Word: vivas
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...life"), and a pompous statement from the New York Times's Jon Pareles, who calls Coldplay "insufferable." Not only is Coldplay anything but insufferable, but their previous album, X&Y, was one of the best pop-rock albums of the new millennium. I'm expecting greatness again from Viva la Vida, especially with master producer Brian Eno at the helm. Cameron Conant, NASHVILLE, TENN...
...Coldplay's Viva La Vida and Rihanna's Umbrella played in the background as Faust mingled and talked with those present, pausing to shake hands and pose for pictures...
Musically, Eno nudges Coldplay a few steps closer to transcendence not by opening the band up--though he did have the group record in Spanish churches and play with tablas--but by tying it down. Viva la Vida starts with the light pulse of a keyboard and a beep that could be a passing satellite. Everything seems to exist in its own silo until a rising whoosh comes along and the instruments merge into a huge harmonious collision. The track is called Life in Technicolor, and what differentiates it from previous Coldplay attempts to lasso the cosmos (Speed of Sound...
Where Martin shines--and when Viva la Vida peaks--is when the subject turns to desire. He's got a soul singer's ability to communicate the totality of love with a few oohs and aahs, and he saves Lovers in Japan from his own clichés ("Lovers keep on the road you're on/ Runners until the race is run") just by opening up his throat and letting loose. On Strawberry Swing, Martin not only turns in a nice lyric ("People moving all the time/ Inside a perfectly straight line/ Don't you wanna just curve away?") but coos...
Coldplay has already proved itself critic-proof, and whether it wants to be any bigger or not, the odds are that Viva la Vida will be one of the top sellers of 2008. Ubiquity will remain theirs. But having risked a bit, Coldplay has also gained. It's pretty tough to call the band insufferable. Imperfect, maybe...