Coldplay Carpe Diem in ‘Birds’ Music Video

When Coldplay released the music video for "Adventure of a Lifetime," the first official single from their new album A Head Full of Dreams, the band set the bar pretty high in terms of visual expectations. Transforming themselves into dancing monkeys frolicking in a lush CGI jungle seemed to promise that all future videos would be as uplifting and extravagant.

In the new music video for their next single "Birds," Coldplay maintain the uplifting spirit but take a more understated approach to the visuals, swapping out expensive CGI's for the warmth and intimacy of fuzzy home movies that document their visit to California's graffiti-ridden Salvation Mountain.

The video visually echoes Salvation Mountain's hippie history, distorting the images as if they were being tumbled through a kaleidoscope and enhancing their overall dream-like quality and sense of escapism.

Visuals erupt in saturated brightness and intensity in time with Martin's carpe diem lyrics, particularly when he declares, "So start falling in love / Start the riot / And come on rage with me / We don't need words / We'll be birds / Got to make our own key." In this moment, we're treated to images of a beautiful woman dancing in a flowing, white organza dress, a flurry of sparks/fireworks, rushing waters, and of course birds in flight.

There are also shots of some of the more iconic bits of graffiti that line the peaks of Salvation Mountain that fit with the song's live-for-today, live-for-yourself message, such as "We are all / Born to live / But few of us ever do."

Watch the video above.

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