Since I’m such a sucker for music, and will never be caught alive without my iPod, I wanted to start a page dedicated to the albums I’m listening to currently. So here goes…

29 June 2008

Probably THE most ancipated album of 2008.

After selling 32 million copies of their previous 3 albums, what more can Coldplay ask for? Well, maybe getting their first US #1?

Viva la Vida
or
Death and All His Friends
is hogging the charts at the moment. The title track, Viva la Vida, has shot straight to the top spot on the US Billboard charts. This is the first time Coldplay has achieved this – previously, Speed of Sound (off the album X&Y), was delegated to 2nd spot after being beaten by Crazy Frog. At last.fm, 9 out of the 10 top tracks are from the album.

All this success is not without reason too. VLVODAAHF must be one of the strongest albums Coldplay has released in their career. The starting track, Life in Technicolor, is the type of song that would get an entire stadium of people clapping hands and stomping feet in unision. And this achieved without any lyrics whatsoever! The mellow strains of an organ give way to a riot of snazzy guitar riffs, crashing cymbals and wordless yelps. Puts a spring in my step. Brilliant.

Other notable tracks would be Cemeteries of London, 42, Yes, Violet Hill, Strawberry Swing and Death and All His Friends. DAAHF has been described by at least 2 of my friends as being ‘epic’. And it certainly is. The build up to the end of the track and the lyrics

No I don’t want to battle from beginning to end
I don’t a cycle of recycled revenge
I don’t want to follow death and all of his friends

bring in mind weary soldiers, revolutions and the hope of putting an end to the mindless brutality of war.

The 2 hidden tracks, Chinese Sleep Chant (after Yes) and The Escapist (at the end of the album), are very listenable as well. The latter has been used in the soundtrack of the newly released movie of the same name starring Brian Cox and Joseph Fiennes.

Go check it out.

2 May 2008

Absolution – Muse
The British nu-prog rockers’ 3rd studio album, released in 2003. Epic doesn’t even begin to describe it. Matt Bellamy’s falsetto gets to me every time, and I absolutely love the bass riffs during the intro of Hysteria. The lyrics to Butterflies and Hurricanes are the most inspiring I’ve heard in a long time.

Best
You’ve got to be the best
You’ve got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is (your time is) now

The song title is a reference to the butterfly effect, in which the flapping of a single butterfly’s wings could divert a hurricane. In effect, an individual has the ability to change the world.

I gush, because I’m in love with their music.

Fave tracks (in no order): Apocalypse Please, Time is Running Out, Sing for Absolution, Stockholm Syndrome, Hysteria, Butterflies and Hurricanes, The Small Print