Coldplay Reveal Atlas

Coldplay have revealed their new single, Atlas, from the Catching Fire soundtrack. Have a listen below.

Coldplay's New Single Delayed

Coldplay's new single, Atlas, is now due out on 8th September in the UK (two days earlier everywhere else) - as opposed to 26th August. The single is from the new Hunger Games film soundtrack.

Coldplay To Release New Song

Coldplay are releasing a new single, Atlas, which is part of the soundtrack for the film The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. The song will be available from the 26th August. It is assumed that this has nothing to do with their sixth album, which has been in the works for a few months.

The lyrics were also revealed:

Some saw the sun
Some saw the smoke
Some heard the gun
Some bent the bow
Sometimes the wire must tense for the note
Caught in the fire, say oh
We're about to explode
Carry your world, I'll carry your world

Some far away
Some search for gold
Some dragon to slay
Heaven we hope is just up the road
Show me the way, Lord, because I
I'm about to explode
Carry your world, I'll carry your world
Carry your world and all your hurt

Song Of The Year 2011

The winner of Music Madness' song of the year 2011 is:

Coldplay - Charlie Brown

Despite not having been released as a single yet (it's set to be in the new year), Charlie Brown boasts an infectious guitar line, driving power from the bass and drums, and an all-round sense of grandiosity. Mylo Xyloto (the album it is taken from) may not have been the #1 album of 2011 for me, but this song will never grow old. Absolutely mind-blowing.

The song will remain in the 'Songs of the Week' section of the blog until 2nd January, when we'll be back to normal weekly service.

Best Of 2011: #2

#2 - Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto

Original review here.

The band's previous album, Viva La Vida, was #1 on my best of 2008 list, but this one doesn't quite follow in the footsteps of its predecessor, even though this one is definitely my favourite Coldplay album. Retaining the experimental vibes from the last album, but mixing it in with some more electronic sounds for the most part, Mylo Xyloto is a true masterpiece, which could soundtrack a summer (although it came out in October, so it probably won't) - especially with the grand pieces of work that are Hurts Like Heaven, which sounds like Arcade Fire on speed when let loose on synthesisers and told to include as many guitar riffs as possible; Charlie Brown, which instead has one guitar riff - but it's an absolutely thunderous one that never fails to give me goosebumps every time I hear it... as does Don't Let It Break Your Heart, with its epic wall of sound smashing its way through to the forefront after a little instrumental break. The last highlight is Us Against The World, which quietens things down but still manages to sound powerful in every sense. One of the best albums of this year, and maybe of all time for me. But there is one album greater, at least for 2011...

Album Review: Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto

So, here we are again - a new Coldplay album. One of my favourite bands of all time; the band are back with a fifth effort, and this time they've gone for a heavy electronic influence, but keeping the experimental vibes from last record "Viva La Vida...". You'd never believe this was the same band that wrote the album "Parachutes", all the way back at the turn of the century. However, one thing that has remained constant throughout the band's career is their knack for writing massive stadium anthems; even some of their quieter and softer songs can make crowds go wild. There's at least one on every one of their albums. But this one is stuffed full of them - and it's absolutely huge.

Take opener Hurts Like Heaven (not counting the 40-second intro Mylo Xyloto as a separate track), with its incredible pace and epic guitar riffs. This is perhaps the greatest way anyone's ever opened an album. It's an adrenaline rush that never lets up; and you can clearly hear the guitars making their mark all over the track, although Chris Martin's voice is ruined ever so slightly by a kind of robotic vocal in the background, but the song is not ruined overall. Also up there for sheer euphoria is Charlie Brown - it sent chills down my spine when I first heard it at Glastonbury, and the studio version is no less epic. The guitar riff is perhaps the greatest one they have ever done; so much that it pretty much does the job of having a chorus on the song - there's no real refrain here, but that doesn't matter. As the riff slowly comes in, slowly getting louder, over the synth-y opening, you think you're in for a smoother ride... and then everything smashes its way in. Absolutely huge. And if that wasn't enough, it finishes with a piano part at the end which is beautifully done.

There are instrumental interludes on this album, mainly placed before a massive track, such as Mylo Xyloto / Hurts Like Heaven. Also, we have M.M.I.X. preceding Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall, the first song to be heard in studio version from this album, all the way back in June. It was a great song back then, and it sounds slightly better still in the context of the album, even if it does have a hint of cheesiness about it. The third interlude is A Hopeful Transmission, which takes its cues from the intro track, Mylo Xyloto. It's also a brilliant way to lead into Don't Let It Break Your Heart. Now, there's an anthem if I ever heard one. Straight after A Hopeful Transmission finishes, a wall of sound just crashes around your ears... on first listen, it sounds like it's drowning out the vocals, but on repeated listens you get used to it - it's undoubtedly a bombastic, massive song built for stadiums, but it's perhaps the biggest surprise on the album, particuarly if (like me) you'd heard the majority of the songs live. A stunning penultimate track.

Elsewhere in the department of big stadium anthems, we have a couple of R&B- influenced tracks, the second single Paradise, which, like Every Teardrop..., was brilliant on its own and yet still manages to feel better yet in its placing on the album. The rather uninventive chorus of 'para-para-paradise" is overshadowed by the huge strings sound that covers the song, but it's still catchy and will get into your head. The other song is Princess Of China, which goes the whole way and brings in Rihanna to sing along. Now as soon as I heard this, I was incredibly sceptical, but actually, after two or three listens, it's actually done pretty well, despite the fact that it doesn't sound like Coldplay are actually in band mode - it seems like a Chris Martin solo song. The synths replace Jonny Buckland's guitar, but it's alright because the melodies they create are magnificent. The bass is also turned up to eleven - it may blow out your speakers. You have been warned. Anyway, Rihanna fits in fine, especially since she sounds different (at least from the two or three songs of hers that I know). After several plays, it's one of my favourites from the album, although I would have liked to hear more guitar and a bit more Chris Martin vocals - he seems to take the first verse on his own and then retreats into the background, occasionally popping up to accompany Rihanna. But by no means is it a disappointment.

My two least favourite tracks on this album are Major Minus and UFO, but they're still great tracks in themselves. Luckily they're some of the shortest on the album (bar the interludes). The former was debuted on the Every Teardrop... EP back in June, and I considered it to be good but thought it would stay as a B-side. In terms of the story I think this album is trying to tell, it's a necessary track, but it doesn't quite resonate with me as much as the other tracks. The latter is reminiscent of the band's earlier work, as it's very acoustic based. There are some strings accompanying it but they're very much in the background. The song only lasts two minutes and a bit, and even manages to fit in some kind of intro for Princess Of China for the last 15 seconds. It's not a particularly memorable song, but may become more of a hit for the fans that have wished for Coldplay to return back to their original sound. But, for me, it's the weakest song on the album.

The remaining three yet to be mentioned are all the slower, more delicate moments taken from the album - and oddly, they all begin with the letter U - add U.F.O. to the list and you have pretty much got all the quieter moments. My favourite of these is Us Against The World, which is for the most part acoustic, although it has a sunny introduction that's a joy to listen to. Drummer Will Champion also takes backing vocals on the song, moving away from his drums to accompany Martin. Towards the end, a massive organ/piano/I'm not really sure which... comes in and gives you goosebumps with the sheer amount of power it has, before stripping everything away to leave Martin and his acoustic to lead the song out. It's a good breather coming between Charlie Brown and M.M.I.X. / Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall, two of the most anthemic songs on there. The other "U songs" are Up In Flames - which is very minimal and restrained but takes its power from that, and features Martin's highest vocal on the album ("up in flaaaaaaames") and again the chorus is based on repetition, but it's fantastic nonetheless; and closing track Up With The Birds, which is a song in two halves. The first half wouldn't be out of place in a closing scene from a romantic film, and it features some odd electronic sighing sound that's a bit out of place, but also some huge cinematic strings to lead you into the second half, which is where the guitars and drums turn up - it sounds like it's going to lead into a big Coldplay chorus, but it builds up just enough to keep you interested and then ends a bit earlier than expected - it's a bit of an anticlimax to be honest, particularly after the previous four tracks (Princess Of China onwards), but it leaves the album on a positive vibe as the final note is played on the piano.

SUMMARY
This is a massive album and undoubtedly their poppiest one yet, but the amount of goosebump-inducing moments are numerous. They retain the experimental feeling of their previous album and continue to make their new sound seem fresh and original. Every song feels different to the others, as was the case with Viva La Vida. Back then, I gave that album 5 stars but that was when I was incredibly generous to rating albums (I'd give it 4.5 stars now). On this album, there's something a bit lacking from a couple of songs, and I don't think it fully deserves the full five stars unfortunately. But it's still one of the best things to come out this year, and my favourite Coldplay album.



FAVOURITE TRACKS: Hurts Like Heaven, Charlie Brown, Don't Let It Break Your Heart
LEAST FAVOURITE TRACKS: Major Minus, U.F.O.

PREVIOUS ALBUMS (as I would rate them now): Parachutes (3.5/5) / A Rush of Blood To The Head (4/5) / X&Y (4/5) / Viva La Vida (4.5/5)

Coldplay - 30 Seconds Of Paradise

Here is a YouTube link leading to a preview clip of the new Coldplay single, Paradise, due out Monday.

Coldplay Announce Mylo Xyloto Tracklist

Coldplay have announced the tracklist for their upcoming fifth album, Mylo Xyloto. The album page about Mylo Xyloto on this blog is here.

01. Mylo Xyloto
02. Hurts Like Heaven
03. Paradise
04. Charlie Brown
05. Us Against The World
06. M.M.I.X.
07. Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall
08. Major Minus
09. UFO
10. Princess Of China
11. Up In Flames
12. A Hopeful Transmission
13. Don't Let It Break Your Heart
14. Up With The Birds

Paradise First Play

Coldplay's new single, Paradise, off their forthcoming fifth album, will get its first radio play at 07.50am (GMT) on Radio 1 on 12th September, the same day that it is set to be released as a single.

The album it is from, Mylo Xyloto, is due out 24th October.

Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto

Artwork


Tracklist
01. Mylo Xyloto
02. Hurts Like Heaven
03. Paradise
04. Charlie Brown
05. Us Against The World
06. M.M.I.X.
07. Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall
08. Major Minus
09. UFO
10. Princess Of China
11. Up In Flames
12. A Hopeful Transmission
13. Don't Let It Break Your Heart
14. Up With The Birds

The first single is Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall (listen here), which was released two months ago. The single features two other tracks, confirmed album track Major Minus (here) and expected B-side Moving To Mars (here).

The second single is Paradise, released on September 12th. The song has not been heard yet.

Of the unheard studio songs we have, four have been played live; they are Hurts Like Heaven, Charlie Brown, Us Against The World and Princess Of China, although the latter was only performed once and was not pro-shot. The other three can be found over YouTube, or on this blog right here.

The album will be released October 24th.

Coldplay Album Details To Be Released Tomorrow?

According to EMI Chile, the full details for Coldplay's fifth album will be released tomorrow. Whether this is true or not, we have yet to find out... but if it is true, this is exciting news!!

If it is true, I'll try and get an album summary page up by the end of tomorrow...

Potential Coldplay Album Release Date?

A French music website, fnac.com, has a pre-order available for a new Coldplay album, without a title, but with a release date of October 24th. This is a reasonable date, but it remains unconfirmed.

The album is expected to be finished by the time of the band's next gig on 22nd July, which would mean 3 months of preparing for release, which is enough. So we now have a potential date, but I wouldn't take it as given until there is an official announcement.

Have a look at the pre-order here.

New Coldplay Songs

Seven new songs have been debuted at recent Coldplay shows and on their new EP, Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall, over the past month, most of which are expected to appear on the band's upcoming fifth album.

Personally, I think six of these seven songs will end up on the band's upcoming fifth album, excluding Moving To Mars. I hope Charlie Brown will be the next single as it's just brilliant, and I suspect MX / Hurts Like Heaven will open the new album. I am estimating a 10th October release date, because MX is 1010 in Roman numerals and it seems to work with live dates; when they plan to finish the record, etc. But it's all speculation and wishful thinking. I will be very smug if I'm right though. :)

Anyway, here are the links. Three are studio versions, three are pro-shot live recordings, and one is live but not pro-shot.

STUDIO SONGS
Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall


Major Minus


Moving To Mars



PRO-SHOT LIVE SONGS
MX / Hurts Like Heaven


Us Against The World


Charlie Brown



LIVE (NOT PRO-SHOT) SONG
Princess Of China (partial)

New Coldplay Song To Be Released

A new Coldplay song, entitled "Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall", will be released this weekend in the UK, on Sunday 5th June. The song is the first single off their upcoming fifth album, which is currently untitled.

The band have been posting teasers for the lyrics throughout the past week, and the full set are now available at their official website.

Christmas Singles

The Killers, Coldplay and Hurts have all announced Christmas singles!
Here are the release dates:
30th November - The Killers - Boots
1st December - Coldplay - Christmas Lights
14th December - Hurts - All I Want For Christmas Is New Year's Day

Leftrightleftrightleft

That was a mouthful. Anyway, Coldplay's live album Leftrightleftrightleft, will be released on May 15th. Artwork:

And tracklist:

01. Glass of Water

02. 42

03. Clocks

04. Strawberry Swing

05. The Hardest Part / Postcards From Far Away

06. Viva La Vida

07. Death Will Never Conquer

08. Fix You

09. Death And All His Friends

The album will be available (FREE) from their website from the 15th, and be given away at their summer shows.

Best Of 2008 (#1)

And the winner is...

1. Coldplay - Viva La Vida

The long expected fourth album does not disappoint on any level. If they'd put their new Life In Technicolor II in at some point, this album would have shot over 10/10. (It's that good!)

Life In Technicolor opens the album, an instrumental which really works, seguing into Cemeteries Of London, a slow starting song that really gets going. Lost! is fantastic - the drumming is powerful and the vocals work perfectly.

42 is an interesting song - slow start, then a guitar part, then some singing, more guitar, and a closing slow part again. Abandoning a typical song layout works well here. Lovers In Japan, the first part of the fifth track, is fast-paced and brilliant. The second half of the fifth track, Reign Of Love, is a slow piano song. I don't understand why these two were put in one track - maybe piano similarities?

Anyway. Yes, the sixth track, is fantastic, and features Chris Martin singing a lot deeper than usual. The randomly hidden track, Chinese Sleep Chant, sounds unusually heavy for Coldplay, but is still insanely good.

Then comes the best song of all time. Viva La Vida. Well-deserving of its number ones all over the world, the violins and mixture of instruments combine to make this song absolutely outstanding. Violet Hill isn't as good, but still is the second best on the album. Its guitar solo really is un-Coldplay, but nevertheless works fantastically. Maybe the half-a-minute intro wasn't entirely necessary, but builds it up well.

Strawberry Swing is about blue skies and all that stuff. It's my least favourite, but it's still good.

Death And All His Friends concludes the album (not counting The Escapist, the hidden track) with a truly Coldplay-sounding song. I swear I've heard some of that guitar sound on an older Coldplay track. Oh well, it's still brilliant. The Escapist follows up straight after, and is just a version of Life In Technicolor, with the first thirty seconds of the opener repeated over and over, with some words.

Generally - amazing. If only they'd put a huge version of Life In Technicolor with The Escapist, Life In Technicolor and Life In Technicolor II at the end, because that would have been absolutely jaw-dropping.

SCORE: 10/10 (edited from 11/10 because that's nonsense :) )