True Love - your review

[Sparky]

I am compiling an ultimate Coldplaying fan review of Ghost Stories.

 

It will be posted on the main site shortly after the best review for each song on the album is picked, your name will be listed in credit should your review be chosen! Closing date is Monday 26th May

 

Get your writing fingers ready! Good luck! :)

 

You can also vote in the poll too, out of 10 which will be interesting as its usually only when a pre-album single is released.

[amljbono]

Anyone else think the beginning of this song sounds like Taylor Swift?

[Troyani]

Anyone else think the beginning of this song sounds like Taylor Swift?

 

I know right?! I think it sounds like "Love Story", which is weird because I dislike that song, but I really love True Love, and I think it's one of the gems of GS, especially the last part with the solo and Chris' voice.

[rafaelchampion]

Deal with the biggest 0 I ever painflully gave anyone in my life.

[Batman]

Deal with the biggest 0 I ever painflully gave anyone in my life.

 

D:

[the_escapist]

Although it starts with kind of some upbeat notes, from the moment Chris starts singing the lyrics one notices that it is going to be heartbreaking song. Probably for such reason, throughout the first minute, the attention is centered on Chris voice and lyrics while those same notes that started the song provide a sense of ambient which suits perfectly. This song is Coldplay at what it probably does best - mellow and sad songs. Will's backing vocals suit perfectly and while listening to the chorus, once can really feel the pain behind the message that the song is trying to convey. And last but not least, and probably out of nowhere, Jonny comes out with the most heartbreaking and original riff he has made up to date. Sounding a bit out of tune, the guitar screams pain and sorrow while Martin sings the last notes and the song ends abruptly. A solid song for a great record. 7/10.

[lennyrott2]

True Love has an identity crisis, and ends up being Ghost Stories' big flop. Relying almost entirely on repetitive, rather ugly staccato synth notes, a Timbaland drumbeat, and a sweeping synthesized orchestration, Chris Martin delivers some decent, painful lyrics. However, they are carried in a hooting falsetto register that completely removes any sentiment from the words, making the resulting melody like that of a middle school opera. It is evident that Coldplay was going for a dreamy, offbeat pop song to match the meaning behind the lyrics, but none of the sounds come together here. The bland guitar and synths at the beginning sound much like a happy Katy Perry back-track while the drumbeat tries hard to give it power, but feels forced. The strings yearn for beauty, and at points they reach it, especially when Jonny's quasi-solo kicks in near the end. The guitar alone has more power than the rest of the track, and is the only interesting spot on this disappointing release.

 

4/10

[Skypala]

True Love has an identity crisis, and ends up being Ghost Stories' big flop. Relying almost entirely on repetitive, rather ugly staccato synth notes, a Timbaland drumbeat, and a sweeping synthesized orchestration, Chris Martin delivers some decent, painful lyrics. However, they are carried in a hooting falsetto register that completely removes any sentiment from the words, making the resulting melody like that of a middle school opera. It is evident that Coldplay was going for a dreamy, offbeat pop song to match the meaning behind the lyrics, but none of the sounds come together here. The bland guitar and synths at the beginning sound much like a happy Katy Perry back-track while the drumbeat tries hard to give it power, but feels forced. The strings yearn for beauty, and at points they reach it, especially when Jonny's quasi-solo kicks in near the end. The guitar alone has more power than the rest of the track, and is the only interesting spot on this disappointing release.

 

4/10

 

Opinions are opinions, but with that said, there are a few things to clear up about your review.

 

1) Those are not "synth" staccato notes at the beginning of the song-- that is jonny plucking his guitar-- so the entire foundation of this song is NOT synth plucking but rather Jonny's guitar, therefore making the song "guitar driven"

 

2) The BASS drum audio sound used electronically by will was RECORDED and created with Timbaland, but the actual drum beat was composed by Will, and is played by him live using the drum pads-- it is not a backing track.

 

3) The sweeping orchestration is not "synthesized" in the least-- it is love strings arranged for the song as recorded by a real orchestra-- this is not another "cheap synth." This is stated in the liner notes as well as shown in this picture on Paul Epworth's (the song's producer) Instagram profile:

 

In the end, I cannot argue with your opinion of the song, but please do not litter your review with accusatory inaccuracies based on the instrumentation which is not even true.

[lennyrott2]

^ You are right, the notes at the beginning are Jonny, but there is also some other sound with the guitar (not sure if is synth or percussion) that I am not fond of. And I do like Will's percussion that he composed, it is the bass beat that was Timbaland's contribution I don't much care for. And I never saw that instagram post-- I will will take back that statement then :) not synthesized orchestra! That is pretty cool to see! Wish I could hear more of that on the track. Still don't love the track though :( But maybe in time it will grow on me a bit more!

[Skypala]

^ You are right, the notes at the beginning are Jonny, but there is also some other sound with the guitar (not sure if is synth or percussion) that I am not fond of. And I do like Will's percussion that he composed, it is the bass beat that was Timbaland's contribution I don't much care for. And I never saw that instagram post-- I will will take back that statement then :) not synthesized orchestra! That is pretty cool to see! Wish I could hear more of that on the track. Still don't love the track though :( But maybe in time it will grow on me a bit more!

 

I hope it does for you as well! :) And by the way I just finished reading all your other reviews for the other songs and I wanted to say that they are excellent reviews and I agree with each of them 100%! :D it's cool seeing someone with the exact same opinion as you, who is able to express in words exactly what I was thinking. I really hope that someday you will maybe like True Love as well :)

[SeeYouSoon42]

True Love, there's not really a lot I can say about this song. There's the odd interesting bit of bass from Guy and Chris' falsetto is again on top form. Solid 8/10

[RhysBP]

True Love would have to be one of the three best songs off the album. It can be compared to older Coldplay as it sees the band going back to pre-Viva days when strings wouldn’t make such a dominating presence.

 

At first, the song sounds like it is continuing on with the upbeat vibe left over from Ink. However, as Martin takes centre stage, you can tell it’s going to be another story of separation agony. The chorus is made up of Martin asking his lover that even if she doesn’t love him, she should lie to him anyway. Ouch! From then on, you can tell that True Love is one of the saddest songs on the album.

 

In similar fashion to Strawberry Swing, the percussion heard on True Love is very minimal but very effective. Featuring a mix of electronic drum beats and a bass drum from an unlikely source in Timbaland, the riff is capped off by what sounds like a hand clap. It doesn’t change much from that formula but its repetition doesn’t seem to drag the song down. You can almost thank the string arrangement for being played at over the top of it.

 

There are two really shining moments on this song, the first being Martin’s falsetto. He doesn’t sing pass the three minute mark but in that short time, his falsetto is magical. It is well exemplified in the chorus, where he draws out the world ‘lie’.

 

The second part occurs not long before the end of the song. Buckland comes in with a demanding guitar solo from that literally slices through the song like a hot knife through butter. If it wasn’t for this solo, the song would’ve petered out very quickly.

 

Overall, this song is so heartbreaking but so addictive to listen to at the same time. I won’t be surprised if this was released as a single in the future.

 

RATING - 5/5

[Lodova]

"True love"

The beginning is quite weird, but after that... Chorus is one of the best, it's so stunning. I feel melancholy here and that's a good sign. I also fell in true love with Jonny and his guitar solo. I can fangirl about it for 56237 hours. And I love live performance of this song. The way how Chris raises his hands like wings... I have to see True love live. And I hope I will.

[Karmen]

This is my favourite by far. I've been playing the song constantly since Monday! I love the music, the lyrics... everything. And what about Jonny's solo? It's magical! I always need a couple seconds to recover after the song ends. I know this will sound weird but, to me, it's like a mix of Parachutes with Mylo Xyloto.

[MosesTheMarshmallow]

^ You are right, the notes at the beginning are Jonny, but there is also some other sound with the guitar (not sure if is synth or percussion) that I am not fond of. And I do like Will's percussion that he composed, it is the bass beat that was Timbaland's contribution I don't much care for. And I never saw that instagram post-- I will will take back that statement then :) not synthesized orchestra! That is pretty cool to see! Wish I could hear more of that on the track. Still don't love the track though :( But maybe in time it will grow on me a bit more!

 

Just to settle the notes at the beginning of the song thing - Jonny is plucking a single note guitar line. A synth keyboard is playing the actual melody. It is not until the end when Jonny plays the synth melody on his guitar (after his solo). This is evidenced if you watch the live performance of the song. So in fact the song is indeed NOT guitar driven even though it could have been (and I wish it was).

 

[video=youtube;sx1jg1BCQ_4]

[getithom]

I'm sure it's just me, but the first verse is very Bob Dylan-esque, which I think plays a large role in my love for this song. Chris' lyrics are at a strongpoint here, and so much so, that it seemed as if this would be a very depressing song musically based off the lyric sheet Coldplay posted previously. It is still sad and depressing, but they managed to make a beautiful juxtapose between lyrics and production. I dig it!

 

2:16 is the part I am constantly singing both out loud and in my head almost all the time since the stream on iTunes. Seriously, I can't get enough of it. It leads so gorgeously into Jonny's wonderful solo that I find myself being amazed with each listen. I fought with myself for a while to decide where to put this in the ranking list, but I can happily say it's my absolute favorite on the album (with B-sides included).

 

5/5

[Nature]

A really beautifull track, the beat is amazing, made by Timbaland, but sounds like Coldplay.

This is at the moment my 2nd fav from this album. It has a really great flow.

[Fabyth09]

This is the best Vocals work of Chris Martin!