Prospekt's March is the seventh extended play by British rock band Coldplay and their first since Remixes (2003). It was released on 21 November 2008 in Europe and Japan, later released globally the following week.[2][3] The EP features several left-over tracks from the Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends studio sessions and was also made available in the album's deluxe edition.[4][5][6]
The cover features Eugène Delacroix's original painting[7]Battle of Poitiers,[8] similar to the cover art featured on Viva la Vida, which included another Delacroix painting, Liberty Leading the People. On 5 November, Coldplay offered an exclusive preview of the EP via their Facebook application and through their website.[9][10] The song "Glass of Water" was released in anticipation for the project and entered the iTunes Top 100 songs, being also performed live by the band on 4Music.
Throughout the recording of Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, Coldplay communicated to fans through their website, and some of the song titles were revealed during the recording. The name "Poppyfields" was first revealed in September 2007; in late October 2007, a message said that "Famous Old Painters" and "Glass of Water" had been written and were being considered for the album. "Prospekt's March" appeared for the first time in December of the same year; all the notes were signed by the pseudonym Prospekt, strengthening rumours that this would be the album's title. Those songs did not make it to the album's final track listing, so were featured on the Prospekt's March EP, except for "Famous Old Painters", which was never released.[2]
In an interview for Coldplay's official website, frontman Chris Martin said that all the songs on the EP came very close to inclusion on Viva la Vida, and that they were "all part of the same family". In the same interview, the frontman stated that the idea was always to put these songs out by the end of 2008.[19] Coldplay confirmed five songs for Prospekt's March on 3 October 2008, all of which had not been completed in time for Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends. The playlist was changed to eight songs on 5 October.[20] Six of the eight tracks are new recordings of the band.[21]
Chart performance
Prospekt's March debuted at number 15 on the Billboard 200 with 77,000 copies sold.[22]
^ a b"Life in Technicolor ii to be single". Coldplay. 5 January 2009. Archived from the original on 13 February 2012. Retrieved 5 January 2009.
^ a bMartin, Chris (3 October 2008). "Prospekt's March Tracklisting". Coldplay. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2008.
^Martin, Chris (7 October 2008). "Prospekt's March Tracklisting". Coldplay. Archived from the original on 20 August 2014. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
^Harris, Chris (2 September 2008). "Coldplay Will Issue EP of Viva La Vida Leftovers in December, New LP in 2009". MTV. Archived from the original on 3 September 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
^Michaels, Sean (1 September 2008). "Coldplay confirm new EP and album". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 September 2008.
^"Coldplay Announce Deluxe Edition of Viva la Vida". antiMUSIC. 8 October 2008. Retrieved 8 October 2008.
^"1356 Battle of Poitiers, 1830, Eugčne Delacroix (1798–1863) photo – Brian McMorrow photos at". Pbase.com. 15 August 2005. Retrieved 17 December 2011.
^Martin, Chris (14 October 2008). "Prospekt's March Artwork revealed". Coldplay. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 14 October 2008.
^Coldplay. "Glass of Water". Retrieved 6 November 2008 – via Facebook.
^"Glass of Water". Coldplay. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
^"Nominees And Winners". GRAMMY.com. Retrieved 17 December 2011.