Excellent article courtesy of http://thevertexblog.com :

 

If making a cameo appearance on The Simpsons is a veritable barometer for success, then yesterday marked the date that the musical group Coldplay “made it” as a band. They appeared in last night’s episode, “Million Dollar Maybe,” in which Homer wins the lottery and spends his windfall on anonymous gifts for the family, one of which is hiring Coldplay to perform for Bart. If you asked some music fans, however, they would hardly consider this a valuable prize, as Coldplay is a band that is often the subject of harsh hatred by many who consider themselves rock purists. Take for example, New York Times music critic Jon Pareles, who in his 2005 review of Coldplay’s X&Y referred to them as “the most insufferable band of the decade.” Or New York Magazine critic Ethan Browne, who commented that it is “Coldplay’s lack of humor, the very straightness of its lyrics, that makes the dourness so detestable.” Or, finally, Chuck Klosterman who shares this biting treatment of the band in his 2003 manifesto, Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: “Coldplay is a British pop group whose success derives from their ability to write melodramatic alt-rock songs about fake love. It does not matter that Coldplay is the shittiest fucking band I’ve ever heard in my entire fucking life, or that they sound like a mediocre photocopy of Travis (who sounds like a mediocre photocopy of Radiohead.)”

 

The most common criticism of Coldplay’s music is not their lack of talent, but rather their lack of ambition. Their songs lack nuance and depth both musically and lyrically, a critique that might not hurt their mass appeal or album sales, but will perpetually embitter them to music connoisseurs. Take for example, their popular ballad, “Fix You“: “When you try your best but you don’t succeed/When you get what you want but not what you need/When you feel so tired but you can’t sleep/Stuck in reverse. And the tears come streaming down your face/When you lose something you cannot replace/When you love someone but it goes to waste/Could it be worse? Lights will guide you home/ And ignite your bones/ And I will try to fix you.” Those three stanzas essentially comprise the entire song. The rhymes are dull and lazy, the sentiments of loss and love are immature, and the message is nauseatingly simple and naive. The song’s saving grace is its inspiring coda that features a rapid guitar riff and pulsating drum beat, a musical section that would have been an extraordinarily perfect climax to a slow ballad, had the band not decided to include similar sections on the rest of the album’s tracks, as well. This lack of imagination, ambition, and depth defines the X & Y album, a record so putrid that after hearing it several times, I swore off Coldplay forever as a band whose music I considered worthwhile.

 

As a result, I promised myself that I wouldn’t even sample their next album Viva La Vida when it was released, but inevitably found that I was unable to avoid listening to an album that so many people were talking about. When I finally gave in, I was astonished at what I heard. This was not the Coldplay I had been used to and grown tired of. Was it a great album? Maybe, maybe not. But at least they were trying to make great music. Whereas X & Y was defined by repetition and platitudes, Viva La Vida was filled with experimentation and meaning. This newfound ambition was not missed by critics, who applauded the band for their willingness to stretch their musical boundaries and compile an album that at least attempts to make strong statements. And surely, it was not missed by the band itself, who brought in Brian Eno to produce the record, a clear sign that they were going for something different and aiming higher this time. What seems to have been missed by everyone, however, is that in their efforts to create brilliant, relevant music, Coldplay accidentally recorded the perfect soundtrack to ABC’s Lost.

 

As soon as Lost crashed onto the island of network television on September 22, 2004, it was immediately met with amazement by fans and critics for its incredible storytelling and its mysterious allure. As the seasons have passed, Lost’s reputation among its viewers has only improved, particularly because of factors that are diametrically opposed to the criticisms of Coldplay: its attention to detail, its attribution of significance to ostensibly meaningless plot points, and its attempt to make broad, grand points about the world and humanity. While Coldplay has for the most part enjoyed strong commercial success despite much disparagement from critics and purists, Lost is a series whose ratings have precipitously declined from season to season as its core group of cult followers continue to profess an even stronger admiration for the show as the years go by. In these ways and others, Lost and Coldplay are polar opposites. However, when it comes to thematic elements, there are incredible similarities, particularly on their latest record, Viva La Vida.

 

The most compelling reason to notice a connection between the show and this album is the record’s 3rd track, which, naturally, is titled “Lost!” It doesn’t take much thought to make this observation and indeed, the Internet is full of Lost montage videos with “Lost!” playing in the background. However, from the start of the album, there are clear allusions to many of the themes and ideas expressed in the show. The album’s first track, “Life in Technicolor,” does not contain any lyrics on the album itself, however a full, vocal version, properly titled “Life in Technicolor II,” can be found on Coldplay’s EP, “Prospekt’s March.” The song seems to be about the impending end of the world, an event that Season Two of Lost was focused on preventing, with its introduction of “the hatch,” a former experimental station of a research project called the Dharma Initiative and “the button,” which must be pushed every 108 minutes after entering a series of numbers. The purpose of pushing the button, as is told to us by hatch resident Desmond Hume, is simply put, “saving the world.” Further, the song’s middle stanza presents a theme that is central to the story of Lost: time. “”Time came a-creepin’/ Oh and time’s a loaded gun./ Every road is a ray of light/ It goes on./ Time only can lead you on.” Time can “lead you on” and be deceiving because it gives the illusion of being fixed, when, in fact, it can be manipulated or altered, at least theoretically. Whether this is the case, whether we have the ability through time travel to change our pasts and our futures is the fundamental question presented in Season Five of Lost. We have characters traveling through time, encountering Island history, past versions of other characters, and sometimes even themselves, with the ultimate goal being trying to shape the events that triggered their calamitous future and determining whether those events could be changed. The corollary to that notion is that “time’s a loaded gun” and if not handled properly and with the right motives, trying to manipulate time can have tragic consequences.

 

 

The next track, “Cemeteries of London,” touches on the core tension that resonates throughout the series, that of science vs. faith, a debate that defines the show itself as well as the ongoing struggle between the show’s two main protagonists, Jack and Locke. The song seems to be expressing a desire to connect with a new dimension, offering two alternative approaches to this exploration. “Through the dark streets they go searching/ To see god in their own way” defines Locke, who wants to believe. He spends most of the series believing that he and the Island are special and that everything that has happened to them is for a reason. He sees his trip to the Island as a spiritual journey of self-discovery towards the ends of learning fundamental truths about himself and the world around him. “I see God come in my garden but I don’t know what he said,/ For my heart it wasn’t open” defines Jack, the man of science to Locke’s man of faith. Jack spends most of the series at odds with Locke, rejecting the notion of Locke’s special qualities as well as the role of destiny in their lives. A surgeon by trade, Jack closes his eyes and his heart to the obvious supernatural phenomena that surround them and insists that everything that happened has a rational, scientific explanation. This struggle is also a paradigm for followers of the show, putting those who have faith in the writers and their vision at odds with those cynics who think the show is being made up as they go along and that the ending will surely disappoint.

 

The significance of the album’s 4th track, “42″ is multi-faceted. First and foremost, 42 is the last of “the numbers,” the six numbers that Hurley used to play and win the lottery jackpot in his pre-Island life. The recurrence of those numbers (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42) throughout the series (explicitly in the hatch and latently in symbolic “easter eggs” in many of the show’s episodes), has given the numbers a mystical significance amongst fans. The numbers primary importance is to Hurley — who despite winning millions of dollars because of them, believes they are cursed – as is the song’s opening line: “Those who are dead are not dead, They’re just living in my head.” Hurley is a former mental patient who struggles throughout the series to discern what is real and what is only happening in his mind. Indeed, one of the prevailing fan theories (that has been refuted by the writers) is that the entire show’s story is a conception of Hurley’s deranged psyche. However, this lyric has much broader significance to the show and its central characters. It explicitly refutes the mantra of Season Five’s 12th episode, “Dead is Dead” but also bolsters the belief of everyone who has seen people they presumed to be dead walking on the Island, appearing to be very much alive. “You thought you might be a ghost/ You didn’t get to heaven but you made it close,” the song continues. Jack’s father, Claire, Locke, Eko’s brother and Ben’s daughter are just a sampling of the characters who we have seen as presumed ghosts, although we can’t be totally sure what they really are. The notion of not making it to heaven but making it close conjures up imagery of a purgatory-like existence, yet another refuted fan theory for Lost’s bigger picture. Finally, the line “time is so short and I’m sure there must be something more” returns us to the time theme, but here rather than describing time as an opportunity to be used, it presents time as a practical limitation, while at the same time, articulates the belief that there is a greater truth to explore.

 

Ideally, the next track “Lovers in Japan/Reign of Love” would have been re-titled “Lovers in Korea,” as it captures the endless romantic journey of our star-crossed lovers, Jin and Sun. It tells the story of two lovers on the run, trying to escape their life back home. “But I have no doubt/ One day, were gonna get out/One day, the sun will come out.” Despite the setbacks their relationship has endured, they keep fighting on and believing that if they keep looking, they will find each other and the love that originally brought them together. “Yes” opens with the line “When it started we had high hopes/ now my back’s on the line, my back’s on the ropes.” Each person we know on Oceanic flight 815 was there for a reason, either heading home or on a personal mission of some sort. The crash derailed that plan, forcing each of them to introspect and ask themselves fundamental questions about their lives. “Viva La Vida” describes a battle for ultimate control, as in the opening lyric, the speaker tells us that he “used to rule the world.” The battle for supremacy of the Island has taken many forms: Dharma vs. The Others, Ben vs. Widmore, Ben vs. Locke, and most recently and importantly Jacob vs. The Man in Black. Surely, the lyric “Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!” would resonate with the followers of each group each time they think they have overthrown the previous ruler and installed theirs as the true king. And certainly “Violet Hill’”s lyric, “And a fog became God” presents us with as good a piece of imagery and explanation for the Smoke Monster as any Lost fan has offered thus far.

 

 

Which brings us to the album’s final track, “Death and All His Friends,” also an alternate title for the album itself. The song’s key phrase “No I don’t want to battle from beginning to end/ I don’t want a cycle of recycled revenge/ I don’t want to follow Death and all of his friends” serves as the perfect description for Lost’s saga. The opening scene of the Season Five finale presents us with two rivals for dominion over the Island that carry with them two distinct worldviews about humanity. They seem to be engaged in an ongoing, timeless battle that is cycling and looping upon itself in perpetuity, as each tries to gain the upper hand and prevail in the final battle. This imagery also presents us with an apt description of the lives of our characters who seem to continually find themselves facing similar situations and challenges, trying to make the right decisions this time and get a second chance at life to make things right. “And in the end/ We lie awake, and we dream of making our escape.” The series opens with Jack laying in the jungle, his eye opening to signal the beginning of his journey to escape it. How it will end it still anyone’s guess.

 

It is with that in mind that we must return to the song we mentioned at the outset, the track that shares its name with the show itself: the third track, “Lost!” Ultimately, “Lost” is about redemption. “Just because I’m losing, doesn’t mean I’m lost.” We see the stories of a a group of castaways that are dropped on an island in the middle of nowhere, yet ironically, it is only by being lost that many if them are able to truly find themselves. “You might be a big fish in a little pond/ Doesn’t mean you’ve won.” For better or for worse, it doesn’t matter who or what they were off the island; this is a fresh start and a new beginning. It doesn’t matter if you were a millionaire lottery winner or a renowned surgeon, a paraplegic in a wheelchair or a fugitive from the law. All those things, good or bad, stopped mattering when they crashed on the Island.

 

While the song’s primary version, with an exclamation point in its title, is the upbeat tune we find on the album, a slow, acoustic version titled “Lost?” can be found as a bonus track. This seemingly minor grammatical distinction carries with it an important notion about the show. True fans of Lost have always been more concerned with the show’s journey than with its destination, more interested in the questions than in the answers. As we enter the final season this week, Lost fans are filled with anticipation for the show’s final chapter, but also with the trepidation that the end is near. In just a few short months, the journey will be over and the questions will be answered. Until then, fans are left to theorize, make predictions, and look everywhere for answers, including British rock albums.

I'm sorry, he evidently is a big fan of Lost and has put a lot of work into this, but the only thing that stuck with me here is the fact that it isn't 'and a fog became god' it's 'and the fox became god' :dozey: :P (or maybe a fox became god, but what the heck)

Big black plume of smoke = excellent antagonist :rolleyes:

I understand his point, and I'm sure he hours of effort into it. I'm just REALLY fucking exhausted about how much they "suck".

why do people hate X&Y so much??? :bigcry:

it's beauuuuuutiful. :wacky:

This article is pretty awesome, but how dare they beat on X&Y? All of Coldplay's albums are great!

Wow someone smoked a big fat bag of weed. Puff puff pass dude!

http://thevertexblog.com

 

Ian: Thanks for sharing.

 

........to doesn't like very much our Coldplay, he speaks (writes) as a fervent fan Coldplayer;):D

Well I am a Big LOst watcher, love the show, and reading this article, the guy had some good references to the album and the show, except the line....

 

And certainly “Violet Hill’”s lyric, “And a fog became God” presents us with as good a piece of imagery and explanation for the Smoke Monster as any Lost fan has offered thus far.

 

And a Fog became God, I guess he didn't pay attention to the lyrics very well:rolleyes:

There is a black fog in the show, but The Fox became God:dozey:

I think this guy has way to much time on his hands...

Wow he really put a lot of time writing that article!

But he just found out those "lost-coldplay" related things because he was looking for them.

You could easily grab another completely different thing and find coincidences too, not because they are there but because you want them to be there.

It's an interesting article though.

The article started off good, with the recpetion of X&Y and how many seem to hate Coldplay for seemingly odd reasons, and the redemtion with the meaning of Viva, the background of it, the musical experimentation and the wonderful outcome. And he is correct, it is truely a peice of musical distinction, but it can also be interpretated in a variety of diffrent ways due to it's background. I don't follow Lost so I couldn't say.

Then he came to the track-by-track breakdown, starting with Life In Technicolor II. I think the instrumental, album version can be compared to the series but then again....:shrug: I didn't enjoy this section as much and was a little annoyed that he skipped the hidden tracks and Strawberry Swing :( (as well as getting the Violet Hill lyric wrong).

 

I still think of Viva La Vida as deep album, musically, lyrically and with it's background. To me, it is the greatest collection of music I have, and that has been made. To me.

The first part of this article pisses me off, but once he finally starts comparing it to Lost I loved it!!! :wacky::heart:

 

:lol: It seems like as he got to the end of the cd he got tired of writing :P

why do people hate X&Y so much??? :bigcry:

it's beauuuuuutiful. :wacky:

 

THIS i totally agree! its my favorite album as of not too long ago after getting white shadows and twisted logic which i didn't realize i had.

 

And i really like that fact that other people and not just us coldplayer think about them this deeply and come up with such random and obscure conclusions. i don't watch lost so i have no idea if hes right but if he is he is amazing!!

Who bloody cares if he said something bad about X&Y? It is their longest song of all, and there ARE repeated elements across the songs. Boohoo, they hated our band, even if they made an article talking all about them! Ugh.

oh no! but everyone loves Coldplayy!!!! :bigcry:

oh, i'm sorry.

i forgot i'm not allowed to like Coldplay around here. :embarrassed:

It's ok, Brooke. It's an easy mistake to make :hug: :P

but but but... X&Y is my favourite CD !! :heart: :wacky: how can it be posible? Why he/she hate it so much? :bigcry:

I didn't mean that you... gah! People! I meant that you guys have balls to complain even though he wrote a whole article dedicated to your beloved band. Sheeeesh, be happy.

:lol:

seems to me he wrote an entire article dedicated to Lost. :P

 

but X&Y seems to be the least liked Coldplay album, and i just don't get it.

then again, it was the album that turned me into a Coldplay fan, so maybe i'm a bit biased. :rolleyes:

Those who are dead are not dead they're just living in my head.... Or as Hurley just said,

 

If you want to talk...

 

 

I've always thought it was funny how all the guys insist that none of them have ever watched the show and yet there's so many thematic similarities. (Although that guy really pushes his luck... :thinking: ) But then the moment you get into pop philosophy and psychology, common themes do tend to show up. Just look at how much Lost has in common with The Prisoner and Life on Mars (the real one).

Anyone can link almost entirely different things to one another if they try hard enough.

Viva La Vida - Really about Avatar!?!??!

I :heart: LOST!

 

I remember thinking this when the album was first released, but mostly because of the tracks 'Lost!' and '42' :)