Just in case you need another reason to confirm that competition is a good thing I point your attention to the article in Inside Entertainment Magazine from today's National Post (sorry can't find a link) about Coldplay.
...So, yes, I love U2 with a deep passion. But," adds Martin [Chris Martin, Coldplay lead-singer, for the uninitiated], with blue eyes sparking, "I also see them as the band for us to beast."
When people compete the consumer wins! As someone who shares a deep passion for U2 this is nothing but good news. Some of described Coldplay as Radiohead before they got weird. As someone who thinks that The Bends/OK Computer era Radiohead was amazing, I agree and Coldplay has the potential to replace Radiohead on my personal pecking order. It will take some incredible music to replace U2 though, but if Coldplay is coming close then I will be lining up to get the next album.
Here is a teaser:
...Songs such as "Square One", "Speed of Sound" and "A Message" are more urgent and epic than anything on Parachutes and Rush of Blood. And emotional ballads like "What If" and "Swallowed by the Sea," complete with Martin's soaring falsetto trademark, are heartwrenching enough to rival even "Yellow" and "Im My Place". Several edgy tracks have a searching, inquisitive quality.
X&Y will be released on June 6. I can't wait.
