Fans generating electricity on kinetic dance floors, recyclable LED wristbands and the band travelling by train are just few examples of how Coldplay has succeeded in reducing their touring carbon footprint by 59% compared with their previous world tour.
This year, the eco-conscious British band is aiming to make the most ecologically sustainable vinyl record yet with their new upcoming album ‘Moon Music’.
More info: The Ocean Cleanup
Coldplay’s new album ‘Moon Music’ will be made of plastic removed from Rio Las Vacas in Guatemala by The Ocean Cleanup
Coldplay has collaborated with Dutch non-profit foundation The Ocean Cleanup, which will help them to make a very special record using plastic waste collected from Rio Las Vacas in Guatemala.
Each 140g vinyl copy of the band’s new album that will be released on the 4th of October will be made from 9 old plastic bottles, preventing them from entering the Gulf of Honduras and the Atlantic Ocean and providing an 85% reduction in manufacturing process CO2 emissions/kg compared to traditional vinyl.
The Ocean Cleanup’s floating barricade system named Interceptor 006 was placed in a hydropower reservoir lake, in the Rio Las Vacas, around 16 km north of Guatemala City.
“Interceptor 006 made significant impact and captured large quantities of plastic – which has now been sorted, blended, tested, and used to manufacture Coldplay’s limited edition physical release,” shared The Ocean Cleanup.
Coldplay is not only providing financial support for the non-profit foundation’s cleaning operations, such as Interceptor 005 in Malaysia and the planned Interceptor 020 in Indonesia, but also spreading the eco-conscious message about The Ocean Cleanup’s mission during their ‘Music of the Spheres’ tour.
“Coldplay is an incredible partner for us and I’m thrilled that our plastic catch has helped bring ‘Moon Music’ to life,” shared Boyan Slat, who founded The Ocean Cleanup at the age of 18 in his hometown of Delft, the Netherlands.
“As a band, and as an industry, we’re a long way from where we need to be on this. But we’re grateful for everyone’s help so far, and we salute everyone who’s making efforts to push things in the right direction,” Coldplay shared in a statement on their website.
‘Moon Music’, which was produced by Max Martin, will be Coldplay’s 10th album and is already available to preorder here. As an effort to reduce waste, the first edition of both the EcoRecord LP and EcoCD will be strictly limited and individually numbered.
Each 140g vinyl copy of ‘Moon Music’ will be manufactured from 9 old plastic bottles
Turning plastic garbage into a high-quality record might sound like a very nice idea, yet the entire process is far from an easy one.
Coldplay’s vinyls couldn’t be made from any plastic trash, only specifically from PET, which meant that The Ocean Cleanup couldn’t use the ocean plastic extracted from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (which is mostly HDPE, LDPE and PP). The foundation had to search elsewhere to find the right materials.
The other obstacle was to ensure the required sound quality for the band’s music. The plastic had to be as clean and free of imperfections as possible. Therefore, it was only one Interceptor which fit such requirements: Interceptor 006 in Guatemala, which has been preventing an incredibly huge amount of trash from flooding into the Caribbean Sea since 2023.
Yet all the challenges didn’t end there. A quality-sounding LP couldn’t be created using only river plastic. It had to be mixed with other recycled plastic due to the high standards both collaborative parts were seeking in order to ensure this plastic will never return to the marine environment.
After many days of testing, The Ocean Cleanup finally came up with the right blend. Each limited edition would consist of 70% PET river plastic removed from the Rio Las Vacas and the rest would be recycled waste plastic PET bottles from other sources.
The Notebook Edition of Coldplay’s new album ‘Moon Music’ marks the first time when The Ocean Cleanup has used collected plastic waste in order to create a new product, yet the foundation believes this is only the beginning of many more exciting ideas towards creating a more eco-conscious society.
Coldplay’s fans were curious about how the most ecologically sustainable vinyl record will sound
