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Stunning view Coldplay Navi Mumbai stadium concert

My Experience Attending Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres Concert in Mumbai

Date: January 18, 2025

As a fan of Coldplay since A Rush of Blood to the Head, seeing them live has been a bucket-list item for well over 15 years. Heck, back in 2011 I even went to see a tribute band play in UB City. X&Y (my favourite Coldplay album) had the stadium anthem “Fix You” and Viva La Vida and Death and All His Friends had its stadium anthem with “Viva La Vida”. But we’re now in the era where a “Sky Full of Stars” going viral on social media alone has marketed Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres concert series better than ever before, and introduced the 25-year-old British band to a new stadium anthem.

The album Music of the Spheres was released 2 years ago — Coldplay’s first album produced by my all-time favourite music producer — Max Martin. But the popularity of the concert has made Coldplay continue to tour for so long that it is now, officially, the most attended tour of all time and the second highest grossing tour of all time (first is Taylor Swift’s Eras tour)!

I won’t go into the ticketing headache that was the BookMyShow experience, so I will just talk about the Coldplay experience.

I wanted to get inside the venue early so as to avoid last minute rushes.

Tandoor roti paneer thali Navi Mumbai
I had a hearty lunch before leaving for DY Patil Stadium

From my hotel, I then walked to Turbhe railway station.

Turbhe railway station Navi Mumbai
It was 1.5 kms from Hotel New Elite Inn, where I was staying

A ticket to Nerul station was Rs. 5 ($0.05/€0.05) and the train would arrive in 15 minutes.

Inside Navi Mumbai train
I’m constantly astounded at how cheap local trains are in Mumbai
Outside Nerul East exit station Mumbai
I took the Nerul East exit
Nerul East exit Navi Mumbai
I just pulled up Google Maps and followed the path to DY Patil University
Wall mural Navi Mumbai
My ticket’s entry was Gate 8, so I walked in the direction towards the Architecture College at DY Patil University
Navi Mumbai shops street
Navi Mumbai felt breathable compared to super congested Mumbai
Girls Navi Mumbai Coldplay concert
I could tell I was on the right path once I noticed girls dressed to the tee on my way
Direction boards Coldplay gates Navi Mumbai
There were direction boards plastered all along the route
Navi Mumbai apartments above shops
Navi Mumbai translates to ‘New Mumbai’ and is a better planned city to the messy ‘old’ Mumbai
DY Patil architecture college entrance Gate 8
I was near

I could see scalpers desperate to sell off their tickets outside and I was happy to see them struggle! 🙂 Clearly their attempts to sell tickets at 3~4 times for so long failed, and were now trying get the tickets off their hands.

Gate 8 entrance Coldplay concert Navi Mumbai
My section was Block M, so we had to go through the College of Architecture

DY Patil is a private university offering various bachelors and masters programs.

DY Patil open ground Navi Mumbai
To say the facilities and the campus is awesome would be an understatement!

And yes, even the massive 45,300-seat stadium is part of the campus.

Coldplay LED wristband Moon Goggles Mumbai concert
I went in and collected my LED wrist band and Moon Goggles

What are the Moon Googles for? You will see later.

DY Patil stadium Block M entrance Navi Mumbai
These are the entry point for L1, L2, and L3 at Block M (L = Levels)

Toilets were not too far off from the entry points and there were water stations too. I had carried a tiny juice bottle which I refilled. Otherwise you had to buy a ₹100 cup which you can refill with water as much as you want.

L1 section Block M view DY Patil stadium
This is the view from the L1 Section (₹4500). I wouldn’t book a seat in the back row here — your photos WILL be obstructed by the L2 balcony above
View from L2 section M block DY Patil stadium
This is the section from L2 balcony. Now I know why they charged ₹12500 for this section.
View from L3 section M block DY Patil stadium
And this is the view from L3 section (₹3500), up front
DY Patil stadium L3 block M last rows
My seat was L36, all the way up on top
DY Patil stadium P sections Navi Mumbai
Next to mine were sections N, O, and P. Section P were priced lower, so maybe the view isn’t as good?
Lounge section DY Patil stadium Navi Mumbai
That’s the Lounge section, priced at ₹35,000 — watch this Instagram Reel to see what it was like after spending that much!
Courtyard Marriott DY Patil stadium view
The guests at Courtyard Marriott get a free view of the concert too… just not the stage

The view from my seat wasn’t too bad.

Coldplay stage view from Block M DY Patil stadium
Sure, I couldn’t see the performer on the stage much… especially via my phone’s camera, which lacked zoom

But as you will see in the video at the end of this blog, you will see I was still immensely pleased with the view!

Bisleri water booths Coldplay concert
The one benefit I had with my seat was that I only had to bend backwards to fill my bottle with free water

I would manage my water intake so as not feel the urge to go to the bathroom and miss out on the songs I wanted to hear. I’m not a fan of “All My Love” from Moon Music, so I told myself that would be my bathroom break song.

This was setlist Coldplay used for all their India shows.

Activity zone Coldplay concert DY Patil stadium
I decided to go back down and check out the activity zone for this area
Coldplay concert merchandise booth Mumbai
The official Coldplay merchandise booth
Coldplay t-shirts Mumbai concert
Prices for T-shirts started at ₹1500
Dominos Pizza Burger King booths Coldplay concert
Dominos Pizza and Burger King were the main food booths. Prices were much higher than what the same items cost in a restaurant. ₹450 ($5.20) for a 7″ pizza?!
Jameson booth Coldplay concert
Jameson Irish whiskey was the official liquor vendor

I actually looked around to see if any guy would come to this Coldplay concert wearing a black t-shirt of a famous rock band… because I kinda knew there would be at least a few casuals who would do such a thing.

Iron Maiden tshirt at Coldplay Mumbai concert
And voila! Guy wearing an Iron Maiden t-shirt… to a Coldplay concert 🤭

I went back to my seat. It was honestly tiring to climb the flight of stairs to get to L3 section — so be mindful of that when you get a seat up here.

Shone opening act Coldplay concert
At 5pm, the first of three opening acts took to the stage — Shone is a Zimbabwean artist

He was alright, but the next singer was even better.

Elyanna Coldplay Navi Mumbai
Elyanna is a Palestinian-Chilean singer, who sounded AMAZING

Elyanna sang mostly in Arabic and put on a good show with her dancers. She was also featured in Coldplay’s “We Pray” single.

Jasleen Royal Coldplay concert Jan 18
The third and final opening act for the show was Jasleen Royal… who was NOT amazing
Jasleen Royal phone lights Coldplay concert
Initially I thought “maybe she’s sick” — but no, Jasleen sang the same across every India show

How Jasleen Royal became a popular Indian singer is beyond me. She was a mediocre singer at best! What’s even embarrassing was India’s best playback singer at the moment, Shreya Ghoshal, was in the audience as a concert attendee!

Coldplay concert about to start Mumbai
Anyway, time for the main show to begin!

After the concert ends, we’re supposed to return our LED wristbands as they are re-used all throughout the world tour.

Coldplay LED wristband return rate Mumbai
Tokyo currently leads with a 97% return rate (not surprised). Abu Dhabi’s return rate was 79%. I had a feeling India’s return rate would be bad.

By 7:50pm or so, the lights dimmed and the stadium roared as Coldplay’s members walked towards the stage. When our LED lights started to light up to match the programmed sounds… it was an amazing sight to behold!

Stunning view Coldplay Navi Mumbai stadium concert
The view from my seat was spectacular!
Coldplay Mumbai concert LED lights Block M L3
I mean, seeing nearly 60,000 lights dance to the music was a visual spectacle to behold!

As a fan of Coldplay since 20 years, I can enjoy their concert even without the LED lights… but to say the LED wristbands don’t amplify the experience would be such a pretentious lie!

Chris Martin talking Mumbai concert
The LED wristbands would switch off during songs like “The Scientist” and whenever Chris Martin spoke to the audience

Watch the video below, as it is 43 minutes long in 1080p and turn on the captions to get my thoughts throughout all the songs from the show.

Coldplay Sky Full of Stars Mumbai concert
The whole stadium erupted for “A Sky Full of stars” — a song that has now become Coldplay’s most popular, thanks to social media

While it’s true there were many attendees who were simply there to brag about… well, being there… and to shoot social media content, I would say 50% of the audience knew 70% of the setlist very well.

Coldplay concert DY Patil stadium
I could hear enough singing from the real fans echo all the way up my ears — so contrary to some reports, the audience was NOT dead!

Again, watch my video below if you don’t believe me.

Coldplay third stage closer Mumbai
The band came closer to my side for “Sparks,” the band member introductions, and Chris’ impromptu songs segment

Was I disappointed with anything? Sure, I would have loved to hear “Magic” or “Daddy” instead of “Everglow” during the part Chris invites a fan on stage. Instead of “Sparks” I would have liked “Trouble” or “Don’t Panic” from Parachutes instead. Then again, Coldplay have sooooo many good songs from every album that if they included the songs I would personally like to hear, the show would run 4 hours long!

Towards the end of the concert, we were told to put on the Moon Goggles for “Good Feelings” (from Moon Music).

End of concert Coldplay Mumbai
The show ended around 10pm and I absolutely loved it!

What I didn’t love was pretty much everything that happened after the concert ended.

Crowds leaving Navi Mumbai concert
It was a slow flow of people trying to fit through narrow exit gaps

We were told by concert staff — including Coldplay’s own staff from the UK — that we would have to return our LED wristbands, and I did so willingly. Stupid thing was, there were so many trying to keep it as memorabilia! What for I don’t know! Most people wouldn’t know how to trigger the lights because the wristband has no buttons or even Coldplay branding. I just know India would have the worst return rate in the world! What’s even worse is that, after a few years, these LED wristbands will be thrown out by those who kept it after finally realizing they can’t do anything with it. Sigh…

DY Patil stadium after Coldplay concert
As I walked out of the stadium, I still couldn’t believe this massive stadium was part of a university’s campus!
DY Patil campus building
The private college facilities are very impressive!
Navi Mumbai outside DY Patil after concert
Once outside, eateries and restaurants were jam packed!

I managed to find a table inside a bar which also had a good enough menu for dinner. I finished eating before it got even more crowded. I decided to eat first because I only had two restaurant options near my hotel and I still had to figure out how to get back this late at night.

So many were struggling to book Uber and Ola taxis, and prices were three times than usual. Auto rickshaws were no better!

Jeep dealership Navi Mumbai traffic
I walked towards Juinagar train station

Once I got to Juinagar station, the lines were so long for the ticket vending machines that I gave up after 5 minutes and resumed walking. Along the route towards IKEA Navi Mumbai, I stopped auto rickshaws passing by and tried negotiating prices. Finally, as I was talking to one driver, a group of Keralites nearby overheard me and asked me which way I was going. As my luck would have it, they were staying in the same hotel I was. Eventually the auto driver agree to ₹500 for the four of us. Way too much for just 2 kms but what to do, we all got to get back to our rooms safely and quickly. I imagine many struggled that night to find a ride back to the Mumbai side. Makes me glad I took the right decision to book a hotel not far from the venue just for tonight. (I will blog about all that later).

Overall, I was super happy with the concert. I can’t speak for everyone as there were some who faced issues — but I had a blast! It was organized well, I enjoyed the view, the music, and felt it was worth spending to come all the way here to witness it all. Truly a once in a lifetime joy!

Will I go see Coldplay even without the LED light show? Yes, of course I would! I’ve been dreaming about seeing the band live since the X & Y and Viva La Vida days. I can’t wait to see Coldplay again… just, hopefully in Bangalore next time.

Enjoy the concert video and enable captions to read the captions I added:

Linkin Park – ‘The Hunting Party’ album review: Pretty good, but unexpected

Here it is. Linkin Park’s sixth studio album. 2012’s ‘Living Things‘ was not half-bad so I was interested to see which direction one of my favourite rock bands was headed with their next outing. When Linkin Park released their collaborative track with Steve Aoki last year, fans were worried if Linkin Park would go all electronic on their new album.

Quite the contrary. ‘The Hunting Party‘ is the most guitar heavy Linkin Park has been since they released 2007’s Minutes to Midnight. That said, when the first single “Guilty All the Same” was released a few months ago, I wouldn’t say I was very pleased upon hearing the track. Anyway, my thoughts on the rest of the tracks on the album are below.

Linkin Park The Hunting Party album cover
That’s the album cover. Pretty neat.

1. “Keys to the Kingdom” – What a way to kick off the album! Chester Bennington screams right off the bat. Ha! Mike Shinoda handles much of the verses, including rapping… before Chester screams the chorus. It’s a weird track no doubt, but this should give you a good indication about what to expect on this album. Some fans labelled it punk, some heavy metal… I wouldn’t say either. Heck, I don’t even know where to place it. It’s rock, that’s for sure. – 3/5

2. “All for Nothing” (featuring Page Hamilton) – Ahh, don’t you just love it when you Mike kicks off a LP song with a kickass rap verse? This is a great track featuring Page Hamilton who sings the chorus, and even features a guitar solo (even though it’s nothing special). Hey, guitar solos are rare on Linkin Park songs. – 4/5

3. “Guilty All the Same” (featuring Rakim) – I didn’t like it much when I first heard this songs and months later, my opinion hasn’t changed much. I’ll appreciate LP  trying out new sounds, but this song feels raw (probably intentional) and it’s really not a track I find myself listening to much. – 2/5

4. “The Summoning” – Just a minute-long interlude. Sounds creepy though.

5. “War” – As soon as the guitar riff hits, I had a smile on my face. Then Chester sings. Wow, what a beast of a song! Absolute screamer of a track. It’s one of those songs that sounds awesome on record but may not make it to their concert set list every night because it’s going ruin Chester’s already abused throat. Great track though. – 4/5

6. “Wastelands” – The beats, the riff and the rap all sounded promising — but when the chorus hit, the song somehow felt generic. That’s all about I can say about the song. – 2.5/5

7. “Until It’s Gone”

If there’s one track on this collection that reminds you of the “old” Linkin Park sound, it would be this song. It’s structured like you would expect from a Linkin Park “signature” song. The backing hook, the guitar riff, the sing-along chorus, atmospheric — all good. That said, on any other prior Linkin Park album, this track wouldn’t have made it as a single. But given how the other tracks on this collectionsound, it’s understandable why the label would have insisted on making this the single. It’s familiar. – 4/5

8. “Rebellion” (featuring Daron Malakian) – Daron is the guitarist from System of a Down, so if this song sounds inspired by SOAD, now you know why. That said, “Rebellion” was one of the few songs on this album I loved instantly upon first listen.A song to get pumped to! – 4/5

9. “Mark the Graves” – The beginning (and bits) of the song does remind you of “Blackout” from A Thousand Suns, but the rest of the song is nothing like it. Just when you think this is another heavy track, Chester’s verses lower the volume… for a bit. The ending is all loud, guitar solo and Chester screams. It’s not a bad song though, just quite a mish-mash. – 3/5

10. “Drawbar” (featuring Tom Morello) – For those who don’t know, Tom Morello is the awesome guitarist from Rage Against the Machine, famous for his playing style and the sounds he comes up with on the electric guitar. “Drawbar” is an instrumental and a rather somber interlude to lead into the next track. – 3/5

11. “Final Masquerade” – If you were seeking a power ballad on this album, this is it. I like it, although it feels a bit dated — in the sense it could have even appeared on MtoM. It’s even got the quintessential “woah oh oh” bit for that concert sing-along moments. -3/5

12. “A Line in the Sand” – The final track is a big one. At 6:35, the song packs in fast-paced guitars, screaming vocals, thumping drums, and towards the end — all three, before closing with Mike Shinoda. A fitting close to the album in my opinion. – 3/5

After three albums produced by Rick Rubin, ‘The Hunting Party’ is an album largely self-produced by Mike Shinoda and guitarist Brad Delson. I’m guessing “hey, let’s make this guitar-heavy” suggestion came from Brad 🙂 And why not? Rock is dying on mainstream music charts as it is and if a mainstream band can bring back heavy riffs on radio, I’ll take it.

I really liked A Thousand Suns and I don’t mind if Linkin Park does a similar concept album in the same vein with future releases. I’m someone who is quite open-minded with musical tastes. I listen to every possible genre of music out there, from boy band pop, K-pop to heavy metal… and Coldplay. I’m not ashamed about it. I like diversity and I accept the fact professional musicians are no different. I only question Linkin Park’s promotion of this album. I really don’t know why they chose to promote “Guilty All the Same” — quite possibly one of the weakest tracks on the album — as the lead single. It really put me off and lowered my expectations for this album. This is an album quite a departure from their previous releases. While ‘Living Things’ tried to bridge the “old LP sound” with the new, ‘The Hunting Party‘ is throughout a hard rock album with a very organic sound. Poor Joseph Hahn doesn’t have much of a role to play on this one (but will do live in concert, obviously). Sure, many songs end with some kid’s chatter and weird sound bytes but they did the whole interlude thing with the last two albums as well.

Fans have been complaining about Linkin Park “changing” for the worse for quite a few years now, but I guess you can never please some people. For those who appreciate change — and rock music — ‘The Hunting Party‘ is a good album. It may not be the band’s best album till date of whatever, but it’s still a Linkin Park album worth adding to your collection. Only if your collection of music includes varied tastes.

My final rating for ‘The Hunting Party’ – 3.5/5 (Pretty Good)

Also read:

My Linkin Park Live in Concert experiences: Abu Dhabi | Singapore

 

SNSD – ‘Mr. Mr.’ album review: Is this a sign the end is near?

Yay, my girls are back! My 2014 of K-pop can officially begin. Not that I ever stopped listening to K-pop, but 2014 began with a glut of girl groups all vying for attention using some sexy concept or the other. All their songs were mediocre at best and as much as I like watching sexy women, I don’t like it when ‘sexy’ is not done right.

Good thing I don’t have to worry about silly concepts from SM Entertainment (nowadays). SNSD are back with a badass look and what the teasers promised to be an edgy title track for their 4th mini-album titled ‘Mr. Mr’.

SNSD Girls Generation Mr.Mr album coverHere’s a track-by-track review:

1. “Mr. Mr.”

First reaction? Underwhelmed. Produced by The Underdogs, an American duo most famous for their R&B productions, “Mr. Mr.” has a great build up — but the chorus was a bit of an ‘expectation killer’. Maybe that’s because my expectations were sky high. After all, a year of waiting, and that too after the experimental “I Got A Boy,” I guess SONEs were hoping to listen to a killer comeback track that would go down as one of SNSD’s greatest hits.

After a few repeated listens, the song did gradually grow on me… but my enthusiasm failed to rise much. It’s a good song with simple choreography, but it still does not scream: “WOW! This song is awesome!” I love the ’90s vibe and the pitch changes at the end, but I’m a tiny bit disappointed to be honest.

While I appreciate the fact SM didn’t film another ‘inside a box’ video, you have to question some of the close-ups, excessive use of filters and the stretching. Maybe SM weren’t kidding when they actually lost some of the filmed data, thus delaying the MV’s release.

After “The Boys,” “IGAB” and now “Mr. Mr.,” that’s three lead singles year after a year that has largely left fans divided and me, unexcited. – 3/5

2. “Goodbye” – Written and produced by a team comprised of Lindy Robbins, Brent Paschke and Jenna Andrews, who have written music for One Direction and Selena Gomez, this is a funky au naturel song. Why do I like this song? Well, besides the laid back style, I actually heard Hyoyeon sing! I like the chorus too. – 3/5

3. “유로파 (Europa)” – Produced by SM’s very own Kenzie, this mid-tempo song is has, you know, the K-pop sound. SM has been putting out singles all produced Western producers these past few years that when I hear a song that reminds of the kind of K-pop that drew me in to the genre, I just adore it all the more. – 3/5

4. “Wait a Minute” – Hyoyeon sings! Just kidding, I had to highlight the poor girl’s only chance to get heard. The vibe is a follow-up from “Goodbye” and is a good song for a easy-listening session. – 3/5

5. “백허그 (Back Hug)” – The only ballad on the album, I loved Tiffany’s vocals on this track. “Back Hug” is a sweet ballad reminiscent of SNSD’s innocent early years and it’s nice to see it on the album. I miss this SNSD. – 3.5/5

6. “Soul” – The Korean version of a Chinese track SNSD recorded for a video game, this version sounds… the same, but in Mandarin. It’s an uptempo track, and despite being used as a promotional vehicle, the song has got a decent melody and I really like Sooyoung’s lines, mostly because of the way she sings it. – 3/5

SNSD Mr. Mr. MV screencap Girls Generation members
It’s a good album, but I was expecting to be blown away

As for the headline – “Is this a sign the end is near?”.

2014 will be SNSD’s seventh year anniversary. Girls Generation are the number one girl group in K-pop, hands down. The queens of Korean pop, if you may call them that. A juggernaut when it comes to commercial success, variety talent, and endorsement deals. But judging by the quality of their Korean singles off late, you start to wonder if SM Entertainment is slowly winding down on SNSD and making way for their next, obviously much younger, girl group.

It’s not just SNSD. Even TVXQ’s last release “Something” failed to make much of an impact on the charts. Neither did the duo sweep the music show awards with that song. And this is TVXQ we’re talking about here — they are still massive in Japan! It’s as if SM isn’t even trying with their senior groups, instead devoting all their money on the fresher faces like EXO, whose songs (okay, I still hate “Wolf”) and albums are choc full of amazing music. I only wonder what Super Junior’s comeback is going to be like.

Back to SNSD. It’s been the case for the last two years, that SNSD’s Japanese releases have been far superior to their Korean comebacks. Obviously the girls (and SM) make way more money in Japan from album sales than in South Korea — but come on, every K-pop fan around the world wants to hear their K-pop star sing awesome Korean songs!

Another hint I factor in to say that SNSD may see a decline or departure of a few members has been the news of Sooyoung and Yoona declaring they are in a relationship. Of course, celebrity relationships are never to be taken seriously, as given the pressures of work, many relationships don’t last long. But as someone who knows so much about the members (because that’s how devoted some of us SONEs are), I know Sooyoung wants marriage and children. As do other members like Hyoyeon, who is also rumoured to be in a relationship. Plus, the members are all within their mid-20s. I mean, look at their peers. Sun from Wonder Girls is a mother now and that group’s future is pretty much up in the air. KARA is now down to three members and if DSP Media screws up their comeback (which knowing how messed up DSP is) will pretty much put the nail in the coffin for KARA’s career. It’s as though SNSD’s peers are also fading away.

Maybe I’m over-reacting, but it just feels kinda sad seeing the wave of artists that first got me into K-pop now appearing to slowly ride into the sunset. Groups like SNSD can’t get any bigger. It will be interesting to see what the public’s reaction is to SNSD’s successors. If it’s going to be anything like the kind of reception EXO got, then I guess… arrrgh, I don’t want to think about it!

I hope SM Entertainment has better music lined up for Girls Generation in the form of a repackage album, because their Korean lead singles have gotten quite stale. The reason why I want SNSD around goes beyond just the music. I’m not saying the following because I’m such a devoted fan, but — you can’t manufacture or train rookies with what the members of SNSD have. The fact that you rarely hear about trouble within the group shows just how much the girls actually get along. SM doesn’t have to deal with the headaches and negative publicity girl groups like T-ara or KARA have experienced in the past. SNSD are a gem of a group. Any entertainment company would be glad to have them, purely because the girls can rarely do any wrong. There’s little in-fighting. They are dorky, hilarious, great on variety shows, multi-talented and do their job as performers with absolute professionalism. I just hope SM takes that into consideration and pushes on with Girls Generation. Because my generation of K-pop fans owes it to those girls.

My final rating for SNSD’s ‘Mr. Mr’ –  3 out of 5 (Good)



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