Theroyalty, I think the reviewer doesn't like that Coldplay aren't carbon neutral. Plus they aren't wearing Barack Obama pins, so the music must suck.

He should give examples of "real warriors of truth and justice". Maybe he likes the Dalai lama. "T'was a long and dark december, from the roof top i saw a chinese soldier beat up my mother, while i froze my ass off in the snow"

Edited.

How does X&Y keep beating VLV? What's going on?

 

I agree with whoever said the listening parties are not helping, I also think a lot of it is to do with reviewers just not liking them. It's sad when they've brought out their best work in a long time :\

I find it a bit annoying that so many people in here refuse to accept that not everyone will love this album. I love Coldplay and very much enjoy their stuff, but I still think that this album isn't all that fantastic. It's about a 3/5 album for me too. Contrary to what's been said by many, that does NOT mean I'm "tone deaf" or "crazy". I'm not one of those critics who just hates Coldplay for the sake of it. I'm a fan! That doesn't mean I have to praise and worship everything they do.

I don't refuse to accept anything, everyone is entitled to their opinion and in MY opinion it's absolute bullshit that anyone can think X&Y is better than VLV. AROBTTH or Parachutes fine, but X&Y no way.

 

I'm not calling you crazy, or tone deaf, we know you don't like it, you'd stated that often enough and it's fine.

 

The reviewers might not have liked it too that's fine. What I'm saying is that if they have gone into a rubbish listening party deciding before it started that they weren't going to like it then it's going to affect the review. ;)

I think the sentence Coldplay remain thunderingly uncool sums up these reviews like coldplay should be singing about world affairs but thats the job of the newspapers i dont want to hear songs about drugs or people getting knifed and shot etc etc maybe the world has changed that much that songs about love and hope dont mean shit anymore and its a sad world

I do agree with you guys about reviewing something based on a listening party. That really is unacceptable. Albums take numerous listens and a lot of time to get a full opinion on. I mean I'm saying now that it hasn't blown me away, but who knows a few weeks down the line.

I think the sentence Coldplay remain thunderingly uncool sums up these reviews like coldplay should be singing about world affairs but thats the job of the newspapers i dont want to hear songs about drugs or people getting knifed and shot etc etc maybe the world has changed that much that songs about love and hope dont mean shit anymore and its a sad world

 

 

like before he had done that with X&Y (you know its my favorite album too)

 

he also did about loneliness and death on this one too like the previous one.

Here's another, slightly less harsh review :)

 

Coldplay aren't boring anymore

 

Chris Martin won't be sleeping well right now. The leader of Coldplay, arguably the biggest band in the world, is currently in the middle of the most agonising part of his job — letting strangers hear his new material for the first time.

Coldplay's fourth album arrives next week with the grandiose title Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends. While its name and Delacroix painted sleeve have gravitas, otherwise it has the air of a band trying hard to pretend that they are not EMI's cash cow.

They recorded it in a Hampstead studio called The Bakery, which conjures images of a modest cottage industry rather than the high-pressure manufacture of an album expected to dominate the year's chart (as did its 10 million-selling predecessor, X&Y). Alongside Markus Dravs, producer for Arcade Fire, sat Brian Eno, known for his unorthodox methods of coaxing new sounds out of established acts such as U2, Talking Heads and David Bowie.

Coldplay tried everything from hypnotism to Eno's “Oblique Strategies” —a series of cards containing cryptic instructions such as “Honour thy error as a hidden intention” — in an effort to move away from the overpolished, lyrically vague anthems of X&Y. Although the public loved that album, the band now edge more towards the critics' view that it was the sound of an empty stadium, gigantic and pointless. Martin's comment at the 2006 Brit Awards — “We won't see you for a very long time.

We've got a lot of work to do” — hinted that he knew a new direction was essential to stay in the same game as the huge but artistically respected bands he loves such as Radiohead and REM.

All of which warned of a daring but dull left turn like Radiohead's Kid A, or a moment of madness such as Robbie Williams's Rudebox. EMI boss Guy Hands will not be the only one relieved to find Viva la Vida is nothing of the sort. It's the same band but more interesting.

The 13 songs (divided into 10 tracks, to make them better value as downloads) nudge at rather than stride towards new directions, never cutting loose from the old mooring of strong melody. Nothing will scare off even the most casual fan, though in several places the band are bold enough to mess with their most obviously appealing facet — Martin's tearjerking voice. On Yes, he sings an octave lower than usual over swirling gypsy strings. Chinese Sleep Chant dares to obscure his vocals altogether, blurring them beneath a whoosh of echoing guitar that sounds like the shoegazers My Bloody Valentine.

They stray from the usual verse-chorus-verse structure on the three-part 42, which sounds like their own piano ballad Trouble, then launches into a dramatic Radiohead-style guitar breakdown, before settling into a poppy jangle that recalls The Strokes. Lost! mimics the hip hop beats that Martin must have picked up in recent collaborations with Jay-Z and Kanye West, while Strawberry Swing shimmers sweetly with African highlife guitars.

Lyrically, Martin still veers between crushing self-doubt and warm reassurance, rarely coming up with a genuinely striking line. Predictably, the man who recently walked out of an interview when one too many questions was asked about his wife, Gwyneth Paltrow, never obviously refers to her in song, although lyrics such as “Without you it's a waste of time” in Strawberry Swing might touch on her and their young family.

Most impressively, on their most varied album to date, Coldplay are no longer afraid to sound small. Reign of Love, just voice, twinkling piano and wispy ambient sounds from Eno, is among the most beautiful songs they have composed. Viva la Vida's lack of obvious anthems may also end up making them a smaller band sales-wise — but they're definitely a stronger one, too.

 

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/music/article-23491211-details/Off+the+record/article.do

^Thanks Mimi, that was good for the head and heart. At least someone out there gets it.

 

Though they called Kid A dull??!!

 

I think all this proves that you're only as good as your last album. X&Y got high marks because AROBTTH was near perfect. VLV is suffering because X&Y was a letdown for many.

 

...and in both cases first listens are deceptive skewing listening party conclusions- X&Y sounded better than it was on first listen, and VLV needs a couple of listens at least.

 

Come to think of it, all these negative reviews are coming from what's probably the same listening party in London. I bet you all the critics were comparing notes with each other afterwards (or before :( )

Aye, listening party was a bad, bad idea. And it leaked anyway! :dozey:

 

I actually downloaded the album because of all these reviews (I was going to wait), just to see if they were right, and they're not. It's fantastic!

I know, x&y left me feeling all cold at the end, even when I liked it. This one makes me dance around and feel all warm and happy when it's done. I don't see how that could be a bad album.

I loved X&Y when I first had it, I can't deny that. But part of it was because I felt I should...it's still a great album but just too flabby and it tries too hard.

 

This left me feeling wonderful.

 

It's such a shame too, after reading that Mirror review no-one could deny they're being reviewed unfairly. The guy that did that based it on Chris being a tosser and EMI.

I know, x&y left me feeling all cold at the end, even when I liked it. This one makes me dance around and feel all warm and happy when it's done. I don't see how that could be a bad album.

yep when i first listen to X & Y i love it cause its a coldplay album but it left me cold feeling, VLV produce in me the same feeling that i felt what ive listen AROBTTH the first time.and the first impression its what it counts.

Bad reviews annoy me a little, yes, but what I'm REALLY concerned about is the fact that the band may take the reviews the wrong way and decide not to stay the road they're on, in terms of their shift in sound. Personally I like this album a lot better than X&Y and I would hate too see the band lose confidence in themselves, and to see their music suffering as a result, just because of a few idiots who won't take time to pour over an album that deserves more than a single listen.

oh please...rip on the critics. This album is nothing but average and thats how they scored it. it's typical coldplay with an eno twist get over yourselves. and yes i've listened to it with a good pair of head phones. and no its nowhere near the boxer or neon bible. not to mention kid is isnt dull. maybe you guys should consider the fact that everyone here is extremely bias, and would love anything that this band made.

get over yourselves this album is nothing special.

oh please...rip on the critics. This album is nothing but average and thats how they scored it. it's typical coldplay with an eno twist get over yourselves. and yes i've listened to it with a good pair of head phones. and no its nowhere near the boxer or neon bible. not to mention kid is isnt dull. maybe you guys should consider the fact that everyone here is extremely bias, and would love anything that this band made.

get over yourselves this album is nothing special.

good for you i like it and coldplay its not the only band that i listen to.

oh please...rip on the critics. This album is nothing but average and thats how they scored it. it's typical coldplay with an eno twist get over yourselves. and yes i've listened to it with a good pair of head phones. and no its nowhere near the boxer or neon bible. not to mention kid is isnt dull. maybe you guys should consider the fact that everyone here is extremely bias, and would love anything that this band made.

get over yourselves this album is nothing special.

 

This is a Coldplay forum, what did you expect? :lol:

 

If you want a completely unbiased discussion then get it elsewhere ;)

 

If you want to join in here, go ahead, just don't be surprised that's there's so many fans.

I think ALL reviews are bullshit! Music is everything to everyone. Someone might happen to LOVE 'The Scientist', while another person might think it's complete rubbish. Just like with that radio poll of favorite Coldplay songs, they are so varied and random that there is NOT one definitive "BEST" Coldplay song. The way a person feels during the guitar of 'Talk' might not matter in the least to a person who is in love with the lyrics 'life is for discovering, the space in which we're traveling' on Square One. Everyone has a COMPLETELY different history, and each song may mean more to one person and not so much to the other. Such as the lyrics on Violet Hill don't make a lick of sense to me (probably reading too much into them), but to someone else it could be the very meaning of EVERYTHING they've ever gone through in life!

Whoever said 'the only review that matters is my own', is smarter than any pompous Guardian or Times reviewer.

well when i think they put 5 stars for x & y i feel comfortable with the 3 stars :).

I give the album a 4.85/5!! I love it. The only thing why it is not a 5 because only God can achieve perfect status and "42" is just horrible. Along with the beginning of "Yes" but the second part of Yes is awesome. Other than that. THE PERFECT ALBUM.

What I don't get is why does a band have to do something different every time in order for them to be a great band. Every band has a sound. The Edge (a la U2) has a "sound". Even Radiohead has a "sound". Why does it have to sound like a totally different band to be good? Makes no sense to me. I like Coldplay's sound, that's why I listen to them.

I absolutely agree with you, we love Coldplay for its sound, so why change it? :P The new album is far more interesting than XY in my opinion, it seems to be a tendency to criticise Coldplay for it's new record because of all the 5/5 they gave to the previous album...:P

Exactly!! Even the Beatles had a sound...despite their constantly changing musical experiments. (Hell, I have a friend who can't tell the difference between Sgt. Pepper's Beatles and A Hard Day's Night Beatles...it's all the same to him...in his ignorance, of course ;) ) I listen to Coldplay because I want to listen to them...they're the only band who can give me their unique spin on music.