My Coldplay.com

THE last time Coldplay played Singapore was in July 2001. Back then, the band were relative newcomers as they shared a bill with Travis.

Right now, nobody really knows what has become of Travis’s career but Coldplay has turned into one of the biggest rock outfits in the world. The award-winning Brit quartet, led by the pope of mope Chris Martin, returns to Singapore on July 10 for a Twisted Logic concert stop at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. This time it headlines its own two-hour show.

The band is currently winding down its tour for the X&Y album that has seen singles like Speed of Sound, Fix You and Talk turning into bona fide stadium anthems. Apart from the big night in Singapore, the only other date for Coldplay outside this upcoming sold out Japan/ Australia trek is Hong Kong on July 13.

Despite the fact that X&Y was a difficult album to make, it has been yet another leap forward from Parachutes and A Rush of Blood to the Head. From emotional roller coasters to rocky and electro-tinged songs, the band has made this third album work in its favour.

Ticket details for the Singapore show will be announced soon.

The Star Online

Looking for a strange and interesting name for your sprog? Try the Bible …

Celebrities have always excelled at finding suitably starry names for their offspring. But the days of Zowie and Moon Unit or even Brooklyn are over. Parents now are going for a far more ancient inspiration.

Celeb watchers were startled to discover that Chris Martin and Gwynnie’s firstborn was not named after a friend’s daughter or, indeed, Chris’s iPod, but for the apple that tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden.
[Read more]

The birth of Suri Cruise makes one ponder a future Hollywood classroom filled with the progeny of today’s stars, who have elected to go all out on names that make the hippie-inspired River and Rainbow seem pretty normal by comparison — with the exception of the Zappa kids, Moon Unit and Dweezil.

Check out this roll call, gleaned from Defamer.com:

• Moxie CrimeFighter (daughter of Penn Jillette of Penn & Teller).

• Pilot Inspektor (Jason Lee’s son).

• Apple Martin (Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin’s daughter).

• Kal-el Cage (the Superman-inspired son of Nicholas Cage).

• Audio Science (son of

A Knight’s Tale leading lady Shannyn Sossamon).

BeaconJournal

IF THEY haven’t already, Snow Patrol are about to find out that the pressures of success can be every bit as oppressive, draining and potentially hazardous as those of failure.

Their fortunes were transformed by the two million selling Final Straw, a last throw of the dice for a band who, before it was made, had no money, no label and seemingly no future.

Now their future is alive with all sorts of possibilities - they have done the ground work for an assault on America, and the next, tantalisingly reachable goal back home is an ascension to the stratosphere occupied by U2 and Coldplay.

SundayLife 

When Coldplay released its second hit album, A Rush of Blood to the Head, the band said that part of the environmental damage caused by its production would be offset by the planting of 10,000 mango trees in southern India.

More than four years after the album’s release, however, many of Coldplay’s good intentions have withered in the arid soil of Gudibanda, Karnataka state, where the saplings it sponsored were planted.
[Read more]

THE teenage son of a Paisley chip shop owner has landed a five-album contract with one of the world’s most famous record labels in a deal that industry insiders claim could be worth up to £1m.

Singer-songwriter Paolo Nutini has signed with Atlantic Records, which currently has stars James Blunt and Björk on its books and introduced the world to rock band Led Zeppelin.
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The 19-year-old has already entered the studio - with Coldplay producer Ken Nelson - to record his debut album, which is due out in July, and industry sources believe he is destined for a high-profile career.

Scotsman

Question: The SunFest show is the beginning of a few solo dates for you before the start of a longer tour. You were out with Coldplay — what was that like after not touring for so long?

Apple: It was really a lot of fun. It was surprisingly easy, I was thinking about 10 years ago, when I opened for big bands like that. I used to hate it — it was always in these huge places, the sound was really weird, and the people don’t know who you are, and the ones who do know don’t like you, they’re talking through the performance. But everything I hated about it was exactly the reason I wanted to go out this time. It makes it so much easier when you’re not headlining. I was using it as a ruler to see how I handled things, because I used to not handle it so well 10 years ago. But the crowds were really great. Coldplay has some very cool people who are fans.

PalmBeachPost

Phoenix Foundation’s Luke Buda will happily admit to Vangelis and Queen as inspirations, but just don’t say a word about Coldplay, writes Grant Smithies.

Luke Buda is gutted. The Wellington musician has just found out that Chris Martin from Coldplay and his missus Gwyneth Paltrow have named their new son Moses.

Buda and his partner called their own son Moses six months ago.

“It’s awful!” he splutters. “It’s so embarrassing! What if people think we chose the name because they did? I feel I need to point out to the world that our son is six months older than Moses Martin.”

Yes, he is. But would it really be so bad if people thought that Buda, co-frontman of Wellington band Phoenix Foundation, was a huge Coldplay fan? Actually, it would. A man must think of his reputation. Coldplay represents the more conservative and sentimental end of the pop spectrum, whereas Phoenix Foundation peddles an adventurous mix of folk, country, indie rock and oddball synthesiser instrumentals.

Stuff.co.nz

US pop diva Mariah Carey has been drawn into a spat involving a Kiwi musician who claims he has not been paid royalties for her use of music he helped write.

Auckland musician Dominique Leauga arranged, co-produced and played many of the instruments on eight of the 13 songs on top Kiwi vocal duo’s Adeaze’s chart-topping debut album, including the platinum single “A Life With You”, for which he is registered as a co-composer.

The song, which reached No 5 on the local charts in 2003, was used by Mariah Carey as a sample on the song “Your Girl” from her last album The Emancipation of Mimi. The album sold 7.7 million copies - the world’s second biggest-selling record last year, behind Coldplay’s X&Y.

Stuff.co.nz

James Haskell dislikes comparisons with his clubmate but wants to make a mark, starting against London Irish

“How long before I get in? Before it starts, before I begin? How long before you decide, Before I know what it feels like?”

The first verse of Coldplay’s Speed of Sound. It is one of the songs that James Haskell plays on his iPod before matches to bring him to the correct preparatory pitch. “You choose tracks not so much for the words but for the impact, the emotion they bring out and the feelings of confidence,” he says. He might not have chosen it for the words, but “How long before I get in?” might well be his career question.

TimesOnline