November 22, 200817 yr Chris Martin has given himself a deadline. Despite selling millions of albums, packing stadiums the world over and winning countless awards, Martin is concerned about his legacy. At 31, the Coldplay frontman fears that he may be nearing his peak as a musician and a songwriter. "We feel we have to do a lot for 2010," Martin told Insider with a tone of urgency, almost as if he had to jump off the phone and get back to the studio to work on new songs. We feel bands need to fill their first 10 years, so we have lots to do before the clock strikes midnight on December 31, 2009. I know it's kind of stupid, but that's kind of our deadline. We have to do something good by then." It's astounding to hear Martin speak with such little self-assurance. He's one of the world's most recognisable singers, and is married to Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow. Coldplay's fourth album, Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends, was released in June. This month, it was named top-selling album of the year at the World Music Awards in Monte Carlo. It went to number one in nearly 40 countries, including Australia, where it sat in the top spot for four weeks. From the outside, everything appears to be perfect. But Martin sounds anxious about the passing of time and is determined to achieve more. The musicians he most admires - most notably U2 - did their best work in their first decade together. "We've done some pretty good stuff, but there's something about the year changing to 2010," Martin explains. "I'll also be 33 in that year, and I always feel that marks a different phase of songwriting. So I just try to keep as busy as possible till then. I can't explain it, but I guess most of my heroes did most of their great stuff before they were 33. It's not that you can't do great stuff afterwards. You just have to have deadlines, otherwise you'll spend all day in the sauna." Martin was speaking exclusively from Atlanta to announce Coldplay's Australian tour for February and March. A notoriously difficult interviewee, he was uncharacteristically candid with Insider during our early-morning interview - perhaps because he felt guilty about the time difference and the fact the interview had been pushed back three hours. Coldplay are touring America before heading to Europe. They will have played 103 shows by the time they reach Australia next February. And they've upgraded from entertainment centres to stadiums and arenas. In Sydney, they will perform two shows at Sydney's Acer Arena. "It's a big show. Not as big as a Rolling Stones show, but not as little as a Tom Waits show. It's hopefully somewhere in between, Martin says. Creatively, Coldplay have gone for a military theme with their latest album. The band - Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman, Will Champion and Chris Martin - wear military attire for the album artwork, promotional images, video clips and concerts. "We had this idea about a year ago of trying to destroy our own thing and put something else in place so it was our own little inner band revolution," Martin says. "Then we started looking at the French Revolution and all the paintings from that time. We were just keen to do something we hadn't done before." Coldplay are undeniably one of the biggest bands of the decade. Since releasing their first album, Parachutes, in 2000 they've sold more than 30 million albums, not to mention four Grammys and six Brit Awards. But when it comes to talking about the band's successes, Martin jokes awkwardly. He clearly isn't comfortable with praise. "We're well aware we're the biggest band only because U2 are still on holiday," he says. "We think of ourselves as being not as bad as people who hate us say we are, but not as good as people who give us awards say we are. We try and keep it balanced. Coldplay are such big earners for record label EMI that the company's share price took a beating when they delayed the release of their last album, X&Y. Martin has spoken openly about the immense pressure that put on him, but appears to have relaxed about the financial side of the music business. "I tried getting wrapped up in it for a while and really thinking about business, but it really didn't fit me as a hat," he says. "If people are singing along and our record isn't in the bargain bin, I don't worry about anything. If I stop in a gas station and our record is free with a can of Coke, then I'll start to worry." Coldplay perform at Acer Arena on March 11 and 12, 2009. Visa pre-sale tickets are available from November 27 via www. visaentertainment.com.au. General tickets are available from December 4 through Ticketek (132 849). http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,24691169-5001026,00.html
November 22, 200817 yr More Australian tour info in the live section. There appear to be four locations so far: Sydney, Melbourne, Perth & Brisbane. Adelaide didn't fit into the schedule. General Australia Tour discussion thread Tour discussion threads here: 3 March 2009 - Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, Australia 4 March 2009 - Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, Australia 11 March 2009 - Acer Arena, Sydney, Australia 12 March 2009 - Acer Arena, Sydney, Australia
November 22, 200817 yr So they're probably leaving Latinamerica for april, right???? ***crossing fingers***
November 22, 200817 yr yay for australians :dance: and Pris... I hope that they'll visit us during late march or april :D
November 22, 200817 yr Author Hot, Cold, unsatisfied (3,4 March Melbourne shows unveiled) CHRIS Martin has given himself a deadline. Despite selling millions of albums, packing stadiums the world over and winning countless awards, the Coldplay frontman is concerned about his legacy. At only 31, Martin fears he may be nearing his peak as a musician and songwriter. "We feel that we have to do a lot for 2010," Martin says."We feel like bands need to fill their first 10 years, so we have got lots to do before the clock strikes midnight on December 31, 2009. I know it is kind of stupid, but that is kind of our deadline. We have to do something good by then." It is astounding to hear Martin speak with such little self-assurance. He is one of the world's most recognisable singers and is married to Hollywood actor Gwyneth Paltrow. Coldplay's fourth album Viva La Vida or Death And All His Friends was released in June and was voted the year's top-selling album at the World Music Awards in Monte Carlo this month. The album went to No.1 in more than 36 countries, including Australia, where it sat top for four weeks. From the outside, everything appears to be perfect. But Martin sounds anxious about the passing of time and is determined to achieve more. The musicians he most admires did their best work in their first decade together -- most notably U2. "We've done some pretty good stuff, but there is something about the year changing to 2010 and also, in that year I will be 33 and I always feel that that is a different phase of song-writing," he says. "So I just try to keep as busy as possible until then. I can't explain it, but I guess most of my heroes did most of their great stuff before they were 33. It's not that you can't do great stuff afterwards, you have just got to have deadlines otherwise you will spend all day in the sauna." Martin is speaking from Atlanta to announce Coldplay's Australian tour for February and March. The band is touring the US, before heading to Europe and will have played 103 shows by the time it reaches Australia next February. Coldplay shows are massive and its latest tour is no exception. "It is a big show," Martin says. "It is not as big as a Rolling Stones show, but it is not as little as a Tom Waits show. It is hopefully somewhere in between." Visually, Coldplay has gone for a military theme with its latest album. The band -- Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman, Will Champion and Martin -- wear military attire for the album artwork, promotional images, video clips and concerts. The inspiration was born at Coldplay's London headquarters, an old warehouse they call The Bakery, which has been transformed into a creative space for art and music. "We just had this idea about a year ago of trying to destroy our own thing and put something else in place so it was our little inner band revolution," Martin says. "Then we started looking at the French Revolution and all of the paintings from that time. All of us were just keen to do something that we felt we hadn't done before." C OLDPLAY is undeniably one of the biggest bands of the decade and has been compared with its idols, U2. Since releasing its first album in 2000 (Parachutes), it has sold more than 30 million albums and has had huge global hits with songs including Yellow, In My Place, Clocks, Fix You and Violet Hill. That's not to mention the accolades -- four Grammys and six Brit Awards. But when it comes to talking seriously about the band's successes, Martin uncomfortably jokes. He clearly isn't comfortable with praise. It is kind of refreshing when you consider the egos of other stars such as Kanye West, who blogs endlessly about his achievements. Again, it is a little surprising to hear that lack of confidence in Martin's voice. "We are well aware that we are only the biggest band at the moment because U2 are still on holiday," he says. "We don't think of ourselves as being -- we are not as bad as people who hate us say we are and we are not as good as people who give us awards say we are. We try to keep it balanced." Coldplay is such an enormous earner for record label EMI that the company's share price took a beating in the UK when the band delayed the release of its previous album, X&Y. Martin has spoken openly about the pressure that has put on him, but appears to have relaxed about the financial side of the music business. "I tried getting wrapped up in it for a while and really thinking about business, but it really didn't fit as a hat to be wearing," he says. "If people are singing along and our record isn't in the bargain bin, then I don't worry about anything. If I stop at a gas station and our record is free with a can of Coke, then I will start to worry." Viva La Vida has only been out a few months and Martin is working on new material, releasing a special edition of the album with eight new songs. Martin has been a strong critic of outgoing US President George W. Bush and said he had been inspired musically by the political changes in the US. He says he has never felt more political than when Barrack Obama was voted into power. "I just feel much more hopeful about things," he says, adding his election had inspired new songs. "The reason why I find Barrack Obama inspiring, not because of what he says, but he is tireless. I just have so much respect for people who never give up and he, to me, is the definition of that." Coldplay plays Rod Laver Arena on March 3-4. Tickets on sale December 4 on 132 849. Prospekt's March EP is out now. http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24685679-5006024,00.html
Create an account or sign in to comment