Coldplay: Viva La Vida

I can’t say I have always loved Coldplay, mainly because I went through a phase where everyone seemed to like them and I didn’t listen, just to be different. Fortunately for me, my old friend sat me down and forced me to listen to them and I haven’t looked back since.

Chris Martin and the rest of the band have always been very artistically and musically gifted in my opinion, but their newest release, Viva La Vida, covers a lot of new territory and blows the doors off of their first three albums. The record as a whole is much more epic, more experimental and quite brilliant in a lot of ways.

The intro song “Life in Technicolor” is simply instrumental with a few “whoa-oh’s” in the background, but it is very reminiscent of older U2 classics like “Where the Streets Have No Name,” and it segues beautifully into the haunting “Cemeteries of London.” It is a song about the ghosts of England’s past, creeping through at night. The next track “Lost!” with its backbeat and accompanying organ is a rousing song with many possible meanings. It has already been interpreted by some as a message about salvation, but it seems to me to be more about being down but not out. As 2 Corinthians 4:9 says we are “…persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed.”

Track 4, “42,” another ghost-themed song, seems depressing and longing, but includes such lyrics as “Time is so short and I’m sure there must be something more.” I like the musical changeup in this song, but the repetition wears a little bit after a first or second listen. The gorgeous melodies of “Lover in Japan/ Reign of Love” included with tons of religious imagery make this one of my favorite listens on the album. Even though I have never heard anyone from Coldplay profess any Christian beliefs, it is still nice to hear lyrics like “Lovers, keep on the road you’re on, runners, until the race is run,” or “Reign of love by the church we’re waiting, Reign of love, my knees go praying.” They are still very inspirational and perhaps a seed has been planted already in frontman Chris Martin’s brain somewhere in his past. “Yes” is a different track sung mostly in a very low key for Martin who is most well know for his amazing falsetto. It is a song about facing temptation and fighting against loneliness and contains some beautiful violin arrangements and an extended ending which sounds more hopeful than the rest of the song.

Next comes the title track, “Viva La Vida.” In my opinion this is one of the greatest songs written in the last couple of years. You’ve probably heard a clip of it on the iTunes commercial already but nothing prepared me for hearing this song in its entirety. The lyrics may seem a little grandiose or pompous on paper (“that is when I ruled the world,”) but the musical arrangement and accompanying vocals are so epic and spectacular that it connects everything seamlessly to produce a modern classic. I honestly still get chills listening to this song at high volume in my car! “Violet Hill” turns the tide a little more and reminds me of a few songs from the Beatles later years. “Strawberry Swing” has a lot of pretty background music, but doesn’t compare with the grandeur of the last track “Death and All His Friends.” It is very instrumentally diverse, and ends with a two minute outro, leaving the listener wanting more.

Some versions will come with a bonus version of “Lost” stripped down to just Martin and his piano, and I almost prefer it to the original. There is a beautiful simplicity to it, but an underlying power and it is a great way to bring the album to a close. This CD is a wonderful reminder of what people can do with the talent God gives to them. It is far superior to so much of what is released every week in the music world and gives me hope in the direction music seems to be going.