Coldplay lights up the American Airlines Center (Photo by John Schreiber, The Daily Campus)

British rock phenomenon Coldplay rocked the American Airlines Center Sunday night.

A 45-minute wait filled the space between Fiona Apple’s opening set and Coldplay’s first appearance before the crowd. The anticipation was palpable.

Since Coldplay’s origins nearly 10 years ago, the band has continually grown in popularity, gaining unbelievable steam without showing any signs of slowing down. The three-year hiatus between the release of “A Rush of Blood to the Head” and “X&Y” seemed to only increase the band’s strength, causing “X&Y” to debut at No. 1 in 28 countries.

The excitement exploded like a wave of thunder as Coldplay fittingly opened with “Square One.” From the start, Coldplay proved its chops as a great live band. Lead singer Chris Martin’s voice was perfect as he excitedly jumped around the stage, enlivening the audience as he moved nearer to them.

One of the most thrilling aspects of the show had to be the amazing lighting. Whether it was flash lighting in time with the beat of “Politik” or sweeping lights for “Speed of Sound,” the results were amazing, increasing the drama and emotion throughout the entire concert.

Only a short while into the concert the crowd-favorite “Yellow” was played. Halfway through the song, giant yellow balloons were dropped upon the enthused as the entire crowd sang along.

Three-fourths of the way through the set Martin played “Til Kingdom Come,” a song originally written for Johnny Cash. Martin’s love for Cash was evident, as he followed that song with “Ring of Fire.” The crowd loved every minute of it.

The highlight of the concert had to be when Martin jumped off the stage and ran to the end of the arena as the band closed with “Talk.” Crowd excitement reached ridiculous levels as those towards the back finally got to see Martin close-up. The band encored with “Swallowed in the Sea,” “In My Place” and, finally, “Fix You,” which seems to have become Coldplay’s new anthem.

Concerning the band’s future, its ambitions have never been higher. In a recent interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, Martin said, the next album may be “fast, dark and heavy” without any piano.

“Our next album is going to be the greatest piece of music ever made,” he said in the interview. “I still don’t think we’ve written the best song ever, so every night, in the middle of the night, I wake up and I’ll just try and write it.”

Chris Simpson is a first-year history major and can be reached at [email protected].

Coldplay lights up the American Airlines Center