Perpetual Thursday Ramblings, Rantings, Nonsense, and Bunk
Viva La Vida - First Impressions
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Emily started blogging again, so, not to be outdone, I'm going to do the same. After all, I got her blogging the first time, so it would look bad if she was still doing it and I wasn't, right? Besides, I miss it.
A short while ago, Coldplay released the song
Violet Hill (from their upcoming album
Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends) as a free download via their website. I like some of their music, and I really like free stuff, so, of course, I downloaded it.
Now, while I liked Violet Hill, one thing about it stuck out to me: with its dark, slightly rough sound and emphasised guitars, it didn't sound like Coldplay's style. It has hints, sure - the piano work and Chris Martin's signature falsetto - but, for better or worse, it wasn't the Colplay I was used to.
Since then, however, I've managed to get my hands on three more tracks from the album:
Life In Technicolor,
Viva la Vida, and
Lost? (acoustic version). Here is what I think...
Life in Technicolor: As first track on the album, Life in Technicolor makes a nice opening. Though there is a (very small) amount of vocal work, there are no lyrics on the track, and that works perfectly. There really isn't a whole lot to say about opening tracks, but I can honestly say that this one stands out as possibly the best opening track I've ever heard (note that I'm not counting albums that open with regular songs - I'm talking about tracks set up just to open the album). It builds up well and even manages to be pretty catchy.
Viva la Vida: This one struck me, because I wasn't expecting it at ALL. After listening to Violet Hill enough, I expected the whole album to have the same dark, rough sound. Not Viva la Vida. Featuring a string section, a piano, great vocals, and even bells, Viva la Vida sound like a victorious symphony. The lyrics, on the other hand, talk of times gone past from the eyes of a man who once had the world in the palm of his hand, and are delivered by Martin in way the fits the music to perfection (no falsetto here - sorry ladies).
Lost? (acoustic): To the extent of my knowledge, Lost? is a bonus track, and acoustic version of the similarly named track Lost!. However, don't like the word "acoustic" give you the wrong impression: Lost? doesn't have any of the coffee-house sound that today is too often associated with acoustic music. There's no guitar work here - nothing but Chris Martin and a lone piano. Very slightly dark, quiet, and calm, Lost? still holds a hint of the epic downfall vibe that perforates Viva la Vida. Again, Martin passes on the falsetto to retain a slightly more sombre sound to the song, which fits it very well.
Overall: Out of the four tracks I've heard, Viva la Vida itself if my favourite, and certainly the most Coldplay-like. While none of these three are as dark and rough as Violet Hill (which, despite not being Coldplay-like, is, again, a pretty good song), they all hold a flash, musically and lyrically, of the same dark vibe, and the same suggestion of an epic downfall.
From what I've heard so far, Viva la Vida or Death and all his Friends is indeed a step in a new direction for Coldplay. Again, it's darker, and it's more epic. However, it is still Coldplay at heart. After hearing Violet Hill for the first time I was worried that it may not be a good change, but having heard these new three tracks, and getting a better idea of how Violet Hill fits in with them, I can honestly say that it's a change for the better. I'm looking forward to the albums release, as it could very well be the best Coldplay album yet.
All for now - until next time, may all your Thursdays be Perpetual.
Labels: Music
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