Violet Hill Reviews

[RunForTheHills]

Thats a promising review. I'm glad that they're regaining at least some of their respect.

[ApproximatelyInfinite]

ooh, thanks everyone! i have to go back and read all of these now.

 

that last one says something about a north american tour this summer rather than the fall...eek. PLEASE don't play NYC/CT till mid august, PLEASE! :P

[busybeeburns]

What Happened Coldplay?

 

So many of you have now heard the first single off of Coldplay's new record Viva Lavida. The did a great thing by having you submit your email then sending you a free download link. Unfortunately for me no link ever came to any of my three email addresses (configured to accept this mystery email).

 

My take is that Coldplay just doesn't like pasta...or maybe technology doesn't like pasta (that's more like it). So thanks to Audio Therapy I was able to obtain the track, though thoroughly let down by the CP website. That being said, the new track, Violet Hill, is pretty good and pleasantly different than most Coldplay tracks. It's got the standard sound, but with a Phil Collins sheen on it (don't knock Phil Collins). They really changed up their standard rhythms on this and went for a new direction with much success in my opinion. Check it for yourself.

 

http://pastaprima.blogspot.com/2008/05/what-happened-coldplay.html

[busybeeburns]

The new Coldplay single: Is it any good?

 

 

Today, after a wait of nearly three years, we've finally been treated to a new Coldplay tune. 'Violet Hill', the lead single from the band's upcoming Viva La Vida LP, has been available for download from Coldplay's official site since 12.15pm today. The price? A very generous 0p - thanks Chris!

 

Our verdict: it's a definite hit that fits snugly alongside the best material from their career. Built around Will Champion's tribal drum thumps and a swirling wall of guitars, producer Brian Eno has helped turn the band into the U2-style stadium conquerors that X&Y never quite managed. The usual piano tinkling, falsetto vocals and funky Jonny Buckland guitar solo are all present and correct, but, intriguingly, Chris Martin's lyrics seem to be more political than ever before. What could he mean by the future being "architectured" by a "carnival of idiots on show"? Hmm...

 

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/a94917/the-new-coldplay-single-is-it-any-good.html

[busybeeburns]

Coldplay - Violet Hill - Single Review

 

 

Well, they promised us different, and I can confirm that Coldplay have delivered something different. But is it good? Hell yeah.

 

Even speaking as a determined Coldplay hater, Violet Hill sounds dark, foreboding, and heavy. Less of the piano-sturbation, and Chris Martin retires the falsetto in favour of a more earthy vocal tone.

 

Violet Hill is a song rich in texture: fuzzed-up power chords, wailing string bends in the background, and some very atmospheric drumming from Will Champion. This most definitely rocks.

 

If this is a sampler of Coldplay’s new direction, then it’s certainly enough to persuade me to listen to the album. Unlike other Coldplay songs I’ve heard, this has balls.

 

Gentlemen…well played. Thumbs up.

 

http://music.unrealitytv.co.uk/coldplay-violet-hill-single-review/

[Stefan8]

Nice :)

Isn't there a pitchfork review, I wonder what they'll say? :P

[flyin_higher]

Overall mostly positive reviews so it seems. Nice work guys. Can't wait to hear the rest of Viva la Vida that's for sure :)

[ricardo]

my personal:

it's great and I love it

[polkahard]

Here's what Pitchfork had. It's not so much a review as an overview of the track. And while I wouldn't call it overwhelmingly positive, it shows a surprising lack of negativity nonetheless.

 

Coldplay posted the first single from fourth album Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends on their website for free download earlier today. After an embarrassing number of refreshes (for me, anyway; by now you'll probably have better luck), "Violet Hill" fades in slowly, with more than 30 seconds of gently swelling ambience before Chris Martin's voice comes in over solitary piano. "It was a long and dark December," he begins, with all the ominous portent of that cover art, or at least a Counting Crows song. The guitars that join next are more feverish and distorted than we expect from Coldplay, softened a bit by clean acoustic strums, while the drums have the bombast of the third Oasis LP. Martin rises to his familiar falsetto on the chorus, asking an age-old question: "If you love me, won't ya let me know?" At the sparse outro, it all fades back to piano and Martin's voice again, still wondering about love, if not the revolution. Liberty without her shirt on this isn't, but "Violet Hill" still represents a slight departure for the quietly grandiose English rockers.

 

Maybe Pitchfork will start to like Coldplay? Who knows??

[RunForTheHills]

Yeah, this could be a turning point for that site. I get the feeling that they really wanted to say something clever about the song, but they couldn't really find anything. I would love to see them admit that they liked the new album more than they expected when it comes to their review of it. I also want to see a score of over 50% this time :dozey:

[Abigail]

I agree, this is completely refreshing for an avid coldplay fan to hear. I am so excited to hear the rest. I have listened to it more than 75 times and I'm still not sick of it! The constant bang that Johnny plays on the guitar and how in tune to the song Chris's vocals are make me listen to it every second. The song is unique yet expected of Coldplay.

[CRYSTAL]

i listened it so many times.

 

i must admit that there are these people who are really making the Coldplay and fans even though they are better to look sick.

 

but i never listened any other artists so much as Coldplay i do,

and even though i listen any other i'll never like them or say that they all

never impress me much as Coldplay that's all.

[busybeeburns]

New Coldplay Single Available

 

 

COLDPLAY - "VIOLET HILL"

 

Whoa...are those distortion pedals and heavy beats I hear??! Coldplay's new single, "Violet Hill" is the first off of the upcoming 4th record 'Viva La Vida', which arrives on 17th June. My instant reaction is that for the first time, Coldplay is playing with a good bit of gumption.

Let's recap quickly: 'Parachutes' was a fine record, and played an integral role in the public's acceptance of the more delicate side of rock, and (thankfully) helped usher out the age of the Limp Bizkits of the world.

'A Rush Of Blood To The Head' was another batch of fine songs along those same lines, but by 2005's 'X&Y', the whole thing had gotten tired and boring.

 

Now we have this new tune. The beats have some meat to them, and the voice of Chris Martin is well served with the processing that is applied to it (Because let's face it, the guy's voice is nice, but has practically no range. The vocal effects here beef it up well).

 

To my ears, this song immediately harkens back to the mid-90's Britpop era of classic Oasis, or the beat-driven sound of The Charlatans during the middle of that band's career. These are groups that the members of Coldplay surely grew up listening to, and whose sounds they are now seemingly incorporating.

 

Also, this new Coldplay record was produced by the legendary Brian Eno, so that says a lot. Eno is best known for his time in Roxy Music and as the father of ambient music, but in more recent years as a top-notch producer. Trust me, you HAVE heard his production work, whether on 'Remain In Light' by Talking Heads, or on the David Bowie albums 'Low', 'Heroes', and 'Lodger', or most certainly on U2's 'The Joshua Tree'.

 

http://weblogs.cltv.com/entertainment/tv/metromix/2008/05/new_coldplay_single_available.html

[olipunker]

The first time I heard the song I was quite sceptical but now I love it!!!

 

I posted a poll on my website ActuRock http://acturock.affinitiz.com

 

It is in French but the question is: Do u like Violet Hill?

 

Here is the link:

 

http://affinitiz.com/space/acturock/content/nouveau-single-de-coldplay_78713AA1-6C90-4F00-B625-38E5D8E006D6

[ApproximatelyInfinite]

here's what rolling stone had to say in the newest issue (i hope no one's posted it yet, but i don't have the time to check...):

 

MUST HAVE--Coldplay, "Violet Hill"

Sad-sack Superstars get Angry and Crank Up the Rock

 

By all accounts, Chris Martin is a happily married man with two kids and an enormously successful career--so why does he sound so angry? On the first single from Coldplay's forthcoming album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, Martin broods over a lost lover with a snarling acidity that makes him sound more human than ever--miles away from the dreamy romantic he was on soaring ballads like "Speed of Sound." "If you love me, why'd you let me go?" he sings in deep, longing tones, and it sounds like desperation. Throughout, Jonny Buckland rips jagged, bluesy riffs that match Martin's mood while drummer Will Champion and bassist Guy Berryman mantain a stalking beat. Coldplay have never been afraid to get gloomy, but for the first time in their career, they've turned bitterness into primal rock & roll.

 

 

 

it sounds like they like it! :dance:

however, it being RS, i have to say i'm a bit surprised that they didn't explore the potential political implications...hmm.

[busybeeburns]

Coldplay's hot return with Violet Hill

 

ROCK

Violet Hill

Coldplay

EMI

****

 

Any Coldplay fans champing at the bit for some new music from them might find the first 40 seconds of their single Violet Hill a little frustrating, since it consists of nothing more than an ambient synth drone.

 

Once the piano chords and Chris Martin's voice kick in, however, there's little doubt about who is performing.

 

Taken from the upcoming album Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends, Violet Hill continues the English quartet's penchant for grand piano ballads, so prevalent on their last outing X&Y.

 

There are some subtle developments, however.

 

Martin's voice, still way out front and prone to that slip into falsetto, is slightly less fragile than before, while guitarist Jonny Buckland experiments with sounds that are more rock bluster than his customary Edge-like atmospherics.

 

The war-torn Violet Hill in question is likely to be the one in Hong Kong during World War II (Coldplay played HK in 2006) and tells the story of a soldier's dread of going into battle.

 

Whatever the influence, the sentiment of the song sits well with the band's familiar dynamic here, which suggests Coldplay have gone largely with an “if it ain't broke” philosophy for the new album, released on June 14.

 

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23653565-5013575,00.html

[busybeeburns]

Coldplay Single Downloaded By 2m, Enjoyed By Far Fewer

 

 

Hey everyone, Coldplay are back! Finally, drearily self-important, emotionally hollow stadium rock for people who don’t like music has a voice again!

 

To mark their return, Coldplay recently decided to release their new single Violet Hill as a free download. And apparently Violet Hill has now been downloaded by two million people eager to hear Coldplay’s Spanish-influenced, Brian Eno-helmed new direction.

 

Sadly there aren’t any figures for how many people only listened to Violet Hill once, rolled their eyes because it’s exactly the same as every other Coldplay song ever written and instantly deleted it from their iTunes library. We’re guessing it’s just a shade off two million.

 

The fastest way to get people excited by anything is to offer them something for free. People love free stuff. We’ve literally seen people arguing over a bag of horseshit in the past because it was free. And if they love horseshit they’ll go crazy for new music by Coldplay.

 

Now don’t get the wrong idea. We’re not comparing Coldplay to horseshit. It’s an unfair comparison to make because, well, everyone loves horseshit, don’t they? Anyway, we’re straying dangerously away from the point here, and that’s that last week Coldplay released their new single as a free download. And also that horseshit is better than Coldplay.

 

Violet Hill was the first taster from Coldplay’s new album Viva La Vida, and last Tuesday the band let the world download it for free. It was a smart move - a quick and easy way to remind people of their return, help diffuse the pressure of following up an album that was number one around the world and allow them to exorbitantly overcharge fans for concert tickets in future because it gave them that one song for free once, remember?

 

And, according to Coldplay, Violet Hill has been downloaded two million times since last Tuesday, which is apparently enough to outsell the entire top 40 four times over. Just imagine how many people would have downloaded it if it was actually good. The Telegraph reports:

 

In the first 12 hours, it was downloaded by 300,000 people, a figure which doubled overnight as other countries logged on to coldplay.com… Gennaro Castaldo, of HMV, said: “Coldplay will not have made a huge loss by giving away their first single because they are very much a group that connects with their fans via their album. The industry will be looking very carefully at how the album sells following their decision to allow their fans to downlaod the first single for free.”

 

Plus, don’t forget that giving away your first single for free means that you won’t look a clown when you’re inevitably beaten to number one by The Crazy Frog again.

 

Anyway, two million downloads in a week is a huge amount, but don’t be fooled by this whole ‘enough to outsell the top 40′ nonsense, because that’d only really work if the download was limited to people who live in the UK. The two million figure is worldwide, and that’s still good - but it means Violet Hill is not quite as popular as My Humps. And people paid for that. And it was My Humps.

 

Also, because it was free, you can’t expect everyone who downloaded Violet Hill to go and buy the new Coldplay album. In fact, if you start with two million and minus the number of people who just downloaded Violet Hill because it was free, then minus the number of critics who downloaded it out of professional obligation, then minus the people who downloaded it because they were curious to see if Coldplay had actually managed to make a good record and instantly deleted it because they obviously hadn’t, and what are you left with?

 

Chris Martin’s Mum. Good work, Mrs Martin! Keep making us proud!

 

http://www.hecklerspray.com/coldplay-single-downloaded-by-2m-enjoyed-by-far-fewer/200814035.php

[bart]

I am unsure if this one has been posted yet..

I got this from Digital Spy

 

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/a95513/coldplay-violet-hill.html

 

Coldplay's decision to let the world have their new single for free seems like quite a canny business move. Since its first spin on the Jo Whiley show last week, two million people have decided to download the track, which, to put things into context, is four times more than the combined sales of last week's top 40. While the band haven't made a penny from it yet, they're sure to be quids in when their Viva La Vida LP is released in June.

 

The track has probably captured the collective imagination because it finds the band finally living up to their billing as a stadium-conquering outfit. 'Violet Hill' is far more intelligent and measured than anything from the group's last album, X&Y, which sounded too desperate to be a U2 record to be truly enjoyable. While Chris Martin does slip in a regulation falsetto refrain ("If you love me, why did you let me go?"), the gloominess of the rest of the lyrics mixed with some rumbling drums and muscular guitar chords from Jonny Buckland shows the band aren't afraid to test new waters on album number four. The result is a track that's good enough to justify its status as musical event.

 

 

(After note.. I have just seen your posting from DS Ian but this review is the offical one ! )

[maricircus]

here's what rolling stone had to say in the newest issue (i hope no one's posted it yet, but i don't have the time to check...):

 

MUST HAVE--Coldplay, "Violet Hill"

Sad-sack Superstars get Angry and Crank Up the Rock

 

By all accounts, Chris Martin is a happily married man with two kids and an enormously successful career--so why does he sound so angry? On the first single from Coldplay's forthcoming album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, Martin broods over a lost lover with a snarling acidity that makes him sound more human than ever--miles away from the dreamy romantic he was on soaring ballads like "Speed of Sound." "If you love me, why'd you let me go?" he sings in deep, longing tones, and it sounds like desperation. Throughout, Jonny Buckland rips jagged, bluesy riffs that match Martin's mood while drummer Will Champion and bassist Guy Berryman mantain a stalking beat. Coldplay have never been afraid to get gloomy, but for the first time in their career, they've turned bitterness into primal rock & roll.

 

 

 

it sounds like they like it! :dance:

however, it being RS, i have to say i'm a bit surprised that they didn't explore the potential political implications...hmm.

 

 

do you know how many stars they gave it? (usually when they review singles, they rate them).

[busybeeburns]

Quelle Surprise - The New Coldplay Stuff Is Quite Good!

 

 

When Defamer Australia heard that Coldplay were giving away the first single from their new album away for nada, we were quick to assume it'd probably be rather rubbish. After all, their last album was coma-inducing (just ask Toni Collette), and whoever once pulled Chris Martin aside and informed him his falsetto was awesome and he should overuse it to a nauseating degree ought to be shot.

 

But guess what? Violet Hill is actually... dare I say it... surprisingly good! It took a couple of listens before I was convinced, and the bit where he sings "Clearly I remember..." made me immediately think of the lyric from Pearl Jam's Jeremy ("... picking on the boy") - something I blame on a recent car trip with my mother where we listened to Triple M for longer than I care to share right now - but eventually it grabbed me, especially the rather haunting refrain of "If you loved me, why'd you let me gooooo...".

 

Consider their last album's kick off single was Speed Of Sound, and you'll understand why this is a welcome return to some kind of form.

 

Hear it for yourself over at the band's MySpazz, if you haven't already been hit over the head with it.

 

But much,much better than Violet Hill is another track which is floating around from the new record, and it's called Viva La Vida.

 

I was hoping some wag on YouTube would have made a nice homemade clip for it already, but EMI has been pulling down tributes like Malcolm Fraser pulls down pants (erm, so they've done it at least once, as far as I can tell), so you'll have to make do with this gents' rendition of it.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QO4u1eGs4Qk

 

Or maybe you'd prefer a cover group's efforts - they're known as the Coldplayers, for god's sake, so you know they're "enthusiastic" about the whole thing.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmBRBAuMmoU

 

And there you have it. Coldplay, you've shocked me. I am pleasantly impressed and happy to admit it publicly - c'mon, no one likes a coolsie dickhead who is too proud to admit they like something which might be unfashionable in the eyes of some, right? Right?

 

Right.

 

http://www.defamer.com.au/2008/05/quelle_surprise_the_new_coldplay_stuff_is_quite_good.html

[Tonsu]

Thanks to everyone for posting the reviews, though it's really disheartening to read some terrible misconceptions and rotten old cliches trotted out time and time again.

 

Some interesting and valid points in some of the reviews though. And reading them all just now just makes me want to go back and listen to the song again, so I will!

 

My take on the song? It perplexed me at first, then I thought it was OK but far too short. After many more listens it very slowly and subtly caught up with me, to the point where I absolutely love it, and am just so excited to hear it live later this year. It's still too short, but it absolutely rocks.

 

Right, off for another happy listen :)

[ApproximatelyInfinite]

blurb about it in the latest rolling stone:

 

COLDPLAY: "Violet Hill"

For a few bars, the first single from CP's fourth album seems like it might be yet another piano ballad about space and stars and stuff. But it's actually a (relatively) hard-rocking attack on Fox News's America. Take that, Cavuto!