Mylo Xyloto Graffiti Electronic Era

Lore & Background

Mylo Xyloto is the band's first concept album and a thematic rock opera. It tells the story of a war against sound and colour on the planet Silencia, overtaken by a totalitarian government led by Major Minus, who controls the population through media and propaganda. The album follows Mylo Xyloto, a 'silencer' soldier, who encounters Fly, a sparker, and discovers his own sparker abilities and affiliation with the Car Kids, a faction founded by his parents Aiko and Lela. The story involves a love story between Mylo and Xyloto, though in the comics Mylo Xyloto is the main protagonist and Fly is the sparker girl.

In Their Own Story

The neon hum of the streetlights flickered against the gray concrete as Mylo dipped his brush into a can of electric blue. Above him, the watchful eyes of the regime scanned the skyline, but down here in the alleyways, the colors were alive. He painted a flower on the wall where the Princess had hidden her note, the chalk dust mixing with the rain to create a swirling storm of defiance. In that moment, the city didn't feel like a prison; it felt like a canvas waiting for its true story to be told.

Reader's Guide

The album's artwork was inspired by graffiti, created with British street artist Paris. The front cover features a picture including three parts of a nine-part graffiti wall painted by the band and Paris. The whole wall is featured in the CD booklet. The album has been described as alternative rock, pop, electronica, pop rock, space rock, and electronic rock. It was recorded partly at The Bakery and a new studio called The Beehive in North London. Recording finished in September 2011.

Did You Know?

• Mylo Xyloto charted at number one in 34 countries internationally.
• The album sold 208,343 units in its first week in the UK and set a one-week digital sales record with 83,000 copies.
• It broke an iTunes record for the most pre-orders in a single week.
• The album was the UK's best-selling rock album of 2011, moving over 908,000 copies.
• It has sold more than 8 million copies worldwide.