Well things on the LP5 front are hotting up already, just weeks after the band returned from their Latin America tour. No sooner than they close the door on Viva la Vida, another one opens with hope that 2010 will see new material being released.
In this month's Q magazine, the '10 seconds with Chris Martin' snippet hinted that there may well be some new music to listen to before the year is out. Chris Martin once again intimated: "We've been in the studio for six months now. Brian Eno is with us, but he's got a kind of catflap, so he can come and go as he pleases. We might get a couple of songs out before Christmas...It sounds a bit like jazz fusion...That might be a lie, but I don't mind another lie in the list of fucking lies!" [thanks mimixxx]
Read on for the article in which Chris Martin is voted as one of Q's Greatest Frontmen Ever...
Though Chris Martin may complain he doesn't mind "not being cool" the readers of Q beg to differ as he has made it on the list of the 100 Greatest Frontmen. He may not know he's "More than just rock’s Mr Nice Guy," but he was still able to share his thoughts with Q on being one of the greatest. Here is the article in which he talks about Radiohead, Michael Stipe, Bono, and that awful Chinese dragon head...
More than just rock's Mr Nice Guy, Chris Martin is possessed of a Bono-sized charisma and a feel for grand musical drama. With his public school education and love of yoga, Martin may lack rebel credentials. But in just a decade he's grown from heart-on-sleeve balladeer to an international rock ambassador able to command the largest arena - despite spending much of his time onstage behind a piano. Fact: he attributes his enthusiasm for performing falsetto to an unflinching love of Michael Jackson.
What makes a great frontman?
"This is going to sound cheesy, but what makes a great frontman is the great people behind him. I had this conversation yesterday with Natasha [Khan] from Bat For Lashes, who's on tour with us, and we were talking about how if Bono or I were to release solo albums they'd be cringeworthy. It's still the same person singing but the gang aspect makes you acceptable. If you take me out of the band, I can't dance, I can't do what Beyonce can do. I'm only surviving on enthusiasm and collective chemistry. All frontmen become shit as soon as the perceived least important member of their band leaves."
What's been your greatest moment as a frontman?
"I'm hoping it might be in about two hours. We're playing in Brazil and it's my birthday, too. It's a fucking awesome way to spend a birthday. But Glastonbury's hard to beat. There are people in the world who don't like Glastonbury, but they tend to be cunts. The first time we played it was the best. The year before, I was on a train, I'd just had a brace fitted and I felt like a tosser. I was coming back from Exeter to London, when 6000 Radiohead fans got on the train from Glastonbury. I felt like hiding in the bathroom. The next year we were playing there, so it was a big turnaround. And I finally had good teeth."
And your most embarrassing?
"Ninety percent of the day is embarrassing. But the most embarrassing for a performer is when you doubt yourself. The worst I can remember is in Sheffield in 2008. I was onstage and I suddenly felt about 12 years old. I thought, what the hell am I doing? I wanted to leave the stage but I turned around and looked at Will [Champion, drummer of Coldplay] and he did something with his face that made me feel OK. That's why no frontman is worth anything without the rest of the gang."
What's the best bit of advice you've received from another frontman?
"Michael Stipe told me to wear tight trousers. We did and we had a number 1 in America."
Has Bono ever given you any advice?
"The best advice U2 gave us was, sound a bit like us for a bit. We tried it with X&Y. It worked out OK but we had to move off it pretty fast."
Do you have any pre-show rituals?
"We have nothing but pre-show rituals. I turned 33 today, which is now old for a singer, so I have to work against the fat. Today I had to go on a treadmill, not turn it on and run on it using leg power alone. The nearest thing I can equate it to is helping an old lady push-start a car."
What's the most ridiculous stage prop you've had?
"We had a Chinese dragon's head last year. I came offstage and said, God, that dragon bit was good wasn't it? The rest of the band just stayed quiet."
Have you ever worn anything onstage you've later regretted?
"Other than the dragon's head? No. Quite the opposite: the skinny trousers worked."
Is image important for a frontman?
"It's important, but you can get away with not having one [laughs]."
Who's your greatest frontman?
"It's not my job to make these lists, it's your job. Fucking hell: Wayne Coyne! He's number one. He gets to the essence of what a concert is: it's people who've come from work and want to have a good time. It's not about reviews or sales or who's the biggest; its about making them feel they couldn't have been anywhere better for that hour and a half. Wayne is the master of that."
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