Finally as mentioned the night ended with "Yellow" and thousands of people singing along.

Imagine hearing some of the most moving songs ever written, surrounded by people with smiles from ear to ear, lights coloring the room and even a shower of thousands of butterfly confetti. I'm bold enough to say that this show rivals The Flaming Lips, because this is definitely one of the best concerts I've ever been to.

-Rachel Fredrickson

Coldplay
November 18th, 2008
Sprint Center
Kansas City, MO

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