Coldplay's Chris Martin
Photo: Karl Walter/Getty Images

UNIVERSAL CITY, California — Chris Martin only forgot the words once.

After taking more than a year off from performing, Coldplay returned to the stage over the weekend, headlining influential public radio station KCRW-FM's annual A Sounds Eclectic Evening concert on Saturday at the Universal Amphitheatre and warming up the night before at the Troubadour in West Hollywood. (Click for photos from Saturday's show.)

And while Martin stumbled through the opening of "Politik" during the encore of the KCRW show, the singer more than made up for it by treating fans to five new tracks from X&Y, due June 7, and six old favorites.

"When you have a record coming out and everyone's talking all this sh-- about you, there's a fine line between arrogance and total fear and dread, and I like to think we tread the line extremely badly," Martin joked of his nerves late into Saturday's sold-out show.

Still, Coldplay showed confidence in their new material, opening the set with an ambitious, Radiohead-ish tune, and later boasting that a different new number is "f---ing good."

The former, called "Square One" according to Coldplay's Web site (Martin never said any song titles), features a techno beat and guitar effects that could score a sci-fi movie.

Coldplay led the opener right into A Rush of Blood to the Head's "In My Place," during which Martin danced around the stage, hopping on one foot and proudly announcing, "We're Coldplay, from Britain."

Another new track, "White Shadows," a U2-inspired number that featured Martin joining Jonny Buckland on electric guitar, followed. "It's been a while," Martin then said during their first breather. "Some of us have cut our hair or grown our hair, but you guys came out to see us and took a shot once again."

Martin, whose hair was in fact visibly more shaggy, then led the band through "The Scientist," "Daylight" and "Sparks," during which Buckland played both the piano and guitar. "He's the most talented person, as are the rest of the guys in the band ... except for me," Martin quipped. Actually, Martin's got his talents as well, as he showed at the end of "The Scientist," when he sang a verse backward (something he learned while shooting the video). "Check this out!" he bragged with a boyish grin.

After "Sparks," with fans mostly relaxed in their seats, Coldplay introduced the new balled "A Message," which had a similar feel. "My song is love, is love I know/ And I've got to get that message home," Martin sang.

"You don't have to sit down for this one," Martin said as he pounded the piano opening of "Clocks," which easily brought the audience to its feet.

"We're proud of this song, but if you don't like it, f--- it, listen to the old stuff," Martin said to introduce "What If," a moving mid-tempo almost certainly about the singer's new child, Apple, with wife Gwyneth Paltrow. "What if she should decide/ That she don't want me there by her side/ That she don't want me there in her life," Martin sang over atmospheric, Sigur Rós-like backing.

After "Politik," Coldplay brought out "Speed of Sound," the first single off X&Y, which goes to radio stations in mid-April. The tune also has a breakbeat similar to "Square One," but the guitars are more prominent and the solos in the bridge make for a more anthemlike number.

"Hopefully we'll see you soon with a proper live show and even more new songs, proper outfits, everything you could dream of from 'Pop Idol,' but better," Martin said before the finale. "This is an oldie but goodie."

That "oldie" would be "Yellow," during which Martin begged for the house lights to come on (and it took some begging) and then asked for the audience to handle the singing.

KCRW, especially Nic Harcourt's flagship show, "Morning Becomes Eclectic," was the first American radio station to spin Coldplay, so Saturday's annual benefit for the station was a chance for payback.

Although past A Sounds Eclectic Evenings have featured surprise guests like Beck, Pete Yorn and Flaming Lips, Joseph Arthur was the only unannounced performer Saturday (not to take anything away from his intriguing live show, which finds Arthur building backing tracks live with the help of technology).

Rock en español stars Cafe Tacuba, Paul Buchanan (formerly of the Scottish cult band the Blue Nile), Prince-inspired soul singer Van Hunt, English singer/songwriter Aqualung, piano-pounding songstress Nellie McKay and female rock trio the Like rounded out the four-and-a-half-hour show.

Coldplay's only two confirmed North American dates for 2005 so far are on April 29 at Las Vegas' Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and the following night at the Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California (see "Coachella Snags Coldplay, Nine Inch Nails, Weezer, Bright Eyes, Wilco"), but according to the band's management, a 40-city North American tour is scheduled to kick off in late July.

For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.

• KCRW's "Sounds Eclectic Evening" With Coldplay

• Coldplay
• Café Tacuba
• Van Hunt
• Nellie McKay

Franz Ferdinand (file)
Photo: Epic

Awards shows are nothing without performances, and the Shortlist Music Prize ceremony is mostly an excuse to have a great concert. This year is no exception: Air, Dizzee Rascal, Nellie McKay and TV on the Radio are scheduled to perform at the Shortlist ceremony at the Avalon Theater in Hollywood on November 15. More performers — both Shortlist finalists and acts associated with them — are expected to be announced.

The event will be broadcast on MTV2 on November 20 at 9 p.m. ET.

Along with the four confirmed performers, the 10 Shortlist finalists include Franz Ferdinand for their self-titled debut, Ghostface for The Pretty Toney Album, the Killers for Hot Fuss, Loretta Lynn for Van Lear Rose, the Streets for A Grand Don't Come for Free and Wilco for A Ghost Is Born (for video and sound clips, photos and more, check out "Shortlist Prize Finalists: A Mixtape From The Stars").

Now in its fourth year, the goal of the Shortlist Prize is to "honor the most adventurous and creative albums of the year across all genres of music," according to its mission statement.

"The Shortlist is decided on the merit of the music rather than on industry criteria, so it's not based on marketing or sales or anything like that, which is pretty cool," Franz Ferdinand singer Alex Kapranos told MTV earlier this month. "I really appreciate the eclectic nature of the nominations: We've got people like Loretta Lynn on one side, then Dizzee Rascal and the Streets on the other, and Wilco there as well."

The winner is determined by a panel of musicians, music journalists and music-business executives (the "Listmakers"), who each nominated their seven favorite albums and then winnowed down the initial "Long List" of 73 albums to a "Shortlist" of 10 finalists (for the Long List, see "Franz Ferdinand, Killers, Wilco, Ghostface Make First Round Of Shortlist Prize").

This year's 22 Listmakers include John Mayer, Dashboard Confessional's Chris Carrabba, Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme, Norah Jones, the Roots' Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson, the Cure's Robert Smith, System of a Down's Serj Tankian and the Dixie Chicks (see "John Mayer, Chris Carrabba, ?uestlove, Norah Jones Sign On For Shortlist Prize").

"To get some acknowledgement from [the Listmakers], people that we look up to and respect, that's pretty important," Kapranos said. He and Franz guitarist Nick McCarthy mentioned fellow Glasgow band Sons and Daughters, British outfit the Bloc Party, L.A.'s Blood Arm and New York-based sibling duo the Fiery Furnaces as current personal favorites (the latter band's debut LP made the Long List).

The nominated albums must have sold less than 500,000 copies in the U.S. by the end of the prize's eligibility period (this year, between July 1, 2003, and June 30, 2004). Franz Ferdinand and the Killers' albums have both since exceeded that total.

A compilation album featuring songs from all 10 Shortlist finalists, as well as Long List nominees Ryan Adams, Café Tacuba, Jem, Muse and Secret Machines, is due November 2 from Razor & Tie Records.

• AIR (Rock)
• Dizzee Rascal
• Nellie McKay
• TV On The Radio

2004 Shortlist Music Prize concert, 11.15.2004

• TV On The Radio
• Dizzee Rascal
• Nellie McKay