The Set List

Coldplay Tour: Free in New York, London; bupkis for L.A.

Coldplay has no use for Los Angeles, at least in the announcement of 29 cities they will play in North America int he summer and fall.  "Viva La Vida"  will be released June 17; the tour,  produced by Live Nation, will kick off June 29 in Philadelphia.
Coldplay will play free concerts in London (June 16th at the Brixton Academy) and New York (June 23 at Madison Square Garden). Information on how to win tickets to these shows will be available here.  Contest will run through June 1; winners will receive notification on June 5.
The album's lead single "Violet Hill" was downloaded by 2 million people in its first week of release.
Tour dates after the jump.

EMI's 2009 Financial Plan: Coldplay's Success Is Life Or Death

Looking at the possibility of starting fiscal year 2009 with a bang, EMI will release Coldplay's  fourth album, "Viva La Vida," in the third week of June, toward the end of the first quarter of the now private Brit conglom. Company is not likely to release year-end financials, which would reveal the costs of its massive restructuring.
Hits have been few and far between for EMI in Guy Hands' rookie season and the company's current representatives in the top 50 are a Trace Adkins hits compilation  and the B-52's first album in 16 years. The pressure will be enormous for  "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends" - that's the full title - to perform at a level equal or better than its predecessor, "X&Y," which has sold 10 million copies worldwide since its release in 2005. (The RIAA, which certifies shipments, has "X&Y" at 3 million copies in the U.S.)
"X&Y" sold 737,294 copies in its first week of release back in 2005 and Coldplay-mania was so strong then that their first two albums, "A Rush of Blood to the Head"  and "Parachutes" rose to Nos. 1 and 2 on the catalog albums chart. "XX&Y" debuted at No. 1 in more than 20 countries.
During the Eric Nicoli years, EMI often blamed stock slumps on the lack of or delays in new Coldplay and/or Radiohead material, which meant the company had  to tout  Beach Boys, Dean Martin and Beatles packages along with front line  releases for signs of good news.
With EMI streamlined, the jury is still out as to whether they will be able to break new artists on the scale of Coldplay or even Norah Jones. But its reduction in size, however, may mean that a single record from a single band may be able to jumpstart a company.   
The album's 10 tracks are:

"Life in Technicolor"
"Cemeteries of London"
"Lost!"
"42"
"Lovers in Japan/Reign of Love"
"Yes"
"Viva La Vida"
"Violet Hill"
"Strawberry Swing"
"Death and All His Friends"

Petty, Jay-Z, NIN to headline B.C. festival

There are plenty of U.S. music festivals to choose from this summer, and now Canada has entered the fray with the inaugural Pemberton Festival, which is set for July 25-27 in Pemberton, B.C. (roughly two hours from Vancouver). The scheduled headliners are Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Jay-Z, Nine Inch Nails and Coldplay.

The rest of the line-up is well-rounded: My Morning Jacket, the Tragically Hip, Interpol, Metric, Buck 65, Black Mountain, Flaming Lips, Death Cab For Cutie, Vampire Weekend, MGMT, Sia, Fiery Furnaces, Mates of State, MSTRKRFT, Chromeo, The Airborne Toxic Event, Grand Ole Party, The Crystal Method, DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist and more.

Coldplay's Rein in Spain

Coldplay is informing its fans via its website that its next album will have the flavors of South America and Spain.
Band is recording in Barcelona going from church to church and setting up wherever they can - at the altar, between some pews. The quartet had visited Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico earlier this year.
"The sights, sounds and flavors of Latin America and Spain have definitely been infused into this album," the band writes. "The effect is subtle but important."
The BBC reported the story first.
Chris Martin had noted his fascination with Buenos Aires ina  February post on the site.