Coldplay & U2

[gs10.sandhu]

I don't know if this is entirely worth a new thread but I'm fairly new on here so if I'm breaking a rule feel free to remove this. Now with that being said an interesting thought that came to my mind...

 

I'm also a huge U2 fan as well and it's known that U2 has had a profound influence on Coldplay as a band. Especially how Johnny models some of his playing like the edge in the use of delay and what not. I can't help but think how Coldplay followed a similar pattern of U2's which in the 80's came out with some of their best music notably The Joshua Tree being their most famous album of the 80's. I can't help but compare the Joshua tree to something like Viva La Vida because both of the follow ups were albums that experienced a change in style and music. U2 was known for lots of experimentation in the 90's with albums like Zooropa and Pop and it seems that in their second decade of being around Coldplay seems to be heavily experimenting as well. The point I'm trying to get across here is U2 in the 00's began to go back to similar sounding songs that they had in the 80's (to an extent) and their style in general became a bit toned down. Do you guys think the 2010's is a decade of experimentation with Coldplay and that in the 2020's we can see more albums coming out similar to AROBTTH Parachutes X&Y etc? Just an interesting though/theory that came to mind, I would love to hear what you guys think about it.

[AMDB9]

I'm not too familiar with U2, but I would love it if Coldplay decided to follow the same pattern! Great theory!! :)

[42Escapist]

That's a great theory. :) U2 are probably my 2nd favorite band so I've also noticed similarities in their respective career paths. However, to me Coldplay's Joshua Tree was always AROBTTH, and their Achtung Baby was Viva La Vida. It was a major era for them and it was the one that put them on top of the world of music at the time. Both Coldplay and U2 had a less critically acclaimed album immediately after (X&Y and Rattle and Hum). Just like X&Y is heavily modeled off of its predecessor, Rattle and Hum was a further exploration of the American themes present in The Joshua Tree. After both albums, the two bands made a drastic change in sound and began experimenting far more than they ever had before. I remember a quote from Coldplay in the Viva La Vida era where they said that they were trying not to sound much like the Coldplay everyone knew before. It reminded me a lot of how U2 described Achtung Baby: the sound of four men chopping down The Joshua Tree. Viva started Coldplay's departure from alternative rock. Likewise, Achtung Baby started U2's adventure in the 1990's. Coldplay's Zooropa was Mylo Xyloto because it was an even further departure, and it could be argued that Ghost Stories was their Original Soundtracks Volume 1 (U2's mid-90's side project with Brian Eno, for readers who don't know what it is). I guess that would make AHFOD their Pop. Hopefully AHFOD will at least be better received than Pop ever was (I adore that album but at the time nobody really understood what U2 were trying to do). Perhaps if Coldplay go on an extended hiatus after AHFOD, they might return to their older style when they get back. Chris has said that everything he does is a "Bono move" so he might steer his own band in the same direction.

[Guest howyousawtheworld]

U2's experimentation was always a bit more unconventional. While Coldplay have more or less followed the same formula throughout their career, Achtung Baby represented a bigger departure in that it discarded a previous formula to create a new one. That album along with the accompanying follow up Zooropa represents U2 at their very best. While The Joshua Tree represented the best of songwriting, AB and Zooropa represented the best of reinvention. What wins the Achtung Baby era over The Joshua Tree era is undoubtedly the mind boggling, era defining Zoo TV tour that accompanied AB described as 'The Sgt Pepper of Live shows'. Please - if you haven't got U2's material please get all of it. The transformations from Boy to Pop (in 9 albums between 1980-1997) is one of the great adventures of musical discovery and growth. A lot of people tend to define U2 in their post 2000 guise. Their post 2000 guise is merely that of a band that knew they'd pretty much achieved it all and decided to have some fun. And even then they have still made some ear pleasing stuff.

 

Coldplay have never had departures on the grand scale as U2 in the early 90s. Their's has been a gradual progression through certain soundscapes. They've never really departed from the road they've taken. It's been typically Coldplay - smooth and successful. It's like one long novel as opposed to the shorter but greater impact novels of U2.

[SehnStar]

I've found my favorite thread...!!!

 

I'm a huge fan of U2 also and I always found myself comparing them as well.

 

I feel like one of the interesting differences in progressing musically is that U2 made their first album younger than Coldplay was by the time their first album came out. When U2 were 22 they had already done 2 albums.

 

And it's interesting how Coldplay became famous much quicker- after their first album, Yellow Single. Not that U2 didn't become famous after Boy, but their true launch into world fame is arguably the Joshua Tree.

 

On another note, whenever the two collide it makes me ridiculously happy!!

 

It is interesting to me, the similarities,

such as both working with Brian Eno/ Anton Corbjin

[gs10.sandhu]

Obviously my theory was somewhat broad and general and I did not go into depth on HOW each band experimented and WHAT it was they exactly did. This was a theory that literally came to mind while I was laying in bed and I couldn't sleep. It's a very general and broad theory and it was more so focused on how they started experimenting in almost identical time periods and the fact that it may lead to coldplays music being a bit toned down in the 2020's. That being said I love that I'm getting good feedback and discussion on my first ever thread that I have created. I appreciate it and keep the discussion going! Anything U2/Coldplay related! Thanks:)

[ColdplaySoCal]

Coldplay Coldplay Coldplay

She'd dream of para-para-paradise

Para-para-paradise

Para-para-paradise

[Guest howyousawtheworld]

Obviously my theory was somewhat broad and general and I did not go into depth on HOW each band experimented and WHAT it was they exactly did. This was a theory that literally came to mind while I was laying in bed and I couldn't sleep. It's a very general and broad theory and it was more so focused on how they started experimenting in almost identical time periods and the fact that it may lead to coldplays music being a bit toned down in the 2020's. That being said I love that I'm getting good feedback and discussion on my first ever thread that I have created. I appreciate it and keep the discussion going! Anything U2/Coldplay related! Thanks:)

 

It's a good discussion thread to start off and welcome to the forum by the way! Coldplay take big inspiration from U2 and there's a lot of similarities between the two bands particularly in terms of relationships within the two bands.

 

What's most noticeable about the two bands is that any ego Chris Martin or Bono both have, they both direct it towards the bands they are a part of rather than indulging themselves at the expense of the band and the inevitable fractures that comes with it.

 

Likewise there's a clear relationship between frontman and guitarist and how well they complement each other.

[jjmor95]

Coldplay & U2

 

Didn't see this thread. U2 and Coldplay are my favorite bands, and they're literally the soundtrack to many important moments in my life. No clue where I would be without those two.

[gs10.sandhu]

Didn't see this thread. U2 and Coldplay are my favorite bands, and they're literally the soundtrack to many important moments in my life. No clue where I would be without those two.

 

I can definitely relate with you on that. Conveniently ghost stories came out during a rough patch In my life so the album was on repeat and it helped me get through stuff. I had ghost stories, with or without you, sometimes you can't make it on your own, and I still haven't found what I'm looking for all on repeat Lol. Music definitely helps you get through stuff, especially when it's from bands as good as u2 and Coldplay

[trojanchick99]

I too am a fan of both bands, with U2 being my all time favorite band. I've honestly, never heard the similarity between them outside of the "bigness" of the sound. I know they were an influence and that at least Chris is a huge fan.

 

And yeah, I can't really compare their careers. U2 for sure was more experimental, especially in the '90s. What is similar is that their big breakthroughs sounded nothing like what was big at the time. Parachutes was piano driven FFS. I still remember hearing Yellow for the first time on radio and being completely taken aback at what I was hearing. It was love at first listen. It was the same with The Joshua Tree. It sounded nothing like what was big at the time.

[SehnStar]

I can definitely relate with you on that. Conveniently ghost stories came out during a rough patch In my life so the album was on repeat and it helped me get through stuff. I had ghost stories, with or without you, sometimes you can't make it on your own, and I still haven't found what I'm looking for all on repeat Lol. Music definitely helps you get through stuff, especially when it's from bands as good as u2 and Coldplay

 

 

I totally agree. It's hard to compare them about their careers and musically (though I am biased haha)

But I think what draws me to both of the bands and why I think people compare them - not just for their sounds, because I think they sound different- is because of how they operate (the band chemistry, their attitudes) and how they impact people, especially fans.

 

Everytime I talk to U2 or Coldplay fans, i hear lots of amazing stories about how each band helped them through a difficult experience. And I know every time I go through a difficult time I lean on their songs and they help me through.

 

And I think one of the things Chris said (I think it was in the live 2012), about how people come to see the bands for their chemistry and that is a very important part of it.

 

U2 and Coldplay both have that spark (no pun intended) about them and you can tell by just looking at the band and how they interact that they are close. Thats something they have in common that is really special. There aren't too many bands that have been together as long as they have (especially U2!)

[42Escapist]

After reading the Wall Street Journal's interview with Chris, I am really convinced that they are now at the Zooropa/Pop stage of their career. U2 couldn't have sounded more different on those albums in comparison to their 80's work. There was this drive to go above and beyond with experimentation while staying true to the themes of their past music. Coldplay are doing the same thing. They're just having a great time stretching their musical limits and doing things they would've never dreamt of 10 years ago.

 

Didn't see this thread. U2 and Coldplay are my favorite bands, and they're literally the soundtrack to many important moments in my life. No clue where I would be without those two.

 

Same! I discovered U2 because out of all the bands my parents loved, they were the one band that I for whatever reason enjoyed hearing as a young kid. My early memories of listening to music were mostly of hearing All That You Can't Leave Behind, The Unforgettable Fire, and Achtung Baby playing in the car. I suppose I was bred to be a fan, so they are probably tied with Coldplay as my favorite artist.