If you’re planning on watching the Grammy Awards this weekend, here’s a little nugget of information you might find interesting: You technically own part of a record company whose artist is up for Album of the Year, report tamethebear.tv.

Coldplay is a front-runner for this year’s Album of the Year, among other nominations, for their energetic and potentially plagiarized single, “Viva La Vida.” But here’s the thing: We all have a vested interest in how Coldplay fares this Sunday.

See, EMI, the music industry superpower, makes Coldplay’s CDs. EMI, in turn, is owned by Terra Firma, a British private equity firm. Terra Firma owes Citibank $2.6 billion from its purchase of EMI last July. And as the Financial Times reported awhile back, “much of the burden of the debt falls on Citi and, following the government’s bail-out last month of the world’s biggest bank, by extension US taxpayers.”

To put it another way: our tax money ($306 billion of it, to be exact) goes to Citi, Citi forgives the money that Terra Firma owes it, and that frees up money to make Coldplay CDs. The bailout money is provided to keep companies afloat in the short term, not to cover all their finances for now and forever. They’re still depending on consumer dollars to stay viable.

But if we have a stake in the Coldplay business, I want to see some concessions. Since the Citi bailout, New York politicians have suggested renaming Citi Field, where the Mets play. The new name: Citi Taxpayer Field. We can do better with Coldplay. I’m imagining a nationwide re-naming contest open to all taxpayers. (My submission: “Mitch Benn and the Distractions” — here’s why).

Or maybe we should require Coldplay to shower concert fans with dollar bills, Weezy-style. Yeah, let’s do that.

This year's leading Grammy Award nominees have more in common than you might think, but on paper, this year's Grammy powerhouses couldn't seem more different.

Lil Wayne is a street-wise rapper from New Orleans who offers wild glimpses of a wide range of scenes of urban life in America on his chart-topping album "Tha Carter III." Coldplay is an artsy rock band from England that offers well-heeled takes on international inspiration - from "Lovers in Japan" and "Chinese Sleep Chant" to "Cemeteries of London" - on "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends," named after a Frida Kahlo painting and featuring cover art from 19th century painter Eugene Delacroix. Their differences go beyond the traditional ones of hip-hop and rock, of marketing and image. If they were movies, Lil Wayne would be the biggest summer blockbuster, while Coldplay would be wintertime Oscar bait, strictly art-house fare.

Lil Wayne goes into the 51st Grammy Awards Sunday night with eight nominations in six categories, including the prestigious album of the year. With seven nominations, Coldplay will take him on for album of the year, and they're the only artists to compete in all three of the evening's top categories.

Read the full article in the Grammy thread at the Coldplay forum here

With their creative straitjacket cast off, Coldplay are now playing their best ever shows whipping the stage crew at football. Smart arses.

Nineteen thousand thoroughly satisfied customers are still pouring out into the night after the first two sold-out nights at the Manchester Evening News Arena by the time Coldplay's bassist Guy Berryman is back at his hotel bar – import lager in hand, cadging a smoke on the balcony.

Only guitarist Jonny Buckland, who's “sort of from the North” according to Berryman, has remained behind with the red wine and white Maltesers in the venue's hospitality lounge, joking with young friends and family. Drummer will Champion has similarly scarpered, and no one has seen Chris Martin - though all bar Berryman will convene again tomorrow for Coldplay's monthly Band vs Crew football match, at which the band are comfortably leading by four games to one.

Read the full Q article at the Coldplay forum here [thanks maljave & ravrat]

It's written right there on the wall of the studio where Coldplay writes and records its hit songs under the title Band Rules: "6. Always keep the mystery. Not many interviews."

And it is rare for the multiple-Grammy nominated band to open up for the media, but front man Chris Martin bends the rules when he gives correspondent Steve Kroft a candid interview and lets 60 Minutes cameras into their private studio. The result is a unique look inside one of the world’s most popular musical acts that will be broadcast this Sunday, Feb. 8, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.

"I feel like I’ve shown you my underpants," Martin laughs, "This is private stuff," he tells Kroft, in the room where the band writes its hit songs.

Rule 6 went out the window for this interview. Martin reveals the secret to their success, a success that saw "Viva la Vida," the band's latest platinum album - its fourth in a row - sell seven million copies. "We rely more on enthusiasm than actual skill," says Martin. "Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically and people will like it more." People like it. Their world tour is completely sold out and "Viva la Vida" has garnered seven Grammy nominations, including best album, best song and best record.

"I can't dance like Usher. I can't sing like Beyonce. I can't write songs like Elton John, but we can do the best we can with what we've got," he tells Kroft.

In addition to concert footage and visits to the bands favorite pub and the apartment the band once lived in, the segment also includes brief interviews with band members Jonny Buckland, Will Champion and Guy Berryman - musicians who prefer to let Martin do the talking for Coldplay. So he does. He tells Kroft about the band's work habits, his feelings about being front man on stage and off, about him and his wife, Gwyneth Paltrow, being the target of the tabloids, and a plagiarism lawsuit brought against the band.

"One week you're divorced, the next your band's broken up," says Martin about the tabloid stories on him he says are not true. "It's terrible. I'm glad I'm not me," he says, echoing a Bob Dylan line. On the lawsuit, he says, "If you know it’s not true then you just have to say, 'I'm really sorry, but it isn't true.' The other alternative is give like a seven hour rant about why it isn't true and how it's just not possible…its best to say we would never do that," says Martin.

Watch the video at the CBS website here and discuss Coldplay on 60 Minutes in the dedicated thread in the Coldplay forum here

Pitchfork media reports today that Coldplay have kicked Chris Martin Out... of the studio. It's OK. Breathe. They also write about Roadie #42's journal entry from yesterday, and Chris Martin's collaboration with a mystery artist. Here is their article:

Admit it: Viva la Vida, Coldplay's first trip into the Eno-verse, has held up pretty well. These guys are some of the last honest-to-God stars on the face of the Earth, and they would've been just fine if they'd just kept biting "Clocks" over and over. They didn't have to head into the studio with a legendary genius producer who pushed them to tinker with their epicness in all sorts of unexpected ways, but they did it, and it worked out.

When that chorus kicks in on "Lost!", forget about it. Game over. (Also, because of Viva La Vida, this happened.)

Last month, we reported that Coldplay were striking while the adult-contempo arena-alt was hot and hitting the studio with Brian Eno once again. And thanks to a post on Coldplay's website, we now have some insight into what, exactly, these guys all do in the booth. The post is credited to the mysterious "Roadie #42", and according to this guy, Eno's not done monkeying with Coldplay's formula.

Apparently, the band usually builds on frontman Chris Martin's demo recordings. But Eno's trying something else out: Banning Martin from the studio, keeping just his vocal track in most cases, and letting the other three dudes build the rest of the songs themselves. The other dudes, understandably, are amped.

Reports Roadie #42: "Often, they come in first thing in the morning and listen to Chris's idea once, before going out into the live room and working up something based purely on how the song 'felt' to them on first listen, paying little heed to what chords he chose or how the melody sat." Chris Martin better watch out because pretty soon these guys might start demanding their own close-ups in the videos.

Martin, meanwhile, isn't using his time off to think up even more ridiculous baby-names with Gwyneth Paltrow. According to that post, "he's up the road at another studio pouring out songs in a writing project with another artist." Roadie #42 doesn't say who the other artist is, but it's probably a rapper.

Source: Pitchfork

On the eve of Coldplay's Australian tour, drummer Will Champion has come out fighting over allegations the band plagiarised a Joe Satriani tune.

Coldplay, who are being sued for copyright infringement by the guitar geek, have labelled the accusation as "ridiculous" and "totally unfounded". In an interview with Confidential about their impending Australian tour, Champion was initially reluctant to speak at length about the accusation (no doubt at the behest of the band's lawyers). "I don't really know ... it's crazy that thing," Will hesitated. "It's so far-fetched and ridiculous, but that's about all we can say at the moment. We're waiting to see what's happening but it's frustrating and annoying ... and totally unfounded."

On the blower from a snow-bound London, the affable tub-thumper did confirm recent rumours about the rockers banning frontman Chris Martin from recent studio sessions with uber producer Brian Eno.

Read the full article at the Coldplay forum here [thanks mimixxx]

Wonder if Gwyneth Paltrow can sing a mean version of Coldplay's Viva La Vida? She may have to at this weekend's Grammy Awards, MusicRadar reports today.

The reason? The lawyer repping Joe Satriani is sending teams of process servers to the show to hand Coldplay a plagiarism lawsuit. As we've reported in the past, guitarist Joe Satriani is suing Coldplay for copyright infringement for their Grammy-nominated song Viva La Vida, claiming the 2008 track copies "substantial original portions" of his song If I Could Fly, which was released in 2004.

Coldplay have remained mainly mum on the subject (Satriani says, "They just wanted this whole thing to go away"), although they did post a denial of any wrongdoing on their website. However, according to Fox News, since filing the lawsuit on 4 December 2008, Satriani's attorney Howard King claims that Coldplay have evaded being served with papers - and in his view, The Grammy Awards are as good a place as any to get the job done.

Do Coldplay wish they could fly?

Says King, "We have warned [Coldplay's] British lawyers that we have hired a fleet of process servers lined up to dog the band everywhere they go this weekend in the hopes of serving them." King even discloses that camera crews may be accompanying the process servers to document the proceedings.

Whatever your opinion on the matter is, you have to hand it to Satriani - he's sticking to his guns on this one. In the parlance of The Sopranos, perhaps it's time everybody had a little "sitdown" before this really gets Viva La Loco.

Update: As this story was going to press, it was announced that Coldplay will be profiled on a segment on 60 Minutes in the US in the hour preceding the Grammy Awards.

What do you think about the whole situation? Is serving a lawsuit on Coldplay at the Grammys an immature act or just good timing? Let us know in the Joe Satriani thread at the Coldplay forum here onwards and also at our dedicated Grammy thread here

While many of the nominees reinforce what we’ve come to expect, the 51st Grammy Awards roundup managed a few surprises with both the artists selected and the ones seemingly snubbed. Grammy’s former darling Alicia Keys is notably absent in key categories, and there’s a bare minimum of former “American Idol” contestants clogging up the works.

Last year’s Amy Winehouse sweep cleared the way for Duffy and Adele, each with her own unique set of retro pipes that rock the lush ’60s sound. Meanwhile, Lil Wayne grabbed nominations in top categories without dumbing down his politics. Former Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant may win a Grammy yet, with his inspired partnership with a woman who knows a thing or two about genre crossing, Alison Krauss. And then there’s Coldplay.

Read the full article at MSN here [thanks mimixxx]

Stepping way out of their comfort zone earned them big sales and an Album of the Year nomination - Coldplay's Album of the Year Grammy-nominated Viva la Vida, or Death and All His Friends is fairly remarkable, report MTV.

And not just because it was the most commercially successful rock album released in 2008 (it sold more than 2.2 million copies here in the U.S.), or because it topped the charts in something like 17 countries worldwide. Though, in today's doom-and-gloom industry, those stats are rather noteworthy.

No, what makes Viva such a remarkable accomplishment is that it's probably the most successful reinvention of a colossally huge rock band this decade. Green Day had nowhere to go but up before they rebooted things with American Idiot, so the risk wasn't there. Coldplay had everything to lose with their fourth album, but they went ahead with it anyway.

After the relatively underwhelming response to 2005's X&Y — which only sold more than 8 million copies worldwide, to give you an idea of the scope within which Coldplay operate — they made a very conscious decision to put themselves under the musical knife. Putting their faith in producer Brian Eno (who, truth be told, played synths on X&Y), they embarked on a journey that took them to churches in Argentina and Spain, stripped their sonic largesse down to simple acoustics and explored territories previously unmined. That meant using everything from tiny tack pianos — which they built themselves — to frontman Chris Martin's newfound lower register.

"One of the main things we tried to focus on with this record is changing vocal identities, because Chris has a very recognizable voice," drummer Will Champion told MTV News in June. "Just the idea that you can totally change the sound of a song and the sound of a band just by treating the vocals a different way ... that [idea] really interested us."

"I think everything we're trying to do at the moment is about not starting again so much as breaking down what we've built up before, and trying to build something different and hopefully better, or worse in a good way," Martin added. "The longer you go on as a band, the harder it is to surprise yourself. So, there are moments on this record that are surprises, even to us. And those are our favorite moments, to be honest."

It was gutsy to take away everything that had made Coldplay, well, Coldplay. Coupled with the band's newfound fascination with the French Revolution (demonstrated by the Eugène Delacroix painting on the cover of Viva and the band's rag-tag military costumes), it seemed like an experiment destined to fail. Yet, as a credit to the band's growth as musicians, and to Eno's sure-handed skills, Viva la Vida was anything but.

It packs just as big a punch sonically as it did commercially. From the quiet, icy burbles of opener "Life in Technicolor" or "Chinese Sleep Chant" to the effervescent wallop of hit singles "Viva la Vida" and "Violet Hill," Viva is an album that captures the massive and the minimal, a bi-polar swirl of a listen that reveals everything and nothing at the same time. This is Coldplay at top volume, working on all cylinders. It's the album they were born to make. (That said, it's still no A Rush of Blood to the Head.)

And that's a sentiment shared not just by the fans, but by many a fickle rock critic. Viva found its way onto most best-of-2008 lists, and it heads into this Sunday's Grammy Awards as a frontrunner. All-in-all, Coldplay earned seven nominations, more than anyone else not named Lil Wayne. One would think they'll probably take home their fair share of Golden Gramophones, and while they'll no doubt be grateful, there's probably going to be another emotion coursing through their veins: relief.

After all, they took the risk. Now it's time to reap the rewards.

Will Lil Wayne grab all the gramophones? Is Katy Perry going to tell her girl rivals to kiss off? Can Coldplay march off with a win? MTV News is all over the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, so stay tuned for interviews, analysis and more before, during and after the big night, Sunday, February 8.

Source: MTV

Jonathan Ross begged his Radio 2 producer for a trouble-free show yesterday - and was promptly stitched up by pop star guest Chris Martin, report The People.

Wossy, 48, and producer Andy Davies sparked fury a week ago with a sick joke about having sex with an Alzheimer's victim. So Ross began the new show by telling Andy: "Let's try and stay out of trouble - watch what you're saying."

But he reckoned without Coldplay idol Chris, who sang a song about the lewd messages to Fawlty Towers' star Andrew Sachs that cost comic Russell Brand his job and landed Ross a three-month suspension. Chris, 31, told Ross: "Everyone thinks you're great except for some idiots who just shouldn't be listening."

He then ignored the outcry over Sachs and performed his specially-composed tribute to the under-fire presenter. It began: Back on TV after a month or three/I done my penance for my wrong/Back on TV, back at the BBC/Way back in the spotlight where I belong./We had been banned, both me and Russell Brand/We had been stripped of all our powers./I just stayed in and thought about my sin/And watched old videos of Fawlty Towers. The folks were cross with Mr Ross,/they said I had crossed the line,/But they would know if they ever watched my show/That I am offensive nearly all the time.

But listener Ian Jones, 42, of Telford, said: "Even as a fan I'm bored by what happened and then the BBC rakes it up again. "Whether Ross likes it or not, some people were offended and he should let sleeping dogs lie."

More on this Wossy / Chris article onwards here

Poor Chris Martin. He's been sitting pretty at the top of album and singles charts the world over in recent weeks, and yet he's still suffering accusations from inventive YouTubers suggesting his best-selling songs are rip-offs.

First came a fine piece of self-publicity by Brooklyn indie band Creaky Boards, who suggested Martin had come to see them and copied their song The Songs I Didn't Write for Coldplay's Number 1 single Viva La Vida. No one quite believed Creaky Boards, as it soon emerged that Coldplay had demo'd Viva La Vida by the time Martin went to the Creaky Boards gig.

But now things get stranger. Now some wag is suggesting Coldplay's real source of inspiration might be shaven-headed rock guitar instrumentalist Joe Satriani, and that Viva La Vida copies Satriani track If I Could Fly. At least this track was released in 2004, way before Martin and co would have written Viva La Vida. But does anyone really believe Chris Martin even listens to Joe Satriani? Or maybe it's Creaky Boards who are the closet Satriani fans, and they're the culprits?

Read the full story and watch the Satriana/Coldplay mash-up here [thanks mimixxx]

Amy Macdonald checked in with fans on her blog at MySpace on Wednesday (January 21), offering supporting words for one of her musical peers. The Scottish singer songwriter tells readers:

I’ve just been watching ‘Big Chef Takes on Little Chef’ on channel 4 and towards the end they played my favorite Coldplay song from their current album. The song is called ‘Life in Technicolor’ and the minute I heard it I fell in love. The only thing that dissapointed was that I was dying for Chris Martin to sing over it as it was an instrumental. I’ve found myself listening to it and making up lyrics to it and thinking should I write my own song over the music.

Now I have found there is no need as Coldplay have released ‘Life in Technicolor 2′ and I love it. I love Chris Martin’s voice and I love the music. I was so inspired that I had to come here and write about it. I hate when people criticize them because they are so talented. Goodnight.

In an interview with Sydney’s Sunday Telegraph Coldplay’s lead singer Chris Martin said the reason they hadn’t toured to Australia for three years was a matter of perfection.

“For us, touring in your country is kind of exotic, so we feel like it’s kind of a treat. So we wait until we feel like we deserve to go to Australia. We don’t like to play in Australia until we’ve perfected our concert.”

Those fans lucky enough to have scored a ticket, and who live within access of the four tour cities – Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth – will be in for a treat if Martin’s words are any indication. However, not all Coldplay fans are happy with those in Adelaide snubbed by this tour schedule. Rumours have it that there isn’t a comparable arena venue in Adelaide, although promoter Michael Chugg puts the omission down to a simple case of the band’s availability.

More on Coldplay touring Australia here and click more for specific tour date discussion threads.

Friday 27th February - Perth, Burswood Dome [discussion]

Saturday 28th February - Perth, Burswood Dome [discussion]

Tuesday 3rd March - Melbourne, Rod Laver Arena [discussion]

Wednesday 4th March - Melbourne, Rod Laver Arena [discussion]

Thursday 5th March – Melbourne, Rod Laver Arena [discussion]

Sunday 8th March - Brisbane, Entertainment Centre [discussion]

Monday 9th March - Brisbane, Entertainment Centre [discussion]

Wednesday 11th March - Sydney, Acer Arena [discussion]

Thursday 12th March - Sydney, Acer Arena [discussion]

Saturday 14th March - Sydney, Acer Arena [discussion]

Sunday 15th March – Sydney, Acer Arena [discussion]

Wednesday 18th March - Auckland, Vector Arena [discussion]

Thursday 19th March - Auckland, Vector Arena [discussion]

Coldplay will regroup in the studio to begin cutting material for a fifth album. ‘‘The plan, in an ideal world, is to have something finished by the end of 2009,’’ says Guy Berryman, in a recent online interview.

That would mark a notably fast turnaround for a band that’s been known to take its time between records, including three-year gaps between each of the band’s past three albums. And fans even got a treat in the interim: the recent release of ‘‘Prospekt’s March,’’ an eight-song EP featuring material left over from the ‘‘Vida’’ sessions and a new version of the single ‘‘Lost,’’ remixed by fellow A-lister Jay-Z. Coldplay has been quick to stress that these aren’t throwaway tracks. Indeed, says Berryman, much of the material could have fit seamlessly on ‘‘Vida.’’

‘‘We didn’t want to make the album too long. We thought the third record was too long, and we didn’t want to make that mistake again. But these songs were too good just to be B-sides on singles,’’ he says. ‘‘It’s kind of meant to be an amendment to ’Vida La Vida.’ We wanted people to hear that record as a standalone first, and not bombard them. We’re really proud of it.’’

Also performing in Coldplay - performing in the world’s biggest band - could get comfy. Too comfy, even. For Guy Berryman, though, the nightly thrill is intact. Even after all the massive stadium shows, all the mega festivals, stepping on stage still brings a tingle - that rush of blood, you might call it. ‘‘I don’t get nervous anymore. But I still get that great sense of excitement,’’ he says. ‘‘I love that moment right before we go on, that anticipation of the lights coming down. It never tires for me.’’

Earlier this year, Coldplay launched a global tour, supporting ‘‘Vida La Vida or Death and All His Friends,’’ the British band’s fourth album of moody, edge-of-artsy piano rock. In a year of music industry struggles, the album is a big-time standout, having enjoyed the biggest debut yet for Berryman, vocalist-pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckman and drummer Will Champion: In the United States alone, the album sold 720,000 copies its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan - more than 300,000 of them on the first day.

‘‘We’ve got four records now, so we have to get the balance right between the new album and the old songs people want to hear,’’ Berryman says. ‘‘We try to make it as dynamic as possible from beginning to end. It took us awhile - it took most of the first American tour to knock that into shape. The show pretty much runs in the same order now because it’s working.’’

A revamped production team has brought a new visual look to Coldplay’s stage production, and even introduced what Berryman describes as ‘‘a few things people haven’t seen before at other concerts.’’

For the decade-old band, life on the road is low-key these days. Berryman says he has learned to pace himself to endure the rigors of touring, eschewing the high life in favor of stints in the gym and daily jogs. Hopping from hotel to hotel, spending long stretches in air-conditioned spaces, it’s too easy to get ill. And ‘‘it’s not fun having a cold on tour - you can’t call in sick.’’

‘‘We destroyed ourselves a few times by not looking after ourselves - partying every night, staying up late,’’ he says, recalling the band’s early days. ‘‘Certainly, for me in particular, we’re really just trying to keep healthy. It’s that age-old thing: healthy body, healthy mind. I’d have laughed at myself a few years ago if I could hear myself saying that. But it’s true.’’

The end of the year is obviously a time of the year for people to reminisce on the music they've listened to these past 366 days, and invariably Coldplay's Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends has popped up with a late year review on the blogs. Here's one such review, posted on the final day of the year:

Rare is the album that can strike the balance between a dominant hit and a larger piece that plays well throughout. However, Coldplay's Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends is not only an excellent vehicle for "Viva La Vida," which topped the Billboard Hot 100 on June 28, it is an album that sees an already accomplished band spreading its wings and venturing into new, bigger sounds. And they find great success doing so.

The title track to the band's fourth album has been unavoidable this year, and for good reason. First of all, it was a part of an iTunes ad, and we've all seen what that has done for certain songs in the past (Jet's "Are You Gonna Be My Girl?" and Feist's "1234" come to mind.) But more importantly, a well-crafted rock anthem is hard to dislike, and "Viva La Vida" is certainly worthy of the anthem moniker.

Check back tomorrow for Coldplaying's final 2008 review with December. For now, read this full album review article at WikiColdplay here

IQ magazine’s December issue is now available in a free PDF format and contains a world exclusive behind the scene report on Coldplay’s Viva la Vida World Tour, entitled Life, Death And Butterflies. To save the online magazine, right click then save as here. You can also get the previous versions of the magazine (issues 1-20 also online here). Here's the synopsis of the Coldplay article:

Life, Death & Butterflies is a 16-page feature chronicling the Viva la Vida tour, sanctioned by Coldplay’s management and published by international live music business magazine IQ. Including exclusive interviews with management, key production personnel, booking agents, promoters and suppliers, it tells the inside story of how the tour was put together, what makes it tick and just what makes it such an original and ground-breaking production. This issue of IQ also includes an exclusive interview with Glastonbury festival founder Michael Eavis, as well as a roundup of the live music business in 2008.

You can discuss this exclusive World Tour Coverage article at the Coldplay forum here [thanks Terry]

It's also your LAST CHANCE to win a copy Coldplay Tour Special edition of the magazine by entering our Christmas Coldplay quiz - last entries being accepted now. Ten questions, fifty points up for grabs. The winner will receive a hard copy of the magazine right to their doorstep. To enter, follow the instructions here [thanks Jenjie]

Reviews are still coming in over Coldplay's recent concerts at London's O2 Arena. Here's one from News Shopper Online:

Coldplay have been churning out hits for what seems like an age, so it’s easy to forget just how talented they really are until you see them live in concert. The first time I saw the band perform six years ago was a rather muted affair, with Chris Martin spending most of the time glued to the piano and very little spent on production.

But when the lights came up on The O2 stage, the rock band even your mother likes seemed to have found a cache of dynamite, shoved it up their bums and lit the fuse. Lead singer Chris Martin’s exuberance was infectious, bouncing across the stage like a five-year-old on Christmas morning, and belting out favourites such as In My Place and Clocks. Fans did their best impression of an X-Factor entrant, singing as the band performed their breakthrough hit Yellow, while giant yellow balloons floated down from the ceiling showering fans with gold confetti when they burst. Other surprises came when Martin and drummer Will Champion climbed up into the back of the audience to play with Shaun of the Dead comedian Simon Pegg on the harmonica.

Read the full review article here

As we approach the year's end, it's worth recapturing the release of Coldplay's new album with a review we haven't posted before:

When you aspire to be the biggest band in the world, one of things that you need to do, if you’re following the U2 model anyway, is to hire Brian Eno. If Eno could stop Bono singing about bullets ripping the desert sky, then perhaps he could stop Chris Martin worrying about puzzles missing pieces? Quite how much input or impact Eno ultimately had on “Viva la Vida” is debatable (he’s credited with ‘sonic landscapes’), but there are definite signs here that Coldplay are developing as a band. It’s not a dramatic change, and is certainly a case of evolution rather than revolution: for the most part Coldplay still sound unmistakeably like Coldplay.

They seem more self-confident though, as if have acknowledged to themselves that yes, they do want to entertain the largest number of people possible, and that actually, that’s ok. Radiohead, it should be remembered, from a similar position, drew a rather different conclusion. Coldplay are good with melody, and there are melodies aplenty on this album: “Viva La Vida”, “Violet Hill”, “Lost”, “Cemeteries of London”, “Lovers in Japan”… the lyrics might still be a touch woolly, but the tunes are huge and compelling, and with “Strawberry Swing”, the band even show a little bit of unexpected African swing.

Read the full review at WikiColdplay here

Love 'em or loathe 'em, there is no escaping the fact that Coldplay's meteoric rise during the noughties was astonishing. Despite a poor critical reception last June, their current album 'Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends' holds the honour of being the most downloaded album in existence, topping the charts in a whopping 36 countries.

Back when this space was a horrendous dockside barn with atrocious acoustics, Chris Martin and chums played here while touring 'A Rush of Blood to the Head'. Both the venue and the band have raised their game since. Martin clearly is so fixated with Bono that at times I feel like he's auditioning for a remake of 'Rattle and Hum'. Two runways either side of stage see plenty of melodramatic running. Indeed, it's little wonder that they played five-a-side in Shamrock Rovers' spanking new Tallaght stadium over the weekend to warm up.

An acoustic interlude takes the show quite literally into the audience. Martin jokes that this is the "Boyzone segment" of the night, as the band launch into 'Jingle Bells' and drummer Will Champion gives 'Fairytale of New York' a lash with 10,000 or so on backing vocals.

Read the full review article here and watch Coldplay performing the second night's Fairytale of New York during the acoustic C-Stage set here

Last week, Coldplay fan Paul O'Brien came to London to see Coldplay at The O2, as his prize for winning the Lost? video competition. Coldplay.com gave him a shout to find out more about his triumphant video and his London trip.

Hi Paul. Congratulations on your win. How did you hear about the competition?

I heard about it through The Coldplay Messenger, the email newsletter.

What made you want to enter?

I'm a huge Coldplay fan! Almost to the point of being obsessive! But when I saw the details for the contest I thought I had to make the film. I thought the acoustic version of Lost? was a great base to start an idea from and I pretty much had 101 ideas from the very start.

How long have you been doing animation? Is it a hobby or a profession?

I'm actually a model maker and did a year of animation just recently. So it is both a hobby and a profession.

How did you come up with the idea for your Lost? video?

Listening to the song gave me lots of feelings, but mostly drew me towards the idea of people trying to find each other. I had played with the idea of a couple who had been forced apart, but then felt it was all a bit complex. Stop-Motion lends itself to simpler stories and I thought a dog wandering away from his owner was a lot less complicated, yet still could bring viewers the same kind of emotions.

How long did it take to make it?

I started work on the models pretty much as soon as the competition was announced as I knew the deadline was tight for what I wanted to achieve. The sets and characters took roughly two weeks to get ready and from that point the animation took probably another two weeks of sleepless nights! Everything went very well through the whole process, I always had it in the back of my mind that I didn't really have time to make mistakes!

Do you still have the models?

Yup, mostly all the models have gone up into the attic now except for Seamus who actually came to London for the trip! But yeah all the models would be ready to go for "Lost? Part Deux"!

What's this we've heard about a sizable Pink Floyd influence on the film?

Yeah, I'm a huge Pink Floyd fan. Pretty much the only two bands I listen to are Coldplay and Pink Floyd! While writing up the storyline I saw that there was a couple of things I could relate back to Pink Floyd and by the end of it I was having fun and ended up putting in a lot more references along the way! I'm really glad people noticed it. I also had read that Coldplay are Pink Floyd fans themselves so I thought it would all work well with the Coldplay references...

Were you pleased with the finished video? Did you have high hopes for it?

I was delighted with the way the video turned out and I hoped it might get shown on Coldplay's YouTube for maybe a day or so, but I never could have imagined that it would win the competition! There were some really great videos uploaded and I had almost given up hope when I saw the quality of them!

How did you feel when you found out you'd won?

My girlfriend actually rang me to tell me the news and I really just passed it off as a horrible prank... then I got online myself and realised it was true. It must have taken me two days to actually let myself believe that I would be jetting off to London to see the band! It really is the kind of thing that I could only dream of!

How was your the trip to London?

It was the most amazing night of my life! We were treated so well in London from the amazing hotel to the party before and after the show. As we were being shown to our seats I kept thinking "Okay, we're gonna be sitting here, these seats are great!" but the usher just kept walking all the way up to the front of the stage. I couldn't believe how lucky we were! It really was a night I'll never forget.

They showed your winning film to the 02 crowd. How was that?

That was another dream come true. Seeing the video on the screens was one of the weirdest things ever! I'm guessing that about 20,000 people watched my film that night and it even got a great reception. It's all been very surreal.

So what's next for you?

Well, at the moment I'm working as a model maker but there's another film in the pipeline. Animation is something I love to do and I want to go on to make bigger and better films.

And what's next for Seamus the dog?!

Well after his trip to London he was exhausted, but he's had a nap in his kennel and he's ready to make a trip to Belfast on the 23rd! He's a big Coldplay fan too!

You can't have a Dublin concert without having an image of a green magic ball...

With just a couple of days to Christmas, Coldplay became one of the first bands to play Dublin’s newly revamped Point Depot, report State Ireland. The venue’s rechristening under the corporate banner of the O2 should have been a sign that Coldplay too, are now a huge corporate entity. Having easily sold out two nights in the O2 and with a huge outdoor summer show coming to the capital in 2009, tickets are being touted outside for well over €100 as fans made the long walk down the quays in the drizzling December rain.

Said State: "We had wanted to bring you a review of the bands performance, lots of audience feedback on the gig and the new venue but sadly, corporate PR companies got in the way. Coldplay are at a stage where they are worth so much money that they have people who enforce rules on the way the media can report their shows. The photographers were ushered into an area, no more than 10 foot by three foot, about 100 metres from the centre of the stage. We could photograph songs 2, 3 and 4 only. Coldplay’s PR company made us sign contracts to hand over all copyright of the pictures to them to exploit as they wish. Not really the sign of a band who are looking for attention at a time when most bands need as much press coverage as possible to survive in a troubled financial time.

Read the full review article and see some fantastic pictures of Coldplay's latest concert here and watch Coldplay performing Fairytale of New York during the acoustic C-Stage set here [thanks mimixxx]

I guess if you've played every mega-bowl on the planet, the O2 arena must feel a bit pokey.

Maybe that's why Coldplay treated their concert last Tuesday at the old Millennium Dome like a Christmas knees-up down the pub (with 20,000 mates, that is). And even though Chris Martin can get right up some people's noses, you can forgive them a bit of fun at the end of yet another bumper year. Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends set a new record for the most downloaded album ever; picked up a clutch of Grammy nominations; and, recently, a copyright infringement (you know you're doing well when the lawsuits start flying your way).

Busy boys, then, and they certainly seemed in a hurry for the show's first hour. "Clocks", "Speed of Life", "In My Place", among other hits, simply sped by. As for "Yellow", the band's breakthrough hit, even they recognised that this needed some novelty value eight years after it first had us weeping into our Chardonnay – giant coloured space hoppers were released into the arena, they floated beguilingly above only to explode, spilling luminous confetti everywhere.

Read the full review article here

Coldplay frontman Chris Martin has revealed that the band's recent single 'Violet Hill' was inspired by the Beatles, Gigwise are reporting today.

The singer said the song was named after a road in London that joins Abbey Road - a street which has now become synonymous with The Beatles. "'Violet Hill' is a street and it joins Abbey Road - so it's kind of a Beatles reference,” Martin told the BBC.

The singer added he didn't think he had revealed the songs inspiration “in public” before. 'Violet Hill' featured on Coldplay's latest album 'Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends'.

It's the stuff dreams are made of... one of the biggest musical superstars of this generation walks over to you at a concert packed with 10,000 screaming fans and hands you one of his personal possessions.

But for nine-year-old Euan Bruce, it’s a reality. The Ayr Grammar pupil couldn’t believe his luck when his hero Chris Martin clocked him sitting in the front row of Coldplay’s sell-out gig at the SECC last Saturday night. And before he left the stage, the singer songwriter walked over to Euan and handed him the harmonica he had been playing throughout the gig.

Euan’s thrilled mum Gillian told Ayrshire Post: “We couldn’t believe it. We were sitting at what we thought was the back of the floored seating area, but there was a small stage behind us and Coldplay came on to that stage to perform a couple of songs at the start of the concert. “We could see Chris Martin really staring at Euan when he came on to the stage. Then before they left he came over and handed the harmonica to him. Lots of people were trying to grab it so Chris pulled it back before placing it firmly in Euan’s hand.”

Starstruck Euan was speechless at the big-hearted gesture. Gillian continued: “He fell asleep on the way home clutching the harmonica, it was so sweet. But he hasn’t told any of his friends about it at school, Euan is really shy and has kept it to himself – I’ve been telling everyone though!”

Music daft Euan rates Coldplay, Snow Patrol and The Proclaimers as his favourite bands. He’s started guitar lessons and is learning to play the drums - and it’s only a matter of time before he’s mastered the harmonica too.

And what does Euan want to be when he grows up? A singer songwriter like his new pal Chris Martin of course.

So British superband of the moment Coldplay is being sued in Los Angeles for plagiarising guitarist Joe Satriani in their hit Viva la Vida. Joe says that the song - also the title of Coldplay’s fourth album “incorporated substantial, original portions of Plaintiff’s composition ‘If I Could Fly‘.”

Read the actual court document detailing the case against Coldplay here [pdf... right click, save as]

The court docs were filed last week - 4 December - and so of course, the Internet being the extraordinary global gossip network that it is, the story has swamped a million blogs and newspapers. Joe has done an interview with Music Radar saying that it “felt like a dagger went right through my heart” when he first heard Coldplay’s composition. Following the media frenzy, Coldplay has responded with a note on its website saying “if there are any similarities between our two pieces of music, they are entirely coincidental” and asking that Joe “respectfully accept our assurances” that they didn’t rip him off.

Read the full article and download all four filings in case CV08-07987 at kierenmccarthy.com here [thanks to Coldplayzone.it for the heads up about the article]