A Rush of Coldplay takes over The Ballroom in Aarhus

Almost 15 years and around 150 concerts have given A Rush of Coldplay plenty of experience, with both festival venues and smaller concert halls. On October 3, the band will be coming to The Ballroom in Aarhus.

Several years can pass between Coldplay's concerts in Denmark, and when they finally come, not everyone gets the opportunity to stand in the audience.

Fortunately, the experience doesn't necessarily have to take place in a huge stadium. At A Rush of Coldplay, the audience gets much closer to the music and the four musicians on stage. In The Ballroom, a concert over two sets awaits, featuring both the big songs, the quieter moments and music from Coldplay's entire career.

"Of course, we understand that we are not the real Coldplay. So does the audience. But Coldplay comes to Denmark maybe every five years, and not everyone has the opportunity to experience them. That's why it's great that we can come around and play for smaller gatherings, where you get a different and more intimate atmosphere," says lead singer Thomas Sørensen.

A Rush of Coldplay is more than a cover band

A Rush of Coldplay was formed in 2012 and consists of Thomas Sørensen on vocals, piano and guitar, Steffen Smith on guitar and choir, Joel Lohse on bass and choir, and Jeppe Schaumburg on drums and drumpad.

From the very beginning, the plan was for more than four musicians to play a series of Coldplay songs. The whole atmosphere of the music had to be included, and it also required the band themselves to have a genuine relationship with the songs.

"You can't really do this if you're not a fan. The music enters me and is almost a part of me. I think that's what it takes to stand up and do something like this," says Thomas.

The band spends a lot of time trying to capture the sound and expression of the originals, but they don't try to hide themselves along the way. The four musicians still have to be themselves when they're on stage.

This also applies to the clothes. The army jacket that Thomas often appears in, for example, comes from an American host father he lived with in the 1990s. Since then, the jacket has been given neon paint and various brands to match the stage.

“You collect some things throughout life, and I bring them to the stage.”

New songs are added all the time.

A Rush of Coldplay has been around for almost 15 years, but the concert hasn't been locked into the same set list.

Coldplay continues to release new music and has changed quite a bit over the years. The early rock songs have been joined by more pop songs, electronic soundscapes and collaborations with artists from other genres. That's why A Rush of Coldplay has always had something new to work with.

“We have been able to constantly update our concerts with the new Coldplay hits. That's why our concerts are completely different now than they were when we started,” says Thomas.

The band has so far played more than 40 different Coldplay songs live, ranging from the earliest albums all the way up to Moon Music from 2024.

But the same songs don't work everywhere. At festivals, the band primarily plays their biggest hits. Here, the audience may have come for the entire festival and not necessarily for A Rush of Coldplay, so the songs should be able to bring people together quickly.

At an event venue like The Ballroom, there's a better time. Here, the band can mix the sure-fire hits with lesser-known numbers that especially the biggest fans will appreciate.

“There are many who come and see us again and again. That's why it's nice to be able to mix things up and present something different from year to year,” says Thomas.

Colors, lights and a bell for one number

Over the years, A Rush of Coldplay has collected a lot of equipment that helps give the concerts their own expression.

The instruments are painted, the stage is decorated with flowers and small details, and the light changes color around the musicians. The band has, among other things, taken a closer look at how Coldplay themselves use lighting during individual songs, and worked further on the moods in their own show.

Perhaps most striking is the large bell that is brought out for Viva la Vida. It is only used during one number, but for the band it has become an important part of the song's concert expression.

The show has been developed little by little over the years. The band has studied the lighting at Coldplay's own concerts and translated it into a programmed lighting scheme that follows the mood of the music. When the setting allows, confetti and sparkles can also be thrown from the stage.

Most recently, the band has experimented with LED bracelets that can be borrowed by the audience and programmed to light up at certain times.

“It looks fantastic from the stage, and we can clearly feel that there is a wow effect. At the same time, it creates a sense of community in the room,” says Thomas.

From Paradise to Wembley atmosphere

The concert in The Ballroom will be structured over two sets. The first part starts off calmly, and gradually the tempo and songs will be turned up, inviting the audience to sing and dance along.

The second set begins with a celebration of the 15th anniversary of the album Mylo Xyloto. Here, A Rush of Coldplay plays five songs from the album, which includes Paradise and has given its name to the Paradise Tour 2026.

When the album was released in 2011, Coldplay's previous rock expression was joined by neon colors and more electronic sounds. It also marked the beginning of an even larger and more colorful concert universe.

After the five songs, the concert moves on to the numbers that can really get the whole hall involved.

“At the end, we try to create a bit of a Wembley atmosphere with the iconic numbers, where people sing along, wave their arms and sometimes shed a tear. There are a good portion of songs that are just right to end the concert with,” says Thomas.

Music that brings generations together

When A Rush of Coldplay began, the audience was mostly made up of adults. Thomas describes them as people aged 45 and up, standing with their girlfriends and a glass of wine, swaying to the music.

That's not the case anymore. Today, many young people also come to the concerts.

Some have grown up with the early songs at their parents' house. Others have discovered Coldplay themselves through newer music and collaborations with the likes of Rihanna, Beyoncé and the South Korean band BTS.

“Coldplay are really good at constantly bringing the next generation along. Some might get hooked on one new song and then discover a huge repertoire of all sorts of gold that they can absorb.”

This means that both parents and adult children can be in the audience at The Ballroom and sing along to the same songs, even though they learned them at different times.

The most important thing for A Rush of Coldplay is that the audience goes home with an experience that felt real.

“We hope that people leave feeling that the music was served authentically. That a Coldplay need was met, and that they go home with a smile and maybe want to come back again.”

A Rush of Coldplay will play at The Ballroom in Aarhus on October 3, 2026 at 9:00 PM.