Coldplay Accused Of Swiping “Viva La Vida” From Mustachioed Indie Rocker
In October 2007, the Brooklyn outfit Creaky Boards was excited to see a person who resembled Coldplay’s Chris Martin enjoying their CMJ festival performance. Less than a year later, that enthusiasm has turned into frustration as bandleader Andrew Hoepfner discovered that Coldplay’s iTunes-ad-featured “Viva La Vida” had a melody that was kind of close to their “The Songs I Didn’t Write,” performed at the aforementioned concert. Did Martin go hopping from show to show at CMJ, lifting bits for his next album? Don’t be daft, say the superstars; “Viva La Vida” was allegedly demoed over a year ago. This hasn’t stopped Hoepfner from creating a video clip comparing the tracks and publicizing his band.
Oddly, Hoepfner notes that his song’s subject, listening to the radio, would probably be a better fit for an iTunes ad than Coldplay singing about the Crusades. So far he’s not seeking any financial restitution, and he’s even joking that he stole the progression from Zelda on his band’s blog. The similarity is vague enough that I think it’s pretty canny of him to use these similarities as a way of getting the Creaky Boards some publicity, instead of going the more expensive lawsuit route. Probably won’t get them closer to that Apple deal, though.
Coldplay Deny Stealing Song [Guardian] coldplay + itunes steals viva la vida from creaky boards! [YouTube]
