X&Y
Encyclopedia
X&Y is the third studio album
by English rock
band Coldplay
, released 6 June 2005 in the United Kingdom via the record label Parlophone
. The album, which features influences of electronic music
, was produced by the band and British record producer Danton Supple. Development of the album was often troubled; The album's original producer, British record producer Ken Nelson, was supposed to produce much of the album, however, many songs written during their sessions were ditched due to the band's dissatisfaction. The album's cover art is a combination of colours and blocks, which is a representation of the Baudot code
.
The album contains twelve tracks and an additional hidden track, "Til Kingdom Come". It is omitted from the track listing on the album sleeve, but listed as "+" on the disc label and inside the album booklet. It was originally planned for American singer-songwriter Johnny Cash
to record it with Martin, but Cash died before he was able to do so. The song "Talk" appeared on the main track listing, although it was thought to have been downgraded to a B-side
for the album's subsequent single releases, after it leaked online in early 2005.
Originally titled Zero Theory, X&Y was released after a considerable amount of hype and was a significant commercial success, reaching the top spot of many charts worldwide, including the United Kingdom and United States, the latter being their first. With accumulated sales of 8.3 million units in 2005 alone, X&Y was the best-selling album released in 2005 worldwide. To date, the album has sold over 13 million copies worldwide.
Despite critical reaction being mixed to positive,citing that it was inferior to its predecessors, it received a score of 72/100 on Metacritic meaning "generally favorable reviews". The album has spawned the singles
"Speed of Sound
", "Fix You
", "Talk
", "The Hardest Part
", "What If" and "White Shadows
".
stated, "We really feel that we have to be away for a while and we certainly won't release anything this year, because I think people are a bit sick of us." This plan, however, was not due to the pressure their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head
, had induced but they were trying "to make the best thing that anyone has ever heard".
Prior to the announcement, Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland
, and British record producer Ken Nelson had started recording demos
while in Chicago
, Illinois
. The band then entered a London studio in January 2004.
The initial set release date was 2004, and the band had to delay the album to January 2005. But as the new target date was approaching, the band again discarded songs, which they deemed "flat" and "passionless". Sixty songs were written during these sessions, fifty-two of which were ditched. The band started rehearsing the songs for a planned tour, but felt the songs sounded better live compared to their recorded versions: "We realized that we didn't really have the right songs and some of them were starting to sound better because we were playing them than they did on record, so we thought we better go back and record them again." Guitarist Jonny Buckland
has said that the band had pushed themselves "forward in every direction" in making the album, but they felt it sounded like they were going backwards compared to their earlier works.
In search of perfection, Coldplay had to "step it up a few notches and work hard at it to get it right". The band chose Danton Supple, who mixed the bulk of A Rush of Blood to the Head, to oversee the production of X&Y. When January went, the band had to finish the album; they were conscious of the pressure as "expectations for the record grew larger" and "completing it became tougher and tougher". Finally, the band was settled with the song "Square One", which Martin has described as "a call to arms" and a "plea" to each of them "not to be intimidated by anything or anyone else". Once finished, the band felt like they could do their own songs and not have to think of anyone else's demands. During this month, the band was into the final weeks of production and had put the finishing touches on the tracks.
Drummer Will Champion
later admitted that the band was not in a rush in completing the album "because the prospect of touring again was so daunting that we felt we should take our time, and also we wanted to make sure that it was the best it could possibly be". The band had no deadline, according to him, which caused them not to feel pressured into finishing something. Once a proper deadline was imposed onto the band, they became more productive than previous sessions. At this juncture, the band had written "about 14 or 15 songs". Martin added that the reason why they ended up late was that they "... kept [adding] finishing [touches to] the record until it was way too late ... [they] don't listen to it at the moment, because [they would] just find something to go back and change."
pioneer Kraftwerk
is evident on the song "Talk
", which borrows its synthetic hook from 1981's "Computer Love". Also present is 1970s electronic music from the likes of English musician David Bowie
and Brian Eno
. Eno, who would later produce Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends
and Mylo Xyloto, played backing synthesizer
on the track "Low". The first single, "Speed of Sound
", also takes inspiration from the drumbeat of English singer-songwriters Kate Bush
's song "Running Up that Hill
". According to Jon Pareles of The New York Times
, the band attempts to "carry the beauty of 'Clocks'" across the album, borrowing some of its features to songs like "Speed of Sound". The opening track "Square One" features the famous motif from Also Sprach Zarathustra, known better as the title theme of Stanley Kubrick's
1968 science-fiction film 2001: A Space Odyssey
. The three-note sequence is used as a synthesizer hook, as well as a part of the chorus, showcasing Chris Martin's trademark falsetto
voice.
"Fix You" features an organ and piano sound. The song starts with a hushed electric organ ballad, including Martin's falsetto. The song then builds with both an acoustic guitar and piano sound. The sound then shifts with a plaintive three-note
guitar line, ringing through a bringing rhythm upbeat tempo. Its instrumentation is varied with the sound of church-style organs hovering throughout the background, piano notes, acoustic and electric guitar riffs, drums, and a singalong chorus. "The Hardest Part" features a faster piano ballad sound, and starts with a repeating two-note piano riff
, and features an instrumentation of a singsong guitar. It also includes a slow tempo with a drumming rhythm. The track ends with the band playing the repeated instrument riffs. "Talk" is built around a simple guitar lick by Jonny Buckland
. The track includes a hypnotic pace, with Will Champion
adding a metronomic beat to the drums. The song features a synthesizer
hook notable from Kraftwerk's "Computer Love". It also adds a chiming note to more abrasive riffs during the breakdown near the end of the song. "Speed of Sound" is a silmar song musically based on the piano. The song benefits from an insistently ornate keyboard riff and a busy but less-hummable chorus, in which the song builds into a huge drum beat and a synthesizer
-heavy chorus, which also includes an upbeat tempo.
, formed by Mark Tappin and Simon Gofton. The image, which is visualized through a combination of colours and blocks, is a graphical representation of the Baudot code
, an early form of telegraph communication using a series of ones and zeros
to communicate. The code was developed by Frenchman Émile Baudot
in the 1870s, and was a widely used method of terrestrial and telegraph communication.
The alphabet of the code is presented in the liner notes
of X&Y, and if applied to the code of the cover image, reveals "X&Y". The track listing, included on the booklet, CD, and back of the album, uses "X#" on tracks 1–6, and "Y#" on tracks 7–12, rather than the conventional track numbering system. This is a reference to the title of the album. Many pages in the booklet include photos of the band working on the album. The final page of the booklet contains the slogan "Make Trade Fair
", the name of the international organization which Chris Martin continues to support. The band dedicates the album to "BWP" that is presented also inside the liner notes; it stands for Bruce W. Paltrow
, the late father of Martin's wife, Gwyneth Paltrow
. All singles released from the album feature their titles in the same code on their respective covers. Martin sometimes wears coloured tape on his hands while on stage, as a reference to the album.
.jpg)
X&Y was initially intended for a 2004 release, although early news reported it would not be released until 2005; however, because of personal preferences, songs recorded in several sessions were scrapped and had pushed the expected release date to January 2005. However, the new date went by and the band had to set another schedule. By early 2005, the album, rumoured to be called Zero Theory, had a target release date between March and May 2005. By early April, the band had finalized the track listing of the album. Eventually, the album was released on 6 June 2005 in the United Kingdom via record label Parlophone
. It was issued on 7 June in the United States by Capitol Records
. The album has been released with the Copy Control
protection system in some regions. In 2008, Capitol released a remastered version of the album on two 180-gram vinyl records as a part of the "From the Capitol Vaults" series.
Around three months prior to the album release, Coldplay began performing several songs from the album during live performances. The band made a headlining performance at public radio station KCRW-FM's annual A Sounds Eclectic Evening, staging five songs from X&Y and some of their old favourites. For the song "The Scientist", Martin sang one of its verses backward, a technique he learned in shooting its music video.
The album has four main singles
that were released internationally: "Speed of Sound", "Fix You
", and "Talk" in 2005, and "The Hardest Part
" in 2006. A fifth single, "What If", was released in June 2006 to radio stations in France
and the French-speaking portions of Belgium
and Switzerland
. A commercial CD was also released in Belgium and features the same B-side
as "The Hardest Part" ("How You See the World" recorded live at Earls Court
), which was released in other Europe
an markets as well as Japan
and Australia
. This single features the "Tom Lord-Alge
Mix" of "What If" as the A-side which differs from the usual album version. Finally, in 2007, "White Shadows
" was released as a single in Latin America
, to coincide with the band's 2007 Latin America Tour. This also complemented the special "Tour Edition" of the album that was released in these regions.
, the album received an average critic score of 72 out of 100, based on 33 reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine
of Allmusic praises X&Y as "...a good record, crisp, professional, and assured, a sonically satisfying sequel to A Rush of Blood to the Head", stating it as "impeccable" and "a strong, accomplished album". However, Erlewine has sentiments to Martin's songwriting, commenting that the album reveals his "solipsism is a dead-end, diminishing the stature of the band". Alexis Petridis, in his March 2005 review for the British newspaper The Guardian
, had mixed feelings. Petridis praised some of the album's songs, writing that they are "mostly beautifully turned"; however, he panned the lyrics, claiming "they are so devoid of personality that they sound less like song lyrics". Pitchfork Media, in contrast to the album's positive write-ups, gave it a negative review and rated it 4.9 out of 10, claiming it was "...Bland but never offensive, listenable but not memorable."
A number of critics (particularly mainstream media) have stated that the album fell short of the standards set by A Rush of Blood to the Head
, X&Ys predecessor. Coldplay has also received criticism for the similarities between the lead single, "Speed of Sound", and "Clocks
", one of the band's most popular songs to date. Others have noted the obvious similarities to the Irish band U2
's sound that can be heard throughout the album. Kelefa Sanneh
of Rolling Stone
magazine was less contented with X&Y, writing it "is something less exciting" compared to A Rush of Blood to the Head that "was a nervy bid for bigness". Sanneh notes that the album is "the sound of a blown-up band trying not to deflate" and "a surprising number of songs here just never take flight". Despite such, he compliments the album for featuring "lovely ballads that sound, well, Coldplay-ish".
(making it Coldplay's third consecutive number-one debut) with sales totalling 464,471 the third highest opening sales week in UK history, behind Take That
and Oasis
.
To date, the British Phonographic Industry
(BPI) has certified the album eight-times platinum. The album placed at number nine on the list of United Kingdom's 20 biggest-selling albums of the 21st century, published by the British trade paper Music Week
.
The American press have considered X&Y a landmark achievement of Coldplay. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200
, selling 737,000 copies despite the highly competitive retail week. The album gave the band their first US number-one album by debut, and its initial sales surpassed the band's previous album releases; Parachutes amassed over 6,500 copies in its debut and A Rush of Blood to the Head with sales of under 141,000. X&Y became the second highest first week sales in the United States for 2005, behind American rapper 50 Cent
's second album The Massacre
, which sold over one million units in its first week of release. X&Y also emerged as the biggest-selling debut under rock genre. The Recording Industry Association of America
(RIAA) has since certified the album three-times platinum for accumulated shipments of over three million units. In Canada, the album debuted at #1 and sold 105,000 copies in its first week, making it the biggest-selling debut of 2005 in Canada. It ended up being certified 5× Platinum in December 2008 for shipping of 500,000 copies. Altogether, the album emerged as 2005's best-selling album worldwide, accumulating over 8.3 million units despite the aggregate three percent fall of sales. According to EMI
, by the end of 2006 it sold 9.9 million copies.
, and International Album of the Year at the Juno Awards which Coldplay shared with American hip hop group The Black Eyed Peas
. X&Y had scored Coldplay their third consecutive Mercury Prize
nomination. It was also nominated for Best Rock Album at the 48th Grammy Awards, but it lost to U2
's album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
.
, Jonny Buckland
, Will Champion
and Chris Martin
, except where noted.
. All other "Tour Editions" have Copy Control protection. The tracklist is exactly the same as in other "Tour Editions".
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by English rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
, released 6 June 2005 in the United Kingdom via the record label Parlophone
Parlophone
Parlophone is a record label that was founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch was formed in 1923 as "Parlophone" which developed a reputation in the 1920s as a leading jazz label. It was acquired in 1927 by the Columbia Graphophone Company which...
. The album, which features influences of electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
, was produced by the band and British record producer Danton Supple. Development of the album was often troubled; The album's original producer, British record producer Ken Nelson, was supposed to produce much of the album, however, many songs written during their sessions were ditched due to the band's dissatisfaction. The album's cover art is a combination of colours and blocks, which is a representation of the Baudot code
Baudot code
The Baudot code, invented by Émile Baudot, is a character set predating EBCDIC and ASCII. It was the predecessor to the International Telegraph Alphabet No 2 , the teleprinter code in use until the advent of ASCII. Each character in the alphabet is represented by a series of bits, sent over a...
.
The album contains twelve tracks and an additional hidden track, "Til Kingdom Come". It is omitted from the track listing on the album sleeve, but listed as "+" on the disc label and inside the album booklet. It was originally planned for American singer-songwriter Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
to record it with Martin, but Cash died before he was able to do so. The song "Talk" appeared on the main track listing, although it was thought to have been downgraded to a B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
for the album's subsequent single releases, after it leaked online in early 2005.
Originally titled Zero Theory, X&Y was released after a considerable amount of hype and was a significant commercial success, reaching the top spot of many charts worldwide, including the United Kingdom and United States, the latter being their first. With accumulated sales of 8.3 million units in 2005 alone, X&Y was the best-selling album released in 2005 worldwide. To date, the album has sold over 13 million copies worldwide.
Despite critical reaction being mixed to positive,citing that it was inferior to its predecessors, it received a score of 72/100 on Metacritic meaning "generally favorable reviews". The album has spawned the singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
"Speed of Sound
Speed of Sound (song)
"Speed of Sound" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their third album, X&Y. Built around a piano riff, the song builds into a huge, synthesizer-heavy chorus...
", "Fix You
Fix You
"Fix You" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all four members of the band for their third album, X&Y. The track is built around an organ, that is accompanied by slow tempo drums, and a vocals. It was released on 5 September 2005 as the second single from X&Y and...
", "Talk
Talk (song)
"Talk" is a song by the British alternative rock band Coldplay. Built around a motif from Kraftwerk's 1981 song "Computer Love", it was written by all members of the band and appeared on their third album, X&Y...
", "The Hardest Part
The Hardest Part (Coldplay song)
"The Hardest Part" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all four members of the band for their third album, X&Y. A piano-based ballad song, it begins with a two-note piano melody, followed with electric guitar lines, that accompanies a slow tempo drumming. It was...
", "What If" and "White Shadows
White Shadows
"White Shadows" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay and is the third track and sixth overall single on their 2005 album, X&Y. The release of the single in June 2007 resulted in just under half of the songs from the album becoming singles. It was produced by the band and their...
".
Background
In March 2004, Coldplay announced details in the working of X&Y. Initial plans were to stay out of the public eye throughout the year. Vocalist Chris MartinChris Martin
Christopher Anthony John "Chris" Martin is an English song-writer, who is the lead vocalist, pianist and rhythm guitarist of the band Coldplay. He is married to actress Gwyneth Paltrow.-Early life:...
stated, "We really feel that we have to be away for a while and we certainly won't release anything this year, because I think people are a bit sick of us." This plan, however, was not due to the pressure their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head
A Rush of Blood to the Head
A Rush of Blood to the Head is the second studio album by English rock band Coldplay. Released on 26 August 2002 in the UK through the label Parlophone, the album was produced by the band and British record producer Ken Nelson...
, had induced but they were trying "to make the best thing that anyone has ever heard".
Prior to the announcement, Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland
Jonny Buckland
Jonathan Mark "Jonny" Buckland is an English guitarist and musician, best known as the lead guitarist of the band Coldplay.-Early life:...
, and British record producer Ken Nelson had started recording demos
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
while in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. The band then entered a London studio in January 2004.
Recording
The band spent eighteen months working on the album. The released album is the third version which the band had produced during their late sessions, and some have even considered it as their fifth album. The band was not satisfied with the outputs of their initial sessions with Nelson, who produced the band's previous two albums. As a result, they towed the songs from those sessions away, and Nelson was fired, making him banned from producing a Coldplay album.The initial set release date was 2004, and the band had to delay the album to January 2005. But as the new target date was approaching, the band again discarded songs, which they deemed "flat" and "passionless". Sixty songs were written during these sessions, fifty-two of which were ditched. The band started rehearsing the songs for a planned tour, but felt the songs sounded better live compared to their recorded versions: "We realized that we didn't really have the right songs and some of them were starting to sound better because we were playing them than they did on record, so we thought we better go back and record them again." Guitarist Jonny Buckland
Jonny Buckland
Jonathan Mark "Jonny" Buckland is an English guitarist and musician, best known as the lead guitarist of the band Coldplay.-Early life:...
has said that the band had pushed themselves "forward in every direction" in making the album, but they felt it sounded like they were going backwards compared to their earlier works.
In search of perfection, Coldplay had to "step it up a few notches and work hard at it to get it right". The band chose Danton Supple, who mixed the bulk of A Rush of Blood to the Head, to oversee the production of X&Y. When January went, the band had to finish the album; they were conscious of the pressure as "expectations for the record grew larger" and "completing it became tougher and tougher". Finally, the band was settled with the song "Square One", which Martin has described as "a call to arms" and a "plea" to each of them "not to be intimidated by anything or anyone else". Once finished, the band felt like they could do their own songs and not have to think of anyone else's demands. During this month, the band was into the final weeks of production and had put the finishing touches on the tracks.
Drummer Will Champion
Will Champion
William "Will" Champion is an English musician and the drummer of rock band Coldplay.-Early life:William Champion was born in Southampton, Hampshire, England, and was brought up in Highfield, Southampton, where his father, Timothy Champion, is a professor of archaeology...
later admitted that the band was not in a rush in completing the album "because the prospect of touring again was so daunting that we felt we should take our time, and also we wanted to make sure that it was the best it could possibly be". The band had no deadline, according to him, which caused them not to feel pressured into finishing something. Once a proper deadline was imposed onto the band, they became more productive than previous sessions. At this juncture, the band had written "about 14 or 15 songs". Martin added that the reason why they ended up late was that they "... kept [adding] finishing [touches to] the record until it was way too late ... [they] don't listen to it at the moment, because [they would] just find something to go back and change."
Music
Coldplay has cited various influences in the album. The German electronic musicElectronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
pioneer Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...
is evident on the song "Talk
Talk (song)
"Talk" is a song by the British alternative rock band Coldplay. Built around a motif from Kraftwerk's 1981 song "Computer Love", it was written by all members of the band and appeared on their third album, X&Y...
", which borrows its synthetic hook from 1981's "Computer Love". Also present is 1970s electronic music from the likes of English musician David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
. Eno, who would later produce Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, often referred to as simply Viva la Vida is the fourth studio album by British rock band Coldplay, released on 11 June 2008 on Parlophone. The album was named after a Spanish phrase that translates in English as "long live life"...
and Mylo Xyloto, played backing synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
on the track "Low". The first single, "Speed of Sound
Speed of Sound (song)
"Speed of Sound" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their third album, X&Y. Built around a piano riff, the song builds into a huge, synthesizer-heavy chorus...
", also takes inspiration from the drumbeat of English singer-songwriters Kate Bush
Kate Bush
Kate Bush is an English singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Her eclectic musical style and idiosyncratic vocal style have made her one of the United Kingdom's most successful solo female performers of the past 30 years.In 1978, at the age of 19, Bush topped the UK Singles Chart...
's song "Running Up that Hill
Running Up That Hill
12" Maxi single -Charts:-Placebo version:Alternative rock band Placebo covered "Running Up that Hill", releasing it originally on the bonus disc of their 2003 album Sleeping with Ghosts, then featuring it on Covers and the US version of Meds in 2007. Placebo's take on the song is more downbeat than...
". According to Jon Pareles of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, the band attempts to "carry the beauty of 'Clocks'" across the album, borrowing some of its features to songs like "Speed of Sound". The opening track "Square One" features the famous motif from Also Sprach Zarathustra, known better as the title theme of Stanley Kubrick's
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career...
1968 science-fiction film 2001: A Space Odyssey
2001: A Space Odyssey (film)
2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 epic science fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, and co-written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke, partially inspired by Clarke's short story The Sentinel...
. The three-note sequence is used as a synthesizer hook, as well as a part of the chorus, showcasing Chris Martin's trademark falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
voice.
"Fix You" features an organ and piano sound. The song starts with a hushed electric organ ballad, including Martin's falsetto. The song then builds with both an acoustic guitar and piano sound. The sound then shifts with a plaintive three-note
Note
In music, the term note has two primary meanings:#A sign used in musical notation to represent the relative duration and pitch of a sound;#A pitched sound itself....
guitar line, ringing through a bringing rhythm upbeat tempo. Its instrumentation is varied with the sound of church-style organs hovering throughout the background, piano notes, acoustic and electric guitar riffs, drums, and a singalong chorus. "The Hardest Part" features a faster piano ballad sound, and starts with a repeating two-note piano riff
RIFF
The Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
, and features an instrumentation of a singsong guitar. It also includes a slow tempo with a drumming rhythm. The track ends with the band playing the repeated instrument riffs. "Talk" is built around a simple guitar lick by Jonny Buckland
Jonny Buckland
Jonathan Mark "Jonny" Buckland is an English guitarist and musician, best known as the lead guitarist of the band Coldplay.-Early life:...
. The track includes a hypnotic pace, with Will Champion
Will Champion
William "Will" Champion is an English musician and the drummer of rock band Coldplay.-Early life:William Champion was born in Southampton, Hampshire, England, and was brought up in Highfield, Southampton, where his father, Timothy Champion, is a professor of archaeology...
adding a metronomic beat to the drums. The song features a synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
hook notable from Kraftwerk's "Computer Love". It also adds a chiming note to more abrasive riffs during the breakdown near the end of the song. "Speed of Sound" is a silmar song musically based on the piano. The song benefits from an insistently ornate keyboard riff and a busy but less-hummable chorus, in which the song builds into a huge drum beat and a synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
-heavy chorus, which also includes an upbeat tempo.
Lyrics
Lyrically, X&Y made an apparent shift from its predecessors. On their previous works, Martin sang mostly in the first person "I", but moves to the second person "you". Accordingly, the songs on the album are reflection of Martin's "doubts, fears, hopes, and loves" with lyrics that are "earnest and vague".Packaging
The artwork for X&Y was designed by graphic design duo Tappin GoftonTappin Gofton
Tappin Gofton is a graphic design duo consisting of Mark Tappin and Simon Gofton. They are best known for their ambiguous cover for the Coldplay album X&Y and their 1960s-style cover for The Chemical Brothers' album Push the Button, and their cover for The Chemical Brothers' album We Are The Night...
, formed by Mark Tappin and Simon Gofton. The image, which is visualized through a combination of colours and blocks, is a graphical representation of the Baudot code
Baudot code
The Baudot code, invented by Émile Baudot, is a character set predating EBCDIC and ASCII. It was the predecessor to the International Telegraph Alphabet No 2 , the teleprinter code in use until the advent of ASCII. Each character in the alphabet is represented by a series of bits, sent over a...
, an early form of telegraph communication using a series of ones and zeros
Digital
A digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...
to communicate. The code was developed by Frenchman Émile Baudot
Émile Baudot
Jean-Maurice-Émile Baudot , French telegraph engineer and inventor of the first means of digital communication Baudot code, was one of the pioneers of telecommunications...
in the 1870s, and was a widely used method of terrestrial and telegraph communication.
The alphabet of the code is presented in the liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
of X&Y, and if applied to the code of the cover image, reveals "X&Y". The track listing, included on the booklet, CD, and back of the album, uses "X#" on tracks 1–6, and "Y#" on tracks 7–12, rather than the conventional track numbering system. This is a reference to the title of the album. Many pages in the booklet include photos of the band working on the album. The final page of the booklet contains the slogan "Make Trade Fair
Make Trade Fair
Make Trade Fair is a campaign organized by Oxfam International to promote trade justice and fair trade among governments, institutions, and multinational corporations.-Objectives:The campaign has focused on the elimination of several trade practices:...
", the name of the international organization which Chris Martin continues to support. The band dedicates the album to "BWP" that is presented also inside the liner notes; it stands for Bruce W. Paltrow
Bruce Paltrow
Bruce Weigert Paltrow was an American television and film director and producer. He was the husband of actress Blythe Danner, and was the father of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and director Jake Paltrow.-Life and career:...
, the late father of Martin's wife, Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Kate Paltrow is an American actress and singer. She made her acting debut on stage in 1990 and started appearing in films in 1991. After appearing in several films throughout the decade, Paltrow gained early notice for her work in films such as Se7en and Emma...
. All singles released from the album feature their titles in the same code on their respective covers. Martin sometimes wears coloured tape on his hands while on stage, as a reference to the album.
Release and promotion
Parlophone
Parlophone is a record label that was founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch was formed in 1923 as "Parlophone" which developed a reputation in the 1920s as a leading jazz label. It was acquired in 1927 by the Columbia Graphophone Company which...
. It was issued on 7 June in the United States by Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
. The album has been released with the Copy Control
Copy Control
Copy Control was the generic name of a copy prevention system, used from 2001 until 2006 on several digital audio disc releases by EMI Group and Sony BMG Music Entertainment in several regions...
protection system in some regions. In 2008, Capitol released a remastered version of the album on two 180-gram vinyl records as a part of the "From the Capitol Vaults" series.
Around three months prior to the album release, Coldplay began performing several songs from the album during live performances. The band made a headlining performance at public radio station KCRW-FM's annual A Sounds Eclectic Evening, staging five songs from X&Y and some of their old favourites. For the song "The Scientist", Martin sang one of its verses backward, a technique he learned in shooting its music video.
The album has four main singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
that were released internationally: "Speed of Sound", "Fix You
Fix You
"Fix You" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all four members of the band for their third album, X&Y. The track is built around an organ, that is accompanied by slow tempo drums, and a vocals. It was released on 5 September 2005 as the second single from X&Y and...
", and "Talk" in 2005, and "The Hardest Part
The Hardest Part (Coldplay song)
"The Hardest Part" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all four members of the band for their third album, X&Y. A piano-based ballad song, it begins with a two-note piano melody, followed with electric guitar lines, that accompanies a slow tempo drumming. It was...
" in 2006. A fifth single, "What If", was released in June 2006 to radio stations in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and the French-speaking portions of Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. A commercial CD was also released in Belgium and features the same B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
as "The Hardest Part" ("How You See the World" recorded live at Earls Court
Earls Court Exhibition Centre
The Earls Court Exhibition Centre is an exhibition centre, conference and event venue located in west London, United Kingdom in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea . It is the largest exhibition venue in central London. It is served by two underground stations, Earl's Court and West...
), which was released in other Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an markets as well as Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. This single features the "Tom Lord-Alge
Tom Lord-Alge
Tom Lord-Alge is a four-time Grammy Award–winning record producer and mixer. He is the youngest of Vivian Lord's five children, Mark Lord-Alge, Lisa Lord-Alge, Chris Lord-Alge, Jeff Lord-Alge and Tom Lord-Alge...
Mix" of "What If" as the A-side which differs from the usual album version. Finally, in 2007, "White Shadows
White Shadows
"White Shadows" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay and is the third track and sixth overall single on their 2005 album, X&Y. The release of the single in June 2007 resulted in just under half of the songs from the album becoming singles. It was produced by the band and their...
" was released as a single in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
, to coincide with the band's 2007 Latin America Tour. This also complemented the special "Tour Edition" of the album that was released in these regions.
Critical response
Overall reactions to X&Y upon its release in 2005 were mixed to positive. According to review aggregator website MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, the album received an average critic score of 72 out of 100, based on 33 reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
of Allmusic praises X&Y as "...a good record, crisp, professional, and assured, a sonically satisfying sequel to A Rush of Blood to the Head", stating it as "impeccable" and "a strong, accomplished album". However, Erlewine has sentiments to Martin's songwriting, commenting that the album reveals his "solipsism is a dead-end, diminishing the stature of the band". Alexis Petridis, in his March 2005 review for the British newspaper The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, had mixed feelings. Petridis praised some of the album's songs, writing that they are "mostly beautifully turned"; however, he panned the lyrics, claiming "they are so devoid of personality that they sound less like song lyrics". Pitchfork Media, in contrast to the album's positive write-ups, gave it a negative review and rated it 4.9 out of 10, claiming it was "...Bland but never offensive, listenable but not memorable."
A number of critics (particularly mainstream media) have stated that the album fell short of the standards set by A Rush of Blood to the Head
A Rush of Blood to the Head
A Rush of Blood to the Head is the second studio album by English rock band Coldplay. Released on 26 August 2002 in the UK through the label Parlophone, the album was produced by the band and British record producer Ken Nelson...
, X&Ys predecessor. Coldplay has also received criticism for the similarities between the lead single, "Speed of Sound", and "Clocks
Clocks (song)
"Clocks" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head. Built around a piano riff, the song features cryptic lyrics of contrast and urgency themes. Several remixes of the track exist and its riff...
", one of the band's most popular songs to date. Others have noted the obvious similarities to the Irish band U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
's sound that can be heard throughout the album. Kelefa Sanneh
Kelefa Sanneh
Kelefa T. Sanneh is an American journalist and music critic. From 2000 to 2008, he wrote for the New York Times, covering the rock 'n' roll, hip-hop, and pop music scenes...
of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine was less contented with X&Y, writing it "is something less exciting" compared to A Rush of Blood to the Head that "was a nervy bid for bigness". Sanneh notes that the album is "the sound of a blown-up band trying not to deflate" and "a surprising number of songs here just never take flight". Despite such, he compliments the album for featuring "lovely ballads that sound, well, Coldplay-ish".
Commercial performance
X&Y was a commercial success in Europe. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums ChartUK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
(making it Coldplay's third consecutive number-one debut) with sales totalling 464,471 the third highest opening sales week in UK history, behind Take That
Take That
Take That are a British five-piece vocal pop group comprising Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams. Barlow acts as the lead singer and primary songwriter...
and Oasis
Oasis
In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
.
To date, the British Phonographic Industry
British Phonographic Industry
The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...
(BPI) has certified the album eight-times platinum. The album placed at number nine on the list of United Kingdom's 20 biggest-selling albums of the 21st century, published by the British trade paper Music Week
Music Week
Music Week is a trade paper for the UK record industry.Founded in 1959 as Record Retailer, it was relaunched on 18 March 1972 as Music Week . On 17 January 1981 the title was again changed, owing to the increasing importance of sell-through videos, to Music & Video Week...
.
The American press have considered X&Y a landmark achievement of Coldplay. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, selling 737,000 copies despite the highly competitive retail week. The album gave the band their first US number-one album by debut, and its initial sales surpassed the band's previous album releases; Parachutes amassed over 6,500 copies in its debut and A Rush of Blood to the Head with sales of under 141,000. X&Y became the second highest first week sales in the United States for 2005, behind American rapper 50 Cent
50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...
's second album The Massacre
The Massacre
The Massacre is the second studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released March 3, 2005 on Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records in the United States. Its initially planned release was pushed five days ahead to avoid Internet leakage. The album debuted at number 1 on the U.S. Billboard...
, which sold over one million units in its first week of release. X&Y also emerged as the biggest-selling debut under rock genre. The Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
(RIAA) has since certified the album three-times platinum for accumulated shipments of over three million units. In Canada, the album debuted at #1 and sold 105,000 copies in its first week, making it the biggest-selling debut of 2005 in Canada. It ended up being certified 5× Platinum in December 2008 for shipping of 500,000 copies. Altogether, the album emerged as 2005's best-selling album worldwide, accumulating over 8.3 million units despite the aggregate three percent fall of sales. According to EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
, by the end of 2006 it sold 9.9 million copies.
Awards
The album earned the band several awards. In 2006, it won the Best British Album accolade at the BRIT AwardsBrit Awards
The Brit Awards are the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain" or "Britannia", but subsequently became a backronym for British Record Industry Trust...
, and International Album of the Year at the Juno Awards which Coldplay shared with American hip hop group The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas are an American pop group , formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1995. The group includes rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, and Taboo, and singer Fergie. Since the release of their third album Elephunk in 2003, the group has sold an estimated 56 million records worldwide...
. X&Y had scored Coldplay their third consecutive Mercury Prize
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...
nomination. It was also nominated for Best Rock Album at the 48th Grammy Awards, but it lost to U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
's album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb is the eleventh studio album by Irish rock band U2, released in November 2004. Much like their previous album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb was commercially successful and critically acclaimed and maintains a more traditional rock...
.
Track listing
All songs written by Guy BerrymanGuy Berryman
Guy Rupert Berryman is a Scottish musician known as the bassist for the groups Coldplay and Apparatjik. Berryman is left-handed but chooses to play the bass right-handed.-Coldplay:...
, Jonny Buckland
Jonny Buckland
Jonathan Mark "Jonny" Buckland is an English guitarist and musician, best known as the lead guitarist of the band Coldplay.-Early life:...
, Will Champion
Will Champion
William "Will" Champion is an English musician and the drummer of rock band Coldplay.-Early life:William Champion was born in Southampton, Hampshire, England, and was brought up in Highfield, Southampton, where his father, Timothy Champion, is a professor of archaeology...
and Chris Martin
Chris Martin
Christopher Anthony John "Chris" Martin is an English song-writer, who is the lead vocalist, pianist and rhythm guitarist of the band Coldplay. He is married to actress Gwyneth Paltrow.-Early life:...
, except where noted.
Tour edition DVD
To coincide with Coldplay's tour of Australia, Southeast Asia, and Latin America, the album was re-released in those territories as a "Tour Edition", which also includes all the B-side tracks and music videos of X&Y's singles on a bonus DVD:Tour edition CD
In addition a rare "Japan Tour Special Edition" (Cat. No. TOCP-66523) was released in 2006. This is the only "Tour Edition" which has the bonus disc as a CD (CD Extra) (Cat. No. NCD-3013), and without Copy ControlCopy Control
Copy Control was the generic name of a copy prevention system, used from 2001 until 2006 on several digital audio disc releases by EMI Group and Sony BMG Music Entertainment in several regions...
. All other "Tour Editions" have Copy Control protection. The tracklist is exactly the same as in other "Tour Editions".
Charts
| Chart (2005) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Argentina Albums Chart Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers The Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers is an Argentine organization member of the IFPI, which represents the music industry in the country. It is a nonprofit organization integrated by multinational and independent record labels.... |
1 |
| Australia Albums Chart Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... |
1 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... |
1 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Recording Industry Association Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada... |
1 |
| Danish Albums Chart | 1 |
| Dutch Albums Chart NVPI The NVPI is the Dutch tradeassociation of the entertainment industry... |
1 |
| European Top Albums Chart | 1 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 1 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
1 |
| German Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
1 |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Recorded Music Association Irish Recorded Music Association is the Irish record industry association. IRMA is a non-profit association set up to manage and control the music industry in the Republic of Ireland.-Goals and activities:... |
1 |
| Italian Albums Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
1 |
| Mexican Albums Chart | 69 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
1 |
| Spanish Albums Chart | 2 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
1 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
1 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
1 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
1 |
Sales and certifications
Chart procession and succession
External links
- XFM Album Playback with Chris Martin and Johnny Buckland
- Yahoo! Music Interview: X&Y From A To Z
- Marcus du SautoyMarcus du SautoyMarcus Peter Francis du Sautoy OBE is the Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science and a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford. Formerly a Fellow of All Souls College, and Wadham College, he is now a Fellow of New College...
: How do you decode the new Coldplay album cover?, The Guardian, 2 June 2005