It doesn’t take long to notice that Coldplay’s fourth album Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends is a marked departure from the direction the band had previously been heading in. The quartet’s prior album, X&Y, left an all too sour taste in the mouth of fans of their debut record, the sublime Parachutes. While Parachutes specialized in deep, lush acoustic love songs; the band gradually moved away from the style they were founded on and settled into a far less appealing, cramped arena rock sound.
It almost feels like Coldplay realized that they had steadily dug themselves into a rut. Viva la Vida is practically nothing like what the band has attempted in the past. It’s spacious, progressive and far more experimental than what a Coldplay album has typically been. Enter well respected producer Brian Eno, wisely called upon to give the band a helping hand. Eno’s “sonic landscapes,” as the album denotes, is just what this band needed to revive their tepid and tired sound.
The album begins with a two and a half minute long instrumental introduction that sets the mood of the album and allows us to understand exactly where Viva la Vida will be leading us. “Cemeteries of London” takes the stage next, with frontman Chris Martin’s vocal much more understated than in the past allowing the distortion filled guitars and hand-clap percussion to take front and center. Through much of the album Martin’s trademark falsetto is surprisingly hidden behind the group’s rich, palpable melodies. Rather than Chris leading the band like he’s done in the past, his voice falls in line to become just another instrument within the fold. This is strikingly obvious on one of the album’s highlights, the first single from Viva La Vida, “Violet Hill.” The song is one of Coldplay’s best singles, ambitious and yet accessible; Martin’s reverb vocal is as chilling as it’s ever been as he takes his turn at political protest.
”When the future’s architectured by a carnival of idiots on show/ You better lie low.”
Refreshingly present on Viva la Vida, is the long missed acoustic guitar sound that reverberates through much of the album. Examples include the epic “Yes,” with the inset “Chinese Sleep Chant” notably absent from the track listing but audibly present at the end of the track, to the twang of the irresistible “Strawberry Swing.” The album ends with the piano driven “Death and All His Friends,” another terrific track that breaks open after the first verse with guitarist Jonny Buckland’s soaring guitar riff which winds up leading into the last section of the disc, the dreamy “The Escapist.” “The Escapist” plays out the same as the album’s opening track “Life in Technicolor,” allowing Viva la Vida to come full circle. Rather than being instrumental, this time around Martin’s soft, yet emotionally wrought vocal cries out, “And in the end we lie awake/ And we dream of making our escape.”
In what seemed like a band that was heading in an overly polished, largely underwhelming direction; Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends is a landmark album in the sense that it suddenly makes Coldplay relevant again. All of the accolades and sales numbers that the band will receive this time around will actually be justified. With a relatively short running time and completely satisfying listening experience, Coldplay’s new album is indubitably the direction this band should continue heading towards in the future.
"Viva la Vida or Death And All His Friends" is on sale June 17, 2008 from Capitol.
