Coldplay fans were in for a nostalgic surprise during the band’s recent show in El Paso, Texas, where they performed a full-band version of “Speed Of Sound” for the first time since 2016. Despite frontman Chris Martin’s long-standing reservations about the 2005 hit, the band decided to dust off the track and give it another go — imperfections and all.
“Speed Of Sound,” the lead single from Coldplay’s third studio album X&Y, marked a major milestone in the band’s career. It was their first Top 10 single in the United States and helped define the band’s mid-2000s arena-rock sound. But the song has had a complicated legacy. In a 2011 interview, Martin openly admitted that the band was never fully satisfied with how it turned out. Later that year, he told Howard Stern, “An audience can pick up real fast if you’re not convinced by something,” explaining why they often skipped the track in live performances.
Before launching into the song in El Paso, Martin addressed the elephant in the room. “Why don’t we try and reclaim the song ‘Speed Of Sound?’” he asked the crowd. “At some point, we’ll do a proper edit… make it a little bit quicker, a little bit shorter, a little bit tighter.” Then, with characteristic humility, he quipped, “For those of you who weren’t born in 2005, it’s not that good, but we’re going to try and play it anyway.”
The performance was a rare moment of vulnerability and spontaneity from a band that’s spent much of the last two decades refining their sound and global presence. And for fans who’ve always had a soft spot for “Speed Of Sound,” flaws and all, it was a welcome return.
Whether or not a new remix or edit is on the way, one thing is clear: Coldplay is willing to revisit even the songs they once left behind — and in doing so, they’re rewriting their own narrative.
