Skip to content
Premieres

Coldplay Replicate a Romantic Rave for ‘Charlie Brown’ Video

120203-coldplay.png

Coldplay know how to please a crowd, which isn’t as easy or unimportant as snobs would have you think, or else everybody could do it. If there’s any justice in the world, “Charlie Brown” will be the most crowd-pleasing song from last year’s Mylo Xyloto. Yes, Chris Martin and the lads sound like they’re trying to please us — there’s one of those whirling “Clocks”-style intro, a language-transcending “woo ooh” hook, and a trace of Arcade Fire’s harrowed urgency in the verses — but it’d be churlish to deny how much they succeed.

With Valentine’s Day approaching, Coldplay has revealed a “Charlie Brown” video that shows exuberant young love in a rave’s neon light. Which, as it happily turns out, is yet another hugely appealing way to encounter this song. The MDMA-friendly day-glo color scheme fits the “we’ll be glowing in the dark” hook and the swirling vocal intro that recalls the first time electronic dance music was supposed to conquer the States. And the giddy couples tumbling head over heels for each other speak to the sappy, old-fashioned romantic at the heart of every good Coldplay song. Pass the box of chocolates, or the Ecstasy, whichever’s handier, and stick around for the piano-and-strings slow dance at the end.

[Editor’s note: Coldplay went all-out with the editing on this one, attempting to make us feel like we’re in the rave with a bazillion quick cuts. There isn’t one shot in this video longer than a split second, which we learned while trying to nab a screengrab. Thanks for making our lives hard, Coldplay!]