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Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay

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iTunes Review

Coldplay's choice of U2 producer Brian Eno to oversee the majority of their fourth album, Vida la Vida, doesn’t alter their sound so much as refine it. Coldplay are a polite sounding group, eager with melody and attracted to smooth surfaces; the extra guitar shimmers and the elegantly programmed orchestrations are hardly a departure for them. Several tracks, including the title track and  “Lovers in Japan”, veer closely to U2 territory, adopting their marching lope, hijacking their percussive yet ambient guitars, and swallowing up singer Chris Martin in a blur of reverb, but then Coldplay has often resembled a modest version of the Irish supergroup in their ambient ambitions. Martin's social conscience can be heard underneath the murky rock and hypnotic drones. “Violet Hill” explores his own mixed feelings towards violence, trying to discern what is necessary versus what is excessive. The title track is either calling for the end of the world or celebrating the end of an empire. Martin’s worldview may be filled with unsolvable paradoxes, but his band builds a commanding presence as the musical authority that drives “Yes”, “Life in Technicolor”, and the gorgeous “Lost!” makes clear.

Customer Reviews

Used to rule the world? Well they still do!!

And so here we have the new Coldplay, presented with the deliberately less marketable title “Viva LaVida or Death And All His Friends”. By now the whole world will know the singles Violet Hill and Viva La Vida, the former a crunchy, weary rant with a guitar solo in the middle that just oozes a coolness never previously associated with Coldplay. In terms of giving a good impression of what was to come on the album, however, it proved to be very misleading, for, overall, the album is a mix of unusual sounds and beats, off-the-track guitar lines, very little piano and even less falsetto. It all adds up to be their most inaccessible, unpredictable album yet, but also, quite possibly, their most brilliant. Were it not for Coldplay’s established position worldwide and their huge fan base, this album would be a huge risk - it is deliberately inaccessible, with complex rhythms and structures which, for a lesser-known band, would alienate the public. Coldplay, however, have already done the work - promotion for this album goes right back to Yellow, boosted along the way by Clocks, The Scientist, Speed of Sound and Fix You. Their whole career has helped develop a formidable reputation, and one which ensures that, regardless of its content, any Coldplay album will be a huge commercial success. It is therefore almost in spite of this fact that Chris Martin et al. have made this album harder work for the listener, it is to rebel against this atmosphere of success that surrounds them. And the bad news, therefore, for them is that, although they gave it a good go, they ultimately failed: “Viva La Vida..” is a superb album which the public will not fail to love. Strings, the hallmark for every successful band, are here actually put to good use, the guitar lines are actually though-out, with far more subtlety than the stadium-slaying anthems of old. The drumming, so often static and uninspired, has finally been injected with life and artistic licence, the bass, previously merely solid, is now developed into meatier, more significant roles. This leads us to Martin, the front man, figurehead and enigma of the band. He seems to resent the reputation Coldplay have obtained, and sees X&Y as a sell-out, but his anxiety about the release of this album shows that success is still important to him. Maybe this time it is the critics, not the public, who he wants to win over. His performance here is full of variety. On the opener, the glorious Life In Technicolor, he stands back and lets the music do the talking; on Yes he sings in his lowest voice to date; on Chinese Sleep Chant, his vocals are faint and obscured by the pounding guitars above them. Coldplay, as a result, now seem to be a unit, not merely a backing band for Martin. One area here, however, where Coldplay are consistent with their past work is in the quality of the songs. Martin is an expert at melody and at crafting a tune from a simple idea, be it a lyric, a piano line or a guitar riff, and here he excels himself. Cemeteries of London is a joy, a dark, brooding beast of a song which builds to a formidable climax. The stunningly innocent Strawberry Swing is idyllic, and the African-esque guitar line cannot hide the fact that, above all, this is an outstandingly optimistic classic pop song. Lost!, driven by organs, is likewise just a great song. In both cases, what makes it a huge improvement on their previous work is the production. Instead of thinking how to make it as radio-friendly as possible, the production team here, including the much-publicised partnership with Brian Eno, works wonders in ensuring that these songs don’t just get lost in the sea of standard Coldplay tracks. Elsewhere is even greater disparity. Yes opens with an unusual refrain and beat, becoming a deep, brooding beast of a song helped by a great vocal by Martin. 42 doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be, whether it be a mournful reflection on death led by the piano, a frenzy of strings or a lively number about ghosts. This song in particular seems to be forced, as if Coldplay are straying unnaturally far from their comfort zone. They just about pull it off, but the most comfortable parts are the opening and closing sections of Martin and the piano. Viva La Vida is powerfully driven by sensational strings, which pump the song along. It is the most anthemic and accessible moment on the album, a stirring tale of a fallen king reflecting on his life. Martin has made much of the lyric in Lost! of “Just because I’m losing doesn’t mean I’m lost”, and how that sums up the album. If anything, the opposite is true. Coldplay appear to be lost, insecure and uncertain about their own credentials and credibility as a creative force; they are not, however, losing, as the financial rewards reaped from this album will in time testify. Perhaps this odd mix of sounds does represent a lost band wandering through the wilderness and chronicling these times. And it is no closer to being resolved at the end, as the outstanding Death And All His Friends morphs from a simple piano led ballad into a monstrous climax of desperate chanting. The power rings true, and contrasts with the hidden additional track The Escapist, a withdrawn reflection on the human psyche, and it is here that Coldplay leave us. Initial thoughts are those of intrigue, of puzzlement, and it takes a good few more listens to peel away the layers of the album and develop clearer opinions of it. A lost Coldplay are on a voyage of discovery, and long may it continue; for this album represents an ambitious, challenging variety of sounds and songs which are hugely entertaining whilst maintaining the tender song writing touch of before. Here’s hoping they don’t find themselves any time soon.

Martin moulds a Masterpiece?

Huge sound and a great follow up to what in my view was a dismal third album in the shape of X&Y. This has easily been the most hyped released of the year so far and surely by Coldplay's awesome standards there was a weight of expectation on their shoulders. The comparisons to U2 on this record seem to have crippled reviewers all around the country, however i found it to be almost wanting to hit Radiohead standards with some experiemental sounds shining through. Track wise: Life in Technicolor: 9/10 Cemeteries of London: 7/10 Lost!: 9/10 42: 10/10 Lovers In Japan 8/10 Yes: 7/10 Viva la Vida: 10/10 Violet Hill: 9/10 Strawberry Swing: 8/10 Death and All His Friends: 10/10 Lost?: 10/10 4 absolutely brilliant tracks worthy of 10/10 Viva La Vida and 42 are certain to become stadium anthems and be the place Coldplay look to develop their "dirtier" fifth attempt, featuring Kylie. On the strength of this one its going to be sat in my CD player till that arrives at my door.

Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends

Viva La Vida is Coldplay's fourth studio album and it is another great album. Viva La Vida was revealed having many hispanic influences which they did during their tour. They recorded many songs in churches and other areas in latin america and Spain. As many people realise by now it is a different sound from their previous albums. Parachutes was more of an acoustic album and their last two albums, A Rush Of Blood To The Head and X&Y, have mainy been piano based, with a few of their songs being on guitars. But the new album has a lot of new sounds, many a mix of piano and electirc guitar. And with the new sound came with alot of mixed reviews from fans. Personally i think they have come along way from their previous albums with a more mature sound. Violet Hill was the first single from the album with it being available for free from their website on the 29th April for one week, but the coldplay website crashed with the numberous of fans trying to get hold of it. And Viva La Vida, was eclusively available on itunes. The stand out tracks from the album are Viva La Vida, Violet Hill, Lost!, 42, Death and All His Friends and Cemeteries Of London. I think it is a brilliant album and anyone doubting weather or not to buy it should think again. Coldplay have prodcued an incedible album and although it is a new sound, it is still amazing. Top 6 1 - Viva La Vida 2 - Violet Hill 3 - 42 4 - Lost! 5 - Death and All His Friends 6 - Cemetries Of London Song Ratings Life in Technicolour - 9/10 Cemeteries Of London - 9/10 Lost! - 9/10 42 - 10/10 Lovers In Japan - 9/10 Yes - 8.5/10 Viva La Vida - 10/10 Violet Hill - 10/10 Strawberry Swing - 8/10 Death and All His Friends - 9/10 Lost? - 9/10

Biography

Formed: 1998 in London, England

Genre: Alternative

Years Active: '90s, '00s, '10s

After surfacing in 2000 with the breakthrough single "Yellow," Coldplay quickly became one of the biggest bands of the new millennium, honing a mix of introspective Brit-pop and anthemic rock that landed the British quartet a near-permanent residence on record charts worldwide. The group's emergence was perfectly timed; Radiohead had just released the overly cerebral Kid A, while Oasis had ditched two founding members and embraced psychedelic experimentation on Standing on the Shoulder of Giants....
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