When you think about it, Coldplay owe a lot to Canada. They were all influenced by Neil Young and love The Arcade Fire, to the point of once singing an excerpt of "Rebellion (Lies)" at a gig. Ron Sexsmith toured with the band when they were supporting A Rush Of Blood To The Head and in turn, Chris Martin contributed to Sexsmith's single, "Gold In Them Hills." The British band's most recent release, X&Y, reached #1 in Canada and a "buzz" gig held in Toronto sold out in one minute.
Further solidifying their reputation as nice guys, Coldplay wrote for and appeared on the cover of Chart's most recent, artist-written issue. Aside from talking about themselves, Chris Martin, Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland and Will Champion had some things to say about the land of the north.Like many people who didn't visit Canada until adulthood, bassist Berryman said he found that his childhood thoughts concerning the country conflicted with Canada itself. "The images that I have of Canada in my head really stem from my ideas that I had about Canada when I was a young boy and not the images I have since actually experienced being there," Berryman said. "When I think of Canada, I think of maple leafs, extremely lush forests, lakes and mountains and an incredible sense of outdoor activity. It is strange that I still have this image because I've only spent time in the cities in Canada and haven't actually experienced all of this."
In fact, we may catch sight of Berryman canoeing in the Maritimes, camping out in Algonquin, swatting mosquitoes in Winnipeg or cycling in Stanley Park in a few years' time.
"Canada is definitely a place that when I get older and have some more time I would really like to explore the countryside. I know there are some really beautiful parts of Canada in terms of scenery and stuff like that so I really want to see it some day," Berryman said.
Drummer Champion's memories of Canada have more to do with mobs, police reinforcement and hysteria in downtown Toronto. He spoke about the "crazy reception" when Martin and Buckland appeared at radio station 102.1 The Edge in May. "The fact that this event became so big — involving mounted police, making the newspapers (even in England!) and that the station manager almost got arrested — is incredible," Champion marveled. "We really found out that day about the devotion of our Canadian fans and it is pretty extraordinary!"
For his turn, Martin focused on Canada's blossoming musicians. "There's great music out of Canada. It has one of the best bands in the world right now — i.e. Fire… of the Arcade variety. It's also cool that we have a Canadian band Black Mountain opening for us on the first part of our upcoming North American Tour," he said. "Canada is heaven on a stick!"
Three band members, three wildly opposing thoughts. Chatty guitarist Buckland filled in what his bandmates forgot to mention. "I think of Ron Sexsmith and snow," he said.
Canadian Coldplay fans will be the first audiences for the band's upcoming Twisted Logic tour. Here are the dates:
August 2 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre
August 3 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre
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