I’ve been eagerly awaiting the new Coldplay release, Mylo Xyloto for sometime now. Call me soft, call me ladylike, call me simpleminded; I think they’re a great band that has constantly been able to re-invent themselves while somehow retaining the core elements of their identity as a group. Also… I like the music.

I was really perplexed when I opened up Spotify on Tuesday morning to find that Coldplay’s latest release was absent from the album library.

“That’s werid, I guess they released it early on iTunes…”

Wrong.

It came out yesterday on CNet that Coldplay will NOT be releasing the album on Spotify… like, ever.

This is so backwards on a few levels. Some people in the Coldplay camp are saying that the band wants their new work to be heard in its entirety as an album, rather than allowing listeners to pick and choose singles. If that’s the case, why can I pop on iTunes right now and buy any ONE track from the album? Not to mention the fact that the band let the album out one track at a time via iTunes last week anyway.

I think the true motive is that they want to collect more revenue from the songs now, rather than waiting for smaller payouts from streaming services. This solution is VERY short-sighted though.

Restricting your music to pay-only channels is going to drive certain consumers toward other free channels, since the legal ones are closed (and by “other free channels,” I mean piracy).

The public is moving toward streaming at a furious pace. Every time I open Spotify, my friends list seems to be multiplying faster than a nest of rabbits; and with saturation in every demographic on Facebook. Artists need to be where the people are.

EMI, the band’s label, is quiet on the matter and is continuing to hurt after losing Robbie Williams to Universal. Likely too scared to ruffle any more of their artists’ feathers, they’re content to allow their larger artists to do as they please.

As for me, I’ll have to wait until Monday when the vinyl comes in to my local shop to pick it up. Why they released that a week later, I’m not sure. Scratch that. I think they were hoping fanboys would need to hear the new album so bad that we’d buy it on iTunes this week, then get it on our preferred medium, vinyl, next week… kind of like when movies do the DVD release before the Blu-Ray or “collector’s edition.”

To clarify, I’m not against the band trying to make a buck. On the contrary, I want long-term success for them. A business model that at best ignores, and at worst spits in the face of, where trends in music acquisition are headed is exactly the model that will perpetuate the struggles of the music industry.

This goes for you too, Adele.

To be clear, this is not a debate over download vs. streaming. I’m an advocate for legal download channels, as well as streaming. I simply think that artists need to get behind streaming services if they hope to cut back on piracy.

Without the support of chart-topping artists, streaming services have no shot at overtaking downloaded content as the primary means of media consumption. While that may sound great to those rooting for the success of downloaded media, it basically puts us in the same place we’ve been for the better part of the past decade; extinguishing the one technological advance that could have saved the music industry.

Coldplay Snubs Spotify is a post from: wax&wires

I kid, I kid; I’m not a hater. Seriously though, Zac and brother Josh Farro really did leave the chart-busting Paramore last week. You can hear a clip of Zac’s new band, Tunnel, below. Tunnel is a duo comprised of Zac Farro and Jason Clark. It has tinges of Coldplay-esque vocals and the melancholy electronic dirge of some Paper Route tracks. None of that should be surprising, as Paramore and Paper Route toured together for some time, developing relationships on the road.

Check out “Hide Your Eyes” here, and let me know what you think. I’m digging it. I’d pay for it, which is more than what I could say for all but a few of Paramore’s tunes.

Hide Your Eyes by tunnelmusic

Zac Farro Quits Paramore To Make Music is a post from: wax&wires

You can purchase the new song here.

Coldplay – Christmas Lights Video is a post from: wax&wires

Related posts:

1. Coldplay Snubs Spotify

It reminds me a bit of Oren Lavie’s “Her Morning Elegance” in it’s stop-motion execution and format, though because it’s Coldplay, it’s bigger and brighter. They do a great job conjuring up nostalgic sentiments from our youth and really transporting the viewer to a new world.

Beautiful video. You can watch it here.

How do you make your music more than songs, and create an environment and experience with it?

Coldplay’s Newest Video – Strawberry Swing is a post from: wax&wires

Read the press release below:

Earlier today, the free download of Coldplay’s new live album, LeftRightLeftRightLeft, was made available – click here to download your free copy from Coldplay.com now. Today is also the day of the band’s first North American tour date, in West Palm Beach, where the first copies of the LRLRL CD will be given away.

The CD will then be handed out to all fans at every remaining Coldplay live shows in 2009 (apart from Festival shows). The free download will also be available from Coldplay.com until the band play their final 2009 show. We hope you like it.

The tracklisting is comprised of classics and new editions:
1. Glass of Water
2. Clocks
3. 42
4. Strawberry Swing
5. Hardest Part/Postcards from far Away
6. Viva La Vida
7. Death Will Never Conquer
8. Fix You
9. Death And All His Friends

Coldplay Free Live Album Out Now is a post from: wax&wires

Good morning. We’re pleased to announce that Coldplay will be giving away a live CD, LeftRightLeftRightLeft, at every remaining live show in 2009 (apart from festival shows). Starting with the band’s first North American tour date, at West Palm Beach in Florida on May 15th, every fan attending a show will be given a free copy of the nine-track CD, which won’t be available elsewhere. Also on May 15th, LeftRightLeftRightLeft will be made available as a free download right here at Coldplay.com, for all fans (and for the same time period).

According to the band, the give-away is meant as a recession-busting mark of gratitude to everyone who’s supported them: “Playing live is what we love. This album is a thank you to our fans – the people who give us a reason to do it and make it happen.”

The album was recorded over the past year in various cities around the world on the Viva La Vida tour. Its tracklisting is as follows:

1. Glass of Water
2. 42
3. Clocks
4. Strawberry Swing
5. The Hardest Part/Postcards From Far Away
6. Viva La Vida
7. Death Will Never Conquer
8. Fix You
9. Death And All His Friends

As I stated before, I’m not sure how “recession-busting” the album would be, unless recipients were to hock the albums on ebay. Now that the band intends to release it as a free download from their site anyway, even that proves a bit bust. Either way, it’s a cool gift to fans, and you shouldn’t need an excuse to show some gratitude.

Free Coldplay Live Album is a post from: wax&wires

From Coldplay.com:

Good morning. We’re very pleased to announce that a special Coldplay game for the iPhone and iPod Touch arrived in the iTunes App Store this morning. Tap Tap Revenge: Coldplay Edition is the latest release in the wildly popular Tap Tap Revenge series, which allow you to tap along to songs on your iPhone/iPod Touch. Click here to check it out.

This special edition features ten full Coldplay songs to play along to, with graphics and effects inspired by the band’s videos. It also includes a Coldplay news feed (taken from this very website) and Facebook Connect, so that you can flaunt your scores to the world. The songs included are as follows:

- Lovers In Japan (Osaka Sun Mix)
- Lost!
- In My Place
- Fix You
- Life In Technicolor ii
- Clocks
- Yellow
- Shiver
- Speed Of Sound
- Viva La Vida
- Vida La Vida (Thin White Duke Remix)

The game is available in iTunes stores worldwide and is retailing for £2.99p in the UK, 3.99 Euros in Europe and $4.99 in the US. Click here to purchase it from your local iTunes store. (By the way, we’ve played it and it’s really very good.)

Players can also enter the Tapulous Coldplay Edition Contest to win some rather impressive prizes. Grand prize includes front row tickets to any Viva La Vida Tour concert this summer and an autographed copy of the Viva la Vida Prospekt’s March edition. Find out more about the Tapulous Coldplay Edition Contest here.

Anchorman

ps – If you want to pit your scores against ours, look out for ColdplayAnchorman on the Global leaderboards…

Coldplay Intros Tap Tap Revenge For iPhone is a post from: wax&wires

Kosten crosses several genre lines, mixing breakbeat electronic with the raw emotion found in more traditional pop music. It doesn’t hurt to have Chris Martin, Michael Stipe, and Wayne Coyne (Flaming Lips) contributing either. Though the album doesn’t really congeal as a whole for me, it has enough good single tracks on it to warrant a pick up.

My favorite track is easily the single, Where Is My Boy, which has garnered all the attention for featuring Chris Martin.

Faultline – Your Love Means Everything

Wax Pick: Faultline – Your Love Means Everything is a post from: wax&wires

Either way, I like the move by Coldplay to create further incentive to see them live in an economy that is all too ready to cut out entertainment in favor of mortgage payments, gas and groceries. So ulterior motives tallied up, it seems like a win-win.

Read the full story.

Free Coldplay Album To Concert Goers? is a post from: wax&wires

If you missed Coldplay right before the Grammy’s on 60 minutes, you can catch it here. It’s a great short segment on the band, and includes a sneak preview of a new Christmas song Chris is drafting at about 12:00 in.

I love the bit about the “rules” that they have posted in their studio as well. I think it’s important, from a business standpoint, to name your purpose and write it out so that you never loose site of the vision you’re chasing down. Coldplay’s “rules” sheet is a prime example of that.

Coldplay On 60 Minutes is a post from: wax&wires

I just found this interview with Jonny Buckland, guitarist of Coldplay, reflecting on 2008, and talking a bit about getting back into the studio with producer Brian Eno to begin work on new material. Check it out here.

Interview With Coldplay’s Jonny Buckland is a post from: wax&wires

Coldplay has announced that “Life In Technicolor ii,” from the Prospekt’s March EP, will be their next single. A live version recorded at the 02 arena will be released on February 2nd on a 7″ Vinyl, the B-Side of which will have a new track called “Goldrush.”

You can see some screen grabs from the new video here. Yes, puppets. If they were marionettes, we might be getting into NSync territory.

Stills From Coldplay’s New Single “Life In Technicolor ii” is a post from: wax&wires

Enjoy, and Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! Jingle Bells with Coldplay and Simon Pegg is a post from: wax&wires

You can grab it here for free through January 4th.

Free Viva La Vida Remix On Coldplay.com is a post from: wax&wires