Orphans - Sunset

[laxwatcher]

Ah, so you felt the glitch at 1:46 too. I thought something was wrong with my system or something. But when it happened across platforms, I realised that it could be a problem in the track itself.

It's really strange that such a glitch has come through without anyone at Coldplay HQ noticing it.

 

i didn’t notice that good catch! I think it’s hard for someone in the mix process to miss that, so I think it might be intended but I could be wrong. The hand percussion you hear in the chorus has a similar sound signature and could have been used as a way of transitioning between verse and chorus. The entire song seems really well made but has small things like this that seem out of place but don’t bother you if you don’t focus on them, like the way the “boom boom ka “ comes in and ends the song.

I really love the interlude around 2 minutes, just that in itself gives such deep emotions that somehow connects me to the story of orphans of war. I’d love an instrumental of this track at some point.

[alexis16]

It's pop Coldplay without Stargate and overproduction -- something I've been wanting badly for a while now. It's catchy, it's a fun listen, yet it's quite meaningful and sad beneath the upbeat exterior... I'm interpreting it as a song about kids in a war zone who have nowhere to run and just want to live their lives. This is their true Everyday Life versus the Everyday Life they want to live. It kinda compliments ALIENS and Moving to Mars, except these are the folks who can't run.

 

 

It sounds to me like a mishmash of Lovers In Japan, Strawberry Swing, and ETIAW.

 

The melody, especially at the beginning and end, reminded me very much of Lovers in Japan and strawberry Swing.

 

 

lyrics tell powerful and sad story. I will be interested to see how it fits into the whole album.

[the_escapist]

The music video made the song grow on me!

I believe it was the acoustic part in the beginning. That sounds beautiful.

[shred]

The music video made the song grow on me!

I believe it was the acoustic part in the beginning. That sounds beautiful.

Dude same! The music video really got me to see the song in another light. I can’t get it out of my head now. Haha.

[42Escapist]

That music video makes me want to hear a live version that starts acoustic and builds up to the full band.

[HowCouldIForget]

It's especially interesting to me that Orphans is on the Sunset side considering these two lyrics:

"Yes, she had eyes like the Moon"

"Come sailing us home by the light of the Moon"

 

;)

[shred]

That music video makes me want to hear a live version that starts acoustic and builds up to the full band.

Oh man. That would be epic.

[loco23]

I like it but I'm hoping this is the most pop track for the album. I really hope they embrace the experimental side.

[Coeurli]

I loved it on first listen but I genuinely love it more and more now each time I listen.

This song is the most savage I heard Chris be since the Viva era (Violet Hill and Glass of Water's lyrics are SAVAGE af).

I mean...Can you believe he straight up sings lyrics like "Guess we'll be raised on our own then" like WOW

 

Orphans is truly a fascinating song, the more you look at the lyrics, at the concept of it. The accuracy in the portrayal of the bombings and the aftermath for its victims....The song is truly heartbreaking and yet uplifiting at the same time, thanks to the music.

 

And it's so catchy. Ugh. Guy and Jonny absolutely nail this one. Brilliant. I love it.

[oliviyya]

Super catchy and fun, though the lyrics are quite somber. Can't wait to see what the live performances are like, I've already been really into it but I can only imagine that will grow once we hear it in a live setting. Makes me want to spin around in circles, its so light and fun and upbeat, and I love it more each listen. Super duper excited for the rest of the album, hopefully we get more of this experimental-y indie pop, I'm super into it!

[MosesTheMarshmallow]

Love the song! The lyrics are really interesting, and every single word of it, down to the apricot trees, bleeds of Middle East references in a clever way.

 

I wonder how they'll go about performing the chorus bits without the kids always there. I hope it doesn't end up on a backing track. :(

 

Guy and Jonny shine in a huge way! :) You can tell a song is good and has the right simplicity when you can hear the bass even on crappy laptop speakers. Also Jonny's quick little riffs and backwards guitar are so beautiful. Will's backing vocals in the second verse, unlike in many songs (see UATW) are mixed to just the right volume.

[42Escapist]

Please, Coldplay, pleeeeeeeease play this version of Orphans live!

 

[MEDIA=instagram]B4QF34ZH9cN[/MEDIA]

View: https://www.instagram.com/p/B4QF34ZH9cN/?igshid=1icxghaseofot

 

[shred]

Really hope they release this as a b-side!

[The Jordanator]

First Listen: This is some joyful mess I can’t even decipher what Chris is saying.

Watching Music Video: Hey this is pretty cool.

Me now: Bombs going boom boom ba-boom!!!! Woo woo!

[MosesTheMarshmallow]

For the record I don't think 1:46 is a glitch. It's just an abrupt transition because Jonny's guitar comes in a beat or two before the next bar while everything else stops suddenly. I just perceived it as a cool beat drop.

[HurtsLikeHeaven42]

Speaking of that clip they just posted in instagram, I find it interesting that there is a keyboard there. I have a feeling we might see some of this 'garden performance' in the future?

[merril]

I don't know whether anybody has already written about this, but what exactly is the text that can be seen in the background during that part of the video where the kids are dancing on the beach? It seems there are some lines written by Chris and some more lines written by Mat Whitecross.The lines are not the words of the lyrics.

[I ran away]

One week later and I'm still not sure how to feel about this song.

It's not the music I'm concerned with - yes, it is very poppy, somewhere between MX and AHFOD but at least with good production -but the lyrics.

Maybe it's just me but it so doesn't feel right to say "she went Woo woo, woo woo oooh...bombs going boom ba boom boom"

I understand the joyfulness is celebrating orphan kids who make the best of their lives in warzones and don't lose hope, but still...I can't help feeling the lyrics trivialize a deadly conflict (add to that the line "back and get drunk with my friends").

On the other hand, the whole narrative doesn't seem to fit together. We first hear about a girl/young woman, then about a father, then the perspective changes to orphan kids ("Guess we'll be raised on our own then...") and it's hard to understand from the lyrics whether the girl and the father are dead or not, and in which relation they are to the orphans.

 

Tl;dr: it feels too joyful for such dark lyrics and makes me feel uncomfortable

But maybe this is exactly what the song is supposed to convey.

[LelieJens]

Has anyone mentioned that the "Woo woo" part are possibly sirens going off because of a bombing? Or is this already covered somewhere?

 

About the "glitch" around 1:46, as MosesTheMarshmallow said, it is probably just a transition from Jonny to the chorus. I think it's pretty cool.

[MosesTheMarshmallow]

The live performance is super cool on SNL! Without spoiling too much, I'll say the guitar is great if not even better live and Chris's voice sounds good!! And the bass is excellent!

 

One odd detail other posters have picked up on is that Will is using a smaller drumkit with fewer drums, as was noticed in some of the artwork. Not sure what the story on that might be!

 

I don't know whether anybody has already written about this, but what exactly is the text that can be seen in the background during that part of the video where the kids are dancing on the beach? It seems there are some lines written by Chris and some more lines written by Mat Whitecross.The lines are not the words of the lyrics.

 

It's been said these are emails between the band and Mat about what should go in the video! If you look closely there's some commentary about the panning, shots, etc. And the lyrics of course.

 

Has anyone mentioned that the "Woo woo" part are possibly sirens going off because of a bombing? Or is this already covered somewhere?

 

About the "glitch" around 1:46, as MosesTheMarshmallow said, it is probably just a transition from Jonny to the chorus. I think it's pretty cool.

 

Hadn't thought about that but that makes a lot of sense! It does sound quite a bit like air sirens/alarms.

[merril]

It's been said these are emails between the band and Mat about what should go in the video! If you look closely there's some commentary about the panning, shots, etc. And the lyrics

Thanks!

[merril]

I am slightly worried about the band playing 'Orphans' live in Jordan.

The influx of more than 1.3 million Syrian refugees into Jordan with ist 9.7 million inhabitants is not without problems, Jordan itself being a poor country.

 

And now comes a band from far away Britain singing a happy song - happy as far as the music goes - about Syrian people who just want to 'get drunk with (their) friends'. People in Syria and Jordan are Muslims for whom it is forbidden to drink alcohol. I am not sure how they will react.

But probably the audience will mainly consist of Western people and the whole concert will take place 'behind closed doors' with nobody in the Arab world taking notice of it.

 

I do voluntary work for Syrian refugees at the weekend and we were always told to be very cautious when alluding to the war and what the people have been through because many of them are traumatised.

 

It's a great venture and risk Coldplay is taking. I hope everything will go well on November 22nd.

It would be great if the band donated some of the money they earn with their new album for Syrian refugees.

[I ran away]

singing a happy song - happy as far as the music goes - about Syrian people who just want to 'get drunk with (their) friends'. People in Syria and Jordan are Muslims for whom it is forbidden to drink alcohol.

I was worried about that from the start, to be honest. Although at least in Syria most people are moderately religious and the government is pretty secular, I really wonder why Coldplay are paying a cultural adviser for the Middle East and then still come up with this kind of (imho) blunder.

So many more beautiful words would have fitted much better than 'drunk', was it really necessary to include something so sensitive ?

This line is one of the reasons why I still don't really like Orphans, tbh.

 

But yes, unfortunately I think it will be a closed performance in a studio.

[Jdckcom]

So, according to Chris' interview on Radio.com this song was suposed to be part of the band's next project (LP9) but they decided to include it in "Everyday Life".

 

It's interesting because it seemed to me that this song was part of the core theme for the rest of the album but aparently it was a late addition.

[I ran away]

So, according to Chris' interview on Radio.com this song was suposed to be part of the band's next project (LP9) but they decided to include it in "Everyday Life".

 

It's interesting because it seemed to me that this song was part of the core theme for the rest of the album but aparently it was a late addition.

Oh dear. That makes me worry about the sound of LP9, and LP9 will be the album that gets the big tour...yikes.