Pictures from the gig in Madrid on 11th April can be found here

[thanks DefDazz]

It's good to see that avant-garde attitudes still prevail in British pop. Those futurist provocateurs at the NME seem troubled, even a little shocked, by the new Coldplay sleeve. It's a bit ... abstract, they complain, for all the world like the Daily Mail.

The designers, Mark Tappin and Simon Grofton, have created a digital logo which echoes every modernist school of painting from suprematism to De Stijl. They themselves cite 1940s mathematical abstraction. To the NME and the websites apparently obsessed with this image, it is, however, a cross between The Da Vinci Code and Fermat's last theorem: the great brain-teaser of our time. Is it phallic? Is it a coded celebrity portrait? Guys, guys - have you thought of asking: is it art?And to think that pop is supposed to be once again the natural home of art-school poseurs. So lacking in pose are Coldplay's exegetes that they are happy to come across as crass bourgeois realists for whom everything has to have a "message". Have they never seen DA Pennebaker's film Don't Look Back, with that excruciating moment when the English journalist asks Bob Dylan through stiff upper lips what his "message" is? That man looks hip compared to the author of the NME's column.

Abstract - as in non-figurative, not-representational: is that such an impossible concept? I mean, what do you do when someone gives you a birthday present wrapped in ripoff Damien Hirst spot paper? Spend all day trying to decipher it?

The actual look of the Coldplay cover is retro: it resembles the art-rock covers of yesteryear, from Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon to Joy Division's Closer. It is redolent of Kraftwerk or, less nobly, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, and of an entire tradition of pop as art, as opposed to art as pop. In this sense it is an emphatic repudiation of 1990s idiot cult.

Or, of course, it's just possible that their original design was for a naked woman wearing a dog collar smelling a leather glove, like the cover for Spinal Tap's Smell the Glove, and - as in that case - the record company suggested something more abstract.

Source: Guardian

Coldplay has debuted the first single off their upcoming album X&Y, but not on the radio -- the song is only available as a Cingular ringtone.

The British band has made a 30-second sample of Speed of Sound available through Atlanta-based Cingular Wireless' ring tone store. The sample was made available nearly a week before the song's radio debut Monday and nearly two months before the album's Capitol Records release June 7, the Seattle Times reported Wednesday.

The ringtone debut may signal a major step for the music industry, which previously relied almost exclusively on radio and television, the Times said. The step also lends credibility to the rapidly expanding ringtone market.

It was sacrosanct previously to get it out on radio first because it was perceived to be the biggest, said Roger Entner, a wireless analyst with Ovum. But now they feel more served by bringing it out with a large [wireless] carrier.

The ringtone is the first installment of a Cingular service called Cingular Sounds, which allows subscribers a first listen to songs before they hit radio.

Music Video Director Mark Romanek was in attendance at the impromptu Coldplay show at the Troubadour in Los Angeles on March 11th, 2005. If Parlophone has indeed commissioned Mr. Romanek's services for "Speed of Sound" or any upcoming Coldplay single that happening should make for a great Coldplay video.

It's also possible that since Romanek's budgets for some of his videos can run on the expensive side (though he did Johnny Cash's "hurt" pretty much for free) Parlophone or Romanek himself may choose to wait for a single more to his liking to be released to go along with whatever visuls he has in mind. Romanek's credits include NIN's "closer" and "the perfect drug", Red Hot Chilli Peppers "can't stop", and Beck's "devils haircut", amongst many others. More of his work can been seen here

There is a preview on the Cingular site here of the new Coldplay single, Speed Of Sound.

[thanks mc]

The band that brought us the tick of "Clocks" will now bring us annoying cell phone rings.

Coldplay struck a deal with cellular provider Cingular to debut a 30-second portion of "Speed of Sound" from its upcoming X&Y album starting yesterday. The preview, which comes a week before radio gets the track, is hitched with a massive marketing campaign to put Coldplay graphics on the Cingular web site, give the band premium placement on the provider's ringtone purchase pages and even spam celluarl providers with text messages announcing the release of the album. The move is an experiment in giving the band's release a leg up on the competition through new marketing channels.

So much for making trade fair, huh, Mr. Martin?

http://www.aversion.com/news/news_article.cfm?news_id=4122

[thanks mimi]

Speed Of Sound will have it's first play on UK when Chris and Jonny are on Lamacq Live on Monday the 18th of April on Radio 1 from 9pm. [thanks Vince]

Coldplay, Kylie Minogue and the White Stripes are the headline acts at this summer's Glastonbury festival. [thanks mimi]

The Detroit minimalist duo the White Stripes, whose stirring Glastonbury set in 2002 established them as festival favourites, will top the bill on Friday night, while the British rockers Coldplay will fill the prestigious Saturday night headline slot - their third Glastonbury appearance.

Other confirmed acts range from veterans such as Van Morrison, Brian Wilson, Taj Mahal, Elvis Costello, the Undertones, New Order, Echo and the Bunnymen and Garbage to leading lights of the resurgent rock scene such as Kaiser Chiefs, Bloc Party, the Killers, the Thrills, the Bravery, Razorlight, Kasabian, Athlete and the Zutons. Other notable acts this year include Ian Brown, Fatboy Slim, Royksopp, Cake, Rufus Wainwright, the Coral and Ash.

Mr Eavis said the stakes were high for Coldplay as they were unveiling a new album, X&Y. "It will need to be their best performance of all time," he said. "But they've got integrity and great tunes. They're the best songwriting band in the world at the moment."

His daughter, Emily, is the co-programmer of the John Peel stage, the festival's venue for new talent. She is excited about a lineup that ranges from the alternative country star Ryan Adams and the Nebraska singer-songwriter Conor Oberst (aka Bright Eyes) to less familiar names such as the Tears, Go Team, the Earlies, Willy Mason, M83, Your Code Name is: Milo, Nine Black Alps and the cabaret-punk duo Dresden Dolls.

"I think it is an exceptional time for new music," said Ms Eavis. "There has been a brilliant run of stuff from Britain and overseas."

All 112,000 tickets to the event sold out in less than three hours.Divided between 11 stages, the line-up comprises over 200 acts that run the gamut from established names to untested newcomers.

US synth-rockers The Bravery, winners of the BBC News website's Sound of 2005 poll to find the best new music talent, lead a strong showing of contemporary bands, while solo artists range from hotly-tipped Scottish folk singer KT Tunstall to US singer-songwriter Tori Amos.

Audiences can also sample such bizarre-sounding ensembles as Shooglenifty, the Baghdaddies and the Jaipur Kawa Brass Band.

However, festival founder Michael Eavis's hopes of booking Irish rockers U2 appear to have been dashed. Last year's Glastonbury saw Sir Paul McCartney and Oasis brave wet weather to perform before a largely enthusiastic crowd.

Mr Eavis has already announced there will be no festival in 2006.

Coldplay will play at the "Voix du Gaou" in Six-Four (near Marseille and Toulon) on the 14th July.

More details here and here

http://ema.european.mtve.com/streaming/win.jhtml?stream=coldplay/interview_march05/coldplay_reversion_mbr.wmv

Copy and paste the link into Windows Media Player [file > URL]

"It's like Eiffel Tower fired into space, covered in beautiful gems..." ~ Chris Martin on what you can expect from a Coldplay concert in 2005.

After the disastrous summer of 2004, in which ticket revenue dropped an estimated forty percent, the concert industry has resolved to reinvent itself -- with a boost from blockbuster tours by Coldplay, Dave Matthews Band and Bruce Springsteen.

"Promoters are doing the things we have always wanted them to do: Keep the ticket prices low, keep the Ticketmaster charges cheaper for the lawn, keep the lawn tickets low, and some other things, like allowing people to bring in their own picnic blankets," says Tony Dimitriades, longtime manager of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, whose tickets will cost less than $60.Ticket prices rose sharply in the last five years, due in part to promoter Clear Channel Entertainment's practice of offering higher and higher upfront payments (known as guarantees) to top artists in an attempt to drive competing promoters out of the market. The big guarantees were passed along to fans in the form of higher ticket prices.

This year Clear Channel, the world's largest concert promoter, has asked bands to accept less money upfront in an effort to make tickets cheaper. While the biggest acts are impervious to promoters' efforts to tinker with prices -- sources say Paul McCartney and the Rolling Stones, who will both tour this fall, may each go as high as $250 for the best seats -- many others, including Bob Dylan and Def Leppard, have agreed to smaller guarantees. These artists figure they can profit just as well off a percentage of the final ticket sales.

Michael Rapino, who took over Clear Channel's global-music division in a company shake-up last July, is behind the changes. In addition to asking artists to take less money in advance, he is working on capping Ticketmaster fees at $5, removing "facility fees" of about $4 per ticket and cutting lawn seats to $20. "We're going to do what we can to lower ticket prices and increase the consumer experience," he told Rolling Stone earlier this year.

Clear Channel's biggest competitors, House of Blues Concerts and AEG Live, are skeptical of Rapino's claims. Since last summer, both companies have argued for lower guarantees, but House of Blues VP Alex Hodges says Clear Channel has continued the practice -- forcing his company to respond in kind or lose out on booking shows. "It's always a game of chicken," he says.

Motley Crue, on tour now and returning for a second U.S. leg in July, were one of the first bands affected by Clear Channel's new approach. Initially, promoters turned down the band's demand for big guarantees. So Motley Crue booked shows directly with arenas (the ones Clear Channel doesn't own), with top ticket prices of $75. When the shows proved to be successful, promoters, including Clear Channel, signed on to book additional dates. "If this had been last year, they probably would have received $300,000 guarantees," says Doc McGhee, who manages Kiss and others. "Tickets would have cost twice as much, and they wouldn't have sold as many."

Source: Rolling Stone

Coldplay will play another impromptu gig in Europe - this time in Spain.

More on this here

Details on when the new single 'Speed Of Sound' will be aired on radio are here

Germain Ampitheater

COLDPLAY

AUG 30

ON-SALE TBA

More details to follow...

Colplay played the second in their series of surprise intimate club gigs in Germany last night (April 7) and gave a lucky handful of fans a chance to hear new material of their hugely anticipated new album 'X&Y'.

Following their set at the Melkweg Club in Amsterdam on Wednesday (April 6) Coldplay announced a gig at the 400-capacity Gloria Theatre in Cologne, Germany yesterday evening.

Hundreds of fans waited outside the venue and those lucky enough to get tickets were treated to a 16-song set that included a host of brand new tracks, yet only one from their debut album 'Parachutes'.

The band took the stage shortly after 9pm opening with new track 'Square One', before going on to play new single 'Speed Of Sound' and new album title track 'X&Y'.

Drummer Will Champion surprised the fans by playing piano and harmonica on one track and bassist Guy Berryman also took up keyboard duties for a song. Chris Martin himself spoke some German to the crowd, thanking all the fans for coming and "for still remembering our name".

And according to one fan, Chris Martin's "Dancing style even improved and is now wilder than ever before with some funny moves. He's got some more songs to dance to now, without playing the guitar or piano."

The full setlist was:

1. Square One

2. Politik

3. Speed Of Sound

4. God Put A Smile Upon Your Face

5. Warning Sign

6. X&Y

7. Yellow

8. Low

9. The Scientist

10. Til Kingdom Comes

11. Clocks

12. What If

*********************

13. In My Place

14. A Message

15. Fix You

Footnotes:

"Speed of Sound" is the right choice for being the new single. "Politik" was (again) great, but at the wrong spot, because it took some of the power of "Speed of Sound". "What if" is the strongest Coldplay song on the upcoming tour. It takes a big piece of "The Scientist" with some more spice. Great! The girls loved "Til Kingdom Come", more or likely an "apple-is-goin-to-bed"-song, but still cute. "Fix You" was surprising and could also become a single. A lovely evening and worth all waiting for 13hours for the tickets. The "Twisted Logic" Tour can begin...

...and the CD has to be released, the waiting hurts ;)

[thanks Elm & XFM]

Coldplay will play at the Riverbend Music Center, Cincinatti in early August as part of the North American Tour, report the Cincinatti Enquirer.

The outdoor arena on the riverfront in Anderson Township will host the show on August 9th. More details also at the Riverbend website [thanks Robert and glking]

Coldplay played a secret gig yesterday (wednesday 6th April) in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The setlist was:

1. Square One

2. Politik

3. Speed Of Sound

4. God Put A Smile Upon Your Face

5. Warning Sign

6. X&Y

7. Yellow

8. Low

9. The Scientist

10. Til Kingdom Comes

11. Clocks

12. What If

*********************

13. In My Place

14. A Message

15. Amsterdam

Footnotes:

X&Y features Chris on piano. Very melodic. Beautiful piano outro.

Features the lyrics: "You and me surfing on tidal waves, you and me floating in outer space" (... or something like that). Low is the loudest guitar track since Yellow. Guaranteed favourite for the new album, and possible single if you ask me. Til Kingdom Comes is lovely Chris/Jonny track. Is fully acoustic, much like 'Green Eyes'. Lovely evening. Magical. P.s. They completely fucked up 'Amsterdam'

[thanks Owen]

John Kennedy will be doing an Xfm Album Playback of Coldplay's 'X&Y' with full commentary from the band on the 31st May 05 on X-Posure Part 2.

Presented by Claire Sturgess and new music guru John Kennedy, X-Posure is Xfm's showcase for all that's cutting edge. The show covers the best singles, live cuts and album tracks that the alternative underground has to offer.

For more details please visit the XFM website.

Coldplay's highly anticipated third album is to be packaged with a front cover featuring colour-coded blocks which combine to reveal a secret code.

Bosses at record company Parlophone hope the intrigue surrounding the X&Y disc's artwork will pique the interest of fans the world over as they try to find the hidden meaning concealed the eye-catching design.

The global marketing campaign will begin later this month in anticipation of the album's release on 6th June. Parlophone executives anticipate X&Y will sell more copies than the 10 million units A Rush Of Blood To The Head sold worldwide.

More on this story here

Coldplay have finally announced the full official tracklisting for their hugely anticipated new album, X&Y and have also given fans a look at what the album artwork will look like.

As previously reported, Coldplay will be releasing the follow up to 2002's 'A Rush Of Blood To The Head', album, entitled 'X&Y' on June 6 on Parlophone Records.

Now the band have confirmed the full running order for the 12-track record. It differs from the rumoured running orders that have been circulating on the internet for the few past weeks, with the inclusion of the track 'The Hardest Part' and the renaming of the song 'Let's Talk' to simply Talk.

The first single to be taken from the album will be Speed Of Sound which hits shops on May 23.

'X&Y' was recorded over the past year at studios in the UK and USA and was produced by Danton Supple (Morrissey, Elbow), longtime Coldplay collaborator Ken Nelson (Badly Drawn Boy, Kings of Convenience) and the band themselves.

The tracklisting for the X&Y album is as follows:

1. Square One

2. What If

3. White Shadows

4. Fix You

5. Talk

6. X&Y

7. Speed of Sound

8. A Message

9. Low

10. The Hardest Part

11. Swallowed In The Sea

12. Twisted Logic

More on the tracklisting and new artwork here. Do you like the new album artwork? Vote here

Tickets for the Glastonbury Festival 2005 went on sale Sunday morning at 9am - and all were snapped up within a matter of hours.

The event in Somerset from June 24-26 remains as popular as ever, with phone lines jammed and the website blocked as thousands tried to get tickets. It will be the last festival there until 2007, with the fields being left fallow next year.

Glastonbury tickets go on sale this Sunday (April 3rd).

Tickets for the event will be sold from 9am and cost £125 plus £4 booking fee and £4 postage and packing, and can be brought either through 0870 165 2005 or via the official site glastonburyfestivals.co.uk

Last year saw many fans disappointed due to problems with ordering tickets, so this year organisers are stating that in order to buy tickets you will need the following ready when you book:

1) The name and full address of each festival goer

2) A debit card

Ticket holders this year will need photo identification to get in. A new photo-style driving license or a an ID bearing the PASS government approved photo hologram are recommended.

Ticket holders will be able to get CitizenCard which features PASS for a free either on-line at citizencard.com/glastonbury or by calling 0870 240 1221.

For more on the Glastonbury line-ups click here

MTV have announced they will be filming a secret Coldplay gig for fans next month. The 60-minute gig will be televised across the MTV network the day before the release of the album X&Y alongside a TV special 'All Eyes On Coldplay'.

MTV will be giving Coldplay fans the chance to see the band live at a secret intimate London venue. The show will be taped next month and will feature songs off the new album, including the new single Speed Of Sound and classic Coldplay tracks.

Twenty of MTV's international channels will be taking part in the competition both on-air and online to give fans the chance to win a trip to London to attend the intimate gig.

"It's really cool that fans are flying in from all over the world to see us play for MTV in London next month," said Coldplay frontman Chris Martin. "We'll try and make it worth their effort! We can't wait to play songs from X&Y to our fans, and the MTV audience will be among the first to hear them," said drummer Will Champion. "We wish everyone the best of luck in the competition."

"Through our network of local channels and websites, we are uniquely positioned to offer MTV audiences around the world exclusive access to the world's biggest artists," commented Jesus Lara, MTV Networks International. "We are excited to support Coldplay and 'X&Y', which will be one of the year's most acclaimed releases, as well as to partner with EMI and Parlophone to enable MTV viewers from around the world the chance see the band up close and personal before the album hits stores."'X&Y' will be preceded by the new single, 'Speed Of Sound' on May 23 both are out on Parlophone Records. The band have recently announced a number of high profile support acts for their UK and Ireland dates including Supergrass, Doves, Elbow and Interpol. The acts joining them are as follows:

Dublin Marlay Park (June 22) + Interpol / Morning Runner

Crystal Palace National Sports Centre (27) + Supergrass / Morning Runner

Crystal Palace National Sports Centre (28) + Interpol / Morning Runner

Bellahouston Park, Glasgow (July 1) + Supergrass / Morning Runner

Bellahouston Park, Glasgow (2) + Supergrass / Morning Runner

Reebok Stadium, Bolton (4) + Elbow / Morning Runner

Reebok Stadium, Bolton (5) + Doves / Morning Runner

Source: XFM

MTV are offering fans from across the world a chance to see Coldplay at a tiny secret gig, being filmed for MTV Live, in London in April.

Depending on where you live you can enter the various competitions to win tickets and accommodation to the intimate UK gig, exclusive to MTV. Here are some of the links:

MTV UK

MTV Latin America

MTV Italy

MTV Asia

MTV Germany

MTV Brasil

If you find any links to other countries not mentioned please report them here

[thanks Zu, laura84, Mimixxx, BostonRob, Cris_Santos]

Coldplay's Chris Martin, Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland and Will Champion are each estimated to have a personal fortune of £10m, report The Independent today.

The Beckhams, Charlotte Church and Will Young have also made it on to the list of music millionaires aged 30 and under. At the top of the rich list is Dhani Harrison, the son of the late Beatle George Harrison, who inherited a £140m fortune. At a concert in memory of his father at the Albert Hall in 2002, Harrison played acoustic guitar alongside Eric Clapton and the two surviving members of the Beatles, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.

John Lennon's youngest son Sean, a musician in his own right, is the highest new entry at number three, with a personal wealth of £20m. The Beckhams, who qualify because of former Spice Girl Victoria's singing career, come in at number two with £75m between them. David Beckham's sponsorship deals on top of his income from Real Madrid helped to boost the couple's wealth by £10m compared to the previous year.Charlotte Church is said to be worth £6m, as is the television presenter Denise Van Outen, who starred in the stage musical Chicago.

The Pop Idol winner Will Young is worth £8m, while the runner-up Gareth Gates, with a personal fortune of £5m, shares joint 14th place with Stone and fellow pop stars Daniel Bedingfield, Shaznay Lewis and the former Spice Girl Mel B.

POP'S HIGHEST YOUNG EARNERS

1 Dhani Harrison (£140m)

2 David and Victoria Beckham (£75m)

3 Sean Lennon (£20m)

4= Chris Martin (£10m)

4= Guy Berryman (£10m)

4= Jonny Buckland (£10m)

4= Will Champion (£10m)

4= Emma Bunton (£10m)

4= Ronan Keating (£10m)

10 Craig David (£9m)

11 Will Young (£8m)

12= Charlotte Church (£6m)

12= Denise Van Outen (£6m)

14= Daniel Bedingfield (£5m)

14= Gareth Gates (£5m)

14= Mel Gulzar (£5m)

14= Shaznay Lewis (£5m)

14= Joss Stone (£5m)

More discussion on the full story here