Could be Paradise...

Well. Coldplay released the second single for their upcoming Mylo Xyloto album on Monday (the first single being ETIAW). This one is called "Paradise." And it has made me even more excited for the album's release. (:

Anyway. Paradise. I'm in love. This song... ah. I don't know how to explain it.

Compared to "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall," Coldplay's first Mylo Xyloto single, "Paradise" is definitely a bit moodier. But it's still something that makes you want to get up and move. And, of course, it still has that Coldplay feel to it, despite the new direction the band has been taking (which, I'll admit, I really like).

But anyway. Mylo Xyloto is set to come out in the US on October 25. It's also a "concept album." Which means that all of the songs are going to be unified in a common theme. Luckily, I'm pretty sure that we already know what the basic "theme" will be. (: Chris Martin said, “It’s based on a love story with a happy ending.” So, the whole album is going to be one big story. I love it. (:

Mylo Xyloto album cover and tracklist

Sigh. Can't wait. (:

More possible Les Mis cast news

Apparently, there's even more speculation swirling around about more cast members that could possibly be in the new Les Miserables movie musical that should be coming out sometime in 2012 or 2013. As of right now, we know that Hugh Jackman is going to be Valjean, and that Paul Bettany and Russell Crowe seem to be front-runners for Javert. But who are these new people?

There are a few. But, as a disclaimer, this is all speculation. Nothing is set in stone as of right now.

Anyway. First up, we have rumors of Geoffrey Rush as Thenardier. Captian Barbossa himself. Also, Rush was also in The King's Speach, the last movie that Les Mis director Tom Hooper directed, so I suppose that this kind of makes sense. Also, of course, Rush played Javert in the 1997 Les Miserables movie. Which... let's be honest, wasn't well-received by some fans. But oh, well. I think that he could possibly do well as Thenardier.

... I think I can kind of see it. But, I also think that as of right now, he's super gray and without those curly locks. So... whatever.

Next up on the list is Helena Bonham Carter for Madame Thenardier. Most of the time, I love Helena. And I think that she could do a good job as Mme Thenardier. As most people should know, she can definitely pull off the crazy, evil side that Mme Thenardier should have. And yeah, yeah, I know... usually, most people picture/portray Mme Thenardier has heavy-set... but does she really have to be? Personally, I don't think so, especially when it's Helena playing the part.

Now for Fantine. Three names apparently being tossed around as possible Fantines are Amy Adams, Rebecca Hall, and Anne Hathaway. Personally... I'm a no-go for Amy. Yeah, she's done singing movies such as Enchanted (which, let's be honest... isn't quite Les Mis-ish), but I just don't see her as Fantine. She's too... sunny, I guess? For lack of a better word. Maybe that's just Enchanted getting to me though. Also, with Anne, sure she can sing, but does she really have a voice for Fantine? In my opinion, no. Based on looks alone, I think I'd prefer Rebecca.

Finally, we have Cosette/Eponine. And there are quite a few names being thrown around for these two, which makes me wonder if they really are that - just names being thrown around. But anyway. The names that have been listed are Hayden Panettiere, Miranda Cosgrove, Lucy Hale, and Emma Watson.

I know that nobody's actually going to ask me, but if they did, Hayden and Miranda would be thrown out from the get-go. I know it's a bit... prejudiced, I guess, but Hayden just irritates me whenever she's on the screen. Maybe it's because of her being Claire in Heroes, I have no idea. But I just don't like watching her. As for Miranda, she's a Disney kid. I mean, I guess they could put her in there... but didn't they learn their lesson from Nick Jonas?

So we're left with Lucy and Emma. I haven't personally seen much of Lucy's work, so I can't really compare. As for Emma, I think that she might be fine too. I suppose. I don't know, though. I'm on the fence for both of them.

And, that's about it. Like I said before, these names are all just speculated. There may even turn out to be no fact at all for some of them, only rumor that somebody threw in for fun. But whatever, I guess that we'll see. Obviously, this movie is probably going to be very Hollywood, and not quite as musical-theatre-only as some people hoped. But, come on... let's just be happy that we're getting a movie, right? As long as it's not completely butchered, I think that I'll be happy.

And as long as they keep the Disney kids out of it.

The Mentalist sneak peak! (:

Alright. So, I was pretty excited when I saw this.

The CBS website posted a "Season 4 Premier First Look" for The Mentalist today. It's only four photos and a couple of captions, but it's getting me excited nonetheless. (:

Obviously, Jane's in prison and going on trial for what he did at the end of last season.

The only downside to this is that Jane has been in jail before ("Black Gold and Red Blood" from season 2), and I... didn't really like that episode. I really prefer Jane being out and about, and with him being stuck in jail... it just wasn't as fun, in my opinion. Hopefully, things will be different with season 4. I'll admit that this could probably very well be pretty interesting.

Anyway. The Mentalist will start back up on September 22nd, and I'm getting pretty excited. (:

Here's a video that was posted a few weeks ago, which recaps last season's finale, "Strawberries and Cream." Obviously, there are spoilers.

Ahh! It's so good! (: I especially like that quote at the end. Honestly, I can't wait. Hopefully this next season is fantastic. Though I'm sure that it will be. (:

... 36 days! (:

Les Miserables US Tour cast on America's Got Talent

Okay. So, this right here basically made me beyond happy.

The cast of Les Miserables that is currently touring the US (the cast that I saw perform in June) made an appearance last night on America's Got Talent and sang "One Day More." It. Was. Fantastic. (:

This cast features Mark McVey as Valjean, Justin Scott Brown as Marius, Jenny Latimer as Cosette (who is from Orem, Utah!), Chasten Harmon as Eponine, Jeremy Hayes as Enjolras, Andrew Varela as Javert, and Michael Kostroff and Shawna Hamic as the Thenardiers.

It brought back all of those wonderful memories from June 5, 2011. (: The only differences that I can see between this cast and the cast that I saw are Valjean and Enjolras. I saw Ron Sharpe as Valjean and... somebody else as Enjolras. But it wasn't Jeremy Hayes.

Sigh. Anyway, I realize now that I never actually posted a blog post about seeing Les Miserables. So... I will now. I saw it on June 5, 2011 (which, ironically, is the day before "Barricade Day") at the Capitol Theatre. It was amazing. (: After the show, I went to the stage door and had the amazing opportunity of meeting some of the cast. I got so many cast members to sign my playbill. It was fantastic. (:

It was all so... mind-boggling, for lack of a better word, that I didn't think to get a lot of photos. Here are a couple:

 Andrew Varela (Javert)

Ron Sharpe (Valjean)

And here's the end result of getting my playbill signed. (:

So... yeah. That was my experience. It was two and a half months ago, but I still remember it all like it was yesterday. It was amazing, I loved it, and it will definitely be the beginning of many Les Miserables experiences. (:

Mylo Xyloto (:

Well, it's official. The title and release date for Coldplay's fifth album has FINALLY been released. (: Mylo Xyloto (pronounced MY-lo ZY-le-to) will be released on October 24, 2011 (as previously speculated) for everywhere except North America. We won't get it until the next day, on October 25th. Ah, well.

Also released with this information was the cover art for the album:

 For the CD, it will include an alternate album cover on the revearse side of the main one:

I'm kind of a fan, I think. (: The name of the album is a bit strange, and it took me a while to be able to pronounce it right, but it's slowly growing on me. I'm liking it more and more. (:

So, what exactly does "Mylo Xyloto" mean? Nobody seems to know. Maybe later, we'll have a better idea.

Anyway. As of right now, the official tracklist for the album hasn't been announced, but there's a lot of speculation. Somewhere - I can't exactly remember where - I heard that the album is a bit over forty minutes long. So, I'm guessing that that will probably be about a 10-track album. But that's just my guess.

WikiColdplay has a list of possible songs for Mylo Xyloto:

"Charlie Brown"
"Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall"
"Great Expectations"
"Hurts Like Heaven"
"Major Minus"
"Moving To Mars"
"Mylo Xyloto"
"Paradise"
"Princess Of China"
"Sex And Violence"
"Tomorrow"
"U.F.O."
"Us Against The World"
"Up In Flames"
"Up With The Birds"

Obviously, some of the songs have never been heard of before. A few of them, however, have been played by Coldplay at festivals and concerts. Here are some of them. (:

"CHARLIE BROWN"

Ah, "Charlie Brown." (: As stated in the previous post, I adore this particular song. (:

"EVERY TEARDROP IS A WATERFALL"

Now, for some people (particularly, some long-time Coldplay fans), they absolutely hate this song. Personally, I think that it's fine. I actually like it. But that could be because I only got into Coldplay more recently. And also, because I'm a bit more open-minded when it comes to music. But anyway.

"US AGAINST THE WORLD"

This song is lovely. (: Beautiful meaning, and beautiful lyrics. I especially love 2:02 - 2:30. "And if we could float away, fly up to the surface and just start again, and lift off before trouble just erodes us in the rain..."

"MAJOR MINUS"

Ah. I like this one too. It's not my favorite, but I do like it. (:

"MOVING TO MARS"

This song starts out a bit slow for me, but after the beginning part I do grow to like it. (:

"HURTS LIKE HEAVEN"

This is another one of those catchy songs. (: I also like this one. Hopefully, it makes it on the album.

Of course, some of the songs listed may not even be on the album. "Hurts Like Heaven," for example, is one of those songs that might have been tossed into the scrap pile for the album. Personally, I hope that that's not the case, because I'm a fan of that song. (:

So far, only two songs are "guarenteed" to be on the album, from what I've heard: "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall" and "Paradise." I haven't heard "Paradise" before, because I don't think that it's been played anywhere yet. But anyway, this song is going to be Mylo Xyloto's second single (ETIAW being the first), scheduled to be released on September 12. One month! (:

As for the full album... 72 days! (;

We'll run wild, we'll be glowing in the dark (:

To be honest, I'm one of those people who, when asked what their favorite song is, usually replies, "I really don't have a favorite song." And it's true. I have favorite songs, but not one single favorite. And there are just too many too list when the question is asked.

But anyway. With that said, I've officially added a new favorite song to that super long (okay... slightly long) favorite songs list. What is it, you may ask? "Charlie Brown" by Coldplay.

This is a fairly new song, and it's pretty catchy and just overall fantastic. I love it, and I can't get enough of it. The only problem? It hasn't been released yet! And what does that mean? It means, my friends, that this fantastic song is not on iTunes. So, I can't have it on my iPod.

It's driving me insane.

But anyway. "Charlie Brown" was first introduced to the general public on June 3, 2011 at the Rock im Park Festival in Nürnberg, Germany. They've continued to play it at other concerts through out the summer. But, like I said, it hasn't actually been released yet.

Originally, the song was called "Cartoon Heart," but it was later changed to "Charlie Brown."

Anyway, I guess that I'll survive the wait for the song's actual release. Coldplay's new album, which "Charlie Brown" will most likely be included on, is most likely coming out this fall. Most sources say that it'll be toward the end of October. So... I'll just try not to think about it too much.

In the meantime, I'll just have to rely on YouTube to enjoy the song. (:

"Light a fire from a spark
Light a fire, a flame in my heart
We'll run wild,
We'll be glowing in the dark."

Les Mis Movie: Russell Crowe as possible Javert?

There's another contender for the new Les Mis movie that's in the works: Russell Crowe. Apparently, the actor is very "keen" on the idea of playing Javert.

Could this work? I haven't heard Russell Crowe sing before, so I can't really judge him on that. Based on looks alone? Hmm... let's compare him with the other speculated Javert front-runner, Paul Bettany.

Ah... I still don't know. Crowe is darker (i.e. not super-white like Bettany), like Javert is "supposed" to be, but in some Bettany photos he has this really fantastically intense look about him... so, yeah, I don't know. This one I'm just really on the fence about both ways.

But... take a look at this shot of Russell Crowe, from the movie Master and Commander (which, ironically, Paul Bettany is also in).

Remind you of anybody? No? Come one, just think about it... think about it some more...

Alright. Does this jog your memory a bit?

RUSSELL CROWE HAS THE ABILITY TO LOOK A LITTLE BIT LIKE FREAKING PHILIP QUAST.

Sigh. Just give me a second to get over that. Okay, I'm good now.

Maybe it's just me. But I see a similarity there. And it's freaking awesome.

Anyway. From what I heard, however, director Tom Hooper really wants Bettany in the Javert role. He probably has a better chance of  getting it than Russell Crowe does.

Of course, all of this possible-Javert-casting is just speculation. Nothing has been set in stone, and all of this is simply what I heard on the grapevine.

Something has been confirmed though, and that's the fact that Hugh Jackman will be in the movie, as confirmed by his rep. However, when asked about what role Jackman would actually be playing, the spokesperson only said, "I think Valjean." So, there's a possibility that he could be playing someone else... but, personally, I'm sure that he's going to be playing Valjean.
Something else that's (kind of) been confirmed? The movie will have spoken dialogue mixed in, unlike the musical, which is sung through. I'm totally fine with that. I mean, turning a theatre musical into a motion picture is going to require some changes.

I've also heard that the movie will probably start filming around February, once Hugh Jackman is done with the movie he's currently working on, The Wolverine.

February. That's in less than a year. OH MY GOODNESS.

They better cast this freaking movie soon, before I go insane.