Fifteen years of meditative wordplay and music later, Coldplay still captivates crowds.
The band, formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland, has its sixth album “Mylo Xyloto” set for release later this month.
And Coldplay hardly has slowed down on the live stage as well, as demonstrated in a recent stop in Atlanta as headliners of Music Midtown, a Sept. 24 festival at Piedmont Park. Other acts included Nashville transplants The Black Keys, Manchester Orchestra, Cage the Elephant and Young the Giant.
But the day belonged to Coldplay, which has mastered the art of audience interaction, not only with music. As multi-colored beach balls are tossed throughout the crowd, the band’s neon light show gets people engrossed in their musical rhythms.
“Mylo Xyloto” will be available for purchase Oct. 24. Several singles already have been released, including “Paradise” and “Every Tear Drop is a Waterfall.”
The Atlanta stop is part of a tour that continues through the end of the year, with shows in various countries such as South Africa, the UK, France and Germany.
Chris Martin once proclaimed the band’s music as “limestone rock” in comparison to “hard rock.”
The band’s music has been called “meditative” and “blue romantic.”
Many critics have deemed Martin’s lyrical wordplay as feminist. During the band’s early years, Coldplay became widely known in the media for giving 10 percent of the band’s profits to charity, which they continue to do. The band also asks that any gifts intended for them are donated to charity, according to a response on the FAQ section of Coldplay’s website.
Bassist Guy Berryman said, “You can make people aware of issues. It isn’t very much effort for us at all, but if it can help people, then we want to do it.”