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Of all the strange sights that Live 8 threw us during the summer (Madonna dancing awkwardly with a famine survivor, Snoop Dogg extolling the crowd to eradicate poverty by waving their "motherfuckin' hands in the air"), one of the strangest was Richard Ashcroft's guest appearance with Coldplay.   Now Coldplay are a fine group who have written some great songs and don't deserve half of the critical bile that's thrown at them. But they've never written a song as attention-grabbing as Bitter Sweet S

Performing at the Big Day Out and landing a heavy-duty national support gig might just be signs of the times for Youth Group, Christine Sams writes.   When his band Youth Group scored the supporting slot with Coldplay for their Australian tour in the middle of this year, singer Toby Martin found himself getting unexpected attention.   "My mum's friends were suddenly saying, 'Oh, you're playing with Coldplay'," Martin says, with a soft chuckle. "It's one of those things where people who aren't in

CANNES, France (Reuters) - Nobody said it was easy for EMI, the world's third-largest record company and the home of British band Coldplay, as the music industry has weathered six straight years of falling sales.   Yet EMI Chairman Eric Nicoli and others in the industry are seeing signs of hope coming from the very source of many of the industry's woes -- the Internet.   Downloaded music sales on online services such as Apple Computer Inc.'s iTunes Music Store are surging, and made up 6 percent

Chad Dunham worked two years with the U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia -- yet he "attended" worship each week in South Florida.   The link: A streaming video, or online broadcast, of Fort Lauderdale's Christ Church, United Methodist, on his computer. He and Gloria Nancy, his Colombian-born wife, often gathered to watch along with as many as 10 family members.   Some ministries have begun to major in the technological reach. The Relevant Media Group publishes an e-zine for Christians in their 20s

In a world awash with celebrity merchandise, you have to hand it to 50 Cent. It seemed that every star endorsement had been tried - dolls, scent, clothes, books, even coffins - but Fiddy's come up with the 50 Cent dildo. His dream is to produce a sex toy modelled on himself: big but not so big that his female fans' boyfriends will object. It's still a, ahem, pipe dream, but, if it goes into production it's likely to get a better response than Get Rich Or Die Tryin', the singer's film (out this w

As the lead singer of indie rock darlings Rilo Kiley, Jenny Lewis spent most of last year on the road touring behind the group’s breakthrough album, “More Adventurous,” and warming up the stage for a set of arena shows with Coldplay. Now the 30-year-old former child star is setting off on her first solo tour in support of her brilliant debut, “Rabbit Fur Coat,” recorded with the Watson Twins, out this week on Bright Eyes leader Conor Oberst’s Team Love label. Lewis and the Watsons play Feb. 3 at

The world’s top women golfers - including the world’s undisputed No 1 Annika Sorenstam - are in South Africa for the Women’s World Cup of Golf, which started on Friday and ends on Sunday at the Gary Player Country Club course at Sun City.   But Michelle Wie, the one they call the female Tiger Woods and who is the most-spoken about golfer on the women’s - and the men’s - circuit is not here. And she’s missing because of the selection process in which Paula Creamer, who qualified to represent the

What does it take to draw jaded Hollywood hipsters out to the barren Southern California desert besides outlet malls, gleaming Indian casinos and the promise of cheap methamphetamines?   Six years ago, the organizers of the Coachella Music and Arts Festival bet that an enormous two-day European-style concert that bills alternative-rock heroes alongside buzz-worthy new bands and fashionable electronic artists would do the trick. Since then, nearly 50,000 music fans from all over the world have fa

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Recognizing how tough it can be for developing artists to build a career, concert promoter/venue operator House of Blues has launched the Ones to Watch program.   Each quarter, five acts will be profiled online at the HOB Web site (hob.com/artistfeatures/onestowatch). HOB staffers pick the artists based on music they love. The site will feature a free song download and a podcast of each act being interviewed. The site also will include biographies, photos and links to pur

A reader points out that Hollywood überproducer Jerry Bruckheimer has funneled his billion dollar, mass appeal instincts into Apple’s "starfucking meets the art of the mixed tape"-hybrid, the iTunes celebrity playlist. You’ll need to have the iTunes software installed to access the list, but here we offer a sampling of Bruckheimer’s selections accompanied by some thoughts on why he chose them:   'In da Club' - 50 Cent: Moving rhythm and melody, makes you want to dance.   'Oh' - Ciara: A one-of

When a band gets as big as Coldplay—and no group to emerge this century is bigger—it is tempting to attribute the achievement to some form of artistic compromise. So cynical have we become that we think it nearly impossible for artists to reach the top of their field strictly on their own terms. Judging by the critical consensus on such current megastars as 50 Cent, Norah Jones, and, yes, Coldplay, a person might reasonably conclude that each of them is holding something back, consciously repres

Morning Runner have been described as an edgier Coldplay and are set to be one of the biggest bands of 2006. But if there's one thing guaranteed to get lead singer Matt Greener on edge, it's being compared to Chris Martin's all-conquering kings of melodic rock, who they supported on a nationwide tour last year.   The band head to North Wales as part of their own headline tour to promote their debut album Wilderness Is Paradise Now, out on March 6 and expected to be one of the best records of th

Formed in June 2002, Ohio quartet Lovedrug took only 2 months before releasing their first EP. Fronted by Michael Shepard, they’ve shared stages with Something Corporate, The Killers, and the legendary Robert Plant.   “Pretend You’re Alive” has an intro not unlike Coldplay’s “In My Place”, and then the band, seemingly from nowhere, throw out a massive kick-ass riff for the imposing but disjointed “Pandamoranda”.   Read the full review here   When Michael Hutchence was found dead in a hotel room

Heard the new Gavin DeGraw single yet? Fall Out Boy? How about the Pussycat Dolls?   At the moment, these emerging artists are the proud owners of some of the country’s most popular songs. If you don’t recognize any of those names, don’t beat yourself up for being hopelessly out of touch. Chances are your neighbor doesn’t know them, either.   And if you’re familiar with one, it’s a solid bet you haven’t stumbled on the others. They inhabit three distinct universes — pop sincerity, pop-punk and p

When you’re in a cult band that’s just starting to make some noise, getting dropped by a major distributor could silence things really quickly.   That’s the position the four guys in the New Orleans band Mute Math found themselves in last year when Warner Bros., which had distributed their EP, declined to pick up their new disc. In a spasm of do-it-yourself self-reliance, Mute Math decided to turn to what may be the Internet success story of the moment: MySpace.com, the combo blog/e-mail/bulleti

In the media blitz last year preceding the release of their hotly anticipated album "X&Y," the guys of Coldplay made their mission quite clear: They want to be the best and biggest rock band in the world.   And, for better or worse, the British quartet (Chris Martin on vocals and piano, Jonny Buckland on guitar, Will Champion on drums and Guy Berryman on bass) may be well on its way to realizing that goal.   It took just two albums, the highly acclaimed "Parachutes" (2000) and "A Rush of Blo

The Rolling Stones roll into town next week for a couple of shows at the United Center. But it seems the bad boys maybe aren't so bad anymore.   A contract rider, which spells out just what it takes to host the Stones -- outside of gobs of cash -- was the "featured document'' posted Wednesday on the Internet site thesmokingun.com.   As the wags at the site put it, Mick Jagger's vices might be limited these days to watching cricket -- promoters are required to provide cable or satellite access to

SAN FRANCISCO - As a first-year student at Stanford Graduate School of Business, Jeff Fluhr and a classmate entered a competition for the best new business plan. Their entry, called "NeedATicket.com," envisioned a centralized Web site where people could auction off extra tickets for sporting events and concerts.   Utterly convinced the concept would work, Fluhr withdrew the entry and dropped out of school to launch the business. "It was definitely something that my mother was not thrilled about,

Imitation being the sincerest form of flattery, Coldplay would be absolutely humbled should Chris Martin and company ever have occasion to hear this polished debut by the Sackville-bred, Halifax-based quartet In-Flight Safety.   Back in England, the Coldplay formula — chiming guitars and/or hammering keyboards, soaringly earnest vocals and clockwork crescendos — has already bred a slew of successful copycats, including Starsailor and Keane. Seldom has the blueprint been followed as faithfully as

British rock band Coldplay, who burst onto the music scene with its 1999 (2000 actually - ed.) album, Parachutes, is often compared to a little rock band called U2.   With lead singer Chris Martin and the songs that the band writes, I can understand the comparison.   Martin, like U2's Bono, sings with great compassion and with that it is no surprise that Coldplay's latest single, "Talk," is about having compassion for others. Band members Guy Berryman and Jon Buckland (lead and bass guitar) pr

To save the earth’s resources we must reduce the size of our eco-footprint, says Maxine Boersma   Coldplay reportedly offset the emissions of a world tour by planting trees in Scotland, but you can reduce your eco-footprint more quickly.   Read the full article here

The Zionsville Community High School senior hopes to earn the coveted title by wowing the audience with his rendition of Kelly Clarkson's hit "Since U Been Gone" during Mr. Zionsville competition Tuesday in the Performing Arts Center.   "It's my favorite song in the world," Garvey said with a hint of sarcasm. "It's got me through some tough times."   Thirteen senior boys will join Garvey on stage as they show off their personalities and talents to compete for the honor of Mr. Zionsville. The ann

A Norwich band soon look set to hit the big time with a hectic schedule of tour dates, photo shoots, pop videos, and single releases.   Cord, who are signed to Island Records, today announced the label's plans to catapult them into the spotlight.   The four-piece have recorded their debut album with top name producers including Coldplay's Danton Supple and now they will have radio and TV pluggers, promoters and press agents all working for them.But lead singer James Leeds still has his feet firm

After spending most of 2005 with her band Rilo Kiley opening for Coldplay on their American tour, Jenny Lewis cuts loose from the corporate arenas with her first solo album, a warm but prickly cure for all manner of ills at this time of year.   Generously she gives equal billing to the Watson Twins from Kentucky, whose uncanny sibling harmonies are the audio equivalent of a sepia tinge, giving this collection of contemporary songs the air of an instant classic.   The girl from Omaha's vocal qua

It is impossible to ignore the fact that Gwyneth Paltrow is expecting her second child in a few months. Barefaced but still beautiful, with blonde hair arranged loosely around her shoulders, she is clad in superskinny jeans, and even skinnier heels, but from the waist up her five-month bulge billows so that she looks like a tapeworm that has swallowed a football. Any reference to her pregnancy, however, is strictly off-limits, says her publicist.   Paltrow wants privacy, and she's not kidding: