Coldplay has finally finished their fifth album and announced its release. Called Mylo Xyloto (pronounced “MY-lo ZY-letoe”), the new album will be released on October 24, 2011 (except in North America, where it will release Oct. 25).
Following “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall”, the next single from the album is called “Paradise” and will be out September 12.
Today, Coldplay released a bright and colorful semi-stop motion video for ‘Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall’ in the spirit of their beautiful ‘Strawberry Swing‘ video from 2009. Watch the new music video on here or on Vevo!
There’s been a lot happening in Coldplay land that I really haven’t been paying attention to. There were some cryptic tweets and that weird “fuzzy man” video. I don’t have any commentary on either…I have enough mystery in my life trying to guess who-done-it in my mystery novels and weaving my Doctor Who theories. What we done have, however, is seven new songs.
Today, a three-song EP was released worldwide (apart from in America) including the previously released ‘Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall’ and two newbies ‘Major Minus’ and ‘Moving to Mars’.
‘Every Teardrop is a Waterfall’: I’m not thrilled with the lyrics beyond the opening line but I do like the danceable beat.
‘Major Minus’: This sounds more like the Coldplay of Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends. I like it but nothing about it has really clinched it for me.
‘Moving to Mars’: Maybe it’s because I research a lot of space missions for work or because the opening is reminiscent of early Coldplay, but I really like this track.
As you probably know, ‘Every Teardrop’ was released as a single on June 3rd. On that day and on the day after, they played two concerts at the Rock am Ring Festival in Germany. There, they premiered ‘Major Minus’ and four others:
‘Hurts Like Heaven’: I really like this one. Can’t tell what any of the lyrics are, but I love the melody and the guitar riff.
‘Us Against the World’: Wow. LOVE it. I think this is my favorite of all the new songs. It sounds so hopeful and lovely, it reminds me of one of my all-time Coldplay favorites ‘Til Kingdom Come’, and Will’s vocals are pretty prominent. What more could I want?
‘Charlie Brown’: Awesome opening riff and probably the catchiest of the bunch: “Light a fire, light a spark / Light a fire, a flame in my heart / We’ll run wild / We’ll be glowing in the dark”
‘Princess of China’: Not really sure what’s going on here but I think I like it?
In a BBC Interview following Coldplay’s Glastonbury appearance last night, Chris Martin stated that their album was still incomplete, and that it was, at that time, narrowed down to 85 minutes. So we don’t have an album title for LP 5 or a release date. And we may not have a track listing but we can be fairly certain that we have seven tracks on our hands.
And remember, Coldplay has performed two other new songs since Viva La Vida was released in 2008. ‘Don Quixote / Spanish Rain’ premiered in Buenos Aires in February 2010 and ‘Wedding Bells’ was a song we heard part of on the South Bank Show and a finished (but crappy) version for Apple.
The three songs released today are OK but they didn’t have me very excited for the new album. I much prefer the other four songs – they are just more catchy and vibrant to me. If LP5 is more centered on those four, I am just itching for the it!
Those are my thoughts and they are more than likely to change as I listen to the songs more. But I want to hear your thoughts too! Which one is your favorite? Do you hate any of them? What do you think they say collectively about the new album?
So sorry for the wee hiatus, everybody. Lots of things fell by the wayside for the last half of my school term but it’s over now, I’m back home in America celebrating Christmas with my family and I’m ready to get this show back on the road! I have a very very very long list of music to tell you all about but I’m going to start off with a Christmas / December playlist that seems appropriate for the day.
First up, it’s Vampire Weekend with “Horchata” but simply because I can finally say I’ve worn a balaclava, and yes I do looks psychotic. In November, I climbed two Munros and the higher we climbed, the colder we got, prompting everyone to wear every article of clothing possible. After the balaclavas went on, “Horchata” was playing on repeat in my head:
Next, here’s a fun reinterpretation of Judy Garland classic “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”. It’s Illinois singer-songwriter Andrew Ripp. Listen to the song on Last.FM or download Ripp’s “Christmas Tunes” album on NoiseTrade.
While not exactly a Christmas song, Kris Drever‘s “Mark The Hard Earth” seems appropriately wintry: God put me here in this field full of snow, dark sky above me and the hard earth below. It always feels cold, it’s always the same. I made my choices so I’ll shoulder the blame. The song is one of my current favorites. I know it’s a bit melancholy but that’s alright because it’s just so beautiful and touching. Drever is a musician from the Orkney Islands and my friends and I bought his album while in Kirkwall three weeks ago. I suppose this song also reminds me of winter because this was the weekend I was stranded in Orkney because of a crazy snow storm across Scotland.
Here to liven things up a bit is Chuck Berry’s “Run Rudolph Run”. I got this song from MOJO‘s Festive Fifteen CD.
Sharon Jones is always brilliant. Her Christmas song “Ain’t No Chimneys In The Projects” is definitely keeping with her past record. I feel like this song would make a great soundtrack for The Wire.
OK, I admit that this next one is a bit odd but it’s actually pretty sweet and I wanted to get the indie vibe going. It’s Sea of Bees‘ version of “Feliz Navidad”.
Next I have another slightly depressing one called “Following The Wrong Star” by Billy Bragg. I’ve included a live version of it on YouTube but you can also download the studio recording featuring Ben Sollee for free on Bragg’s website.
We’re gonna have a merry Christmas, baby, very merry Christmas, baby. You can download Dave Barnes‘ “Very Merry Christmas” for free right now on Amazon.
And another free Amazon download for you… the very entertaining and unfortunately true “Toy Packaging” by Sara Groves. I expect quite a few of us will be relating to this song today.
Ain’t nothing like Christmas, baby, with carols and good cheer. I’ve got a bit country on you here with “Ain’t nothing like Christmas” by Shelby Lynn.
Little & Ashley‘s “Winter Night” is another sweet wintry-themed song: underneath the starry sky, dream with me this winter night.
Oh Superchunk, I never thought you’d be on a Christmas playlist but here you are. It never snows no more, only freezing dirty rain. Oh no it never snows but it gets that smell like it might just the same.
It’s a “Cold December” with Matt Costa. I discovered this song last year in Best Buy with my dad. We were picking out speakers as a present for my mom and this song played on one of the sets we tested. I actually blogged about this event last year. I know, my life is so exciting isn’t it?
It’s time to get old-school on you now with “Rebel Jesus” by Jackson Browne. I love this song and I love the message of it.
And you know it’s not Christmas without some Otis Redding.
Following in the snow theme, it’s Matt Pond PA with “Snow Day”.
Almost there, folks! It’s “Christmas Is For Children” by The Feeling of “Fill My Little World” fame. It’s not a great song but I’m including it because of the line “Oh it hardly snowed when I was young though I prayed so hard for it to come. Now I’m just complaining about the trains that never run.” That line has been the story of my life for the last month while living in Scotland so I cracked up when I heard it.
Next up is the gorgeous new Coldplay song “Christmas Lights”. Those Christmas lights light up the street down where the sea and city meet. May all your troubles soon be gone. Oh, Christmas lights, keep shining on. The band was in the Live Lounge on BBC Radio 1 a week ago to play “Christmas Lights”. Apparently when writing the song, they made list of all the things that tip a song from being a great Christmas song into being a cheesy Christmas song and that they would not put into a christmas song. So “Christmas Lights” has no reindeer, no sleigh bells and no children’s choir but it sure is a great timeless song for the holiday:
Last but not least, it’s “Auld Lang Syne“. It may seem cheesy to end with this but remember, I have been living in Scotland for the last four months. I can’t not end with “Auld Land Syne” so deal with it. At least this is the traditional Scottish version and not the anglicised one!
Well, any die-hard Coldplay fan has already heard an early version of “Wedding Bells”. But Chris Martin took the stage at a San Francisco after a music-heavy list of Apple product announcements to unveil the new (completed) song along with two older favrorites.
“It could go terribly wrong,” said the notoriously self-deprecating Martin as he prepared to play the tune, which he said “might not ever come out,” and mentioned this might be its lone performance… Before playing it, Martin uncorked some clever Apple-related humor. “This is a new song that we’ve been working on called ‘Coldplay 2.6.’ It has a lot of features,” he quipped. “It features seven different kinds of chord, including a new one that even our closest rivals have no idea about which [Apple’s legendary designer of the iMac, iPod, etc.] Jonathan Ive designed. It’s the chord of I-minor.” (via Spin)
Martin’s voice is a little sketchy here but he might have been nervous and his vocals are usually a little off when he performs on TV. I also think I like the song better a little better with guitar.
Lyrics:
Those wedding bells are ringing up upon that hill
And I don’t want to swallow such a bitter pill
You keep on moving but I stay still
I always loved you and I always will
Days of no sleeping
Caked in mud
All kinds of poison in my blood
I lost the only thing I ever loved
Oooh…
I heard them ringing and processioning by
Umbrellas in the clear blue sky
I saw you swimming in that sea of white
Oooh…
And wedding bells ringing up upon that hill
And I don’t wanna swallow such a bitter pill
You keep on moving, baby, I stay still
I always loved you and I always will
Ooooh…
I loved you and I see it still
I always loved you and I always will
Singing, lalalalalalalalala…
If everything that went before didn’t matter, so
Lalalalalalaaa….
I always loved you and I always will
I just discovered today that my post from May 14 on Coldplay’s possible influences on their new album was linked to by someone in a forum over a Coldplay Peru. My Spanish is pretty awful but I read through the thread as best I could. I’m really excited to see my post starting conversations – even in Spanish!
I would like to comment of something Andrés wrote: “El blogger continua con su pesimismo en este tema tambien…” I would disagree that I was pessimistic in my post. Maybe I was a little hard on Coldplay’s live act, but that is only because my personal experiences have been negative. I’m happy for people who have had positive experiences, I just wish I was one of them. But I believe in the boys and I think their intimacy with the fans will get better.
And as for Latin America’s influence, I didn’t mean to put anybody down. I would personally love it if “Spanish Rain” made it onto the fifth album but I don’t think it will purely because of the song structure. It’s call-and-response in nature which means that it wouldn’t translate well to a studio album. And I wouldn’t want them to ruin something that’s so magical live.
Anyway, that’s that. I wish I was fluent in Spanish so I could respond to Coldplay Peru directly but I’m just glad people are as excited I am for the next album that they’re discussing what may or may not be on it.
Solar system: At the beginning of April, Chris Martin gave Roadie #42 a mysterious job to build a solar system … or at least a model of one. What does it mean? Is the fifth album going to have a big, bold, “out of this world” sound? If not sound, then what about big emotions? Or how about a concept album about planets? No – I’ve got it – recording in space? Ok, now I’m just getting absurd. It certainly sounds like the solar system / universe is going to influence the band (or maybe just Chris) is some way but I don’t really have a clue how. But I’m excited to find out.
EMI / label pressure Honestly, EMI is not going to last more than another year. I mean, they’ve already lost the Rolling Stones and Paul McCartney and now Queen. I don’t think the failures at EMI will musically influence Coldplay and in terms of pressuring the band, the label is not in a strong enough position to force anything.
Brian Eno: Yeah, I’d say Eno is going to continue to influence Coldplay. The superstar producer who worked on Viva La Vida is back and working on the fifth album. I’m sure he’s still going to be pushing the limits of what the band can create. Eno is all about getting the musicians he works with to try new things (from hypnosis, to recording in anti gravity, to secluding band members from one another) and see what comes out. You can’t try new things and not be influenced by them (or the experience of trying them).
New studio (The Beehive): Back in November, Roadie #42 described Coldplay’s new home The Beehive: “Everywhere you go there’s light streaming in. Even on a relatively gloomy British afternoon, it’s noticeably bright inside. I can only imagine that this will be reflected in the new material.” That pretty much sums it up but I just want to add that any relocation from one place to another has an affect on a person. You are leaving something behind that probably has strong sentimental value to it but you are looking forward to something new and exciting. We also think differently in different spaces.
Recording restrictions (acoustic/amplification): In a February Guy Berryman told Brazilian outlet Terra, “We’re working on a new album that is more acoustic, organic. Not want to sound small. We want great, but we have some limitations, you know. In the manner of recording, the equipment we use… For now, we are only using acoustic instruments and very little amplification. It sounded very good. We do not know where this is going. But we have many things written and we are well pleased with what we’ve done so far.” I don’t think we’re going to get a totally acoustic album from Coldplay but I do think they are definitely headed toward more intimacy with fans (more on that in a minute).
Joe Satriani affair: When I first heard about this plagiarism case last year I blew it off. Eventually, though, I went on YouTube and listened to Joe Satriani’s “If I Could Fly” to compare it to Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida.” It was an interesting experience I was so skeptical until the guitar riff and then I just couldn’t believe how similar they sounded! I don’t believe Coldplay plagiarized but the whole affair did hit them pretty hard. When this sort of accusation is made, you can be limited by it and live in fear of writing something that sounds too much like something else that’s already been written or you can be inspired to keep writing good music that everyone wants to claim they’ve written. I definitely think this incident will make the band more determined to make great music.
Intimacy with fans: I’ve complained about this before and I seriously hope that this is the biggest influence on their fifth album. My post from three months ago contained my musings on whether a “Personal Coldplay” was possible. I explained that their music has been very special in my life but that at the same time, I hate seeing them live because they always perform in huge stadiums where there is absolutely nothing personal about the whole experience. I don’t know that a Personal Coldplay is even possible given how popular they are, but I like that they recognize the very issue that’s been bothering me and are trying to do something about it: “Frontman Chris Martin is concerned the band are being seen as a huge stadium act and totally inaccessible for their loyal fans.”
Latin America: Yes, they did debut “Spanish Rain” in Argentina a few months ago and I loved it but something tells me its going to be a fixture in live shows and not on an album. Besides, Latin America was Viva La Vida‘s thing.
Agree? Disagree?What do you think about all these possible influences?
Addendum: If you made it through all that, be sure to check out my follow-up post about Coldplay Peru!
Ahhhh! There are so many things I want to post about that I haven’t had time for in the last week! So I’m obviously excited to be back!
Before I kick things off with a typical post, though, I just want to comment on something awesome that happened while I was gone. I checked my blog stats yesterday to find a huge spike in traffic so I did some investigating and found that Consequence of Sound has linked to my Don Quixote/Spanish Rain post! I just wanted to say that I’m flattered because I love reading COS.
I also got a link from Rock it Out! Blog which I am also grateful for. Their post also mentioned something interesting that I wanted to get some comments about: that the new Coldplay song Spanish Rain sounds like Bruce Springsteen’s Dancing In The Dark. When I read this I naturally YouTubed Dancing In The Dark (yes I am a Springsteen fan but no, I don’t have Dancing In The Dark in my iTunes).
… versus …
My take is that there is one line of melody in Dancing In The Dark that sounds similar to Spanish Rain. Normally, I wouldn’t think that much of it but that one little melody is repeated over and over again in Spanish Rain so now I’m questioning whether or not this will bring on plagiarism charges. Which leads me to another thought of whether the “ole, ole, ole, ole” line is copyrighted by anyone. Probably not but my understanding is that Latin American audiences sing it at all big stadium concerts so could THAT portion of the song lead to problems?
I’m a pretty loyal Coldplay fan and I believe them when they say they don’t plagiarize. But what I think isn’t that interesting. I want to know what YOU think.
Would you say Spanish Rain is plagiarism of Dancing In The Dark?
Would Springsteen sue them?
Is it even going to end up on their new album?
The Sound Snack 