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Chris Martin also has kind words for Nickelback   Coldplay's Chris Martin has said that his band are "less shit than they used to be" in an interview to be broadcast tonight, report NME.   The singer made the comment to DJ Christian O'Connell after their show in Munich last week. The concert is being broadcast in full tonight on Absolute Radio, which has today been re-branded from Virgin Radio. Of the concert, Martin says: "I think our concert is the least shit Coldplay concert at the moment tha

Savers shiver, bankers bluster, politicians prattle.   Elsewhere in the news, a new music radio station was launched at 7.45 yesterday morning. Absolute Radio used to be Virgin. Virgin, owned and launched by Richard Branson in 1993, has never been a success except to its successive owners. It has changed hands for millions and millions of pounds. In terms of ratings and revenue it's never lived up to its potential.   It was, after all, the first national commercial pop network, one of the three

UK - Summit Steel is supplying production rigging plus two automation systems and control for the European and UK sections of the current Coldplay Viva la Vida world tour.   Summit's Jay Call has co-ordinated the project from its Kent HQ, liaising closely with the touring crew including head rigger Gabe Wood and production manager Craig Finlay.   The supply includes a 26 way Kinesys variable speed automation system with K2 control and a 10-way Kinesys fixed speed automation system with Vector co

Popjustice.com spoke with Ne-Yo in a Q&A, where the R&B singer talked about how his third album ‘Year of the Gentleman’ was inspired by UK music. Asked which UK acts were the inspiration, the 28-year-old responded, “I like Leona Lewis, she’s got an incredible voice. I’ve been working with her on her new album. I’m a huge fan of Coldplay, and of course Amy Winehouse.”   In the meantime, the smooth soulster is keeping busy with his well-mannered third album. He said, "The idea of gentleman

In a recent reader Q&A for US magazine Blender, the ever-quotable Oasis star Noel Gallagher [pictured] was also far from reticent with regard to his feelings about Radiohead and Coldplay.   He said, "Radiohead and Coldplay think too much. They get to a certain level and start worrying about the environment. That's for the governments of the world to worry about. We need to concentrate on fucking women, taking drugs, wearing sunglasses and being cool. Never mind the polar bears."   And on Col

Coldplay is out on the road with a Martin rig that includes the new MAC 2000 Wash XB luminaire.   Touring Europe and North America in support of their new album, Viva La Vida, the show uses no LED screens or crowd imag at the band's request. Lighting, set, and production designer Paul Normandale makes sure of that, opting for visual impact from video projection and Martin MAC 2000 Wash XBs, MAC 700 Profiles, MAC 250 Washes and Atomic 3000 strobes.   "Coldplay are a high impact band that require

Chris Martin's energy could "power a small town". According to Travis singer Fran Healy, the Coldplay frontman never rests and is the most active person he has ever met.   Scottish rocker Fran said: "Chris Martin doesn't sleep. I don't necessarily think he could sleep any better before he got successful. That's just what he's like. If you plugged him in you could power a small Scottish town with all of his energy."   The 'Why Does It Always Rain On Me?' singer also revealed the unique way he bon

Taken from an article Travis did with The Times, Fran Healy discusses his friendship with Chris Martin:   It is, indeed, interesting to observe how different musicians internalise the pressure. In their latter years, Abba started writing songs about Russian dissidents losing their marbles while waiting for the KGB to knock on the door. The title track of Coldplay’s Viva La Vida concerns an ex-dictator looking back on the immeasurable power he enjoyed. “Exactly,” smiles Payne affectionately. “It’

Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix, born in 1798, was a French Romantic artist, held by many as the pioneer of the French Romantic School. Delacroix could represent reality with the skill of a master and yet borrow richly from exotic inspirations. Also hugely proficient at lithography, he illustrated various works of William Shakespeare, the Scottish writer Sir Walter Scott and the German writer Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe. But what Delacroix himself did not know was that he would be the album cov

2005 saw what may very well be Coldplay's only misstep in ten years. "X&Y" was Coldplay's way of creating more mainstream music and while it was successful commercially, it lacked in many ways and for a while it seemed as though the band had traded itself in to please the masses.   Then, three years later, Coldplay finally released their fourth, much-awaited album, the oddly but aptly titled "Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends." This fourth effort saw the band aim for the stratospher

Coldplay.com caught up with Coldplay's latest support act yesterday. With Albert Hammond Jr supporting Coldplay on the current European leg of the Viva La Vida tour, they gave The Strokes' guitarist a shout before the Strasbourg show to find out more about his solo project.   Hi Albert. So, it's the first gig of the European tour today. Yes it is. I'm about to do soundcheck.   Are you excited? Are you kidding? Yeah, I'm very excited.   It must be quite strange to be supporting when you're used t

[excerpt from this month's Rolling Stone]   One fine day' — there's a funny story about that," Brian Eno says with a smile, referring to one of the 11 songs on Everything That Happens Will Happen Today, the new, gleaming art-pop album the British producer and occasional solo artist has made with his friend, ex-Talking Heads singer-guitarist David Byrne.   Sitting at a table across from Byrne in the latter's Lower Manhattan office, Eno says that at a point early in the record's extended birth, he

Coldplay's thrifty habit has the Mirror in stitches, judging by the article in their online newspaper this morning. It reads:   We couldn't help cracking up when we heard Coldplay secret to their success - sewing. They've sold 34.6 million albums and top the rock rich list, but the thrifty lot don't care about their image or waste their wonga on designer threads.   Instead, the millionaire rock stars like nothing better than getting behind their sewing machines for a good stitch and bitch. And C

Will Champion has been speaking to BeQueen.de in London, the interviewer was Sarah Elena Schwerzmann. Translation by Larry.   Will Champion, the new Coldplay album is called "Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends." How did you come to this name? Will Champion: We have only baptized the album "Viva la Vida", because it is a tribute to life itself. At this time we were in Mexico City, where we visited Frida Kahlo's house and encountered this quote. We love Kahlo's art and were speechless in th

With EMI losing Paul McCartney, Radiohead and The Rolling Stones in quick succession, and with other acts on the label, such as Robbie Williams, threatening to go on strike, it wasn't looking good for the famous imprint earlier this year.   Throw in the fact that EMI has been hoovered up by a private equity firm, and that a lot of the "music" people at the label had either jumped or been pushed, and there was speculation about its continuing existence.   Terra Firma (the new owner of EMI) had it

Coldplay is starting to get too good at its job, report Paste Magazine. At the writing session for Viva La Vida, Chris Martin and Co. got a little overzealous, writing too much to fit on one album. The tracks that were left off Viva La Vida might make an appearance as another album as soon as next year.   Viva La Vida was released in June and produced by Brian Eno. The next album is widely rumored to be almost completed because of all the extra material from that recording session. The speculati

Interview found on eBay Chatter:   Coldplay is one of my favorite bands and is currently touring to promote their new album Viva la Vida. I had the chance to interview drummer Will Champion when they came to San Jose to play at the HP Pavilion.   I asked him if he had ever bought or sold anything on eBay. Here is what he said: "Well, for our new single, Viva La Vida, we needed to find a big bell for me to ring. So we looked on eBay and found an old school bell that we bought. We used it in the s

Blogcritic magazine has finally got round to reviewing Coldplay's new album, 'Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends'. Here is said review:   I've joked with friends and co-workers that Viva La Vida is either the first U2 record we're going to hear this year or the best U2 record we're going to hear this year. Many critics thought Coldplay had Radiohead ambitions when they first hit the scene, but it's been increasingly clear over the past several years that Chris Martin has Bono envy. Coldpl

Matt McGinn has been Jonny's guitar tech for eight years. He's recently written a book, Roadie, documenting his time with Coldplay. We thought you might like to read an entertaining excerpt explaining how Matt came to meet the band. (Oh, and for the record, Matt is not Roadie #42.), courtesy of Coldplay.com:   A Roadie Meets A Band   As kids in the ‘70s, we all used to whisper the words "The Year 2000" as if when the new century arrived the sun would blow up and Earth’d change colour/go off cour

Coldplay were joined onstage by Alicia Keys, who played piano on 'Clocks' as the band closed the final night of Japanese festival Summer Sonic tonight (August 10).   Against a backdrop depicting the French Romantic painting by Eugène Delacroix, 'Liberty Leading The People' - used as the band's album artwork for recent release 'Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends' - the band performed in costumes aping the style of French revolutionaries, as they have done for other dates on their current t

Buzzing with a tingles of anticipation, tens of thousands of festivals-goers groaned over their morning toast on 19th June 2002 as they discovered the list of headlining acts for that year’s Glastonbury Festival.   There was washed up ‘mocker’ Rod Stewart, Kelly Jones from the Stereophonics, who sounded as if someone had just taken a cheese grater to his throat, and worst of all Coldplay: a miserable collection of middle class students with a singer that moaned whilst hunched over his piano.   I

Interesting article from the Hartford Courant covering the views of those who have recently been to a Coldplay show and thought it was too short:   The issue of fan entitlement has come up before, but people crabbing about Coldplay's performance last weekend in Hartford suggests it's time for a refresher.   Some Coldplay adherent are unhappy with just about everything the band did -- or didn't do -- at XL Center last Saturday night: The group didn't play long enough, no one apologized for changi

New England Patriots QB/QT Tom Bradytook a pass on practice yesterday probably to rest up from the rockin’ Coldplay show he took in with glamazon galpal Gisele Bundchen at the TD Banknorth Garden!   Tom, who is reportedly a HUGE fan of Chris Martin & Co., blew out of a late practice at Gillette Stadium Monday night to join Gi and her GFs at the Garden shortly after the British rockers took the stage at 10 p.m. In fact, Martin dedicated the last song, “Death and All His Friends,” a cut off th

A few years ago, it became socially acceptable -- even mandatory -- to bash Coldplay. There were plenty of reasons, everything from the band's shameless, simplified aping of Radiohead and U2 (the most aped bands around) to frontman Chris Martin's ubiquitousness as part of a celebrity couple (see: Paltrow, Gwyneth), complete with absurd baby name.   A review in this paper labeled the band's output as music for "medium-level dull people." The phenomenon peaked when one of the most popular comedies

It seems that Coldplay is still searching for their niche among the world’s major rock acts.   That might explain why the British quartet experimented with so many different styles and formats at the sold-out TD Banknorth Garden last night - some successfully, others not so much. The night of massive sing-alongs and fist-pumping anthems began with the dark, brooding “Violet Hill” and the pounding chords of “Clocks,” during which lead singer Chris Martin almost fell off his piano stool with enthu