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Coldplay: Viva La Vida or Death And All His Friends

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Capitol Music
Released: 2008.06.12
Time:
 45:53
Category: Pop/Rock
Producer(s): Markus Dravs, Brian Eno, Rick Simpson
Rating: ******.... (6/10)
Media type: CD
Web address: www.coldplay.com
Appears with:
Purchase date: 2008.06.15
Price in €: 15,07



 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] Life in Technicolor (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 2:29
[2] Cemeteries of London (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 3:21
[3] Lost! (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 3:55
[4] 42 (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 3:57
[5] Lovers in Japan/Reign of Love (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 6:51
[6] Yes (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 7:06
[7] Viva la Vida (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 4:01
[8] Violet Hill (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 3:42
[9] Strawberry Swing (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 4:09
[10] Death and All His Friends (G.Berryman/J.Buckland/W.Champion/Ch.Martin) - 6:18

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Guy Berryman - Bass Guitar, Photography, Artwork
Johnny Buckland - Guitars, Artwork
Will Champion - Drums, Artwork
Chris Martin - Vocals, Piano, Artwork

Davide Rossi - All Strings
Matt McGin - Supporting Palyer
Crispin Robinson - Supporting Palyer

Brian Eno - Producer, Sonic Environment
Jon Hopkins - Producer, Coloring, Add. Production
Markus Dravs - Producer, Mixing
Andy Rugg - Engineer, Recording Assistance
Dan Green - Engineer, Recording Assistance, Photography
Brian Thorn - Engineer, Recording Assistance
Olga Fitzroy - Engineer, Recording Assistance
François Chevallier - Engineer, Recording Assistance
Jan Petrov - Engineer, Recording Assistance
Jason Lader - Engineer, Recording Assistance
Michael Trepagnier - Engineer, Recording Assistance
Vanessa Parr - Engineer, Recording Assistance
Dominic Monks - Engineer, Recording Assistance
Michael Brauer - Mixing
Rik Simpson - Mixing
Andy Wallace - Mixing
John O'Mahoney - Mixing
Bob Ludwig - Mastering
Eugéne Delacroix - Cover Painting
Tappin Gofton - Art Direction, Design
Dave Holmes - Management
 

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s

2008 CD Capitol 16886
2008 LP Capitol 169651
2008 CD Parlophone 2121140
2008 CD Parlophone 2168880

Coldplay veröffentlichen ihr mittlerweile viertes Studio Album mit dem Titel Viva La Vida. Das Album ist Zeugnis für die künstlerische Entwicklung des Freundeskollektivs aus England und unterstreicht erneut den Status der Band, die seit ihrem Debüt im Jahr 2000 mehr als 35 Millionen Platten verkauft hat. Produziert von Brian Eno (U2/Roxy Music) und Markus Dravs (Arcade Fire), überzeugen die zehn neuen Songs neben aller hörbaren Experimentierfreude wie gehabt mit großen, lebensbejahenden Refrains. Himmelhoch jauchzend oder zu Tode betrübt - alles zwischen diesen beiden emotionalen Extremen verarbeiten Coldplay auf Viva La Vida. beeindruckend zu Musik und Texten, die einmal mehr die Ausnahmestellung dieser Band in der heutigen Musiklandschaft untermauern. Die Band klammert sich dabei nicht an erfolgserprobte Formeln, sondern weist mit diesem Album einmal mehr mutig in Richtung Zukunft. Und daher besteht auch kein Zweifel an der Intensität und dem Potential des Albums. Viva La Vida. wird es wie seine Vorgänger schaffen von Millionen Coldplay Fans entdeckt, erobert, erhört und geliebt zu werden. Die Erstauflage von Viva La Vida. erscheint in einem hochwertigen Digipack mit 12 seitigem Booklet.

Coldplay’s fourth studio album, Viva La Vida, Or Death And All His Friends, sees the band emerge from the success of 2005's X&Y with the same hunger that has gained them global success ever since 2000's Parachutes. Lead single "Violet Hill" contains trademark catchy piano hooks, along with a heavy guitar edge.



To say there has been a lot of anticipation for Coldplay’s fourth album, Viva La Vida, is an understatement. Having enlisted legendary leftfield producer Brian Eno, borrowed their album title from a painting by renowned Mexican artist Frida Kahlo and made tantalising remarks about sonic reinvention, the world has been curious (to say the least) to hear what the ‘new’ Coldplay might sound like. Viva La Vida definitely makes some departures from the band’s usual formula, which happens to be one of the most commercially successful rock-pop blueprints of recent years. The plangent chords, emotive melodies, stadium-rock rhythms and universal lyrical concerns remain, but Martin and co. have gone out on several limbs here, incorporating instrumental tracks ("Life In Technicolour"), using subtle North African and Latin elements ("Yes", "Strawberry Swing"), and overhauling previously strict verse-chorus-verse structures in favour of slightly more avant arrangements. The old Coldplay still shine through (see tracks like "Violet Hill" and the title song) but even their classic sound feels more muscular and confident. The band’s new flourishes, cosmetic and self-conscious as they may be, are enough to make Viva La Vida a welcome break from the old routine.
   
Danny McKenna - Amazon.co.uk



Für eine Band, die in ihrer Karriere schon so manchen Verkaufsrekord eingestellt hat, gingen Coldplay die Aufnahmen für ihr viertes Studioalbum recht entspannt an. Aus der im Vorfeld von verschiedenen Seiten öfters thematisierten großen musikalischen Richtungsänderung ist allerdings nichts geworden. Unter der Regie von Brian Eno (U2, Roxy Music) und Markus Dravs (Arcade Fire) spielte die Band zehn Songs ein, mit denen sie nahtlos an das immens erfolgreiche Vorgängerwerk "X&Y" anknüpft, wenngleich man den vier Musikern durchaus eine neue Offenheit im Umgang mit Sounds attestieren darf. Coldplay haben sich mit Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends sehr wohl weiterentwickelt, nur nicht so drastisch oder radikal wie zuvor angekündigt. An der überragenden Qualität von Songs wie dem Opener "Life In Technicolor" oder dem klanglich perfekt ausdifferenzierten "Cemeteries Of London" ändert das nicht das Geringste. Angetrieben von den beiden Produzenten liefern Coldplay eine bis ins letzte Detail hochkonzentrierte Arbeit ab, deren musikalischer Reichtum 2008 nicht von vielen Bands erreicht werden dürfte. Die Platte, die ein Ausschnitt aus Eugene Delacroix Revolutionsgemälde "Die Freiheit führt das Volk" ziert, funktioniert als reifes Gesamtwerk vom ersten bis zum letzten Song perfekt. Coldplay gelingt es mit einzelnen Stücken wie "42" oder dem Titelsong "Viva La Vida" immer wieder sehr gut, die Spannung auf ein neues Level zu treiben, ohne dass die Stücke dabei an Eingängigkeit verlieren. Auch das für die Band typische Pathos spielt noch immer eine wichtige Rolle, wenngleich sich daran niemand ernsthaft stören dürfte. Coldplay haben sich mit Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends nicht neu erfunden, aber sie sind auf einem guten Weg, auch in den nächsten Jahren musikalisch nicht zu stagnieren.

Norbert Schiegl - Amazon.de



When Coldplay sampled Kraftwerk on their third album, X&Y, it was a signifier for the British band, telegraphing their classicist good taste while signaling how they prefer the eternally hip to the truly adventurous; it was stylish window dressing for soft arena rock. Hiring Brian Eno to produce the bulk of their fourth album, Viva la Vida, is another matter entirely. Eno pushes them, not necessarily to experiment but rather to focus and refine, to not leave their comfort zone but to find some tremulous discomfort within it. In his hands, this most staid of bands looks to shake things up, albeit politely, but such good manners are so inherent to Coldplay's DNA that they remain courteous even when they experiment. With his big-budget production, Eno has a knack for amplifying an artist's personality, as he allows bands to be just as risky as they want to be -- which is quite a lot in the case of U2 and James and even Paul Simon, but not quite so much with Coldplay. And yet this gentle encouragement -- he's almost a kindly uncle giving his nephews permission to rummage through his study -- pays great dividends for Coldplay, as it winds up changing the specifics without altering the core. They wind up with the same self-styled grandiosity; they've just found a more interesting way to get to the same point. Gone are Chris Martin's piano recitals and gone are the washes of meticulously majestic guitar, replaced by orchestrations of sound, sometimes literally consisting of strings but usually a tapestry of synthesizers, percussion, organs, electronics, and guitars that avoid playing riffs. Gone too are simpering schoolboy ballads like "Fix You," and along with them the soaring melodies designed to fill arenas. In fact, there are no insistent hooks to be found anywhere on Viva la Vida, and there are no clear singles in this collection of insinuatingly ingratiating songs. This reliance on elliptical melodies isn't off-putting -- alienation is alien to Coldplay -- and this is where Eno's guidance pays off, as he helps sculpt Viva la Vida to work as a musical whole, where there are long stretches of instrumentals and where only "Strawberry Swing," with its light, gently infectious melody and insistent rhythmic pulse, breaks from the album's appealingly meditative murk. Whatever iciness there is to the sound of Viva la Vida is warmed by Martin's voice, but the music is by design an heir to the earnest British art rock of '80s Peter Gabriel and U2 -- arty enough to convey sober intelligence without seeming snobby, the kind of album that deserves to take its title from Frida Kahlo and album art from Eugene Delacroix. That Delacroix painting depicts the French Revolution, so it does fit that Martin tones down his relentless self-obsession -- the songs aren't heavy on lyrics and some are shockingly written in character -- which is a development as welcome as the expanded sonic palette. Martin's refined writing topics may be outpaced by the band's guided adventure, but they're both indicative that Coldplay are desperate to not just strive for the title of great band -- a title they seem to believe that they're to the manor born -- but to actually burrow into the explorative work of creating music. And so the greatest thing Coldplay may have learned from Eno is his work ethic, as they demonstrate a focused concentration throughout this tight album -- it's only 47 minutes yet covers more ground than X&Y and arguably A Rush of Blood to the Head -- that turns Viva la Vida into something quietly satisfying.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine - All Music Guide



On 2008's VIVA LA VIDA OR DEATH AND ALL HIS FRIENDS, Coldplay follows up X&Y's accessible anthems by tweaking its signature Britpop sound with the aid of renowned producer Brian Eno, celebrated not only for his own innovative ambient albums, but also for his behind-the-boards work with U2. Eno's contributions don't result in a ZOOROPA-like foray into dance-pop, however--VIVA LA VIDA sticks with Coldplay's knack for mid-tempo majesty, but expands these tracks with studio bells and whistles that pull the group out of its stadium-ready comfort zone. Though the pulsing instrumental opener, "Life in Technicolor," might make listeners think that they're accidentally playing the latest M83 album, VIVA asserts itself as a Coldplay outing with "Cemeteries of London," a dreamy tune that finds Martin singing in a comfortable middle register. Still, the group's quest for a different sound is exemplified by the three distinctly different parts of "42," which range from piano ballad to post-rock workout, while "Violet Hill" boasts uncharacteristically amped-up guitars and crashing percussion. VIVA LA VIDA isn't Coldplay's most consistent offering, but it's still more unpredictable than past outings, and surprisingly intriguing.

CDUniverse.com



"[A]n emphatic success -- radical in its own measured way but easy to embrace."

Q (Magazine) (p.95) - 4 stars out of 5



"Coldplay have stretched their limits, reaching to capture the zeitgeist, and in doing so have made the album the universe has been waiting for....We get Coldplay with the windows thrown open. Album of the year? Most probably."

Clash (magazine) (p.122)



Coldplay's fourth release has been billed as their experimental record, as well as their political record. And it is both, relatively speaking. Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends opens with an anthemic riff played not on guitar but on a Persian santur — a hammered dulcimer common to the traditional music of Iraq and Iran. The album's lead single, "Violet Hill," describes a scene in which "priests clutched onto Bibles/Hollowed out to fit their rifles." Half the album's tracks float images of war, while others evoke God, religion or death.

Fun, right? It is, weirdly enough. Viva la Vida is Coldplay's effort to raise the creative bar in the wake of both huge commercial success and some not-insubstantial critical drubbing. But befitting their brand, the record isn't that much of a departure: It's still about stadium-scale melodies and singalong choruses. And while the experimentation makes this their most musically interesting album to date, its political messages are too vague to be heard amid its outsize hooks.

Coldplay have toured the world, and their frontman, Chris Martin, has done outreach in Africa with Oxfam International. So it makes sense that, from the title to the tunes, the set reflects some of the diversity of the band's global fan base, which made 2005's X&Y a Number One record in countries as far-flung as Lebanon, Chile, Malaysia and Thailand, as well as in the U.S. and the U.K. "Cemeteries of London," which evokes an English country ballad, begins the journey in Coldplay's own back yard, with images of a river "where Victorian ghosts pray." The plinking melody of "Strawberry Swing" has the breezy North Pacific lilt of Japanese music. "Yes" finds Martin dropping his voice to an uncharacteristically low octave amid bracing bursts of Arabic-flavored violin in a song addressing that universal pop-song problem: lust. Producer Brian Eno also helped bring the world-music vibe. (While Eno gets top billing, Coldplay enlisted other producers, including Markus Dravs, whose work with Björk and Arcade Fire also merges the odd and the anthemic.) Of course, Eno's work on The Unforgettable Fire and The Joshua Tree, by U2 — a band Coldplay revere and aspire to be — is probably more relevant here.

There are many U2 echoes on Viva la Vida, most notably Jonny Buckland's guitar tone, which is more aggressive than ever. The album's most sublime pop moment is probably "Lost!" a song about holding on against the odds that has the breathtaking loft of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." It builds on a simple church-organ riff, a kick drum and some hand claps to a rhythmically soaring, Edge-like guitar solo. Later, the slashing chords on "Chinese Sleep Chant" are so fierce that Martin's hollered vocals are overwhelmed, the melodic outline of his phrases barely discernible before searing psychedelic riffs erase him entirely.

Which isn't all that difficult to do. One of Martin's signature qualities is his anti-rock-star persona — a big part of what allows so many fans to project themselves into his boots when he's singing about pain or yearning or hope. It's also what makes him a surprisingly excellent hook singer, as he's proved playing foil to artists like Jay-Z ("Beach Chair") and Kanye West ("Homecoming"). No way is Martin going to challenge these egos. He has an admirably Zenlike ability to get out of the way of even his own songs.

But there's something troubling about his lack of clear political messages. In "Violet Hill," he declares, "I don't want to be a soldier/Who the captain of some sinking ship/Would stow, far below" — adding later, "Bury me in armor." In "Lovers in Japan," he states, "Soldiers you've got to soldier on/Sometimes even the right is wrong." Are these peace anthems or encouragements to valiant warriors? Can they be both? Similarly, the title track seems to be about the end of an empire. But its rousing chorus — "I hear Jerusalem bells a-ringing/Roman cavalry choirs are singing" — feels like a rallying cry for a Christian empire. Where's an Arabic violin break when you need one?

Coldplay's desire to unite fans around the world with an entertainment they can all relate to is the band's strength, and a worthy goal. But on Viva la Vida, a record that wants to make strong statements, it's also a weakness. Sometimes, to say what needs to be said, you need to risk pissing people off.

WILL HERMES - Jun 26, 2008
Rolling Stone
 

 L y r i c s


Life in Technicolor

"Life in Technicolor": Acoustic-guitar driven and jangly, this is one of the few tracks that seems built from the Coldplay template of songs like "Don't Panic," only a bit more, well, panicked: "Baby it's a violent world," Martin sings.


Cemeteries Of London

At night they would go walking
'till the breaking of the day
The morning is for sleeping
Through the dark streets they go searching
To see god in their own way
Save the night time for your weeping
Your weeping

Singing la la la la la la ehh
And the night over London lay

So we rode down to the river
where the Victorian ghosts pray
For the curses to be broken
We go underneath the arches
Where the witches are and they say
There are ghost towns in the ocean
The ocean

Singing la la la la la la ehh
And the night over London hey

God is in the houses and god is in my head
And all the cemeteries in London
I see god come in my garden but I don’t know what he said
For my heart it wasn’t open
Not open

Singing la la la la la la ehh
And the night over London hey

Singing la la la la la la eh
There’s no light over London today


Lost!

Just because I'm losing
Doesn't mean I'm lost
Doesn't mean I'll stop
Doesn't mean I will cross

Just because I'm hurting
Doesn't mean I'm hurt
Doesn't mean I didn't get what I deserve
No better and no worse

I just got lost
Every river that I've tried to cross
And every door I ever tried was locked
Ooh-Oh, And I'm just waiting till the shine wears off...

You might be a big fish
In a little pond
Doesn't mean you've won
'Cause along may come
A bigger one
And you'll be lost

Every river that you tried to cross
Every gun you ever held went off
Ooh-Oh, And I'm just waiting till the firing starts
Ooh-Oh, And I'm just waiting till the shine wears off
Ooh-Oh, And I'm just waiting till the shine wears off
Ooh-Oh, And I'm just waiting till the shine wears off…


42

Those who are dead are not dead
They're just living in my head
And since I fell for that spell
I am living there as well

Time is so short and I'm sure
there must be something more

Those who are dead are not dead
They're just living in my head
And since I fell for that spell
I am living there as well

Time is short and I'm sure
There must be something more

You thought you might be a ghost
You thought you might be a ghost
You didn't get to heaven, but you made it close
You didn't get to heaven but you made it close

You thought you might be a ghost
You thought you might be a ghost
You didn't get to heaven, but you made it close
You didn't get to heaven, but you ohh ohhh.

Those who are dead are not dead
They're just living in my head, ooh.


Lovers in Japan/Reign of Life

Lovers, keep on the road your on
Runners, until the race is run
Soldiers, you've got to soldier on
Sometimes even right is wrong

They are turning my head out
To see what I'm all about
Keeping my head down
To see what it feels like now
But I have no doubt
One day, were gonna get out

Tonight, maybe we're gonna run
Dreaming of the Osaka sun
Ohh, ohh, ohhh
Dreaming of when the morning comes

They are turning my head out
To see what I'm all about
Keeping my head down
To see what it feels like now
But I have no doubt
One day, the sun will come out

Reign of love
I can't let go
To the sea I offer
This heavy load

Locusts will
Lift me up
I'm just a prisoner
In a Reign of Love

Locusts will
Let us stop
I wish I'd spoken
To the Reign of Love

Reign of Love
By the church, we're waiting
Reign of love
My knees go praying

How I wish
I'd spoken up
Or we'd be carried
In the Reign of Love


Yes!

When it started we had high hopes;
now my back's on the line, my back's on the ropes...
When it started we were alright,
but night makes a fool of us in daylight.

There we were dying of frustration,
saying, "Lord lead me not into temptation."
But it's not easy when she turns you on...
since they've gone.

If you'd only, if you'd only say yes.
Whether you will is anybody's guess.
God only, God knows I'm trying my best,
but I'm just so tired of this loneliness.

So up they picked me by the big toe;
I was held from the rooftop, then they let it go.
If there's any screaming let the windows down,
as I crawl to the ground.

If you'd only, if you'd only say yes.
Whether you will is anybody's guess.
God only, God knows she won't let me rest,
but I'm just so tired of this loneliness.
I've become so tired of this loneliness.


Viva La Vida

I used to rule the world
Seas would rise when I gave the word
Now in the morning I sweep alone
Sweep the streets I used to own
I used to roll the dice
Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes
Listen as the crowd would sing:
"Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!"
One minute I held the key
Next the walls were closed on me
And I discovered that my castles stand
Upon pillars of salt, pillars of sand

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can not explain
Once you go there was never, never an honest word
That was when I ruled the world

It was the wicked and wild wind
Blew down the doors to let me in.
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
People could not believe what I'd become
Revolutionaries Wait
For my head on a silver plate
Just a puppet on a lonely string
Oh who would ever want to be king?

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can not explain
I know Saint Peter will call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world

(Ooooh Oooh Oooh)

Hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can't explain
I know Saint Peter will call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world


Violet Hill

Was a long and dark December
From the rooftops i remember
There was snow
White snow

Clearly i remember
From the windows they were watching
While we froze down below

When the future's architectured
By a carnival of idiots on show
You'd better lie low

If you love me
Won't you let me know?

Was a long and dark December
When the banks became cathedrals
And the fog
Became God

Priests clutched onto bibles
And went out to fit their rifles
And the cross was held aloft

Bury me in honor
When i'm dead and hit the ground
A love back home unfolds

If you love me
Won't you let me know?

I don't want to be a soldier
With the captain of some sinking ship
With snow, far below

So if you love me
Why'd you let me go?

I took my love down to violet hill
There we sat in snow
All that time she was silent still

So if you love me
Won't you let me know?

If you love me,
Won't you let me know?


Strawberry Swing

They were sitting, they were sitting in the strawberry swing
And every moment was so precious

They were sitting, they were talking in the strawberry swing
And everybody was for fighting
Wouldn't wanna waste a thing

Cold, cold water bring me 'round
Now my feet won't touch the ground
Cold, cold water
What you say?
It's such, it's such a perfect day
It's such a perfect day

I remember we were walking up to strawberry swing
I can't wait 'til the morning
Wouldn't wanna change a thing

People moving all the time
Inside a perfect straight line
Don't you wanna curve away
It's such it's such a perfect day
It's such a perfect day

Ahhhh....

Now the sky could be blue
I don't mind
Without you its a waste of time
...could be blue I don't mind, without you it's a waste of time
The sky could be blue, could be gray without you I just slide away
The sky could be blue, I don't mind, without you it's a waste of time


Death and All His Friends

All winter we got carried
Away over on the rooftops
let's get married
All summer we just hurried
so come over, just be patient, and don't worry
So come over, just be patient, and don't worry

So come over, just be patient, and don't worry

And don't worry

No I don't wanna battle from beginning to end
I don't want a cycle of recycled revenge
I don't wanna follow Death and all his friends

No I don't wanna battle from beginning to end
I don't want a cycle of recycled revenge
I don't wanna follow Death and all of his friends

And in the end
We lie awake, and we dream of making our escape

And in the end
We lie awake, and we dream of making our escape
 

 M P 3   S a m p l e s


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